Category: Events

CDDG would love to welcome you all to come along to the auditions for our 2025 pantomime, Puss In Boots.

This will be our own version of the traditional story: three brothers, Petrock, Patsy and Piran Trelawney, inherit the mill in Perranwell from their father, but the elder brothers won’t share with Piran, who is forced to seek his fortune in the great city of Truro, with only his cat and an old pair of boots. However, when the cat puts the boots on – she can talk! Puss plans for Piran to pretend to be the Marquess of Glasney, so that he can marry the beautiful Princess Gwinevere, but Petrock does his best to stop that and the King and Queen are more concerned about battling the wicked Ogre of Penelewey and his evil henchwomen. True love is under threat, Warfare is pending, but all ends happily, once Lawyer Roscarrick has found his proper glasses…

Auditions are to be held at The Perranwell Centre, Sunday 15th September from 10am to 1pm. The first full rehearsal will be on Sunday 13th October, 2 to 5pm. Company rehearsals will be on Sunday afternoons and principal rehearsals on Friday evenings. The production dates are Thursday 30th January to Sunday 2nd February 2025.

List of Parts:
There are plenty of parts of all sizes, suitable for people of all ages. Roughly in order of number of lines. Indications of age and gender are only for guidance – anyone is free to audition for any part.

Piran Trelawny, our lovable hero, teen male, must sing
Puss in Boots, clever and bossy, teen female
The Ogre, wicked and imposing, adult male, must sing
King Pydar of Cornwall, always speaks in rhyme, adult male
Queen Lamorna, capable and intelligent, adult female
Princess Guinevere, beautiful but feisty, teen female, must sing
Petrock Trelawny, Piran’s greedy brother, adult/teen male
Patsy Trelawny, his gullible brother, teen m/f
Mrs Polparret, Cornish villagewoman, could be played as a dame role, adult m/f
Lawyer Roscarrick, elderly and shortsighted, adult male
Freda, Ogre’s First Henchwoman (all the henchwomen are supposedly evil but really more concerned about their salaries and pension plans), adult female
Demelza, a lady in waiting, friend to Princess, teen female
Veryan Tregurra, Truro girl, teen/child female
Camilla, Prunella and Lucinda, henchwomen (see Freda), adult female
Herald, teen/child m/f, needs loud clear voice (well, everyone needs a loud clear voice, but Herald especially)
Cuby, King’s page, child m/f
Igor, Ogre’s sinister servant, child m/f
Roberta, Rowena and Rosie, three rabbits, child m/f, must sing
Boy Blue, a trumpeter, child m/f
Bo Peep, a shepherdess, child f
Suitor Lancelot, child m
Suitor Ruan, child m
First and Second Guards, any age m/f
First and Second Villagers, any age m/f
Cat, must move well, miaows, child f

Chorus of Villagers, Courtiers, Ruffians and Ghouls – a lot of the characters above can be in chorus also, and many of the musical numbers are for full company, so everyone needs to sing, even if they think they can’t.

You can see that we need a good-sized company for this, so do come to the auditions and encourage your friends to come along too.

CDDG would like to welcome you all to our launch and auditions of our productions of Charles Dickens’ “The Chimes”.

The Launch will be held at The Perranwell Centre on Friday 7th June at 7:00pm.

Auditions will be held at The Perranwell Centre on Sunday 9th June at 5:30pm and Thursday 13th June at 7:30pm.

This production will be performed at The Perranwell Centre on the 3rd to 5th October 2024. Those currently in Matilda or Labour of Love will not be called for rehearsals until those shows are complete.

CHARLES DICKENS’ “THE CHIMES” 

After A Christmas Carol, The Chimes is the second of Dickens’ Christmas Books. Set on New Year’s Eve it tells the story of Toby Veck a humble porter who makes a meagre living, waiting for jobs as he sits on the church steps; inspired by the church bells to hope for better times.

This is Dickens at his most uncompromising. Ever the social reformer, he presents stark differences between the hard, the uncaring and the ignorant well-off, with the down-trodden poor who take pleasure in simple comforts and companionship, to live as well as they may. Although this is a dark tale it does conclude with a surprising and uplifting happy ending.

Ultimately it is a tale of the triumph of hope over adversity, and being Dickens, there are ghosts and goblins who are very much part of the story.

Karnon Kidz (the youth section of the Carnon Downs Drama Group) are pleased to announce that their next show will be Matilda Jr.

Are you between the ages of 7-18?

Would you like the opportunity to be part of the cast?

Maybe you would like to help behind the scenes?

Why not come to our workshop on Sunday 4^th February 2024 from 10:00am until 1:00pm.

Auditions are being held on Sunday 11^th February 2024 from 10:00am until 1:00pm.

Both the workshop and the auditions will be held at The Perranwell Centre.

Performance dates will be Friday 5^th, Saturday 6^th & Sunday 7^th July 2024 at The Perranwell Centre.

 For more details, please contact Samantha Barker- tinkerbellstar870@hotmail.com

Audition Pieces

CDDG would like to welcome you all to our launch and auditions of our productions of Dr Faustus.

