Caitlin Morrell
Nottingham New Theatre, the only student-run theatre in England, is celebrating its 100th anniversary in June. Committee members, Charlotte Reay, Alex Vale and Harrison Martin, sit with the Impact Entertainment team to discuss what Nottingham New Theatre is about, its development since their involvement and their hopes for the future.
The Studio on the bottom floor of the Portland Building is where Nottingham New Theatre–usually abbreviated to New Theatre or NNT–currently resides, iconic memorabilia decorating the once empty room. We’re talking old posters, the makeshift bar (that happens to also sell New Theatre stickers), random props sprawled by the window, uncollected plastic Oscar trophies and the peculiar black throne in a small room known as ‘The Fishbowl’. On the day of our meeting, I was early, and it took a janitor to let me and one of the two marketing coordinators, Alex Vale, into the Studio. Unfortunately, this seems to be a normal occurrence.
“It’s actually just so incredibly impressive how New Theatre has adapted and survived”
The Studio was not New Theatre’s original space. According to various sources, New Theatre’s old building, close to the Orchards, is currently in tatters. The damage is so bad that the roof apparently slightly lifts up in heavy wind. The estimated cost to repair the building is anyone’s guess, and recent events at the University of Nottingham don’t bring any hope for the possibility of repairing the building. However, New Theatre remains hopeful despite this. The Studio was rebuilt in September as a way to give Nottingham New Theatre a home since the dissolution of the theatre building in 2023. From sorting technical issues to deciding the number of seats, New Theatre has carved out a new era for its productions.
“It’s actually just so incredibly impressive how New Theatre has adapted and survived,” Harrison Martin, the External Co-ordinator, believes. “It’s impressive to see, as someone who was casually involved and then has gradually gotten more involved, how the New Theatre has adapted, survived and even improved. I think we’re almost in the best kind of condition.”
In the Fishbowl were three of the twenty-one committee members. They’ve all been a part of the century-old society since starting university and joined the committee in their second and third years. It’s an exciting time for the society on its 100th year anniversary. Charlotte Reay, the president, has been planning the social event of the year: a ‘100 years of student theatre’ gala in June at Lakeside Arts with members, past and present, coming together to celebrate the occasion.
“When we say we’re entirely student-run, we mean everything”
Charlotte discusses their plans further, “We’re really looking forward to getting the community back together, re-establishing links with our alumni network. Hopefully, we can translate this into better opportunities and outcomes for our membership.”
“A lot of the societies were established around 1926 and [New Theatre] was no outlier in that, so it only felt right to try and make something happen.”
But what exactly is Nottingham New Theatre? What is it that they do? Simple, really. In their words, Nottingham New Theatre is “a theatre that puts on plays.”
“When we say we’re entirely student-run, we mean everything,” says Charlotte. “This means acting, backstage… But this also means things like publicity and sorting our own finances. We run our own bar, organise events… Everything that comes with running the theatre, we have to do ourselves.”
The three emphasised that “behind-the-scenes” in New Theatre is a “full-time job in itself”. With numerous members producing plays every term, the theatre hosts a wide range of events, including their annual Student Fringe Festival (or StuFF) every summer, which Harrison is responsible for. StuFF invites internal and external performance groups to perform their shows on campus over two days, with this year’s StuFF scheduled for 11th and 12th June 2026.
“[Being a committee member] is a joy and I wouldn’t have signed up to do it if I didn’t want to be here”
“So much work does go on behind the scenes, and this really does feel like a job at times.” Alex says. “Everyone puts in their shift and it is so busy, but it’s so rewarding seeing the results of, ultimately, all the hard work we put in. I think it’s even nicer when those results can be put on for your friends… It’s such a social thing.”
Balancing the workload is tough at times for each committee member, but their passion for New Theatre keeps them going. As Alex says: “[Being a committee member] is a joy and I wouldn’t have signed up to do it if I didn’t want to be here.”
While all of them joined theatre since starting university, their journeys had their differences. For example, while Charlotte and Alex were typical die-hard theatre kids in their own right, Harrison joined New Theatre out of a whim.
“In my first year, in the second term, my housemate convinced me to come and audition for something, just almost for a laugh.” Says Harrison. “I got involved in the show and then I’ve genuinely developed such a deep passion and interest in theatre since then, which I think is really lovely.
“The New Theatre can offer [a lot] to people… like developing a new passion and, as Alex said, finding a community where you really feel at home and make so many lovely friends.”
