The Oast Theatre is situated on the outskirts of

Tonbridge, Kent Tonbridge ( ) (historic spelling ''Tunbridge'') is a market town in Kent, England, on the River Medway, north of Royal Tunbridge Wells, south west of Maidstone and south east of London. In the administrative borough of Tonbridge and Mall ...

. It is a small

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

that is based in an old

oast house An oast, oast house (or oasthouse) or hop kiln is a building designed for kilning (drying) hops as part of the brewing process. Oast houses can be found in most hop-growing (and former hop-growing) areas, and are often good examples of agricultu ...

. It is home to the Tonbridge Theatre and Arts Club. The theatre seats 112 people.

History

Tonbridge Theatre and Arts Club (TTAC) was based at The Mitre PH, Hadlow Road, Tonbridge. In the late 1960s, it was apparent that the venue was too small and an alternative was sought. The search led to a disused

, (select "History", then "The Early Years" from menu on left side) which had been used to dry

hops Hops are the flowers (also called seed cones or strobiles) of the hop plant ''Humulus lupulus'', a member of the Cannabaceae family of flowering plants. They are used primarily as a bittering, flavouring, and stability agent in beer, to whic ...

until 1966. The oast was purchased for £7,000 by a consortium of ten members of TTAC, who sold it on to TTAC for £6,000. The Oast Theatre was opened on 20 April 1974 by Lady Rupert Nevill. The opening production was an adaptation of ''

Tom Jones Tom Jones may refer to: Arts and entertainment *Tom Jones (singer) (born 1940), Welsh singer *Tom Jones (writer) (1928–2023), American librettist and lyricist *''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'', a novel by Henry Fielding published in 1 ...

''. By 1978, TTAC had paid off all loans taken out to purchase and convert the oast. In 1982, the Oast Theatre was awarded Civic Design Award from Tonbridge Civic Society. The theatre is a registered charity, the Tonbridge Theatre and Arts Club. In 1988, an extension was built on the side of the oast. The adjoining barn was purchased and converted for use as storage and workshops. The extension was opened by Prince Edward, who attended a performance of ''Children of a Lesser God''. A further extension in 1997 provided improved dressing room and additional storage facilities. The theatre can seat 112 people. In January 2010, the theatre was granted

planning permission Planning permission or building permit refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. House building permits, for example, are subject to buil ...

for an extension of an ancillary storage building. The planning application was supported by

The Theatres Trust The Theatres Trust is the National Advisory Public Body for Theatres in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1976 by an Act of Parliament to "promote the better protection of theatres for the benefit of the nation". The Trust has played a lead ...

Oast Youth Theatre

The Oast Theatre is home to the Oast Youth Theatre. Its members are between 14 and 18 years old. They produce three plays each year.

Art

The Oast Theatre has its own art group, which meets weekly. The theatre plays host to an annual art exhibition held in the Janet Young Room. The exhibition normally attracts about fifty artists and one hundred and fifty exhibits of extremely high quality.

References

Sources

* {{Tonbridge Industrial buildings completed in the 19th century Tonbridge Theatres in Kent Charities based in Kent Agricultural buildings in England Amateur theatre