THE stars of the amateur stage in Abergavenny were recognised at a glittering awards ceremony held at the town’s Angel Hotel on Saturday night.

Organised by A4B the Borough Theatre based committee promoting and supporting the amateur theatre community, the awards are designed to highlight the very best in performances staged by companies based at the theatre.

This year’s judging panel once again praised the high standard of performance and said they had seen some exceptional performances during their year of judging.

The evening also saw the presentation of the Bernard Zavishlock award for outstanding contribution to amateur theatre, fondly known as ‘The Bernie’, which for the first time in the seven year history of the awards went to a couple - Carol and Tony Paton.

Presenting the award A4B committee member and the theatre’s former front of house manager described the popular couple as the ‘lifeblood of the Borough Theatre’ and said that over a lifetime of involvement with the amateur theatre they had supported every company in the town.

“Tony, has played dozens of leading roles and has held every position on AAODS committee except treasurer and is of course widely regarded as the font of all AAODS knowledge in his role as archivist while Carol has been social secretary, ticket secretary, a committee member for both the junior and senior societies and of course was AAODS choreographer, putting members through more can-cans that they care to remember.

“They have both worked as members of the front of house team more than 30 years and in that time Carol has helped most local societies raise thousands of pounds thanks to her raffle organising skills.

“In short they are the life blood of the Borough Theatre and I know more than most that the theatre would not be the same without them,” said Terry.

Unfortunately Tony was unable to attend the ceremony due to illness but Carol was on hand to enjoy a well earned standing ovation.

Top prize of the evening - the award for Production of the Year, which was sponsored for the first time by Complete Weed Control (South and Central Wales), went for the second year running to AAODS, for its production of 9-5, which also picked up individual acting awards for its stars Cecilia Bawler, Matthew Bryant, Kelsea Richardson and Kerrigan Heffernan.

The Ken Williams Memorial Award, which recognises ‘behind the scenes’ contributions to the theatrical community was this year presented to Molly?Brickley Clark and the cast of Jesus Christ Superstar, a production staged last June which raised more than £2,000 for A4B, part of which has already been used to replace the theatre’s show relay system.

Presenting the award Sarah Fowler said that despite the many obstacles put in her way, Molly had persevered with her fundraising plans and her hard work had paid off with two sell-out performances with standing ovations on both nights.

Speaking at the event Don Cecil of Abergavenny Rotary, which has been a major sponsors of the awards scheme since it started in 2011, said he was delighted to have been able to attend the evening, adding that it was one of the few funding applications received by the club which received instant and unanimous approval from members.

Key sponsor for this year, Alan Abel of Complete Weed Control (South and Central Wales) said he had been delighted to pick up the mantle of event sponsor and had been impressed by not only the event but the level of support for the town’s Borough Theatre.

Compere and chairman of A4B Liz Davies used the event to call on the amateur community and the wider community of Abergavenny to show its support for the Borough Theatre as it faced an uncertain future.

“Things haven’t been positive for the theatre over the past year but there is light at the end of the tunnel.

“It’s easy to point fingers and believe me fingers have been…and will continue to be pointed but now is the time for us as a theatre community to take whatever action is necessary to prove to the powers that be at Monmouthshire County Council that the Borough Theatre is not dead in the water and has a vital role to play in this town.

“In the Borough Theatre we have 140 years of rich history, forget the Beatles, forget General Tom Thumb forget Desmond Llewellyn and remember the thousands of young people whose lives have been shaped by performing on our stage, the thousands who have their first taste of theatre by watching the Pantomime Company perform and hundreds who have gone on to make their own mark in theatre thanks to the grounding they were given at the Borough

“Last year I spoke about how a theatre could only be truly recognised by its value to the community it serves and how firmly embedded in that community it has to be…well let’s leave those making the decisions in no doubt that our theatre deserves their support,” said Liz.

As John Kennedy said, ‘now isn’t the time to seek to fix the blame for the past but to take responsibility for the future’ so please as we continue to plough into uncharted waters, put pen to paper, barrack your local councillors and let’s all do whatever we can to show MCC that the theatre might be in the doldrums now, but there is the will and the need to continue to support it,” she said.

Liz added, “We’d like to thank all those who have helped make the awards a success this year - our sponsors Complete Weed Control (South and Central Wales), Abergavenny Rotary Club, Zenith McGarty, Ruth and Ken Watkins, The Abergavenny Chronicle and Abergavenny Town Council, the staff at Angel Hotel and of course of all those who work so hard to make the amateur theatre community in Abergavenny one of the most vibrant of any town.

A4B 2018 award winners

The Abergavenny Rotary Award for best supporting actor (under 25) - Kerrigan Heffernan (AAODS Juniors - Hairspray Jr)

The Ruth and Ken Watkins Award for best supporting actress (under 25) - Ella Griffiths ( AAODS Juniors - Hairspray Jr)

The Abergavenny Rotary Award for best actor (under 25) - Wade Fox (AAODS Juniors - Hairspray Jr)

The Abergavenny Rotary Award for best actress (under 25) -Kelsea Richardson (AAODS - 9-5)

The Abergavenny Rotary Award for best supporting actress - Mari-Anne Gibson (ATG - The Crucible)

The Abergavenny Chronicle Award for best supporting actor - Matthew Bryant (AAODS 9-5)

The Zenith McGarty Award for best actress - Cecilia Bawler (AAODS 9-5)

The Abergavenny Rotary Club Award for best actor - Chris Phillips (BTP -The Christmas Crisis)

The Ken Williams Memorial Award- Molly Brickley Clark and the Cast of Jesus Christ Superstar

The Judges Award - Annie and the orphans’ chorus (ALOC)

The Bernard Zavishlock Award for Outstanding Contribution to Amateur Theatre - Tony and Carol?Paton

The Complete Weed Control (South and Central Wales) Award for Best Production - 9-5 (AAODS)