The History of NANDA

Part I - The First Year (1947-48)
(forward to Parts II - VI 1948 - 1981) )

The inaugural meeting of NANDA was held on 7 July 1947 at the Shire Hall, High Pavement, Nottingham and a Mr. B C Webster, shown in the minutes as representing the City Festival Committee, took the Chair. The Director of Education for Nottinghamshire, Mr Edward J Mason 'welcomed representatives and referred from personal experience to the success of a Drama Association in Cumberland'. Mr K A Baird, Deputy Director of Education for the Nottingham County Borough, was also present along with fifty-three other people. Seventeen apologies for absence were recorded.

The representatives came mainly from Evening Institutes, Townswomen's Guilds, Youth Committees and Youth Clubs. The amateur dramatic societies represented were as follows:

Open Air Theatre
Castle Gate Society
Beeston Ericcsons Dramatic Society
Mansfield Baptist Church Drama Group
Forest Dramatic Society
West Bridgford St Giles Youth Group
Huthwaite Amateur Players
Mapperley St James' Players
Nottingham Theatre Club
Jessops Players
Bairnswear Players
Mapperley Dramatic Society

The significant representation from youth groups probably reflects the fact that the initiative to set up the Association was taken by the Local Education Authority

A Constitution was approved after a good deal of discussion and amendment and Mr E D Shaw was appointed Secretary and Treasurer until the first Annual Meeting could be held.

This first Annual Meeting was held in the Shire Hall on 20 October 1947 and was attended by 28 people (seven apologies). The apologies included Harry Penson and Hugh Willett. The annual subscription for member societies was fixed at 7s 6d (37 1/2p). Lady Belper was elected President and the two Directors of Education for the City and County were elected Vice Presidents. An Executive Council of 20 members was appointed.

References in the minutes imply that the Notts Drama League had been conducting an annual play festival and NANDA agreed that the League should continue to do so. Nevertheless, a Committee of NANDA was set up to organize a City One Act Festivals in 1948 with ten competing societies and John Stoddard was appointed convener of the subgroup. Minutes of subsequent meetings show that this festival was held at Cottesmore School on 5-7 February and that tickets were two shillings and one-and-sixpence (10p and 7 1/2p respectively)

The AGM minutes also imply that a British Drama League full length play festival had attracted four entries from societies in Nottingham and District. Although the Chairman of the AGM is not recorded, it would appear that Mr Webster signed the inaugural meeting minutes and, therefore, presumably chaired the AGM.

The first Executive Council meeting was held at the YMCA in Shakespeare Street at 3pm on Saturday 8 November, Twelve people attended and four apologies were received.

Mr A J Statham of the Nottingham Theatre Club was elected Chairman; Mr A Roberts of Notts Rural Community Council, Vice Chairman; Mr F Phillips, Beeston Lads Club and Boys Brigade, Treasurer and Mr E D Shaw, Secretary.

At times the minutes are tantalizingly vague, e.g. 'a letter from Basford Social Service Women's Club was read to the meeting and Mrs Durst undertook to act in this connection'. A play reading sub-committee was appointed and the Secretary was asked to prepare a list of plays suitable for acting groups of every description.

The next Executive Council meeting was held on Saturday 24 January 1948 at St Peter's Chambers, Church Street, Mansfield. The Association's membership is recorded as totalling 34, although no list of these groups is available it would be possible to identify at least half of them from recorded applications and the groups' representatives at meetings.

The accounts apparently showed a deficit at this point of £9.16s.8d (£9.84)

Youth Drama Festivals for the City and the County were reported with Dan Shaw as Adjudicator at each. Again this reflects a report of the LEA's initiatives rather than NANDAs.

There is a curious minute recording a proposal (supported by the Association) to form a Nottingham Religious Drama Council. The meeting discussed the possibility of arranging a competition whereby 'new unpublished plays could be received and publicity offered to certain selected works in an effort to encourage new writers ...' and the Secretary was instructed to prepare a draft scheme.

The Executive Council met again on Saturday 3 April 1948 at 24 Park Row, Nottingham and agreed to arrange a competition for unpublished plays written for
(i) Children
(ii) Youth Clubs
(iii) Adult Societies

(a) with mixed, and (b) all women casts

Manuscripts were to be considered by the play-reading sub-committee and public performances of the three best plays were to be arranged during the 1948-9 season

Further Executive Council meetings were held on 19 June at Westfield Folk House, Mansfield and on 25 September at 24 Park Row. It is recorded that eight entries had been received to the Play writing Competition and it is also recorded that Amateur Stage had offered a 25% reduction on bulk sales (it was published monthly at one shilling) and to include a page of local news.

Under a minute headed 'Nottingham Playhouse' the Secretary reported the general case for a new Little Theatre venture and asked for goodwill and support by block bookings and donations. The second Annual General Meeting was held on 25 October 1948 at Shire Hall and it was agreed that the Executive Council consider the advisability of compiling a register of those persons, professional and amateur, willing to speak on various aspects of drama and theatre. There is also a note about some difficulty of obtaining a licence to perform in a hall which did not comply with the fire regulations.

Parts II - VI 1948 - 1981)

From The Membership Hand Book 1986-7

Preface

Our Amateur groups are diverse but fall mainly into two categories.
(a) those related to a business organisation or a church
(b) those independant groups in local communities, operating with varying degrees of democratic control.

The second group is the largest and could be further sub-divided into those with specialist interests (eg Shakespeare, Open Air Theatre, the Handicapped, etc) or into location. Some, being central, have theatres of their own and are large; others operate in clearly prescribed catchment areas based firmly in the community from which they take their name; others jostle cheek-by-jowl in the suburbs of the conurbation.

The information contained has been provided by the groups themselves through a survey and is up to date at 1 January 1986. The survey attempted to elicit more detailed information about the plays actually performed by the groups over recent years. This was partly to indicate the type of production selected by the groups (an indicator of the groups' corporate identity) but also to be of value to other groups in identifying those who had tackled similar problems. The list is very long. It shows an amazingly wide range of choice by member groups and belies the statement that there is only a very small number of plays which "all amateur groups perform sooner or later".
For our most commonly performed Authors and Plays

Our Members are (in 1986)