Everything that happened at the centenary gala
We celebrated 100 years of theatre at UoN at the centenary gala. Here's what happened.
“I found my people… Universities should be about more than degrees and grades. They should provide spaces (like the New Theatre) where creative minds can thrive.” Ruth Wilson, actor
On Saturday, SaveNNT attended the Centenary Gala at Lakeside Arts to celebrate 100 years of student drama at the University of Nottingham. It featured vibrant performances from current NNT students—Hamlet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Education, Education, Education and a new student written piece destined for the Edinburgh Fringe—and an incredible collection of curated archive materials (including posters, flyers, artwork) from years gone by. By all accounts, the outgoing committee pulled off a fantastic event; hats off to all of you.
But that wasn’t all. We also heard memories of past glories from alums Ruth Wilson, Carrie Cracknell, Nicholas Farrell, Matthew Bannister and Patrick McNeill…
How the theatre came to be
Patrick McNeill (Sociology, 1966) took us back to the early 1960s, a time before there even was a New Theatre Building when plays were staged in the Great Hall of the Trent Building. He recalled Clive (now Lord) Hollick “knocking on the door of the Vice Chancellor’s house” to ask permission to stage plays in the empty ground floor of the old Engineering block. Because although theatre had been a part of campus life since 1926, it was this moment that was the true start of the theatre building itself.
In an impassioned plea to save the New Theatre building, Matthew Bannister shared a video interview with Peter Roper—a 20 year old agriculture student in 1968—who campaigned for university funding to convert the otherwise bare space of the Engineering block ground floor into a proper theatre space.
At the time, he was given £2,500(!) of university funding which paid for a new entrance, raked seating, a stage with proscenium arch, a lighting box at the rear and a small box office.
Where we stand today
In a recorded interview played during the event, Ruth Wilson said the New Theatre was her main reason for coming to Nottingham University, explaining that it gave her the space to explore if theatre should be her chosen career. She and director Carrie Cracknell spoke of the freedom and responsibility of leading a completely student-run theatre, something that Carrie said allowed her to step into the job of running the Gate Theatre in Notting Hill in her twenties.
They both expressed their shock and sadness at the closure of the building and made heartfelt pleas for it to be reopened. Ruth said “I found my people… Universities should be about more than degrees and grades. They should provide spaces (like the New Theatre) where creative minds can thrive.” Carrie said that, in the past, she had recommended Nottingham to potential students because they could combine an academic degree while following their passion for performance at the New Theatre.
More than just a building
At the end of the evening, the audience was invited to share their memories of NNT, and how those experiences had helped in their future careers. This provoked many amusing but also inspiring contributions.
It was universally agreed that the reopening of the building should be a priority for the university, but that the true spirit of the Nottingham New Theatre lay in the bonding experiences shared by all who took part and that, building or no, this would survive and thrive for the future.
Tributes were paid to outgoing NNT President Charlotte Reay and her successor Abbie Foster received a warm welcome.