CUDOS February news letter

CHAIRS CHAT

Hi everyone, I was so honoured, at the end of last

week, to represent CUDOS at the funeral of Nick

Dyke. It was a beautiful service for a very special

man. Our thoughts remain with his wife Trudy and

sons Paul and James who did him proud. Thank

you Trudy for all you and your family have done

for both our original society CAOS and then

CUDOS, over many years. Our panto’s done and

dusted, oh yes it is, and a big thank you to all

involved with that, you did us proud. Good luck to

our groups entering the One Act Play Festival in

March, we have both an adult entry and also a

youth entry, which is great news for us. In April, it

will be full speed ahead with preparing for our next

musical, Little Shop of Horrors. The show will be

brought to us by Charmaine, as Director, Lucy S as

MD and Lisa as choreographer, a great

combination again.

Our AGM is on 27th March, again details as below.

Hope to catch up with lots of you there. I will not

be standing as Chair again as I have completed my

three year term of office. Thank you so much for

entrusting CUDOS to me over the last three years,

it’s been an honour to both continue to lead our

society forward and also to represent you at events

such as that mentioned above. Take care everyone

and stay safe and well, Spring really can only be

round the corner, can’t it? Dendyx

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

The AGM will be held on the 27th March in the

Victoria Hall at 7.30 for 7.45

You are eligible to stand for Committee or to vote

if you are a Life Member or a fully paid up member

(membership paid since March 2024). A voting

form is attached for eligible persons.

Junior members and patrons are welcome to come

along and it will be nice to see you. At the close of

the meeting there is an opportunity to catch up with

friends over a glass of wine.

There will be a draw on the night so please bring

cash if you wish to buy tickets.

PANTOMIME - SNOW WHITE

Another great success performing to full houses

and enjoyed by all. The Chairman's Cup was

awarded to Ryan Andrews for his contribution to

Panto on and off the stage.

TASKMASTER

A thoroughly enjoyable evening, congratulations to

the winning team ‘Parental Guidance’

(Helen,Vikki, Jack, Nick, Ryan, Karen). An

incredible amount of work was put into this

fundraising event for Little Shop of Horrors by the

Taskmaster team. Thank you so much Lucy S,

Fred, Charmaine, Lisa G, Will P, Molly and John.

The total amount raised was £807.95great work

everyone.

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

9th - 13th September inc Matinee

Wed 2 Apr Info night/Company singing & dancing

Thu 3 April Principal songs

Mon 7 April Solo singing - individual slots

Thu 10 April Recoup of all audition material

All at 7.30pm in the Victoria Hall

Sun 13 April Auditions commencing 11am

Wed 23 April 1st rehearsal

Cast must be 16+ prior to opening night

Please keep an eye on our Facebook and Instagram

pages for further information.

The CUDOS Charity for the Year

ARK at Egwood, Merriott

ARK is for everyone with all ages, needs and

abilities, a safe space for promoting good health

and wellbeing. We raised £400 from the Murder

Mystery evening and the Christmas card box (this

is at Panto rehearsals in which people can make a

donation in lieu of sending Christmas cards).

News Letter Jan 25

NEWSLETTER ISSUE NO: 203

Affiliated to the National Operatic and Dramatic Association, and Somerset Fellowship of Drama

CHAIRS CHAT

Hi Everyone, wishing you all a slightly belated Happy New Year, looking forward to a great year ahead. It’s Panto time again so I hope you’ve bought your tickets to come and watch, if not make sure you buy them very soon. Well done to all involved in the Christmas Concert in whatever way. We were delighted it was a sell out especially when it was the final of Strictly on the Saturday. Take care everyone, stay safe and I hope free from the nasty series of bugs that are going around. Look forward to catching up with lots of you at our pantomime. Dendyx

CHRISTMAS CONCERTWell received and enjoyed by all. Congratulations to Helen and Sue who put it all together and directed, and thanks to Hilary the pianist who joined the cast on stage. Thank you also to all who helped in any way, there are many things involved in putting on a production done by many unsung heroes.

