News from the council
Members of the council have compiled individual reports on their areas of responsibility’
Harriet Davey – Hon. Secretary
My routine jobs consist of attending Council Meetings which are held once a month – taking notes, preparing Minutes, correspondence and attending to various matters arising from meetings, general matters, Council Members’ requests etc. etc.
I also have to make sure every year that the Annual General Meeting arrangements and documentation are in order so that the meeting can take place, then attend the meeting to take notes and prepare the minutes.
2019 was a very busy year for the Stables as it was our Diamond Jubilee. I was very happy to be a member of the Stables Diamond Jubilee Committee which organised events for this special year ie. Anniversary Luncheon, Church Service of Thanksgiving, the booklet entitled “60 years of The Stables Theatre”, Little Theatre Guild conference, Gala evenings, the Christmas party, merchandise etc. Along with general matters I was in charge of arranging the Anniversary Luncheon held at the Powdermills Hotel in Battle on 16th June.This was a great success and enjoyed by all who attended; the special guest was our Patron Barbara Flynn who came down from London for the event and gave a very amusing speech with many references to the Theatre – she has been involved in The Stables since the age of 12!
I did a lot, together with Tim Pearce, to organise and run the Little Theatre Guild three-day Conference; this took place at the Theatre at the end of September with an attendance of some 24 representatives from Little Theatre Guild theatres in the south-east.My job involved making many lists – of candidates and their details, events etc. and attending to the paperwork – mountains of paperwork! I filled a Stables tote bag for each attendee with items of interest regarding the Stables Theatre, the conference, the town of Hastings and surrounding area together with Stables 60th merchandise – these bags were all over the house for a week or so while I sorted things out!The conference was enjoyed by all (we had many letters of thanks) especially the trip to the Old Town to have a fish and chip lunch at Maggies.
Unfortunately, after all this I was unable to attend the conference as I was in hospital on the date.
This year I got everything ready for the Stables Theatre Sparkling Celebration Draw (to be drawn on 4th July) of the necklace kindly made and donated by Barbara Flynn…. but of course this cannot now take place due to the Coronavirus situation.
Tickets will, however, be on sale and the draw will take place once the Theatre is able to re-open.
Since the end of March I have helped the Chairman as much as I can with the sad and daunting task of closing the Theatre down due to the Cornavirus pandemic and also keeping things generally up-to-date as far as is possible.
I also act as Membership Secretary which involves keeping the membership register up to date, collecting monthly payments and dealing with various problems.
I would just like to add that I thoroughly enjoy all I do for the Stables Theatre and am looking forward to seeing everyone there as soon as it is possible for the Theatre to re-open.
David Harding
Since my election I have dealt with the following:
1. Advising on and redrafting the Contract for The Hire of the Theatre by visiting individuals and companies with specific regard to professional productions.
2. Advising on and redrafting the Function Room Hire Agreement
3. Advising on, updating and redrafting the Theatre’s Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy documents including procedures and statements to meet the requirements of East Sussex County Council.
4. Considering and redrafting The Art Gallery Contract – ongoing project.
5. Advising on the procedure to ensure the legality of the Barbara Flynn necklace draw. Advising on the format of the tickets and appropriate publicity.
6. Perusing and advising on the Contract forwarded by the proposed suppliers of new automatic doors for the Theatre.
7. Assisting with advice on the essential requirements of the Annual General Meeting having regard to the relevant paragraphs of the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
I was the Chairman of the sub-committee formed to plan and arrange the events selected to celebrate the Theatre’s 60th Anniversary. This included the hosting of the Annual Meeting of the Southern Region Little Theatre Guild held in September.