ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2016
Tuesday 12th July 7-30 pm
Langtoft Village Hall
Attended by 22 members.
Apologies received from Jacky.
1/ Notes of previous AGM 16th July 2015
These had previously been circulated to members and copies were available at the meeting. Anja proposed that these were an accurate record, seconded by Carole and notes were agreed accordingly.
2/ Matters arising
None
3/ Treasurer’s report
This was circulated to the group; this year has been very profitable compared to previous years. The play made an excellent profit of £499.06.
Balance Sheet showed profit of £935.98
Balance at Bank £4684.84
Balance at Post Office £494.26
These figures are subject to any invoices not yet received.
Accounts have been audited by Mrs Helen Green.
4/ Chair’s report
I will keep this short and sweet as we need to get home to catch up with the ever moving political scene.
Since our last AGM we have put on two productions, firstly the pantomime Mother Goose, ably directed by Joan in her directorial debut and secondly ‘Kindly Keep It Covered’ a fast moving farce co-directed by Carole and Velma. Both of these received very positive reviews from our NODA Rep and perhaps more importantly from our audiences. Only a few weeks ago I was approached by a stranger to tell me how much she had enjoyed Kindly Keep It Covered.
Our production of Blitz was nominated for a NODA award, but unfortunately it was not selected as a winner, which is a real shame as I thought it was probably the best show I have seen Langtoft Players put on.
All of this continues to prove that we can and do put on consistently good performances that are enjoyed by many. However, I do have a major concern that notwithstanding the quality we are in effect ‘fishing from a small and increasingly small pool of talent’ and unless we attract new members of all ages we are in danger of stagnating. We did hold an open evening in September and we gained two new players, but it is up to all of us to encourage new members to come and give us a try. I feel that recruitment should be our main priority and I am open to ideas from all Players on how we can get our numbers up. In my mind there are 3 obvious routes for people to join LP, firstly once they are too old for Juniors, secondly from individual invites from current members, i.e. bring a friend and finally from going back to members who have performed before and see if they want to tread the boards again.
If we do not get these people in then I fear for the future of Langtoft Players. Our future is down to all of us and I look to you all to take positive steps to get more members as we all know what fun and friendship we get from being in Langtoft Players.
We safely negotiated the vagaries of newish regulations regarding children appearing in our productions thanks to Joan and Anja and I am sure we can use this as a modus operandi for future works with children.
Finally, I would like to thank each and every one of you for help and a particular mention to all of the committee members for their extra work and time to support us.
5/ Election of officers
The Committee stood down and Janet took the meeting.
Chair Matthew Lee proposed by Val, seconded Kerry; Andrew Clingo proposed by Anja, seconded Michelle. Both agreed that they were willing to stand; a vote was taken and Andrew was elected as chair by 13 votes to 6.
Andrew took the meeting, and began by expressing the groups appreciation to Matthew for his role as the chair of the group for the past three years.
Treasurer Joanne Clingo proposed by Anja, seconded Carole; Joanne accepted and proposal was carried.
Secretary Jackie Dodds proposed by Pam, seconded Joanne; Jackie accepted and proposal was carried.
Publicity – Steph Barrett proposed by Matthew, seconded by Louise; Steph accepted and the proposal was carried.
Village Hall representative
Carole Walker proposed by Joanne, seconded Jackie; Carole accepted and proposal was carried. Thanks to Maureen Boon who has served as the Village Hall representative for many years but has now decided to stand down.
Junior Players representative – Jean Hawksworth proposed by Andrew, seconded Matthew; Jean accepted and the proposal was carried.
6/ Election of committee
Anja and Val agreed to continue as committee members. No other members of the group expressed an interest. Anne and Brian were not present and it was agreed to approach Anne to continue as a committee member and Brian who had previously expressed an interest. Action Jackie
7/ Correspondence
Email from LVHMC to confirm representative for the coming year.
