Carlton Dramatic Society

Membership of the Carlton Dramatic Society gives you many benefits, whether you are interested in acting with us, working behind the scenes or simply enjoying the social life of the society. Here you can find out how to join our group, and choose the membership option that suits you best.

Joining The Carlton

You can join us at any time during the year, simply drop into one of our rehearsals, see what we get up to have a chat with us, or you may prefer to talk to us after one of our shows - there will always be Carlton members to talk to in the theatre bar after each production!

If you intend coming along to a rehearsal, it's always best to contact us first (link) before turning up, particularly around production weeks and in holiday periods. While we normally rehearse on Mondays and Thursdays at Wimbledon Community Centre, rehearsals will normally be cancelled during productions and over Christmas, and occasionally they may be moved to different days or to alternative venues.

The Carlton accepts new members with all levels of experience from complete novices to trained actors. New members are not required to audition, although we do hold auditions for most of our productions. If you audition for a production and get a part, you will be required to become a full member (see Rates below). Please remember that we are an amateur organisation and cannot take people for work experience.

Joining age

Membership of the Carlton Dramatic Society is open to all from the age of 16 and upwards. We do not have a junior section, however occasionally we may require children for one-off performances. Our productions are mostly adult oriented - for children's activites we would recommend a dedicated theatre such as Wimbledon Polka. In situations where we do invite children to participate in our performances, we require that they be escorted by a parent or guardian.

Membership rates

We have two classes of membership - full and associate, depending on how involved you would like to be with Carlton activities.

Membership Type	Description	Cost per year (Due every July 1st)
Full	Members may act in plays, propose and direct plays, work backstage, attend our social events, be nominated for committee posts and vote at our AGM.	£40
Associate	Members may work backstage, attend our social events and vote at our AGM	£20

Other fees:

Fee Type	Description	Cost per year
Performance Fee	All members of the cast of a full production must pay this	£10
Showcase Fee	All members of the cast of a production like the Showcase, must pay this	£5
Tea and Coffee	Available at rehearsals	only 40p!

Membership is renewable each July 1st, and members joining late in the Carlton year may pay a reduced rate. Associate members may upgrade at any time to become full members. Members also receive a regular newsletter keeping them informed of up-coming events, audition dates, and the current state of health of the newsletter editor.

If you are suffering from financial hardship, for example as a result of being unemployed, a student, or on a pension, you may be able to join the Carlton at a reduced rate, or pay in installments at the discretion of the committee.

Full details of the rules are available in the official Constitution of the Carlton Dramatic Society, which is available as a downloadable PDF file here.

Membership fees, acting fees, and associate membership activities may be altered by action of an Extraordinary General Meeting of Carlton members.