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62-721: The Eureka Theatre Company was an American repertory theatre group located in San Francisco, California . It was founded in 1972 as the Shorter Players by Chris Silva , Robert Woodruff and Carl Lumbly . In 1974 its name was changed to the Eureka Theatre. In October 1981 the company was staging David Edgar 's The Jail Diary of Albie Sachs when their space in the basement of the Trinity Methodist Church burned in an arson attack. By 1990

124-457: A Mayor and Deputy Mayor. The first elections to the new parish council were held on 4 May 2023 with 19 Liberal Democrat councillors and one Conservative councillor being elected to represent 14 wards. The council is expected to formally resolve to adopt the style of a Town Council at its first meeting. Taunton was the main settlement and centre of the local government district of Taunton Deane . The district, formed on 1 April 1974 under

186-556: A Ministry of Defence body responsible for providing navigational and other hydrographic information for national, civil and defence requirements. The UKHO is located on Admiralty Way and has a workforce of about 1100. At the start of the Second World War, chart printing moved to Taunton, but the main office did not follow until 1968. Taunton holds the head offices of Western Provident Association, Viridor and CANDAC. Other professional services are based at Blackbrook near

248-425: A Pulitzer Prize (1982), a Tony Award (1986), and a Jujamcyn Award (1985). In Russia and much of Eastern Europe , repertory theatre is based on the idea that each company maintains a number of productions that are performed on a rotating basis. Each production's life span is determined by its success with the audience. However, many productions remain in repertory for years as this approach presents each piece

310-648: A $ 50,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, it eventually turned into Angels in America , two three-and-a-half hour plays with no songs. In 1991 the company staged the world premiere of the first part, Millennium Approaches and staged readings of the second part, Perestroika , which was still being written. The cost of staging Angels in America , about $ 250,000, ended the Eureka's career as

372-452: A British movement started in the early 1900s that focused on shorter runs of a single new work, rather than having several plays ready to perform at any given time. For weekly rep and for a typical three-act play, the actors' week would start on Tuesday, and go as follows: Today, repertory theatres employ a wide range of actors, who can play a variety of types. Before the modern repertory system, acting ensembles were normally made up of

434-501: A big comeback in cities such as Little Rock, AR , Washington, DC , Minneapolis , Indianapolis , Milwaukee , Cincinnati , Chicago , Los Angeles , Nashville , New York , Houston , Boston , San Francisco , San Diego , Buffalo , Kansas City , and Seattle . Festival theatre now provides actors with work in the summer. There are many ways to rehearse repertory theatre. The most prolific American repertory theatres are an example of that. Utah Shakespeare Festival rehearses two plays

496-482: A brownfield area between Bridgwater and Taunton College and the bus station, the project proposed to build small offices and more riverside housing. The "Cultural Quarter" is the area along the river between Firepool and Tangier. The plans are to extend riverside retail and attract smaller, boutique businesses such as those found at Riverside. Plans for the town centre include more pedestrianisation and greater sizes and numbers of retail units. Several sites along

558-529: A day split between an eight hour period. This is common. Some theatres only rehearse one play a day and add shows into rotation as the season progresses, like The American Shakespeare Center. They rehearse one play for a little over two weeks before it opens; then, they begin the next one. The length of rehearsal also varies. American Players Theatre has a six-week-long rehearsal period compared to Oregon Shakespeare Festival 's eleven-week-long one. America's oldest resident repertory theatre, Hedgerow Theatre ,

620-452: A few times in a given season, not enough to exhaust the potential audience pool. After the fall of the Soviet regime and the substantial diminution of government subsidy, the repertory practice has required re-examination. Moscow Art Theatre and Lev Dodin 's Maly Drama Theatre of St. Petersburg are the world's most notable practitioners of this approach. Rotation Repertory system is still

682-637: A hall of offices for the Rural Community Council and accommodation for the Somerset Guild of Craftsmen. It later fell into disrepair. The Somerset Buildings Preservation Trust with Falcon Rural Housing purchased and restored it for use as four units of social housing. It is a Grade II* listed building. The grounds of Taunton Castle include the Somerset County Museum and The Castle Hotel , which incorporates