”The community that I feel at the New Theatre exceeds the community I receive from my course”
Harrison refers to the sense of community Alex felt when he first joined New Theatre: “I walked into auditions, got very lucky and got a great [production]… We kind of have this joke about your first show. It’s like a theatre family, and it was a great theatre family.
“You just integrate from there. You do more shows, you meet more people… Looking back on it, [New Theatre] was one of many societies that I applied myself to in my first year. It’s kind of weird now that we’re at the end of the road and this is the one that’s stuck… I’ve met some of my best friends [at New Theatre].
Charlotte adds to these feelings, “In some ways, it feels like you get your degree in NNT. The community that I feel at the New Theatre exceeds the community I receive from my course in a strange way.”
New Theatre is described constantly as a close-knit community throughout our one-hour conversation. When they talk about their personal anecdotes, pre-stage rituals and favourite shows, you just know their committee meetings are hour-long hangouts with close friends. The three do have fond memories of New Theatre, and there is always something to look back on fondly.
“…I’d say just get yourself out there, try your best and have fun”
For Alex, a personal memory of his was stepping out of his comfort zone in his leading role in The Sinking Place in the last spring season: “I ended up stumbling across this role that taught me so much about my acting ability and what I’m capable of… I met such an amazing group of people like my best friend who produced [the show] and I talk to her everyday. To have something so wonderful come out of something so unexpected… I suppose I never thought that was what I ended up with would have been the role that I landed.”
When asked about what advice they would give to their first-year selves, Harrison’s advice was to “Stop stressing so much.”
“Go to that audition, try out for that thing. This is a lovely, accepting community… I’d say just get yourself out there, try your best and have fun.”
Charlotte found difficulty in giving an answer. Not because she didn’t know exactly what to say, but because she didn’t know what to change: “I’m having quite a cyclical moment because at the end of my first year, I finished the year by directing the show and at the end of, well, now my third year and final year, I’m directing a show again.”
“Everything I was doing at the time was just so exciting and passionate. I don’t know if I would change it. I think I’d [advise myself] to hold to my ground, keep trying, and everything does end up working out. Use people around you, trust people around you, is probably what I’d say.”
“When I see the direct impact that it has on the members… that’s very rewarding”
Charlotte’s final show, Machinal, is personal to her as the show was the one that developed her interest in theatre: “I studied Machinal for A-Level. Through studying it, Machinal was the first time I realised I had an interest in theatre that extended beyond just an enacting capacity. I really loved studying it through a directorial lens, and it set me off on this journey of wanting to investigate theatre and pursue theatre more than I originally thought.”
On the topic of the show, Charlotte believes Machinal is “very technically complicated show” but does enjoy putting it together. After all, the result of her actions is her favourite part of New Theatre.
“Sometimes I put a lot of work into developing new things or making improvements. When I see the direct impact that it has on the members… that’s very rewarding.”
Harrison, who directed A Streetcar Named Desire last spring season, found directing very rewarding as well, “I studied [the play] at A-Level and I really, really liked it… It took me years to actually get around to doing it. But it was great and bonding with the production team so intensely and seeing my cast grow into their roles… is something that will stick with me as a lovely memory for the rest of my life.”
“The New Theatre is still kicking and stronger than ever”
New Theatre is hopeful of its future, with the three hoping that, in the years to come, they find that “people are still putting on shows and still having a good time”.
“Every season since we came out of the building, we’ve had a plethora of shows.” Charlotte says, looking back on her time at New Theatre. “We’ve had a community that has enjoyed doing those shows where we met people and had a good time while we learned some new skills. I think sometimes we lose sight of that too easily. The New Theatre is still kicking and stronger than ever.”
With the gala planned for 15th June, as well as plans surrounding StuFF and Edinburgh Fringe, there is always something to look forward to. In spite of their troubles with the theatre building, it is hard not to notice the hard work behind the Nottingham New Theatre. Whatever the future may hold at the university, expect there to still be a community with a love of everything theatre.
In the current spring season, there are four shows, with Machinal first in the line-up. Following Machinal are the Shakespearean plays Hamlet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with the student-written production If I See Him ending the season. Tickets are available to purchase on the Nottingham New Theatre website.
Caitlin Morrell
Featured image courtesy of Andrew Phillips via Flickr. Image use license found here. No changes were made to this image.
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