Theatre in Nantwich

This book, by Sandie Laughlin, covers the history of theatre in Nantwich. Plays were once performed either at the Assembly Room (on the first floor of the Crown Inn) or at the Old Barn (at Garnett’s Corner on the junction of Hospital Street and High Street). Those performing plays included Samuel Stanton and his strolling players – the ‘‘Company of Comedians’’ – who also visited other local towns. Later the ‘‘Play-House’’ on Beam Street on the corner of Dog Lane behind the Elephant and Castle public house (later re-named the Shakespeare Tavern) was built. There was also a theatre at what is now called the Oddfellows on Welsh Row, and variety shows and occasional plays took place in Ye Olde Wyche Theatre (now Chatwins Bakery).

In 1927, a group of around 30 local theatre-lovers founded the Nantwich Play Reading Circle, which later became the Nantwich Players. They first performed at Nantwich and Acton Grammer School. Other productions were staged at the now demolished Town Hall located near Welsh Row bridge, and at the Civic Hall. This booklet describes how this remarkable group purchased the near derelict Quaker Meeting House in 1980, and converted into an 82-seater theatre. They later purchased the building next door which gave them the opportunity to re-work the inside to become the Nantwich Players theatre that you can enjoy today. This booklet finishes looking at Nantwich Players today, and in the future.

This booklet is richly illustrated throughout, with pictures of some of the buildings and some of the plays.