Action Jackie
8/ Costumes and Wardrobe Mistress
This was discussed at length. Carole and Velma will be putting away costumes that have been used recently and Anja and Val agreed to take over responsibility for costumes with ongoing support from Carole and Velma. A date for sorting out the shed will be fixed during the summer and a request for help will be circulated if needed. Action Anja, Carole, Val and Velma
Jackie mentioned long term storage which had been mentioned in the recent newsletter. She had identified a unit in King Street but at a cost of approximately £30 a week this was considered too expensive. Whilst this is not urgent, Langtoft players do need to find a more permanent facility for storage of costumes. Action all
The group expressed their thanks to Velma for continuing to accommodate the costume shed in her garden.
9/ Annual subscriptions for adults and under 16s
The cost of membership was increased at the last AGM. The proposal to remain at £10 per adult and £5 for under 16s who are not members of the Junior Players was made by Velma, seconded by Joanne and unanimously agreed.
10/ Publicity & Ticket Office
The group is delighted to have appointed a committee member to co-ordinate publicity. Various suggestions were put forward – continued use of posters and social media; a presentation to local groups such as Women’s Institute; distributing fliers at the Rotary Duck Race in September; Richard agreed to find out more information. Andrew and Steph agreed to discuss radio and local news media. Action Andrew, Richard, Steph
John and Genevieve agreed to continue to run the local box office and to set up the Ticket Source facility for forthcoming shows so that ticket sales are managed from one central point which has worked well in the past.
11/ Admission Prices and Ticket Sales
Andrew proposed that ticket prices at £6 adult and £4 under 16s remained the same and this was agreed. It was also suggested that incentives might be introduced; for example group discounts. This to be discussed further by the committee – David highlighted that most tickets sell within the two weeks leading up to a show and we should not worry too much if sales are slow prior to this.
A brief discussion took place about numbers of seats - the space taken up by the light and sound equipment means that the back rows on that side can be cramped, and it may be necessary to take out a row at the back to make seating more comfortable. Action Committee
12/ Donations
Carole raised a suggestion made at the recent committee meeting to send a donation to Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall as Langtoft Players had not been able to support Peter Roffe’s proposed fun day on 9th July. Velma suggested a donation to Hyde and Mossop charity who support children and elderly people in the village in a variety of ways. Anja suggested a trophy or bursary for the school or Langtoft’s Got Talent. After much discussion a proposal was made by Jean; seconded by Michelle, to donate:
· £100 to Sue Ryder Thorpe Hall
· £100 to Hyde and Mossop
· £50 to Langtoft’s Got Talent.
This was unanimously agreed and it was agreed that in future requests should be made beforehand to be discussed at the meeting.
It was also suggested that Langtoft Players might sponsor an existing charity for the coming year and benefit from reciprocal advertising for our shows.
Action Joanne
13/ Future productions
Pantomime this will take place between Tuesday 6th and Saturday 10th December 2016 including a matinee, to be finalised by the producer.
Michelle volunteered to produce the pantomime but advised she would need help and it was decided to approach Robbie and Rosie who had previously expressed an interest.
Play Brian had expressed an interest in producing a play in March 2017.
Action Jackie to check
Musical Anja agreed to consider this for late June 2017.
Prior to the meeting Andrew and Matthew had discussed the issues around safeguarding legislation that require separate changing facilities for juniors if Langtoft Players are putting on combined shows. This had been explored last year but it was agreed to seek further official clarification. Action Andrew
14/ Social events
Summer BBQ –Steph agreed to look into organising this in August or September. Action Steph
Christmas meal – Val agreed to organise this - more details to follow.
Action Val
Anja offered to organise a quiz night in the autumn. Action Anja
David offered to organise a race night in the spring. Action David
15/ Any other business
Anja had some souvenir copies from Kindly Keep It Covered which were distributed.
Richard suggested that Langtoft Players could enter a team for the Deeping Raft Race in 2017 to help publicise the group.
Jackie asked that the committee produce a simple contract to be agreed if Langtoft Players equipment is loaned to other groups, to ensure clear responsibility for returning this. There followed a brief discussion about deposits; whether a charge could be made; or a charitable donation.
Action Committee
Janet told the group that this would be her last meeting as she is leaving the area. Langtoft Players send their thanks to Janet for her substantial support to past productions and best wishes for the future.
16/ Next AGM
To be held on Tuesday July 18th 2017 at 7-30 pm in the Village Hall
Meeting Closed 8-52 pm.
7