Sewell Barn Theatre
Encyclopedia
Sewell Barn Theatre is located in the grounds of Sewell Park College
(formerly the Blyth school, later the Blyth-Jex school) on Constitution Hill in Norwich
, England
. It is home to a popular amateur theatre company, with close historical links to the authoress Anna Sewell
who wrote Black Beauty
.
The auditorium also provides an unusal and convenient space for presentations, meetings and other private hire uses.
Anna Sewell, author of the children’s story "Black Beauty", was Philip’s sister and lived in the White House, Spixworth Road, Spixworth
. Philip owned a mare called Black Bess which used to draw his carriage along Spixworth Road and it might be supposed that Bess was the original inspiration for Black Beauty, and the barn a prototype for Black Beauty’s stable. The book was published by Jarrolds
in 1877.
Philip Sewell died in 1906 and left his house and estate to the City of Norwich. Clare House became an Open Air School for city children suffering from respiratory complaints and the barn became their washroom, restroom and handicraft centre.
Since then the old hay barn has seen many uses. During the First World War it was used as a theatre when Catton residents put on a concert for troops billeted in the area. It was used for storage and also as a bicycle shed for girls of the Blyth School (which was constructed in 1929 in the grounds of Clare House). Clare House was demolished in 1970 and out of the rubble rose the foundations of part of the new Blyth Jex school. The barn later housed the very first school minibus.
During a visit to the school in 1974 it was suggested by Norfolk County Councillors that the barn might make an admirable small theatre. At the time the barn was a dirty, leaky building stacked with broken school furniture and other accumulated rubbish. It took several years for this building to be turned into a fully functioning small theatre.
The company stages a number of productions every year, ranging from Shakespeare to Alan Ayckbourn
. In February 2008 the company presented its 200th production The Winter's Tale
.
the theatre's patron, provides a message of encouragement on the programmes. The audience route into the auditorium offers visitors a chance to see pictures relating to the Black Beauty story. Jarrolds
, although no longer a publishing company, now provides the Box Office for the Sewell Barn Theatre.
The current (2011) Artistic Directors are Michelle Montague and Robert Little.
Sewell Park College
Sewell Park College is a High School located on the north-eastern edge of the city of Norwich, Norfolk, England.-Admissions:It has approximately 900 students aged eleven to sixteen . It is an under-subscribed school. It is situated in Mill Hill, on Constitution Hill , east of New Catton. On the ...
(formerly the Blyth school, later the Blyth-Jex school) on Constitution Hill in Norwich
Norwich
Norwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. It is home to a popular amateur theatre company, with close historical links to the authoress Anna Sewell
Anna Sewell
Anna Sewell was an English novelist, best known as the author of the classic novel Black Beauty.-Biography:Anna Mary Sewell was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England into a devoutly Quaker family...
who wrote Black Beauty
Black Beauty
Black Beauty is an 1877 novel by English author Anna Sewell. It was composed in the last years of her life, during which she remained in her house as an invalid. The novel became an immediate bestseller, with Sewell dying just five months after its publication, long enough to see her first and only...
.
The auditorium
The auditorium features raked seating on three sides of an open acting space. This unusual staging helps to draw the audience deeply into the performance. Ground level spaces can be provided for audience members with limited mobility.The auditorium also provides an unusal and convenient space for presentations, meetings and other private hire uses.
History
Originally the barn belonged to Clare House which was owned by Philip Sewell, a local benefactor, from 1864 to 1906.Anna Sewell, author of the children’s story "Black Beauty", was Philip’s sister and lived in the White House, Spixworth Road, Spixworth
Spixworth
Spixworth is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk. The village lies close to the B1150 road and is north of Norwich and some south of North Walsham.It covers an area of and had a population of 3,769 in 1,508 households as of the 2001 census....
. Philip owned a mare called Black Bess which used to draw his carriage along Spixworth Road and it might be supposed that Bess was the original inspiration for Black Beauty, and the barn a prototype for Black Beauty’s stable. The book was published by Jarrolds
Jarrolds
Jarrolds is a large, family run department store in Norwich, England. It is situated at the corner of Exchange Street and London Street. The business was founded in 1770 in Woodbridge in Suffolk, moving to Norwich in 1823. The current building was designed by George John Skipper between 1903-5...
in 1877.
Philip Sewell died in 1906 and left his house and estate to the City of Norwich. Clare House became an Open Air School for city children suffering from respiratory complaints and the barn became their washroom, restroom and handicraft centre.
Since then the old hay barn has seen many uses. During the First World War it was used as a theatre when Catton residents put on a concert for troops billeted in the area. It was used for storage and also as a bicycle shed for girls of the Blyth School (which was constructed in 1929 in the grounds of Clare House). Clare House was demolished in 1970 and out of the rubble rose the foundations of part of the new Blyth Jex school. The barn later housed the very first school minibus.
During a visit to the school in 1974 it was suggested by Norfolk County Councillors that the barn might make an admirable small theatre. At the time the barn was a dirty, leaky building stacked with broken school furniture and other accumulated rubbish. It took several years for this building to be turned into a fully functioning small theatre.
