Lieder Theatre Company presents a great English comedy by Alan Ayckbourn
from his trilogy The Norman Conquests
Table Manners

Directed by Judith Boyd

Opening on Wednesday 20th
August 2008 At 8pm
continuing every Wednesday,
Friday and Saturday until 6th September at 8pm
One Matinee on Sunday 31st August at 4pm

Judith Boyd - Director
Judith joined the Lieder Theatre in September 2001 having moved to the area from Sydney where she has been an active member of the Castle Hill Players for almost twenty-five years and ran the Castle Hill Youth Theatre for much of that time. She was also a drama teacher at The Hills Grammar School and has adjudicated at several country drama festivals in NSW. She attended Drama School in England before moving with her family to Australia in 1978. Judith attended the writing course at NIDA in 1992, and subsequently had plays performed at NIDA and at the National Playwrights Conference in Canberra.. Judith has been involved in over one hundred plays in one way or another during her time in the theatre, is the president of the Lieder Theatre and in more recent years she has directed plays including Once A Catholic, Sylvia, Hating Alison Ashley, Urbs Urbis, The Odd Couple (female version ) Sylvia, Round and Round the Garden and Equus. She has run workshops and written for the Lieder Youth Theatre's 2 Friendly 4 Words, Dead One Done and Pocket Full of Knives, performed in The Beauty Queen of Leenane, The Memory of Water and Blithe Spirit, provided administrative support and promotion for productions and operated lights. She currently runs weekly after school drama classes with the Youth Theatre Company.



Cast
Reg David Rayner
Sarah, his wife Pauline J Mullen
Ruth, Reg's sister Fiona Churchill
Norman, her husband Martin Sanders
Annie, Reg & Ruth's younger sister Michelle McAleer
Tom Greg Seckold

The Action of the play takes place in Annie's Dining Room

Time a weekend in Summer.

There will be an INTERVAL of 20 minutes
Refreshments on sale in the foyer
Crew
Director/ designer Judith Boyd
Stage manager
ASM Antonia McGarity
Zachary Young
Set construction John Knops, Chrisjohn Hancock
Keiran Milward, Martin Sanders
Michelle McAleer, Justin-Lowen, Judith Boyd, Colin Simson
Publicity David Rayner
Props Pauline J Mullen, Antonia McGarity, Judith Boyd
Costumes Pauline J Mullen
Lights operated by James McPaul
Sound operated by Mark Churchill
prompt Linden Fennamore
Tickets Doreen Mullen
Photographs Brian Richardson
Front of House manager Lee Grey
Newsletter editor Greg Seckold
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Sir Alan Aykboun
Alan Ayckbourn was born on 12 April, 1939 to Irene Maud Worley (better known as 'Lolly') and Horace Ayckbourn in Hampstead.
Alan attended school at Wisborough Lodge and then Haileybury
Alan's professional career began as an ASM and actor with Donald Wolfit's company with a three week engagement at the Edinburgh Festival.Alan's early career saw him work as ASM and actor at the Connaught Theatre (Worthing), the Thorndike Theatre (Leatherhead), 1974; the Oxford Playhouse and the Library Theatre (Scarborough). He joined the latter in 1957. Alan's acting career ran from 1956 to 1964 and encompassed more than 50 different roles - the majority performed in-the-round. Alan's playwriting career began in 1959 with The Square Cat (having confronted Stephen Joseph about his role in David Campton's Ring Of Roses).

As of 2008, Alan has written 72 full-length plays.Alan married his first wife Christine Roland in 1957; together they had two sons Steven and Philip. Alan's second marriage was to Heather Stoney in 1997. Alan's first production as director was Gaslight at the Library Theatre in 1961. Since then he has directed more than 250 productions in the UK and abroad, including the London premieres of 32 of his plays in the West End. In 1962, Alan moved with the Studio Theatre Company to the Victoria Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, as Associate Director. He both directed and acted there, as well as premiering two new plays, before leaving the company in 1964. From 1964 to 1970, Alan worked as a drama producer for BBC Radio in Leeds. Alan's first major West End success was Relatively Speaking in 1967; as of 2008, 39 of Alan's plays have been produced in the West End or the National Theatre (this does not include major fringe productions). Alan Ayckbourn became the Artistic Director (Director of Productions) of the Library Theatre, Scarborough, in 1972. He will step down as Artistic Director in March 2009. *In 1974, Alan held the record for having the most plays running simultaneously in the West End with Living Together, Table Manners, Round And Round The Garden, Absurd Person Singular and Absent Friends. Only Andrew Lloyd Webber since has had more productions running concurrently. The Variety Club named Alan Playwright of the Year in 1974; between 1973 and 2008, Alan has received more than 25 major theatre awards.

