Sunday 21st October 2018 marked the 80th year of the Oxford Playhouse. A Gala Performance was hosted to celebrate and to raise funds for creating further work in the community.
Tickets were priced at £90 for a seat in the stalls or £180 for a seat in the circle with an invitation to a star studded reception in the luxurious Randolph hotel next door.
All attendees were welcomed by the volunteer ushers who operate the front of house and handed a goody bag.
Treats inside included Belgian chocolates, a miniature bottle of champagne and publicity material for forthcoming shows.
Rory Bremner took to the stage for most of the night to introduce the shows. Celebrated Film Producer Victor Glynn directed the 2 hour performance which included 5 minute snippets of previews from the forthcoming Theatre Season.
Local amateur groups Oxford Operatic Society and Oxford Theatre Guild performed Sister act and Chariots of Fire respectively alongside professional work by children’s dramatist David Wood’s ‘The Tiger Came To Tea’.
Local girl, turned Hollywood star, Gugu Mbatha Raw performed a piece by Philip Pullman and Doctor Who star David Tennant shared work inspired by the classics he has stored inside his head.
The event ended at 11pm with an open bar set up on stage for the audience to enjoy during the interval. Oxford-based Rhythm and Blues band ‘The Original Rabbit Foot Spasm’ entertained.
The shows on stage performed to the 600 seater theatre being close to capacity.
Previous money raised from the public had been used to buy multicoloured new seats which are receiving mixed reviews from patrons.
The Art Deco building is where Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton performed together in Dr Faustus and remains an important part of Oxford’s cultural heritage.