Auditions for CDDG’s annual pantomime Mother Goose written by our very own Logan Fox and to be directed by John Frankland will be held on Sunday 15th October at The Perranwell Centre.

The auditions are open to all ages with under 16’s auditioning from 10am to 12 noon, and adults auditioning from 2pm to 5pm.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Join us for a community coronation tea party at The Perranwell Centre on Saturday 6th May 2023, 4pm to 6pm.

This event, organised by the trustees and supporters of The Perranwell Centre, is a free event open to all, and will feature pop up performances and royal themed activities.

Pin back your ears and spread the word that Sam, Elaine, Jason and the usual team are back in action. Here are the details you have been waiting for.

Sunday 19th February Launch Day 2pm – 4pm at The Perranwell Centre.

Come along for a fun filled afternoon to find out all about the show and get to meet everyone involved. We will be reading some of the script, singing some of the songs with Jason as well as learning some of the dances with Sam. Of course we’ll also be doing lots crazy team games so that by the end of the session you’ll definitely want to “…follow the yellow brick road”!

Sunday 26th February – Auditions! 2pm – 5pm at The Perranwell Centre

We will make this an enjoyable and fun experience and it will give you the chance to tell us what parts you would like to audition for. Don’t be shy just show us what you can do so that you will be ready to shine on the stage as brilliant as Dorothy’s Ruby Slippers.

If you would like more information or have any questions, please email Sam Rogers the Director, via the following email address: tinkerbellstar870@hotmail.com

We look forward to seeing you all “somewhere over the rainbow”!

Wizard of OZ- Character List:

Dorothy Gale: strong singer, good dancer and large speaking role. American Accent

Aunt Em: singer and speaking role. American Accent

Uncle Henry: small speaking role. American Accent

Hunk (Scarecrow): Comedy singing, dancing and speaking role. American Accent

Zeke (Lion): Comedy singing, dancing and speaking role. American Accent

Hickory (Tin Man): Comedy singing, dancing and speaking role. American Accent

Miss Gulch (Wicked Witch of the West): Dramatic speaking role. Evil laugh required. American Accent

Toto: limited singing and barking role

Professor Marvel (Wizard of OZ): Strong actor and large speaking role. American Accent

Doorman: speaking role

Guard: speaking role

Glinda: delicate singer and actor

Nikko: small speaking role. “Eee-Eee-Eee”

Munchkins: small singing and speaking characters available

Ensemble: Munchkins, Jitterbugs, Winged Monkeys/Winkie Guards, Ozians, Crows, Apple Trees

Audition Pieces:

Aunt Em, Uncle Henry, Dorothy- Pages 4-5

Wizard of OZ & Dorothy- pages 43-44 / pages 6-7

Toto, Glinda & Dorothy- pages 10-11

Glinda, Dorothy & Wicked Witch- pages 16-17

Scarecrow, Lion, Tin Man & Dorothy- pages 30-33

As it stands it’s STILL all systems go for Disney’s Alice in Wonderland JR to be performed by the Karnon Kidz on Friday 22nd – Sunday 24th July 2022.

As you can imagine with having to postpone this production twice, we are very much aware a lot has changed in that time. We have had an amazing response from our appeal asking those of you who were involved originally whether they were still interested in joining us for this fabulous show which is great. Bearing this in mind the Director Samantha Rogers and her team are excited to inform you that they will be holding a workshop/audition on Sunday 27th February 2 – 5pm at the Perranwell Centre for anyone aged between 7 & 18 years. We are looking forward to seeing you all again and finally getting this production on the road. If you have any friends or relatives that would like to join us then please do bring them along as we are aware that some of you couldn’t join us last time due to our age restrictions, but are now old enough to join us.

If you have any queries or are unable to attend but would like to take part then please do let us know by emailing: smeagleandprecious@hotmail.com

’Some are born great; some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them’ by attending our

Twelfth Night Launch / Audition

CDDG takes it’s COVID responsibilities very seriously. For us to ensure adequate ventilation, the hall may not be as warm as usual. We would advise you come adequately clothed.

As part of our 50th Anniversary year we launched a One Act Play competition to find a new play to be performed alongside a rehearsed reading of our very first production ‘Pop Goes the Patient’. The closing date for entries was midnight on Friday 5th June.  Shortly before that deadline we received our 294th submission.

The competition has been amazingly successful with entries from all over the world, several from America, as well as Russia and Canada. We have also received entries from Cornwall and across the UK including one from New Zealand from a writer having to see out the pandemic there whose home is Falmouth.

Entries have come from established professional writers as well as amateurs and for some it is their first attempt at writing a play. Several entries have made the point of how much they appreciated the opportunity in these uncertain times.

The judging team from CDDG will now be completing their reading and assessing all 294 submissions with a view to selecting 14 finalists from whom our winner will be chosen by a panel made up of Managers at Waterstones, Truro, a local author and myself.