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744-610: A nature reserve along the River Tone , has alder and willow woodland, bramble, scrub and rough grassland. The wetter, flood-prone areas feature hemlock water-dropwort , and yellow flag . Silk Mills Park and Ride offer landscaping and ponds in three areas by the Tone. The woodland and grassland support aquatic and marginal vegetation, with various birds, bats, reptiles and invertebrates . Frieze Hill Community Orchard has turned from allotments to rough grassland and orchard . Among

806-414: A painted ceiling. It has been classed by English Heritage as a Grade I listed building . St Margaret's Almshouses was founded as a leper colony in the 12th century. Glastonbury Abbey acquired patronage of it in the late 13th century and rebuilt it as almshouses in the early 16th. From 1612 to 1938 the building continued as such, cared for by a local parish. In the late 1930s it was converted into

868-554: A production company, although they continued to present plays, In 1998 the company took over the Gateway Theater in Jackson Square. Due to rising costs and the 2013 diversion of San Francisco's hotel tax fund away from the arts the company closed on 5 July 2017. The Wayback Machine has a list of the company's productions up to 2001, and details of the 2009 to 2017 seasons. Repertory Annie Horniman founded

930-531: A single unitary authority called Somerset Council with elections for the new authority's 110 councillors (two per electoral division) having taken place on 5 May 2022. Taunton and Wellington is a county constituency of the House of Commons . It is based on the town, but extends to Wellington . The current MP is Gideon Amos of the Liberal Democrats . Taunton lies on the River Tone between

992-577: Is Priory Fields in Priory Avenue, with eight units and an anchor store, Wickes . It was redeveloped in 2003 to modernise a rather worn-out retail park and increase retail floor space. The Old Market was a farmers' market in the Parade in front of Market House, but then moved to the Firepool area, although cattle trading on the site ceased only in 2008. A large indoor shopping centre to the east of

1054-679: Is also produced by the Summer Theatre season at Frinton-on-Sea . Organizations in Canada include North America's largest classical repertory theatre company, the Stratford Festival , founded in 1953 primarily to present productions of William Shakespeare 's plays. Canada also hosts North America's second largest repertory theatre company, the Shaw Festival , founded in 1962, which presents plays written by or set during

1116-611: Is home to the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office on Admiralty Way. The popular Taunton flower show has been held in Vivary Park since 1866, and on 13 March 2022, St Mary Magdalene parish church was elevated to the status of Taunton Minster . The town name derives from "Town on the River Tone " or Tone Town. Cambria Farm , which now hosts a park and ride close to the M5 motorway Junction 25,

1178-574: Is located in Rose Valley, Pennsylvania . It was founded by actor Jasper Deeter in 1923. The present producing artistic director is actress and director Penelope Reed. Other notable repertory theatres include the Guthrie Theater , which was set up as a regional repertory theatre concept that is free from commercial constraints in the choice of repertoire. It is aligned in objectives to the repertory and resident theatre movement that emerged in

1240-692: Is no longer possible, owing to restrictions from British Equity , which came to mandate just eight shows a week, including perhaps two matinées. The practice of repertory ("rep") is still seen in large cities. Actors now have the luxury of at least three weeks of rehearsal , however. Repertory can still be found in the UK in a variation of guises: in Sidmouth (12 plays), Wolverhampton (eight), and Burslem and Taunton (four each). The Sheringham Little Theatre produces an in-house repertory season each summer, running from June until September. Weekly repertory theatre

1302-747: The Battle of Tewkesbury . In the Second Cornish uprising of 1497 most Cornish gentry supported Perkin Warbeck 's cause and on 17 September a Cornish army some 6,000 strong entered Exeter before advancing on Taunton. Henry VII sent his chief general, Giles, Lord Daubeney , to attack the Cornish. When Warbeck heard that the King's scouts were at Glastonbury he panicked and deserted his army. On 4 October 1497, Henry VII reached Taunton, where he received

