LGP events at Stocken Farm Barn

click Organisations for others

click Lacey Green Productions for details of the company

click Charity Events for other fund raising events for charity.

click LGP events at Stocken Farm Barn

click LGP Dinner Theatre evenings in the Village Hall.

click LGP Murder Mystery evenings in the Village Hall

click Charity performances at Chipko for performances there

also click LGP events at the Village Hall

Shows reported below are :- 1983 Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat; 1984 The Wizard of Oz; 1986 Toad of Toad Hall; 1988 Blitz; 1992 The Ragged Child;

1994 Sweeny Todd; 1996 Dazzle;

It was a performance in 1983 of Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in Stocken Farm barn that inspired the creation of Lacey Green Productions. Click 1983 Joseph in Stocken Barn for a report of the show.

Hallmark August 1984. Report of 'The Wizard of Oz'. No sign-posts were necessary to show us to the barn for the three performances of the "wizard of Oz" in mid-July. We just joined the throng of people who "followed the yellow brick road" to an evening of sheer enchantment.

We sat in a barn, filled to capacity, but were soon transported, as if by magic, to another land. It was difficult to remember it was only make-believe as the life-like scenery and fascinating lighting and sound effects played tricks with our minds. £650 sent to Helen House Hospice

Hallmark 1986. Toad of Toad Hall. July 2nd, 3rd. 4th, 5th, 1986. A profit of £1041 from four nights of a full theatre £800 will go to Helen House Hospice, keeping the balance for repair and replacement of equipment. It is pleasing that we have contributed £1450 to Helen House in the last three years and in addition have donated to Ethiopia and the Abbey-field Society.

Hallmark August 1988. Blitz. Letter to the Editor from Peter Trotter, Mandara, Main Road, Lacey Green. click Peter & Lilian Trotter for more about Peter.

Dear Ted,

I must confess, the prospect of 2 hours in a draughty ban with amateur entertainers was not my idea of spending a Saturday evening. How wrong I was. The show was brilliant, well paced and held my attention - in fact time flew by.

I must confess I lost my heart to a lady; 4 feet nothing; a bundle of exquisite talent, word perfect, knew exactly what she had to do, and was determined to extract everything from her moment of glory. A delightful memory of a superb evening's entertainment - congratulations to all involved.

Hallmark 1992 The Ragged Child. In a scene in the House of Lords where young Lord Shaftsbury, very ably played by Robert Lenko, is eloquently pleading for the poor and the children in particular, (others implying that it is their own fault) someone states “You can lead a beast to water” and another finishes “but you can't make him drink.

Well, you can put youngsters on a stage but you can't produce a lively show unless they are enjoying it, much less give enjoyment to an audience. The enjoyment of all was very apparent from the start to the notaltogether happy finish, from the point of view of the story, and there was still laughter and happy singing, despite the sombre theme. It was Nel Panter's wish that this show should be staged and Lacey Green Productions "did 'er proud". The story of deprived people in the filthy streets and lodging houses of London in the mid-19th Century made us aware of the struggle to stay alive, to find enough money to pay for a night's lodging and something to eat, with disease and death hovering and prison or deportation just around the corner for even small crimes. Temptations and wickedness were all around but there was a cameradery also and even a grasping landlady could find it possible to be kind in extreme circumstances.

As always with L.G.P. the hard work behind the show was evident. Imagine faking more than a couple of dozen children and teaching them words and music, choreographing their every movement and discipling them absolutely so they are quiet when they have to be, make exactly the right movements, never make ones which spoil an effect or ruin a scene for other actors. Some have been in the company for quite a time, have been in plays and shows before and certainly attended the theatre workshops, so are aware of what is required. Others were new to such things but most of the teenagers were experienced, as were the adults. How nice to see people whose children performed and brought parents to help in other ways now "treading the boards" very successfully. The efforts of learning and rehearsal produced excellent results and I hardly heard a prompt, in fact in the two performances I saw it was only once obvious when someone "dried" and there was nothing in the way of technical hitches that could not be easily covered. This is all the more remarkable when the amount of "doubling" is considered. It was not possible or even desirable to disguise completely a character, so we could see the changes and admire all the more the slickness of them and the personality taken on each time. Three actors amongst good ones were outstanding because of the numbers of quick changes they made and their performances. Sue Putman, Peter Brookhouse and Peter Lawrence.

Two characters retained their personas throughout all those changes round them, the Patterer (Madeline Tate) and the Crossing Sweeper (Ray Gosling) and gave continuity, the Patterer mainly in song, the Sweeper in a part which required a feat of retention of lines and cues in a part which was given all the cheekiness, pathos and sensitivity it required. Lord Shaftesbury had long and dramatic speeches and his acting and sincerity shone through; he looked the part and if we have not seen him in previous productions, it seems certain we shall in future.

