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On
May 22nd 1975, a group of Gilbert & Sullivan enthusiasts gathered
in the old Band Practice room at HMAS Albatross and agreed to try to
form a G. & S. Society. The first general meeting was held (under
the chairmanship of the then Executive Officer, Cmdr Dickie Bird) on
4th June 1975 and a Committee was elected.
At the first Committee meeting it was decided to stage The Pirates of
Penzance over three (3) nights in November of that year. It was so successful,
from both the theatrical & economic viewpoints, that The Mikado
was staged to even greater applause in May 1976 with further shows following
every winter for the next three (3) years, viz. Iolanthe, HMS Pinafore
& The Gondoliers.
In 1980, the Society decided to break with a five year tradition to
stage a non G. & S. Operetta and South Pacific was chosen proving,
yet again, to be an outstanding success.
All the above shows were staged in the gymnasium at HMAS Albatross and,
by 1983, the short-comings of the gymnasium as a “theatre”
were becoming more and more apparent. Additionally, the composition
of the Society, which in 1975 had been - Navy 95% and civilians 5% -
was now - Navy 30% and civilians 70%. The big decision was then made
to move into town and our affiliation with HMAS Albatross became and
remains an indication only of our origins.
Following a short period of relative inactivity, a resurgence was made
in 1988 with a production of The Sorcerer staged at the Nowra School
of Arts. This was followed in 1989 by Salad Days also at the School
of Arts and, except for a few sojourns to several other venues, has
remained our main area of performance to the present day.
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To
keep up with the times, the Society was Incorporated in January 1989
and, to keep up with the scene, the name was changed to The Albatross
Musical Theatre Co. Inc. in January, 1995 to more closely reflect our
aims….. to produce first-class Musicals, regardless of the composer.
This we have done to great success with some of the most popular musicals
ever written including The Sound of Music, Oliver, Calamity Jane, Hello
Dolly, Guys and Dolls, Annie, Jesus Christ Superstar and Les Miserable
just to name a few. Two other productions which proved to be a challenge
and slightly out of our comfort zone were Sweeney Todd and the 2006
major work of The Full Monty.
Other ventures have taken place in other venues including a Choral Production
of Snugglepot and Cuddlepie to celebrate the Centenary of Federation,
Showtime, a Musical Smorgasbord and, more recently, to the local pub
for a cabaret style performance named The Pubaret. This proved to be
so successful in 2006 for the first time that a similar performance
will take place late in 2007
Trying to involve all age groups, productions which involved children
included Annie, Oliver and the Pantomime Red Riding Hood. In 2007 a
production for the teenagers will take place in July with the staging
of Disney’s High School Musical.
Accompanying all these productions has been some of the most talented
musicians in the Shoalhaven providing a platform for the young and not
so young to display their musical talents. With the much anticipated
building of the new Shoalhaven Performing Arts/Cultural Centre it is
hoped that it will be suitable for our needs.
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