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1364-739: The Brewhouse Theatre . Towards the centre are the Zinc Nightclub, Bridge Street and Goodlands Gardens. A current regeneration programme north of Bridge Street will include redeveloping the County Cricket Ground , which hosted open-air concerts for Elton John in 2006 and 2012 and for Rod Stewart in 2014. Hankridge Farm, a retail park close to the M5 motorway, has stores that include Currys PC World , Oak Furniture Land , Hobbycraft , Halfords , B&Q , The Range and

1426-622: The Duke of Monmouth crowned himself King of England in a rebellion, defeated at the Battle of Sedgemoor . Judge Jeffreys led the Bloody Assizes in the Castle's Great Hall. The Grand Western Canal reached Taunton in 1839 and the Bristol and Exeter Railway in 1842. Today it hosts Musgrove Park Hospital , Somerset County Cricket Club , is the base of 40 Commando , Royal Marines , and

1488-842: The Local Government Act 1972 , by merging the municipal borough of Taunton, Wellington urban district , Taunton Rural District , and Wellington Rural District , was granted borough status in 1975, perpetuating the mayoralty of Taunton. The district was named as an alternate form of the Taunton hundred . Taunton Deane Council, once based at the Municipal Buildings in Corporation Street, moved to modern facilities at Deane House on Belvedere Road in spring 1987. Taunton Deane merged with West Somerset to form Somerset West and Taunton in 2019, and

1550-484: The Monmouth Rebellion . In the autumn of that year Judge Jeffreys lived in the town during the Bloody Assizes that followed the Battle of Sedgemoor . The town lacked a charter of incorporation until 1627. This was renewed in 1677, but lapsed in 1792 due to vacancies in the corporate body, and was not reincorporated until 1877. The medieval fairs and markets (a weekly market remains) were celebrated for

1612-705: The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 . South Taunton Streams is an urban wetland. The northern suburbs include the Children's Wood riverside reserve, a movement corridor for animals such as otters along the banks of the Tone. Birds include the kingfisher , dipper , grey wagtail , mute swan , grey heron and reed warbler and butterflies the small and large skipper , marbled white , small heath and small copper , along with dragonflies and damselflies . Weirfield Riverside,

1674-792: The Quantock , Blackdown and Brendon hills. The area is known as the Vale of Taunton. It is surrounded by many other large towns and cities seen on this directional compass: Taunton is 38 miles (61 km) south-west of Bristol , 28 miles (45 km) north-east of Exeter , 63 miles (101 km) north-east of Plymouth and 40 miles (64 km) north-west of Weymouth . The Taunton area has Permian red sandstones and breccia outcrop 295–250   million years old. Rocks of Triassic age (248–204   million years ago) underlie much of Somerset's moors and levels. The several local nature reserves in and around Taunton are protected under Section 21 of

1736-420: The unitary authority of Somerset Council . A large part of the town was unparished from the 1974 local government reorganisation until 1 April 2023, when a new Parish Council came into being following a Community Governance Review held by Somerset West and Taunton Council. While the town was unparished, Charter Trustees made up of the district councillors representing wards in the unparished area elected

1798-707: The 1930s to the 1960s, two impresarios dominated the field of British rep, mostly in the North. They were Harry Hanson and his Court players, and Frank H. Fortescue's Famous Players, with the Arthur Brough Players in Folkestone in the South. When an actor joined one of their companies, it could mean "twice-nightly" shows, and a new play to learn every week. Actress Rosemary Harris has told of her 50 consecutive weeks of doing that at Bedford rep. However, this

1860-581: The Castle Bow archway. With the municipal buildings they form a three-sided group just beyond the Castle Bow archway from Fore Street. A plain brick Mecca Bingo hall fills the west side of it. The frontage of the Fore Street Tudor Tavern , now a Caffè Nero branch, dates from 1578, but the rest is thought to be from the 14th century. The riverside area north of the centre is edged by Morrisons supermarket, retirement housing and

1922-608: The River Tone are set for renovation. Firepool Weir lock, long silted up, was to be dredged in 2011 to allow boats to pass from the navigable section of the Tone through Taunton to the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal . Goodland Gardens received a makeover and a new café, The Shed, opened. Projects to develop Somerset Square (a paved area next to the Brewhouse Theatre ) and Longrun Meadow (a country park near Bridgwater & Taunton College) have been put forward. Traffic congestion