Hallmark July 1994. Sweeney Todd report by Peter Lawrence.

Many of you will have seen our “Shock 'n' Roll" version of the eighteenth century classic joke, Sweeney Todd. We feel satisfied that we have produced another successful play to a total house of over 900 in six performances, despite a number of other local activities during the week.

We would like to express our thanks, and those of the village, to John and Joan West for the biannual intrusion on their property, and particularly for agreement to the barn modifications we had to complete to comply with fire regulations.

This was probably our most sophisticated production yet; the set back-cloth, lighting and sound effects were all spectacular, thanks to a dedicated team of artists and technicians. The production involved all age groups in the village, and we admire the stamina of the younger members of the cast, who can be forgiven the occasional yawn during the later performances.

We expect to donate around £2,000 to our chosen’ charities: the Chilterns Multiple Sclerosis Centre and the Lacey Green and Loosley Row Children's Playground Fund.

So now Mrs Lovett and Sweeney Todd have learnt that crime doesn't pay, the stage is cleared and our theatre will once again be filled with grain – and now we start to think about next year: did somebody suggest making a film....? (before that, however, a children's play is planned for this Autumn – look out for further details).

Hallmark July 1994. Sweeney Todd Shock 'n' Roll Show. Review. I hope the title "Sweeney Todd Shock 'n' Roll Show did not discourage people from going to see it, thinking it might be mainly very loud "pop" music. If you enjoyed The Ragged Child, indeed, all the other super productions of L.G.P., you would have enjoyed this one. The same high standards and talents were evident, following a great deal of hard work, much harder in the heat and humidity of this July. The singing had verve and was not so different to some we enjoyed in The Ragged Child.

As Always, Peter Brookhouse was outstanding in the lead part of Sweeny Todd but Rachel Panter was a wonderful Mrs. Wilhemina (does the name lose its second "I" in English? ). Lovett, the piemaker, so good in fact that I do admit to doubts about her cooking now. I know she has a deservedly good reputation as an excellent caterer ----- but perhaps I'll avoid pies. Of course I am joking. This show, as with any pantomime (which is what it was) and many shows, including The Ragged Child, takes a story of wickedness, makes fun of and with it and the good and the righteous win in the end. Like Punch and Judy and other shows for children, it cannot have the implication of violence washed out but violence is not as obvious as in much T.V., including cartoons, and does not succeed.

While all the adults were excellent, especially Peter Lawrence as The Amazing Alonzo, Ray Gosling as the Police Constable, among other parts, and Rob Lenko as Tommy the Sailor, it is always so gratifying to see the young people showing such talent and maturity, like Alistair Reed as Billy a Jolly Jack Tar, who somehow survives the realistic tipping down to the cellar, not being “polished off” first. Zettie Clark was the Barber's Apprentice constantly trying to raise sympathy from the audience by pleading she ‘is only young’, Rachel Lawrence was Angelina, the Piemaker's Assistant – an exploited immigrant. Kirsty Thompson played the part of the Sorcerer's Apprentice for some performances but Miranda Piercey was the actor with the enterprise when I saw the show, while Anna Saxton was the crafty Pickpocket. Nick Lawrence as Orlando, the Sorcerer's Faithful Hound entered into his part with gusto, although the part must have been difficult in the heat as he wore a stifling, furry costume; Nick delighted the audience, roused their sympathies and put an enormous amount of energy into the part. On that score, I must say the whole cast put in. much energy, despite the weather, showing no signs of flagging even as they all ran down the aisle at the end of the show. With that much keenness, they deserved the support they received.

Margaret Probyn appeared most regally as Queen Victoria and Brian Panter had a cameo part as the "Keeper of the Madhouse at Peckham", surprisingly enough a Welshman, while there were other familiar faces in the cast as well as a few newcomers to the stage here, some of whom may have been more in the background previously. Some also turned their hands to other necessary roles, like designing and dealing with tickets and programmes, advertising and so on. Without people on the less glamorous side of the production, people who deal with building the stage for instance, obtaining and handling props, costumes etc. the show could not go on. Congratulations to the Director, Val Brookhouse and Musical Director Jason Lawrence. Chris Saxton on Lights, with Mike Robbins on sound worked hard as usual. Not every name can be mentioned here but there were very many people involved backstage who contributed greatly to the success of the show. Clever scenery and effects, like the tipping chair, must be mentioned certainly. Madeleine Tate as "Prompt" (and labelled so) needed very little if at all in performances I think, very necessary in rehearsals but not usually seen, appeared on stage more than once in very amusing ways, a clever touch.

