News

Peculiar Productions’ dark comedy murder mystery, A Tomb With A View, managed to raise £2,370 for Simpson’s Memory Box Appeal.

Held on the 25th – 29th February, the reading of the late Septimus Tomb’s will revealed a secret bequest to a complete stranger. Threats were made by jealous family members, and someone decides to act on their impulses. Soon enough, the stranger ends up dead.

The event received praise from the National Operatic and Dramatic Association, and every member of the cast had left an impression on the reviewer:

A well-designed set recreated the suspiciously empty-shelved library, complete with secret panel [. . .]

[ . . . ] The director had cast the play well, everyone fitting his/her roles well, and the production had lots of beautiful performances. And the music choice suited this production and added to the overall feel.

This was quite a brave choice of play and I would urge you to continue to be bold in your choices and help to push boundaries in non professional theatre.

The event also enjoyed coverage from local newspapers and bloggers.

At the close of the final performance, we also welcomed representatives from SiMBA to the stage to thank the cast and crew for their hard work in helping to fund their work, and also in helping to promote what SiMBA hopes to achieve for those affected by the loss of a baby.

We’re very grateful to Shelley for sharing her story, and to Kirsteen for her support while helping to set the performance up!

On Saturday November 30th, Peculiar Productions held a murder mystery evening which also doubled as a fundraising event and a launch for their February 2020 show- Norman Robbins’ A Tomb With A View.

Entitled “Blood Money”, the evening saw eight of the world’s richest people invited to a secluded mansion with the promise of the deal of a lifetime. However, before the deal can be revealed, one of the eight is found murdered. The audience were invited to watch the evidence, cross-examine the remaining suspects, and see if they could work out whodunnit? If they worked out who the killer was, they were entered into a draw to win two tickets to see A Tomb With A View

Our audience were quite the sleuths, with twelve people correctly guessing the identity of the murderer. with Sophie Griffiths being picked as the winner of the tickets. Congratulations, Sophie!

We also revealed the posters for A Tomb With A View and officially launched ticket sales.

Physical tickets are available from members of A Tomb With A View‘s cast and crew, with online ticketing to follow very shortly.

Proceeds from the evening will go towards the amount that Peculiar Productions will be donating to our chosen charity for A Tomb With A View, which is SiMBA (the Simpson’s Memory Box Appeal)

There’ll be another fundraising event in January, with details to follow.

Behind the acting, laughter and bravado lies the hard work and efforts of our crew, from set design and lighting/sound effects to costume design and prop design. It’s really important to us to recognise the work everyone puts in off-stage as well as in front of our audience!

We thought we’d take a few moments to talk to Matt Burnett on his efforts with one of the stars of our show, member of the City Watch Detritus…

On 20th April, the Peculiars tackled a 5K in Swansea! But it wasn’t just any old 5K, oh no – it was the Gung Ho 5K of massive inflatable obastcles!

A massive thanks to everyone who donated or, or came to cheer us on. Thanks also to our Gung-Ho team, for letting no obstacle stand in their way. We’ve raised a fantastic £425 towards our August production of Terry Pratchett’s ‘Men at Arms’!

Have you got what it takes to bring a show to the stage? We’re now accepting pitches for our Early 2020 and and Summer 2020 shows, so if you’re interested in directing with our talented and exciting amateur company, we want to hear from you.

Written pitches will be followed up by a meeting to discuss your pitch shortly after. If you’re interested in pitching, contact us for more information.

Looking forward to our Pratchett production this Summer and want to get involved? Join us on Wednesday 27th February at the Owain Glyndwr, Tair Pluen at 6:30pm to find out what the production team have in store.

Whether you fancy acting, working backstage, being a creative genius and helping create the Discworld with us or just want to be a part of it, we have a place for you!

Audition and crew applications will be available from Wednesday. To get yours, drop us a line using the form below.

Terry Pratchett’s ‘Men at Arms’, 21st-24th August 2019, The Gate Arts Centre, Cardiff

Audition pack requests are now closed. Thank you to everyone that got in touch.