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1984-588: The Second World War, the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal formed part of the Taunton Stop Line , set to curb any advance of a German invasion. Pillboxes can still be seen along its length. A fire aboard a Penzance to London sleeping car train approaching Taunton in 1978 killed 12 passengers and injured 15 others. Taunton was rated "strategically important" in the government's Regional Spatial Strategy, allowing Somerset County Council to receive funding for large-scale regeneration projects. In 2006,

2046-505: The United States in the 1960s. This sought to establish an alternative and decentralized theatre network outside of New York, one which would have non-profit-making status and would be focused on the art of the theatre as well as the development of artists, craftsmen, and administrators. Publicly funded theatres that belong to this type have been receiving erratic support since the 1980s. The Association of Producing Artists (APA)

2108-464: The United States, the repertory system has also found a base to compete with commercial theatre. Many summer stock theatre companies are repertory in nature. College students and young professionals making up much of the acting company are supported by guest stars or actors who are further along in their careers. Repertory theatre with mostly changing casts and longer-running plays, perhaps better classed as "provincial" or "non-profit" theatre, has made

2170-527: The apples grown are Kingston Black and Yarlington Mill . Like most of South West England , Taunton has a temperate climate, wetter and milder than the rest of the country. The annual mean temperature is about 10 °C (50.0 °F). Seasonal temperature variation is less extreme because of the adjacent sea. The summer months of July and August have mean daily maxima of about 21 °C (69.8 °F). In winter, mean minimum temperatures of 1 °C (33.8 °F) or 2 °C (35.6 °F) are common. In

2232-524: The company had moved to an industrial building at 2730 16th Street in the Mission. The company is noted because in 1986 Oskar Eustis , then its dramaturg, and Tony Taccone , then its artistic director, commissioned a play from Tony Kushner . Eustis had seen Kushner's play A Bright Room Called Day in New York. The contract specified it should run no more than 2 hours, and include songs. With help from

2294-618: The council revealed plans dubbed "Project Taunton". This would see regeneration of the areas of Firepool, Tangier, the retail town centre, the cultural quarter, and the River Tone, to sustain Taunton as business hub in the South West. The Firepool area, just north of the town centre by the main railway station, includes vacant or undeveloped land. The council is promoting sustainable, high-quality, employment-led mixed-use development to attract 3,000 new jobs and 500 new homes. In Tangier,

2356-631: The county-town status passed to Taunton about 1366. Between 1209 and 1311 the Bishop of Winchester's manor of Taunton expanded two-and-a-half times. The parishes of Staplegrove, Wilton and Taunton were part of Taunton Deane hundred . In 1451, during the Wars of the Roses , Taunton saw a skirmish between the Earl of Devon , and Baron Bonville . Queen Margaret and her troops passed through in 1471 to defeat at

2418-488: The early 1950s. There are many noted Resident companies or repertory companies , such as the Artists Repertory Theatre . Murray, Stephen. Taking Our Amusements Seriously . LAP, 2010. ISBN   978-3-8383-7608-0 . Taunton Taunton ( / ˈ t ɔː n t ən / ) is the county town of Somerset , England. It is a market town and has a minster church . Its population in 2011

2480-881: The first modern repertory theatre in Manchester after withdrawing her support from the Abbey Theatre in Dublin. Horniman's Gaiety Theatre opened its first season in September 1908. The opening of the Gaiety was followed by the Citizens' Theatre in Glasgow and the Liverpool Repertory Theatre . Previously, regional theatre relied on mostly London touring ensembles. During the time the theatre

2542-601: The larger borough of Taunton Deane, which includes the town of Wellington and surrounding villages. This had an estimated population of 109,883 in 2010. The figures here are for the Taunton Deane area. In 2011, Taunton built-up area had a population of 60,479 and the surrounding borough of Taunton Deane one of 110,187. Of Taunton's residents 91.6 per cent were White British in 2011, compared with 93.4 per cent for Taunton Deane. Taunton's ethnic mix resembles that of South West England – 91.8 per cent White British in