PANTOMIME - SNOW WHITE 22ND - 25TH JANIt’s almost here, Oh yes it is!! Much fun is being had at rehearsals. Panto tickets available from cudoscrewkerne.com or from Wendy on 01460 74380. price £12 (£10 concession) Any problems email us on cudostickets@gmail.com Dont miss out on the chance to see this fun panto.

ONE ACT PLAY

We are entering 2 plays in the One Act Play Festival being staged in Ilminster Playhouse on the 22nd/23rd March. Fred Broom is to direct Gum and Goo by Howard Benton.

The Junior Group is also entering and will start preparations this week.

LITTLE SHOP OF HORRORS

Attached are the Key dates for the above production.

CUDOS does TASKMASTER!Sat 15 Feb, doors 7pm for 7.30 start, at Victoria Hall.£5 per person, teams of 6 to take part in the tasks or come along as an audience member only for £3. Ages 16+Bar will be open. Tickets available from www.ticketsource.co.uk/cudoscrewkerneThis is a fundraiser for Little Shop of Horrors and open to members/patrons/general public. The evening is based on the Taskmaster TV show but you don't have to have seen it to enjoy the evening! There will be a variety of tasks, set by our taskmaster's assistant and judged by our very excellent taskmaster. Come along and join in the fun! If you don't have a team of 6 then drop us an email at cudosfundraiser@gmail.com and we'll try to team you up.

CONGRATULATIONS TO:

Lisa-Marie Dodson-House on graduating with a PGCE in Primary Education (3-7years)Ollie Dodson-House on graduating with a PGCE in Primary Education (5-11years). They are both teaching locally.

Leonie Dash in graduating with BA(Hon) 2nd class in Digital Media and Design (1st division).

ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

The AGM will be held on the 27th March in the Victoria Hall at 7.30 for 7.45You may vote for the new committee if you are Life Members, fully paid up members (paid since March 24)

Junior members and patrons are welcome to come along and it will be nice to see you. At the close of the meeting there is an opportunity to catch up with friends over a glass of wine.

Members eligible to vote will receive a voting form.There will be a draw on the night so please bring cash if you wish to buy tickets.

5202 YRAUNAJ

Sheena Wilkins – 79 Hermitage Street, Crewkerne TA18 8EX 07817 605789

sheenajunewilco@gmail.com www.cudoscrewkerne.com

County Drama Festival 2025

Next year, CUDOS will be entering the County Drama Festival 2025 with a One Act play, directed by Fred Broom.

The play is Gum and Goo by Howard Brenton. Gum and Goo is a short play about the world inside the mind of a young autistic girl. The play opens on two boys who torment a young girl, lifting up her skirt and calling her goofy. She starts screaming and retreats into her own head. There, the actors who played the boys become Gum and Goo, gremlins who offer to be her friends. They send her home for tea, and she wanders through a distorted world of confusing streets, dirty old men and a mother whose head comes off.

There are three acting roles in the play:

MARY a young girl with autism who has an alternative view of the world and how it works

GUM

GOO multi-role characters who play a variety of roles, including “gremlins” who become friends with Mary, boys who bully Mary, Mary’s mum and dad, a policeman and a dirty old man

The actors can be any age. The role of Mary is a female role, but Gum and Goo could be played by actors of any gender. The play is quite physical, and actors will be expected to be strong movers.

The rehearsal period for this play will be quite intensive – we will start rehearsing after the CUDOS Panto, and the Festival dates are the 22nd and 23rd March.

If you are interested in auditioning for the play, there will be a short introductory read through and workshop on Sunday 24th November between 5pm and 6pm at the Victoria Hall. Auditions will be held on Thursday 28th November between 6.30pm and 7.30pm at the same venue.

If you are unsure, why not just come along and join in the read through? Looking forward to seeing you all there.

Fred. x