L.G.P. have helped a number of worthwhile charities in the past, and two more will benefit from this years show, but of course the company has done quite a bit for children, teenagers and the family in general over the years. Their activities, especially when a whole family is involved, are not only character building – in more ways than one – but are a splendid way for children and adults to interact and enjoy themselves in a safe environment, the end product giving pleasures to others.

The proceeds from 'Sweeney Todd' were divided between £500 to the Chitern Multiple Sclerosis Centre : £1000 to the Village Playground Appeal : and £500 to the Village Hall. The Village Playground Appeal Fund contribution was boosted by proceeds from the "Command Premier Performance" of Sweeney Todd given to an invited audience of John & Joan West.

Hallmark August 1996 Dazzle – A Musical Space-Tacular. Review by Madeline Cleave

A lovely summer evening in July, a stroll down to Stocken Farm to see a lively show - what could be better? Actually, there could hardly have been a worse evening: lightning thunder, heavy rain making fast flowing rivers everywhere, how much better to stay at home and watch “the box” in comfort. Oh well, | couldn’t miss it, whatever happened.

Many more people braved the awful weather (wonderful for the gardens) and the barn was full, as far as | could see, for the Friday performance. Some of us wondered what it would feel like if the grain dryer were to be switched on, as we sat in wet clothes and shoes. Perhaps some of the production team might have roasted and that would have marred the performance rather more than somewhat as a large part of the show's success was due to them, the effects were marvellous.

As with the last show, some people feared they would not enjoy "that type of thing" and they missed something very good. It seems the titles misled some and yet someone this year told me she did not think she would like the show, felt she had to support the company, then found she really enjoyed it.

This was not a serious science fiction musical, how could it be? Gilbert & Sullivan poked fun at the establishment of the day with predictable plots and complicated relationships, mix-ups which all come right in the end. Similar ploys were used in this musical somewhat differently, referring to personnel and scenarios of well-known T.V. shows. We saw people like "Mr. Speck" (James Moorcroft) with his deadpan face and funny ears, "Mohammed McToxic" came out boxing air and proclaiming he was the greatest it was hard to recognise Peter Lawrence under the dreadlocks. Mr. Suey had to maintain his sing-song delivery all through and that must have been difficult at times for Ray Gosling. I could go on but you probably get the picture.

It was very good to see David Stacey carrying off his lead part "Captain Sam" completely naturally and seriously, which made it funnier of course, with the girls fawning round him and almost swooning at his words of command. Ann Gosling who was "Dazzle Star" gave the performance we would expect, as did some of the other leads we are used to seeing: Rachel Panter, Katie Brookhouse, Alison Stacey, Peter Brookhouse and Madeline Tate, while Edward Crooks, a natural comedian, appeared in various guises. Smaller parts with Ann Long, Sue Putnam, Jill Gosling, Miranda Piercy and Rachel Lawrence were well played and Tamsin Ridge, Karla Huddy and Katie Lenko did well. Mari Cheesman who made her debut as "Rita" was impressive. Newcomer Nigel Ridge was “Sekurikor" as well as “Swampey" and we shall probably see more of him in future. Someone who has been in every show from "Over the Rainbow" is Rebecca Gosling, never very obvious although a talented performer, especially in dance; it was therefore a pleasure to see her not so retiring but in the forefront, leading us into the amusing story which borrows from many ideas of over-the-top science fiction.

As always, it is so nice to see whole families involved in LGP, some showing much talent and if some are only taking little parts or in chorus now and their names are not mentioned here, we can see what there is to come, especially when big brother or sister or mother and father have led the way. I would feel too old now for some of the energetic work and the commitment needed for LGP but there was Diana Ronianski stepping out with the best of them, taking a part and putting great energy into the chorus work.

The audience was very appreciative, they must have been to turn up and stay that evening, but they were rather typically British, did not laugh easily, yet there was so much to laugh at I felt conspicuous. That rather zany humour appeals to me. I must admit a few jokes did not come over well, probably when the speaker turned away from the audience. I am sure the cast really enjoyed performing and brought off a space-tacular success: The songs were really tuneful and came over well, the arrangements enhancing the performances, particularly by the small group of girls from the crew of "Sunburster One". LGP member, Nick Curwin, was responsible for composing and orchestrating some very good songs and other music as well as orchestrating original music and writing jingles. The whole team on the production side made a large contribution and Director Val Brookhouse, Producer Madeleine Tate, can feel satisfied that so many backstage people could work together and with the cast in another excellent production.