ADC Theatre > Reviews > ADC Theatre

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Advantages:	Can be incredibly entertaining and innovative theatre
Disadvantages:	Can also be pretentious rubbish !

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yes

Full review

The ADC Theatre is Cambridge University's main theatre. It runs two shows a week, a mainshow and lateshow, every week during term. Almost all shows are directed, produced and acted by students of both universities in the city, as well as recent graduates and on occasion people who just work in Cambridge, which is something they're justifiably very proud of.

The casting process is generally quite open across the Cambridge student theatre scene (including theatres like the Playroom and college venues such as Queens' Fitzpatrick Hall), which is huge: there is a lot of nepotism, however, and while you will generally still get offered parts if you're good enough, be warned that you could be auditoning for a part that's already unoffically been given to the director's best friend, or some other near-incestuous connection. This has happened to me on several occasions, and it never gets any easier to deal with but you do get used to it. Of course, this does mean that once you start getting cast in shows, you are making friends who might cast you in their next show if you get on well...

If you want to direct/produce a show in the theatre, there are two options: you either apply to the ADC Club, the resident company, to put on a Clubshow, attend an interview and, if you're accepted, they fund the show as well as support you with anything else you need. Applications are usually a form stating what week you want to put the show on in, accompanied by a written application essay detailing why you want to direct that show and what you'll do with it, as well as budgetary outlines and the like. The other alternative is to apply direct to the theatre for a slot, and apply to college drama societies for the funding - but the theatre's priority is to Clubshows, and as such you can usually only be fitted into a slot after all the Clubshows have been decided. There's a lot to be said for both options, my experience of them both is that it really depends on the show you're trying to produce. Sometimes the high profile of the Club will suit if you're going to do an established classic like A Doll's House; other times it can be nice to do an independent, experimental show without the pressure that the Club's reputation puts you under. At any rate, you'll get good support from whoever ends up funding it.

Now, on to the theatre itself. There is the infamous bar, which has been done up and is the hangout of many a thesp. It's very small for pre-show audiences and can get very cramped. There also isn't a lot of atmosphere there; the main problem is that it's full of luvvies! :-) That said, it's a great place to just hang out if you're a thesp, and has the cheapest drinks I've found anywhere in Cambridge (including my SU bar!). It's also where a lot of the auditions are held for Clubshows - check Varsity newspaper for audition listings during term-time.

The auditorium itself seats about 250, and is a traditional proscenium arch end-on stage. I personally quite like the auditorium as it's quite old-looking and you get the impression of walking on historic ground. I do know lots of people who think it's not very interesting and lacks atmosphere, though. I guess it's a decision you have to make for yourself. The prestige carreis it through, at any rate. The one thing I will say about it is that it doesn't lend itself at all well to unconventional stagings, eg. in the round - if you want that for your play, you're better off going to the L-shaped Playroom (just off the Market Square, by the Arts Theatre) or St. Chad's Octagon. The only major downside to the theatre is that currently there's no allowance for disabled patrons, as you have to climb up a huge staircase to get to the bar and theatre - although they've just closed for refurbishment for the summer and are going to fix this, I believe.

As for the quality of shows: it varies. I've seen some truly amazing stuff there, for example 'Arcadia' and 'Habeus Corpus' in the past year. However, I have also seen some mediocre plays, and there have also been some truly awful productions there. The problem is that often, slots are given to directors who either don't know what they're doing, or are too over-indulgent and ruin a perfectly good play with 'theatrical devices' which only serve to make the production completely unentertaining. I remember me and my boyfriend of the time wanting to walk out of a show because they'd taken a one-act play and dragged it out so much it lasted 3 hours - the only reason we didn't was because the director knew we were there and we had to meet our friend in the bar afterwards! The schedule of plays is always interesting, though: they tend to learn more towards established plays and playwrights, but will often take a chance on new writing and lesser-known plays in the lateshow slots. Lateshows are often where the truly good stuff is, and they allow for a lot more freedom in terms of acting, directing etc. - although you don't get as good a budget with a Clubshow.

All in all, it is a great place for theatre. However, I think people sometimes forget that there are other student theatres in Cambridge, which often have a better output. That said, if you want to get involved in student drama then you will come across it at some point, and there are much worse places to start.