The first director of Chichester Festival Theatre when it opened in 1962 was Sir Laurence Olivier – quite a coup for a new, regional theatre – and the ambition and pursuit of excellence has continued at the theatre over the following six decades.
The theatre was the brainchild of local optician Leslie Evershed-Martin, and its construction was largely funded by local businesses and individuals; it is avowedly local in its roots and emphasises its place within the community but the quality of the productions is remarkable for a regional theatre and many shows go on to transfer to the West End.
Since moving to Bosham, Jane and I have become enthusiastic theatre-goers, taking in a huge range of productions on the main stage as well as in the more intimate Minerva Theatre. The Bosham Boathouse is only a ten-minute drive from the theatre and so it couldn’t be easier for us to visit. We have seen everything from the comedy of Stewart Lee and Rob Brydon’s fabulous one-man show; musicals such as The Sound of Music, and Crazy for You as well as more serious drama including Harold Pinter’s The Caretaker. We have particularly enjoyed plays with a local flavour – author Kate Mosse adapted her own novel set in and around her home in Fishbourne, The Taxidermist's Daughter, which premiered at Chichester. We loved Redlands by another Sussex based playwright, Charlotte Jones. This was a dramatisation of the events surrounding the police raid on Keith Richard's house in The Witterings and the subsequent trial of Keith and Mick Jagger at Chichester Crown Court.
We pay an annual subscription to be Friends of the Theatre; this gives us various rewards but by far the most important is the chance to book tickets before they go on general sale. Tickets for the Festival programme are released towards the end of February and so, after a careful study of the brochure, on the appointed Saturday morning I was poised in front of my computer with a list of events and dates. Despite clicking “Book Now” button the moment the clock reached 9:00 I was somehow 861st in the queue but after sitting impatiently for a few minutes, I was in and quickly picking my seats.
As always, the range of performances is fantastic, but we narrowed it down to four.
- The Government Inspector (25th April – 24th May) Nikolai Gogol’s farce kicks off the season. It is directed by the newly knighted, former artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Gregory Doran. It will be interesting to see the balance between comedy and satire.
- Hamlet (6th September – 4th October) This was my ‘O’-Level set text and so is rooted deep in my subconscious. I am really excited to see what Giles Terera, who one a Best Actor Olivier for his role in Hamilton brings to the play. It’s in the smaller Minerva theatre and so should be an intense evening.
- Marie and Rosetta (25th June – 26th July) This was unexpectedly the show with the least tickets left when I booked and at the time of writing, most of the shows are sold out or “running low” so be quick! It is the story of Sister Rosetta Tharpe, who, alongside her singing partner, Marie Knight, influenced countless musicians from Elvis to Johnny Cash. Starring Beverly Knight, if this is any where near as good as a similar-sounding show about Jelly Roll Morton from earlier this year, it will be a smash!
- Top Hat (14th July – 6th September) Each year the Festival has a headline musical -last year it was Oliver!, the year before The Sound of Music. This year it’s Irving Berlin’s Top Hat. Based on the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers film, this has more memorable tunes than you can shake a silver-capped cane at. Looking forward to an evening of toe-tapping fun.
So that’s our line-up but the rest of the programme looks equally exciting – an adaptation of Lord of the Flies or Anna Karenina if classic drama is more your style; new work such as Safe Space and the musical The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry or the Youth Theatre’s Christmas production: A Boy Called Christmas. The full programme can be found here: https://www.cft.org.uk/whats-on/category/festival-2025-shows
As I mentioned, we are only a short drive from the theatre (and can share our route which avoids the city centre at peak hours). We are always happy to welcome fellow theatre enthusiasts so if you can’t see a free room on the website for your chosen night, give Jane a call on 07966 735395 and she might be able to fit you in.
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