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The Early Days
As early as 1947, there was a thriving Amateur Dramatic Society in our
village of Sedgeberrow. Judging from reviews in the Eveshan Journals of that time, the Society had a high reputation,
Virtually every year from 1947 to 1953 (sometimes twice a year) the Society put on plays and comedies. It's not
clear what happened to the Society after 1953, nor whether there was a drama group prior to the 2nd World War.
The WI Drama Group
In 1982, Sedgeberrow WI decided to form a drama group, membership
being restricted to WI members and their menfolk. The Drama Group thrived, providing entertainments at parties
in the Hall, WI Group Meetings, and village social evenings. One of the members was Sian James, the novelist
(and wife of the classical actor, the late Emrys James), then living in Sedgeberrow. She wrote and produced a number
of sketches and short plays for the Group, including a one-act play perfomed by the Group at the Play Festival organised
by Gloucestershire Federation of WIs, in 1988.
Pantomime Time!
By the late 80s, the WI Drama Group had started to put on pantomimes
in the Village Hall. The themes were familiar - Cinderella, Robin Hood, Snow White, etc, - but the
scripts were home-grown (mostly by Mary Jakeman and Rita Dones), with a lot of local colour! These pantomimes were
much looked forward to by villagers in those dark and cold weeks following Christmas and New Year,
Independence
The Drama Group was now firmly established, but the restrictions
on membership were proving a hindrance. So, it was decided to declare independence, and, in 1990, the Sedgeberrow Drama
Group emerged. It has continued to perform pantomimes most years, but has also branched out into occasional plays, murder
mysteries, revues, and other entertainments. From time to time, the Group has masqueraded under another name (The Players)
because half of the Group lived outside Sedgeberrow.
Birth of S.O.A.P.
Then, at the AGM in 2004, it was decided to have another change of name
- this time to S.O.A.P., which stands for Sedgeberrow, Overbury, Amateur Players. This reflects
its wide-spread membership, nevertheless it remains firmly based in Sedgeberrow.
for list of all productions since 1947, click here
for photos of past shows, click here
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