RTL Today - Knowledge Bites: Anglophone Theatre Clubs - Melusina Pantomime this weekend!

Need to know more about the English-language theatre groups of Luxembourg? RachelKathryn Lloyd presents the various anglophone clubs and, of course, their upcoming shows.

New World Theatre Club

New World Theatre Club was founded in 1968 by a group of British people living in Luxembourg that wanted an outlet to put on productions in Luxembourg. They currently have around 80 members from over 20 nationalities.

English is the main language spoken but most members are not native English speakers and any nationality or language is welcome as long as there is an interest in theatre. NWTC put on roughly two productions a year depending on the venues and cast available. They also have a Youth Theatre group for 10-18 year olds that usually put on a show every spring. In May they produced a one-act play called The Ripple Effect by Robert Scott which they first staged in Luxembourg and then took to the Festival of European Amateur Theatrical Societies (FEATS) in Munich while the Youth Theatre put on adaptions of Treasure Island and Alice in Wonderland.

The New World Theatre Club organises weekend workshops two or three times a year with professional tutors from the UK. Their next workshop will be on improvisation and is related to their upcoming show. These workshops are open to members and non-members alike. On top of these workshops, the NWTC also holds play readings five or six times a year as well as Cafe Villon evenings two or three times a year, which are more like a rehearsed play reading.

This October (17 to 19 October) they will be putting on 'CSI' which will be an improvised event taking ideas and suggestions from the audience. It will be held at Altrimenti, 5 rue Marie-Therese, L-2132. For tickets, email tickets@nwtc.lu or call 35 63 39.

NWTC member: €16, Non members: €18, Students: €12. Please go to www.nwtc.lu for more information.

Pirate Productions

Pirate Productions was founded in 1979 in collaboration with the American International School (now ISL) which wanted to stage The Pirates of Penzance and asked people from the English speaking community to help with casting and logistics. After that production, many people wanted to do more musical theatre and that's how Pirate Productions was created.

They have approximately 100 members, some of whom are not currently active. They try to put on two productions a year, a big one in November with up to fifty cast members and a smaller one in spring with up to thirty cast members. Their last production was Mel Brooke's Young Frankenstein at the Kinneksbond in Mamer. They do not offer their own workshops but many members participate in the NWTC workshops.

Their upcoming show is Melusina the Pantomime which will be staged in November (7 to 10 November), with evening shows on Thursday through Saturday and matinee shows on Saturday and Sunday. It will be held at the Kinneksbond in Mamer, 42 Route d'Arlon, 8210 Mamer. Tickets can be bought via telephone (35 63 39), via email at tickets@pirates.lu or online at pirateproductions.lu under current shows.

Berliner Grund Theatre

Founded around 30 years ago, BGT English Theatre Company was originally based out of Berlin. They decided to form the group as there were not many opportunities for English language theatre outside of amateur groups. When the founders Tony Kingston and June Lowery moved to Luxembourg, they brought the group with them. While they tried to maintain a connection with the Berlin group through crossover productions, they ultimately decided to stop as it was not easy with travel.

They do not have a paid membership system but do have a small committee to assist in the running of things. They chose their casts on a show to show basis which allows for many to return as well as open the door for new actors and actresses to participate. They do one big show a year but are limited due to the availability of venues. As Tony Kingston teaches at a lot of schools around Luxembourg, there is also some overlap in the productions and casts. Their most recent show was Picnic at Hanging Rock by Joan Lindsay, which recounts the story of four school girls on a day trip to Hanging Rock that go missing and one of which is found two weeks later.

Their upcoming show is part of a new project that they have developed that is to promote young Luxembourgish actors and actresses that would like to study the arts or Theaterwissenschaft as well as meet the demographic of strong male to female roles. The show, Wolves Are Coming For You by Joel Horwood, will take place at the International School of Luxembourg's Studio Theatre from 5 to 7 September. You can reserve ticket via email at the.bgt.lux@gmail.com and you better go fast because they have a very limited amount.

Actors Repertory

Actors Repertory Theatre Luxembourg (Actors Rep) was founded in 2012 as an a.s.b.l and put on their first production of The Goat Or, Who is Sylvia? by Edward Albee in 2013 as a collaboration with the Théâtre National du Luxembourg. The group of theatre professionals decided to begin Actors Rep as an English-as-a-first language group as there was no professional company committed exclusively to English language productions. The Repertory wanted to provide more production opportunities and to offer more opportunities to see professional English language theatre. They currently have four members that were there from the start, and any cast are considered honorary members during the run of a production and are paid with cast coming from Luxembourg, London, the US and Berlin. Unlike other theatre groups, you can only become a member through invitation. They usually do one production every calendar year, however they have been able to do more over the last couple years. Their most recent show was #WTF Happened? On the Phenomenon of Trump, which they did as a revival in March.

They don't currently have plans for an upcoming show but are looking to revive their Christmas production of Dear Santa..., which was developed to be able to be performed in a variety of venues and can be books for an on-site holiday event. They are also interested in taking a show to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival for 2020 or 2021 and are in talks with a US theatre company.