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2604-566: The lifetime of Bernard Shaw , or that follow Shaw's ideal of socially provocative theatre. However, Canadian repertory companies follow a model that differs somewhat from the years-long rotation repertory system found in Europe. In Canada, productions often stay on the repertory for one season, running in repertory with other productions in the same year. The actors are not employed full time long term, but instead work on contracts usually maximum 8 months long. The Vagabond Repertory Theatre Company

2666-418: The manor, and obtained the first charter for their "men of Taunton" from King Edward in 904, freeing them from all royal and county tribute. Some time before Domesday, Taunton became a borough with privileges and a population of some 1,500, including 64 burgesses governed by a portreeve appointed by the bishops. Somerton took over from Ilchester as county town in the late 13th century, but declined;

2728-608: The most commonly used business model of live theatre in Eastern and Central Europe, specifically in countries such as Austria, Serbia, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia and Czech Republic. In Germany, Schaubuhne and some other theatres run on a repertory system. A combination company was a touring theater company which performed only one play . Unlike repertory companies, which performed multiple plays in rotation, combination companies used more elaborate and specialised scenery in their productions. A similar term, "weekly rep," denotes

2790-540: The motorway junction. The first store of the multinational New Look clothing retailer opened in Taunton in 1969. Taunton is also famed for cider . Gray's Almshouses in East Street, founded by Robert Gray in 1615 for poor single women, are red brick buildings bearing the arms of Robert Gray, dated 1635, and another arms of the Merchant Tailors. A small room used as a chapel has original benches and

2852-609: The neighbouring parishes of Bishop's Hull , Comeytrowe , Norton Fitzwarren , Staplegrove, Trull and West Monkton ) had an estimated population of 61,400 in 2001. Taunton includes Holway, once a village in its own right as one of the Five Hundreds of Taunton Deane , the Infaring division or district of three districts that made up Taunton Deane. Taunton is the largest town in the Somerset shire county and forms part of

2914-537: The origin of the repertoire tradition. One of the earliest examples of this system is the Moscow Art Theatre circa 1898. An even earlier example are the theatres of Germany. See the Deutsches Theater, a privately owned German theatre founded in 1883 to produce plays in rep. While variations appeared before, the modern repertory system did not become popular until the twentieth century. In

2976-469: The sale of woollen cloth called "Tauntons" made in the town. On the decline of the woollen industry in the west of England, silk-weaving was introduced at the end of the 18th century. In 1839 the Grand Western Canal reached Taunton, aiding southward trade, which was enhanced by the arrival of the railway in 1842. A permanent military presence came to Jellalabad Barracks in 1881. In

3038-399: The same year. It is also matches other major regional centres like Poole and Plymouth . The larger urban area, extending to Monkton Heathfield , Norton Fitzwarren and Bathpool, had a 2011 population of 64,621. Taunton Deane had low unemployment of 4.1 per cent compared with a national average of 5.0 per cent in 2005. Taunton is home to the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO),

3100-597: The standard stock company and later the touring company. The stock company would usually consist of a leading man and lady, a character actor and actress, younger actors to play romantic roles, and the rest of the actors would be a variety of ages and body types. The acting ensemble was typically around twelve. This was most popular prior to the Restoration. Post Restoration and into the nineteenth century, stock companies remained, but they were joined and then replaced by traveling companies. These ensembles consisted of

3162-571: The stars and actors hired to play a very specific role as a single production toured around. Examples of rep performers who went on to become well-known are John Gielgud , Ralph Richardson , Laurence Olivier , Rosemary Harris , Christopher Plummer , Harold Pinter , Peter O'Toole , Jeremy Brett , Geraldine McEwan , Vanessa Redgrave , Judi Dench , Ian McKellen , Michael Gambon , Imelda Staunton and Patrick Stewart . Dirk Bogarde wrote about his start at Amersham rep in 1939, and Michael Caine has recounted his time spent at Horsham rep in

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3224-493: The summer the Azores high pressure affects the south-west of England, but convective cloud sometimes forms inland, reducing the sunshine hours. Annual sunshine rates are slightly under the regional average of 1,600   hours. Most of the rainfall in the south-west is caused by Atlantic depressions or by convection – in autumn and winter by the former, which are then at their most active. In summer, much rainfall results from

