And now... an Arts Centre for Charlbury?

Tue 29 Aug 2017, 21:59

Odd that people take my comment as a criticism of the present committee. The point is that the Memorial Hall and Corner House are run by a committee of representatives of groups who use them. If new uses are to be considered, perhaps there needs to be some rethinking of how people with new ideas can be represented and involved.

At the same time, it's important to remember that the majority of uses to which the Hall is put will,continue. From my experience of using the hall, I'd agree entirely with Simon. It's primarily a matter of acoustics, lighting and staging. And despite comments here, I'm not aware it has anything whatever to do with the Gifford Trust.

Sun 27 Aug 2017, 11:42

How about we offer to make a home for able and disabled people in the Corner House? it's so central.

Sat 26 Aug 2017, 18:21

Odd that people take my comment as a criticism of the present committee. The point is that the Memorial Hall and Corner House are run by a committee of representatives of groups who use them. If new uses are to be considered, perhaps there needs to be some rethinking of how people with new ideas can be represented and involved.

At the same time, it's important to remember that the majority of uses to which the Hall is put will,continue. From my experience of using the hall, I'd agree entirely with Simon. It's primarily a matter of acoustics, lighting and staging. And despite comments here, I'm not aware it has anything whatever to do with the Gifford Trust.

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 16:16

Do you all realise that the Memorial Hall is a multi use building, with Toddlers (the storage under the stage is used for their toys), Senior Moves, Evergreens, Pioneers etc etc. I think you will find plenty of music events, ChOC, CADS, Youth Theatre to name but a few happening there.

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 14:15

Thank you Tony (Lloyd). Yes, this is only about the Memorial Hall and my suggestions absolutely don't imply any criticism of the Community Centre, the Thomas Gifford Trust or the Corner House (etc) committee.

The Memorial Hall no longer needs to be quite the multi-purpose facility it has been up to now. It is, as others have pointed out, a fine building and, without overlooking the fact that it's also a memorial, it deserves to be used in new ways. It seems to me that with some attention to the acoustics and to the arrangements for lighting and staging, it would not only be a much better facility for CADS, ChOC and others locally but it could also be the kind of performance venue that non-Charlbury organisations would want to use. Bringing new audiences for the performing arts to the town would make a very positive contribution to keeping Charlbury the flourishing place it deserves to be.

Obviously this would have implications for how the building were developed and how it were then managed so there's a lot to discuss there but - well, wouldn't it be exciting?!

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 12:36

I think we are losing the plot here. Simon proposed promoting the Memorial Hall more as a music and arts venue, which has nothing to do with parking at the Community Centre or any criticism of the Memorial Hall and Corner House committee!

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 12:28 (last edited on Thu 24 Aug 2017, 13:01)

As usual Tony you miss read the point of my previous comment which was saying to John that I disagreed with his point on having to rethink how the Cornerhouse and Memorial Hall are organised and run, the committee and trustees do a great job and merely pointed out they are fully capable of applying for grants and running these two Charlbury assets, quite why you have to keep bringing up all the other stuff god knows.

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 09:29 (last edited on Thu 24 Aug 2017, 10:00)

Sorry John but i think you are being very unfair to the committee and previous committee members and trustees who have done a fantastic job over the years.
As you know the Corner House and Memorial Hall have been a fantastic and useful buildings in the past and they will…

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Thu 24 Aug 2017, 07:55

Oh, and Tony, have you looked under the stage!? There are some challenging storage issues there!

Thu 24 Aug 2017, 07:53

It will be necessary to rethink completely how the Mem Hall and Corner House are organised and run. The make-up of the committee, decision making, etc. I think that is in the hands of the Town Council. (This is a brilliant idea, by the way.)

Tue 22 Aug 2017, 08:58

Good idea Simon
Maybe it is also time to consider a new approach to the stage. At many recent music and drama events in the hall the entertainers have not used the stage but created their own raised platforms, often against the longer wall. What about replacing the stage with lightweight modular units that can be configured and placed wherever the stage is required, or packed away when not in use. This would also be of benefit to those using the space for functions that did not require a stage as it would give them 25% more floor area. A modern modular stage, even larger than the current stage, made up of 2mx1m sections, would fit on two wheeled trolleys.

Mon 21 Aug 2017, 18:40

Simon this is a great idea - over the years, The Memorial Hall has held some wonderful events, from numerous CADS and Shed theatre productions, a monthly Young Bands night (Who remembers the famous Lock-In?), regular music performances and even an unforgettable night with the legendary Henry Blofeld. I would love to see something more formal put in place

Mon 21 Aug 2017, 15:41

Fantastic idea. Exciting stuff it it could happen.

Mon 21 Aug 2017, 11:33

Prompted by the heartening thread about all the good things going on in the town at the moment ("Turning Point For Charlbury?"), I wonder how people would feel about the idea of Charlbury having its own dedicated venue for the performing arts.

The new Community Centre will be splendid for our sporting and physical recreation (and education). The Corner House seems set to take on new community activities of a different sort (and hurrah for the bookshop incidentally). So what's going to happen to the Memorial Hall?

The Memorial Hall is a fine space with great facilities. It seems to me that it wouldn't take too much work to turn it into the kind of flexible performance space that could be used for theatrical and musical events at a seriously high level. Crucially, I don't only mean local events (though Charlbury is certainly creative and lively in this respect). A good performance venue will attract professional performers of all kinds: orchestras, chamber ensembles, jazz and rock bands, theatre, music theatre, dance and opera companies need good venues in good locations to stage shows. This would bring new people, new money and new attention to Charlbury in ways that surely everyone could support.

For all I know, there may be detailed plans afoot already for something like this but if not, would anyone be interested in looking into the idea of a Charlbury Memorial Arts Centre?