The Sewell Barn Theatre Company
In 1980, the Sewell Barn Theatre Company was formed. Their first public production The Norfolk Furies was written and directed by the late Henry Burke (the first Artistic Director), and staged at the barn.The company stages a number of productions every year, ranging from Shakespeare to Alan Ayckbourn
Alan Ayckbourn
Sir Alan Ayckbourn CBE is a prolific English playwright. He has written and produced seventy-three full-length plays in Scarborough and London and was, between 1972 and 2009, the artistic director of the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough, where all but four of his plays have received their...
. In February 2008 the company presented its 200th production The Winter's Tale
The Winter's Tale
The Winter's Tale is a play by William Shakespeare, originally published in the First Folio of 1623. Although it was grouped among the comedies, some modern editors have relabelled the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. Some critics, among them W. W...
.
Today
Membership of the Sewell Barn company is open to everyone, and workshops are open to non-members. Actor Nigel HaversNigel Havers
Nigel Allan Havers is an English actor. He is probably best known for his BAFTA-nominated role as Lord Andrew Lindsay in the 1981 British film Chariots of Fire, and for his role as Dr. Tom Latimer in the British TV comedy series Don't Wait Up...
the theatre's patron, provides a message of encouragement on the programmes. The audience route into the auditorium offers visitors a chance to see pictures relating to the Black Beauty story. Jarrolds
Jarrolds
Jarrolds is a large, family run department store in Norwich, England. It is situated at the corner of Exchange Street and London Street. The business was founded in 1770 in Woodbridge in Suffolk, moving to Norwich in 1823. The current building was designed by George John Skipper between 1903-5...
, although no longer a publishing company, now provides the Box Office for the Sewell Barn Theatre.
The current (2011) Artistic Directors are Michelle Montague and Robert Little.
Current Season
- The Long and the Short and the TallThe Long and the Short and the TallThe Long and the Short and the Tall is a 1961 film directed by Leslie Norman and stars Laurence Harvey, Richard Todd, Richard Harris, David McCallum, John Meillon, John Rees, Ronald Fraser and Kenji Takaki. The film takes place in a Burmese jungle in 1942 during the World War II Malayan Campaign...
by Willis HallWillis HallWillis Hall was an English playwright and radio and television writer who drew on his working class roots in Leeds for much of his writings....
- October 2011 - Entertaining AngelsEntertaining Angels (play)Entertaining Angels is a play by Richard Everett. The production was directed by Alan Strachan and produced by Michael Codron.-Plot:As a vicar's wife, Grace has spent a lifetime on her best behaviour. Now, after the death of her husband Bardolph, she can enjoy the new-found freedom of being able to...
by Richard EverettRichard EverettRichard Everett was a founder of both Springfield, Massachusetts and Dedham, Massachusetts and an ancestor of many notable Americans....
- December 2011 - Les MiserablesLes MisérablesLes Misérables , translated variously from the French as The Miserable Ones, The Wretched, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, or The Victims), is an 1862 French novel by author Victor Hugo and is widely considered one of the greatest novels of the nineteenth century...
by Victor HugoVictor HugoVictor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
, adapted by Tim Kelly - January 2012 - Sons and LoversSons and LoversSons and Lovers is a 1913 novel by the English writer D. H. Lawrence. The Modern Library placed it ninth on their list of the 100 best novels of the 20th century.-Plot introduction and history:...
by DH Lawrence, adapted by Roger Parsley - February/March 2012 - Company Along the Mile by Tom Bidwell - April 2012
- Brighton Beach MemoirsBrighton Beach MemoirsBrighton Beach Memoirs is a semi-autobiographical play by Neil Simon, the first chapter in what is known as his Eugene trilogy. It precedes Biloxi Blues and Broadway Bound.-Characters:*Eugene Morris Jerome, almost 15...
by Neil SimonNeil SimonNeil Simon is an American playwright and screenwriter. He has written numerous Broadway plays, including Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and The Odd Couple. He won the 1991 Pulitzer Prize for Drama for his play Lost In Yonkers. He has written the screenplays for several of his plays that...
- May 2012 - You Never Can Tell by George Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard ShawGeorge Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
- June 2012 - The Comedy of ErrorsThe Comedy of ErrorsThe Comedy of Errors is one of William Shakespeare's earliest plays. It is his shortest and one of his most farcical comedies, with a major part of the humour coming from slapstick and mistaken identity, in addition to puns and word play. The Comedy of Errors is one of only two of Shakespeare's...
by William ShakespeareWilliam ShakespeareWilliam Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
- July 2012
See also
- Maddermarket TheatreMaddermarket TheatreThe Maddermarket Theatre is a British theatre located in St. John's Alley in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It was founded in 1921 by Nugent Monck.-Early history and conversion:...
- Theatre Royal, NorwichTheatre Royal, NorwichThe Theatre Royal is the largest theatre in Norwich, Norfolk, England. It presents a large range of drama, dance, comedy, music and other entertainment...
- Sewell ParkSewell Park, NorwichSewell Park is a triangular-shaped park which lies between Constitution Hill and St. Clement's Hill in Norwich, Norfolk, England. The park was given to the Norwich Corporation and Norwich City Council as an open space by members of the Sewell family and former mayor E. G Buxton in 1908...
- Norwich PlayhouseNorwich PlayhouseThe Norwich Playhouse is a theatre in St George's Street, Norwich, Norfolk, England. It opened in 1995 in a nineteenth century building that was once a maltings, and is a venue for theatre, comedy, music and other performing arts. It seats 300. It has as its patron actor and comedian Stephen...