In the light of the number of entrants I expect the judging process to be completed in July 2020. At that time we will, in the light of where we are with Covid 19, be making further announcements about production plans.

Sisterly Feelings Monday May 18th Opening night transferred from Minack to Zoom.

I was very pleased with the way our virtual reading went and super proud of everyone who took part with special thanks to Zoe and Ethan the backstage team.

I think we have learned a lot. Virtual backgrounds and how to control them. Entrances and Exits how to make them look smooth. The use of co-hosts to support if there is a technical problem with audience or cast. It enabled us very smoothly to readmit those who lost connection.

All in all a very worthwhile event and a good celebration of what would have been a perfect opening night at a sunny Minack.

I have added to this some thought and comments from cast and audience.

John

If you’d asked me three months ago what I would be doing on the evening of May 18th I’d have been confident of the answer – carefully eyeing the skies and praying for decent weather for the opening night of Sisterly Feelings at the Minack.

In my wildest fantasies I would never have contemplated performing my part in the solitude of my own bedroom, aided and abetted by a virtual cast and before a virtual audience. Yet owing to a bizarre combination of a global pandemic and the wonders of modern technology that is exactly
what transpired (and we must not forget dear Johnny whose mad idea this was!).

The fact that this was pulled off so successfully owes much to the Zoom software, which I’d never heard of before April. So this was a steep learning curve for me, with knowledge being acquired both before and during the performance! My bête noire was the Virtual Background – I could only make this work by pointing the laptop camera at the white ceiling and looking down into said camera to deliver lines (even this failed when the natural light faded at around 8.30, and once again I became a ghostly apparition).

Entrances and exits were an interesting challenge, particularly in the cross-country race scene, where I would have been (and hopefully will be in 2021) haring around the stage in all directions. I’m convinced I felt more exhausted after Monday than I would have at Porthcurno. Props were, to quote Jeeves from another show, ‘mostly imagined or representational’. This involved my daughter Cathy launching sandwiches on to my picnic plate from behind my laptop (blink and you missed it), as well as clipboards, stopwatches etc. Sadly our long-suffering audience were deprived Constable Murphy ‘handing’ me a loud hailer – that scene fell victim to the random choices in the script.

Thanks to all of our wonderful cast for throwing themselves into this venture, especially Chris and Nick who replaced original cast members at short notice. The backstage team were as active as they would have been in a live show – I think we have Ethan and Zoe to thank for this – and we must not forget John’s boundless enthusiasm in putting the whole thing together. We also thank the Zoom audience (14, I believe – I’ve played to fewer in real life) for getting into the spirit of the project and for their kind feedback after the show.

We fervently hope that in twelve months these strange times will be behind us and that we will be celebrating a more conventional success story on a real stage. Nonetheless, this unique performance will be a delightful memory when I sit back and recall the special moments I have been privileged to enjoy with CDDG.

Simon

Please give my congratulations to all involved in “Sisterly Feelings”. It’s not a play that I am familiar with, but it kept my attention throughout. I thought it was amazing to get the reactions between characters when they were not even in the same room!

Angela

It was a rather strange occasion, we should have been at the Minack, but … we know the rest. It was the first time we had tried to do anything like that and I think we learnt a lot from the exercise, especially about lighting and virtual backgrounds.

Mark

When you are next in touch with cast and crew of Sisterly Feelings, please tell them that I thought they did a stirling job on Monday.

Ann

That was a lot of fun. Thank you everyone…its so lovely to keep in touch.

Kate

New experience. Prefer reality but good to see everyone.

Jon

Really enjoyed that John, so glad I joined can’t wait for the real deal.

Amelia

I thought everyone did really well considering the limitations and difficulties of using technology for a live theatre event. Characters emerged and the story was clear from the start. You could tell it was going to be a great show at the Minack for all.

Charlie

Great performances from all the cast and very cleverly adapted to zoom- it didn’t feel like just another zoom catchup but felt like an ‘event’ with the use of tech, excellent work by all! Looking forward to seeing it at the Minack next year!

Dylan

As part of our 50th celebration we are launching a competition to find a new one act play to be performed 1st to 3rd Oct and 10th Oct. The competition is open to all; both members and non-members.

Apart from the special reward of seeing your work performed there will also be a cash prize of £100 plus a script consultation with Victoria Ferguson to the winning playwright. Closing date for submissions Friday June 5th 2020 (Terms and conditions apply) As long as it has never been performed before it will qualify. All welcome from 16 years to 100 plus.

The winner will receive £100 cash and a script consultation with Victoria Ferguson to help develop their script and discuss careers in scriptwriting.

Victoria is a writer and script editor, and was the coordinator for the BAFTA Rocliffe New Writing Competition. She collaborates with emerging and established writers to develop their scripts for the stage and screen, and is currently working with production companies including Drama Republic (Doctor Foster), New Pictures (COBRA) and 42 M&P (Military Wives) to find projects to develop for film and TV.

So, let the creative juices flow.

Please email your entries to j-frankland@hotmail.co.uk