London has a rich and vibrant theatre scene, and this includes a number of amateur companies and venues.
This interview is the fourth in a series travelling around the capital to highlight what’s going on in non-professional theatre in the capital, and how these companies and venues work.
Today, I chat with the Chair of the Marketing Group at Sedos, Pippa Kyle. Sedos is “an ambitious, vibrant and inclusive London theatre society”.
Can you tell us something about how Sedos started, and how it has evolved into what it is now?
Sedos stands for the Stock Exchange Dramatic and Operatic Society. The society was founded in 1905 by senior members of the stock exchange, as the in-house drama group of the stock exchange.
At its height the society mounted four large-scale productions each year at the Scala Theatre – a 1000-seat theatre just off Tottenham Court Road which has sadly since been demolished – attended by members of the Royal family and employed a full-time general secretary.
These days our membership includes an eclectic mix of people from many different professions. We stage seven to 10 shows a year, both plays and musicals, and chiefly perform at the Bridewell Theatre, although we also tour to other venues.
Everyone involved – including trustees, management committee members, directors, musical directors, choreographers and producers – is an unpaid volunteer.
You use the Bridewell Theatre a lot to stage shows. What’s that like as a venue to perform and develop shows in?
We have been the resident theatre company at the Bridewell for more than 15 years and generally perform there for nine or 10 weeks a year.
It’s a characterful, intimate space which can be used in so many different ways – even with the standard seating set-up, our members come up with a huge variety of different sets every year so it never feels the same twice.
The seats can also be moved to allow for even greater feats of imagination to come to life (for example, for our production of Company in May this year, when the theatre will be transformed into Bobby’s apartment).
Because the Bridewell isn’t a purpose-built theatre, there are challenges involved in working there – for example, there isn’t a great deal of wing space – but with a little imagination a huge amount can be achieved. The fact a lot of backstage and creative teams know the venue so well is also a big advantage.
What about your programming? What would a typical season look like and how do you choose which productions to stage?
A typical season would involve two two-week musicals, two one-week musicals and three one-week plays, but there can be variety within that – for example, we sometimes stage “big” plays over two weeks, as this year with the two-part epic Angels in America (19-28 November).
We are a pitch-led society, so each summer the committee call out for creative teams to pitch the shows they want to put on and the committee then choose the following year’s season from the shows which are pitched.
There are a lot of considerations in choosing the season, including giving opportunities to as many of our community as possible on and off stage, ensuring balance of different types of show, staging bold, imaginative productions which push boundaries, as well as financial considerations and which titles will sell well.
What kinds of audiences are attracted to your shows? Do you aim for a particular demographic or type, and how do you go about reaching them?
We’re realistic that about 70% or even more of tickets are sold to friends and family of cast members, but we also know that doesn’t just happen and you have to give cast members material to sell the show.
Beyond that, both Sedos and the Bridewell Theatre have a following who will attend our shows and we will market particular shows to certain targeted groups (for example, this year we are offering captioned and relaxed performances of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and we will reach out to groups who may be attracted to those access performances).
In terms of marketing, our main strands are print (flyers and poster, primarily at the theatre), email (we have a regular Friday newsletter and then occasional extra mailings to a wider mailing list), social media and press (listings and reviewers).
Each show will have a marketing lead and these leads are supported by our marketing group, who provide the structure and platforms for our marketing effort such as the website, newsletter and social media channels, and who work on more general marketing of the society.
Do you think the amateur theatre scene is in a good place now? What would improve it?
Yes, I think it’s in a good place – the quality of work being done by amateur companies in central London is pretty incredible and rivals a lot of professional shows.
The talent both on and off stage is inspiring. There’s a lot of co-operation between the different groups, with many members of our community doing shows with several different companies depending on what attracts them and where they are cast.
In terms of what would improve it, Sedos previously had use of a rehearsal, build and storage space, which gave a lovely feeling of continuity for cast members and allowed production teams to build sets or make costumes in the same space where rehearsals also took place, which improved communication and the social side and gave us the luxury of rehearsing with set, costumes and props.
We no longer have that space, but I think having something like that again might be on a wish list for quite a few people.
What are the main advantages and challenges of working in amateur theatre?
The big advantage is the friendships you make – all my best friends in London are people I have met through Sedos and our friendships now go far beyond working on shows, with holidays together, nights out, parties, theatre trips (or course!), lunches and all the support such a network of friends brings.
Working on shows is a very rewarding hobby in terms of seeing something come together and gives people the chance to be creative, to step outside their day-to-day lives and do something different.
The biggest challenge is money! Putting on amateur theatre becomes more expensive every year and we want to keep being part of a show or seeing a production as accessible as possible, which means we don’t want to hike up fees for cast members or ticket prices.
Budgets are very tight, which is always tough for all our production teams.
What has been your proudest moment at Sedos?
In 2019, I went down to the Minack Theatre in Cornwall to help out with Sedos’s first show there, A Swell Party.
During the dress rehearsal, I took a wander around the high up seats, from which you can see down to the stage and far out to sea beyond, and I had a sudden weepy moment of pride in what we had created and everything we achieve.
It was strange because I wasn’t actually even a core member of that show’s team, although it certainly inspired me and led to me co-producing our Minack show last year, The Pirate Queen.
I also always feel very proud when I sneak up onto the lighting balcony during a sold-out Bridewell show and look down on the audience and think, “We made this happen.”