3286-430: The sun heating the ground, leading to convection, showers and thunderstorms. Average rainfall is about 700 mm (28 in). Some 8–15   days of snowfall are typical. November to March have the highest mean winds and June to August the lightest. The prevailing wind direction is from the south-west. The town of Taunton (which for population estimates includes the unparished area or former municipal borough plus

3348-560: The surrender of the remaining Cornish army. Ringleaders were executed and others fined a total of £13,000. Taunton Castle changed hands several times in the Civil War of 1642–1645, as did the town. During the Siege of Taunton it was defended by Robert Blake from July 1644 to July 1645, and suffered destruction of many medieval and Tudor buildings. On 20 June 1685, the Duke of Monmouth crowned himself King of England at Taunton during

3410-474: The town's second Sainsbury's . There is a Venue in the park with restaurants, an Odeon cinema and a Hollywood Bowl bowling alley. It is now known as Riverside Retail Park. Taunton has three other such parks. Belvedere is near the town centre. St Johns is just off Toneway, towards the motorway, and consists of two units, occupied by DFS , joined by Go Outdoors in April 2014. Taunton's second largest retail park

3472-625: Was 64,621. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation , owned by the Bishops of Winchester , which was rebuilt as Taunton Castle by the Normans in the 12th century. Parts of the inner ward house were turned into the Museum of Somerset and Somerset Military Museum. For the Second Cornish uprising of 1497 , Perkin Warbeck brought an army of 6,000; most surrendered to Henry VII on 4 October 1497. On 20 June 1685 in Taunton

3534-521: Was abolished on 1 April 2023 when Somerset Council took over. Somerset County Council , which was based at County Hall in Taunton from 1974-2023, consisted of 55 councillors. The town has broadly six electoral divisions, each of which had a single county councillor: Taunton North; Taunton East; Taunton South; Bishop’s Hull & Taunton West; Comeytrowe & Trull, Monkton & North Curry (which includes rural areas). On 1 April 2023, Somerset's county council and four district councils were replaced by

3596-421: Was being run by Annie Horniman, a wide variety of types of plays were produced. Horniman encouraged local writers who became known as the Manchester School of playwrights. They included Allan Monkhouse , Harold Brighouse —writer of Hobson's Choice —and Stanley Houghton , who wrote Hindle Wakes . Actors who performed at the Gaiety early in their careers included Sybil Thorndike and Basil Dean . From

3658-567: Was formed in March 2009 by artistic directors Nathaniel Fried and Ryan LaPlante, and currently resides and performs in Kingston, Ontario . It shuttered in 2019. The old English-style repertory theatres such as Ottawa 's CRT (Canadian Repertory Theatre) and Toronto 's Crest Theatre no longer exist—although they did have a version of summer theatre in smaller holiday districts, such as the "Straw Hat" players of Gravenhurst and Port Carling at Ontario 's vacation Muskoka Lakes area. State-subsidized theatres on continental Europe have been suggested as

3720-426: Was identified as an obstacle to further economic growth. Part of the strategy was a new road infrastructure consisting of a £7.5 million link road to ease traffic in the town centre (Taunton's "Third Way"), completed in 2011, and a Northern Inner Distributor Road linking Staplegrove Road, the station and Priory Avenue at a planned cost of £21 million, opened in 2017. Taunton is governed by a parish/town council and

3782-455: Was one of the most successful repertory theatres in the United States, touring for four years and holding residencies in several cities before finally joining the Phoenix Theatre in New York City, where it was known for staging plays with modest prices. Currently, the American Repertory Theatre is considered one of the most distinguished repertory theatres in the United States. Since its foundation in 1979, it has earned several awards including

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3844-439: Was the site of Bronze and Iron Age settlement and a Roman farm. There was a Romano-British village near the suburb of Holway . Taunton was important in Anglo-Saxon times as a burh with a mint . King Ine of Wessex threw up an earthen castle about 700, but it was levelled in 722 by his queen, Æthelburg of Wessex , to prevent seizure by rebels. A monastery was founded before 904. The bishops of Winchester owned

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