Oast Theatre

The Oast Theatre stands on the edge of Tonbridge in Kent, inside a converted oast house where hops were once dried. The building once belonged to a brewery and fell out of use in 1966. A group of ten club members bought it for £7,000 and sold it to the Tonbridge Theatre and Arts Club for £6,000. The theatre opened in April 1974 with an adaptation of Tom Jones. By 1978 the club had cleared every loan taken for the purchase and conversion. The theatre is a registered charity run by the Tonbridge Theatre and Arts Club. In 1982 it received a Civic Design Award from the local civic society. Prince Edward opened an extension in 1988 after attending a performance of Children of a Lesser God. A second extension in 1997 added dressing rooms and more storage. The theatre still seats 112 people and keeps its intimate scale. Visitors find a small auditorium with 112 seats arranged around a central stage. The Janet Young Room hosts an annual art exhibition that draws roughly fifty artists and 150 pieces. The Oast Youth Theatre rehearses here and puts on three productions each year. An adjoining barn serves as workshops and storage for scenery and costumes. The theatre’s art group meets weekly to paint and draw.