In 1976 Alan wrote his first play intended for end-stage performance (Bedroom Farce); although he is primarily associated with the Round, he has written five plays intended for the end-stage: Bedroom Farce, A Small Family Business, Haunting Julia, Things We Do For Love and Virtual Reality. In 1976, Alan and the Library Theatre company moved to the Stephen Joseph Theatre In The Round (based at the old Boys' Grammar School). In 1996, he would again move the company to the Stephen Joseph Theatre (based at a former Odeon cinema). Between 1986 to 1988, Alan was invited by Sir Peter Hall to form his own company at the National Theatre. He directed A Small Family Business, A View From The Bridge, Tons Of Money and 'Tis Pity She's A Whore. In 1992, Alan was appointed Cameron Macintosh Visiting Professor of Contemporary Theatre, at the University of Oxford. Alan was awarded a CBE (Companion of the Order of the British Empire) in 1987. 10 years later to the day, he was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II 'for services to the theatre. Fatuous fact: Alan Ayckbourn has been said to be the most performed living playwright in the world. There is no plausible way either to prove or disprove this. But he is undoubtedly very, very popular….

CAST DETAILS

Martin Sanders - Norman
He was last seen on stage in Macbeth. Other performances at the Lieder include The Tempest, Treasure Island, Shatterproof, The Ballad of Mary Brownlow, Oliver Twist, Blackrock, Babes in the Wood, The Removalists, Forks'n All, The Homecoming of Beorhtnoth, Pinocchio, La Dispute, Dracula, Round and Round the Garden and John Spicer's production of Hamlet.



Greg Seckold - Tom
Greg started performing in his early years as a magician with appearances in shopping malls and on children's TV shows. A stint in the Carlingford Entertainers in the late 70s and 80s saw Greg playing romantic leads, narrators and villains (his favourite). His first adventure onto the Lieder stage was as a Spaniard in The Odd Couple (female version) directed by Judith Boyd .Other roles include Tom in Round and Round the Garden,The Tempest and before that The Memory of Water. Greg can also be found at the Astor in Goulburn on Thursday evenings running the trivia nights.



Pauline J Mullen - Sarah
Pauline joined the Lieder in 1992 to stage manage Peter Pan and has been an integral part of the Company on and off stage ever since. Pauline provides essential production and wardrobe support to all the plays and performance events staged by the Company. Her performances to name but a few, include roles in The Odd Couple (female version), Inheritance, The Ballad of Mary Ann Brownlow, Come Back to the Five and Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, Minefields and Miniskirts, The Beauty Queen of Leenane, Habeas Corpus, Round and Round the Garden and a very memorable performance in Macbeth. She has been the Lieder's wardrobe coordinator since 2001.



Michelle McAleer - Annie
Michelle McAleer studied drama at The University of New England where she appeared in a number of course productions including The Stronger and The Crucible. For the Earle Page College Drama Society she stage managed Bye Bye Birdie and directed My Fair Lady. In the United States she worked as technical director for a children's theatre in Connetticutt, staging productions of Bugsy, Grease, and Annie during her time there. On returning to Australia she worked at The Sydney Opera House as a stagehand and, later, an administrator. She studied at Sydney Acting School, performing in course productions of The Cell and the female version of The Odd Couple. She went on to further study at The Actor's Centre. In recent years she has appeared in numerous short films and music videos, worked as an extra for film and television, and performed in stage productions of Blood Brothers and M. Butterfly. First seen on the Lieder stage as a witch in Macbeth we now welcome her back to play Annie.



Fiona Churchill - Ruth
Fiona joined the Lieder in 1995 to play in Golden Valley and since then has been seen in many productions including the Farndale Murder Mystery, Oliver, Hamlet, Blackrock, Under Milk Wood, Cosi, The Removalists, On the Bridge, Habeas Corpus, Sylvia, The Vagina Monologues, Come Back to the Five and Dime Jimmy Dean, Jimmy Dean, Minefields and Miniskirts. Inheritance, Blithe Spirit, The Odd Couple (female version) Fireface,The Memory of Water, Round and Round the Garden and Macbeth earlier this year. When not in a show Fiona has worked backstage as a lighting operator and is currently the coordinater for our charity nights.



David Rayner - Reg
David made his debut on stage at the age of nine in the Rockhampton Little Theatre's Wizard of Oz. He subsequently appeared on the small screen (briefly) with the crew from Aunty Jack in the ABC's Flash Nick from Jindavick. David has been an active member of the Argyle Society and appeared in their productions of Godspell and La Belle Helene. With the Argyle Society he co-wrote and directed Who Murdered Lenny the Louse, which was so successful it had a return season. For the Lieder David has performed in our 2003 Christmas production of Old Time Music Hall directed by Stan Henderson, Away, Forks'n All (a feast for peace), The Memory of Water, Round and Round the Garden and Macbeth.