Sue Twilley, trustee and Marketing Convenor of Scunthorpe Little Theatre Club, offers a behind-the-scenes insight into the life of this dedicated amateur theatre company.
As an amateur theatre company, we know there’s so much our audiences don’t see when they come to watch one of our shows. Of course, you’ll see the cast on stage, maybe a backstage crew member moving a bit of set, our lighting and sound engineers at the desk, our lovely hosts showing you to your seats, and our front of house team – but there are so many vital roles that stay completely out of view.
There are the brilliant people who design, build and paint the sets; the technical crew who spend hours making sure both the stage and the cast are lit perfectly; and the sound engineers who work tirelessly to cue every sound and piece of music exactly when needed. Then we have our prompters – sitting quietly out of sight, always ready to jump in and give a cast member their line in a flash.
Our Stage Managers and Assistant Stage Managers keep everything running like clockwork. And during our pantomimes, we’re lucky to have live music played by our wonderful band – not just for the kids, but for parents, grandparents, aunties, uncles and carers too. I mustn’t forget ‘Uncle Clive’, our much-loved drummer, who encourages the audience to boo the pantomime villain and adds a classic ba-dum-tss after one of our dame’s ‘jokes’!
Beyond all that, our trustees work hard to ensure the smooth running of Scunthorpe Little Theatre Club for our members and for the patrons who support us by buying tickets and coming to see our shows.
On Saturday 23rd August, our marketing team and some of our members will be at Scunthorpe Pride to promote our upcoming shows. First up, in September 2025, is Comfort and Joy by Mike Harding, directed by Sue Dolby. Then, in January 2026, we’ll be back with our pantomime Robin Hood and the Babes in the Wood, written and directed by Alex Hall.
Why not come along and say hello at Pride? We’d love to chat to you about what we do – and maybe even how you can get involved. You can also sign up to our mailing list or join the Friends of Scunthorpe Little Theatre Club, which gives you cheaper tickets, a complimentary programme, and your name printed in the programme for as long as you’re a member.
We’ll even have some ex-show costumes for sale – perfect for fancy dress, World Book Day or putting on your own little production!
If you can, please pop by and say hi – we don’t bite! And who knows… you might soon be joining us backstage, on stage, front of house, or in any one of the many brilliant roles we have to offer.