A band of swashbuckling adventurers, Austen’s romantic heroines, Shakespeare’s mischievous fairies and the mysterious Jay Gatsby have all found their way to Cliftonville. They might seem unlikely seaside companions, but at The Oval, each has helped turn our historic amphitheatre into a place where stories come to life.
That is part of the pleasure of outdoor theatre. You arrive somewhere familiar, perhaps a place you pass on a daily walk, and discover it transformed. With a change of costume, a few carefully chosen props and the skill of the performers, the bandstand becomes another world. The audience supplies the imagination, and the open sky supplies a backdrop that no two performances can quite repeat.
Since GRASS Cliftonville CIC took The Oval Bandstand & Lawns into community ownership in 2021, we have been gradually restoring its place in Cliftonville’s cultural life. Theatre has become an increasingly exciting part of that work, bringing new voices, different audiences, and fresh possibilities to a venue with a long history of seaside entertainment.
From Gilbert and Sullivan’s The Pirates of Penzance to Chapterhouse Theatre Company’s Sense and Sensibility, the amphitheatre has welcomed a wonderfully varied mix of productions. This Is My Theatre brought The Three Musketeers and The Great Gatsby to our seaside stage, while East London Shakespeare Festival filled it with the mischief and magic of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Each company has made The Oval its own, showing how much imagination, live music and talented performers can bring to an open-air space.
Alongside these visiting companies, local performers have made their own distinctive contribution. Across three summers, A Summer Spectacular has brought Canterbury Musical Theatre Society and its guests to The Oval to celebrate the extraordinary variety of musical theatre. With contributions from groups including Techniques Dance and Performing Arts, Constant Lark, Theatrecraft Herne Bay, Margate Operatic Society, and Faversham Musical Theatre Choir, the showcase has also celebrated the wealth of performing talent across East Kent.
That meeting of local talent and professional touring theatre is something we want to keep developing. There is room here for a familiar song that makes someone book their first ticket, a classic novel seen in a new light, or a Shakespeare performance that surprises someone who thought it would not be for them. A varied programme gives people different ways to discover the pleasure of live theatre.
Access to culture is one of GRASS’s founding missions, and as a community venue, it matters to us that local people can afford to enjoy the theatre on their doorstep. In an area experiencing severe social deprivation, ticket prices can be a real barrier to taking part. Although we receive no support from Thanet District Council, we work hard to keep our productions affordable, offering low-cost early bird tickets and concessions for those who need them most. As the programme grows, making it accessible to our community will remain central to everything we do.
The setting plays its part too. The Oval is an unmistakably seaside venue, with the coast close by and the changing light marking the passage of an afternoon or evening. There is a relaxed pleasure in settling into a chair with a drink, meeting friends and watching the performers create something together. For a little while, everyone shares the same story.
Making those moments possible takes work throughout the year. Behind each performance are preparations, rehearsals, arrangements with companies and the practical business of welcoming an audience. Alongside that comes the continuing care of the park and improvements to the venue, carried out gradually as resources allow.
Community ownership connects all of this. The people buying tickets, volunteering, performing, and supporting events are helping shape The Oval’s future. Returning companies and familiar faces in the audience give the programme continuity, while new visitors bring the possibility of another lasting connection.
We are proud of how Cliftonville Outdoor Theatre is developing, and grateful to everyone who has helped it grow. The strong audiences for this summer’s productions have given us plenty of encouragement as we look towards expanding the programme in 2027.
Our planned community bookshop and café, opening in spring 2027, will add another place to encounter stories at The Oval. After welcoming characters from Austen, Dumas, Shakespeare and Fitzgerald into the amphitheatre, making space for books feels like a fitting next chapter.
For now, we are looking ahead to the next company arriving, the next audience settling into their seats and the next transformation of our seaside stage. Who knows which characters will find their way to Cliftonville next?