Beaufort Players are a thriving amateur dramatics group with around 40 active members. We’re very much an amateur group, but we like to challenge ourselves to stage high quality productions. Putting on a play is much about having fun during rehearsals and work days as the performances themselves.
We’re lucky to have our home in the Church of the Ascension Hall which allows us to do as much of the production ourselves, from building our own sets and props to making our own costumes and doing our own sound, lighting and backstage — as well as a base for members to pop in and socialise every Wednesday.
History
Founded in 1962, we have a long and successful history spanning over 65 years. Over that period we’ve seen over 400 members treading our boards.
Some members have gone on to drama school; others have become budding playwrights; everybody has learnt how to make a decent cup of tea.
When we started, adult tickets cost from 3s to 6s (that’s £3 to £6 in today’s money) and the typewritten programmes were a bargain at 6d (around 50p in today’s money). You can see our archive of programmes in our production history.
Awards
We’ve won the NODA London Flame Award (London Division Region 2) three times, in 2011, 2015 and 2023.
The citation for 2023 was:
“Beaufort Players set a fine example to the world of amateur theatre, and fully deserve to be recognised for their continued ability to raise the standard of excellence. The encouragement given to its members to expand their horizons is to be applauded. The membership contribute so much to the success of their productions — from original script writing, set design and physical construction to actual performance. Audiences are provided with both exciting and stimulating experiences through Beaufort’s very many varied performances.”
We have also won several awards and nominations for individual productions and actors, both at drama festivals we’ve entered and from NODA. You can find details alongside our past productions.
Affiliations
The Beaufort Players are members of Ealing Arts + Leisure and the National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA).
We’re grateful to Grimshaw & Co estate agents for their continued sponsorship and support.
