AMATEUR thespians have had to reschedule their festival gala night in Abingdon after it clashed with the town’s Fun in the Park event.

Oxfordshire Drama Network (ODN) has been holding the final night of its week-long celebration of one-act plays on a Saturday at the Unicorn Theatre in Checker Walk for the past 25 years.

But this year it has been forced to move the gala night to Friday, June 6, because Abingdon Town Council is holding Fun in the Park on the Saturday and closing the road to the theatre all day until midnight.

Mike Davies, of ODN, said the first the festival organisers heard about it was when they read the town’s council Town Crier magazine in March.

In past years, the road had only been closed until 6.30pm, he said, which did not affect the evening shows.

He said the ODN’s protests over the road closure came to nothing. “We did have a meeting with the organisers but they were adamant,” said Mr Davies, “so we have to move our day — after 25 years.”

This year’s festival runs from Monday to Friday, June 2 to 6.

Mr Davies said the ODN’s committee switched the gala night to the Friday after deciding it would be almost impossible to use the Saturday with three groups trying to bring scenery in and out.

Town council leader Sandy Lovatt described the situation as “an unfortunate clash of dates”, adding that arts events such as the ODN festival were important to the town.

“If we had known about it earlier, perhaps we could have come to an accommodation and allowed a couple of vehicles down there during the closure,” he said.

Mr Lovatt said: “Fun in the Park has always been held on the first Saturday in June and that road is always closed to traffic. With 7,000 people coming and going, mixing cars and traffic is not a good idea.”

He urged ODN to let the town clerk know when they were planning future events.

As well as affecting this year’s ODN Drama Festival of One Act Plays, the hitch has led its organisers to decide to switch the event in future years from the first week of June to the second after quarter of a century.

This year’s festival will see two or three plays performed nightly from Monday to Friday, June 2 to 6, including three being called back by adjudicator Paul Fowler to repeat their performances on the gala night.

Mr Davies said: “This is a friendly festival and our main aim is to bring people together, both in a celebration of theatre and as a learning experience.”

Tickets for the Monday to Thursday evenings are £6 individually or £20 for all four nights,while the gala night tickets are £8. They are available from The Bookstore in the Bury Street shopping precinct, Art & Stuff, The Square (by the war memorial), Abingdon, or by emailing info@OxfordshireDramaNetwork.org or calling 01235 821351. There is no wheelchair access to the seating area of the Unicorn Theatre.

  • The programme of plays is:

  • Monday: After The Flags And Bands by Allan Williams, performed by Sinodun Players, and The Cask of Amontillado by India Vancamp, by Henley Amateur Operatic & Dramatic Societyl
  • Tuesday: Military Thinking, by Andrew Barsby, by Oxford Theatre Guild and The Interview, by Octave Mirbeau, St Peter’s Players (NB contains strong language)

  • Wednesday: Magic, by Richard Harris, by Wychwood Players, and Curses, Foiled Again, by Evelyn Hood, by BreakaLeg Productions

  • Thursday: Ghost of a Chance, by Brian J Burton, by Banbury Cross Players, Only in The Dark, by Matthew Clift, by Whole Hog Productions, and scripted performance of winning play in ODN’s play-writing contest

  • Friday: Gala night with three companies — to be decided by the adjudicator — called back to reprise their plays.