To see our latest newsletter and rehearsal schedule please click on the link below.
NEWSLETTER- SEPTEMBER 2024
Welcome back to you all. I hope you have had a lovely summer. I would like to welcome our new members: Miah, Callie and Immy and we welcome back Sophie and Ronnie.
Rehearsals have already started and we are singing our Christmas songs! Casting is underway and we will soon start setting the scenes.The dates for the show are as follows:
CHRISTMAS DATES- Friday 8th and Saturday 9th (dress rehearsal Thurs 7th) Dec
We are hoping our last Saturday ( Saturday 2nd) will be in Combe Church. This is also where the performances will be.
ATTENDANCE– Commitment is very important. As a member of the group it is your duty and responsibility to attend as many rehearsals as possible for the Christmas and main summer show. We understand that from time to time things crop up, and the odd missed Saturday is fine, however if you start missing too many you will struggle to catch up. You also owe it to your fellow cast members, as being absent has an impact on them and the whole show. We have a long waiting list of children wanting to join so please value your place with us by turning up, being on time and letting us know if you are going to be missing a rehearsal.
CARNIVAL- SATURDAY 14th October. We are entering the carnival again this year. You should have received a letter with the details. Please return your permission slips as soon as possible
MOVIE NIGHT- Friday 20th October– Holyrood Upper Site Hall- We will be showing our production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and this is a chance for all cast, crew and helpers to watch the show. If you are a member of CLOKS now but weren’t in the show you are also welcome to come along. Chaperones are also invited and anyone else who was involved in the production. We are asking for a donation of £3 per head towards venue hire and will be providing popcorn and drinks. If you are able to help with refreshments then please let us know.
BINGO NIGHT- CROWSHUTE HOUSE- 23rd NOVEMBER– After the success of last year, Carole and Kev have very kindly agreed to host another one. Please come if you can, spread the word and keep a look out for more info!
MINCE PIES AND RAFFLE PRIZES FOR THE CHRISTMAS SHOW- As with previous years we are asking each family to donate one box of mince pies and a raffle prize for the Christmas show. These can be bought in from now and we will store them. Thank you.
2024 SHOW ‘CRAZY FOR YOU’ – Thursday 4th July- Saturday 6th July- in addition to our usual Saturdays there will be extra/dress rehearsals on- Sunday 23rd July, Sunday 30th July, Tuesday 2nd July and Wednesday 3rd July.
We will be holding auditions in January, as usual. Audition pieces will be available before the Christmas show.They will be on the website and available for your to print off. We will return on Saturday 13th January with a show workshop and will happily discuss audition pieces then
COLLECTING CHILDREN– Unless you have given specific instructions for your child to be able to walk home, please can you come into the building to collect your child at the end of a rehearsal. With so many cars in the carpark and so many children ,it is not ideal for the children to be running around. You should have received an email by now with a new and updated form, giving contact details and medical issues. There is an option on this form to allow your children to leave without an adult.
FEES- a fees letter is on its way giving details of weekly subs, insurance and a costume fee, covering both shows. After having kept the fees to an absolute minimum for many years we are sadly having to increase them a little this year. All our costs have risen considerably and as we always make a loss on our shows we need to keep a reserve to enable us to keep going. We are raising our weekly subs to approx. £4 per session- which I am hoping you will agree, is still a very reasonable price to pay.
SHOW SHOES– We are giving everyone plenty of advance warning regarding shoes. All girls need a pair of character shoes. (if your child’s feet are still growing, check with us to see if they need them for the forthcoming show, but older girls will definitely need a pair for both our Christmas and Summer productions. These can be bought second hand from sites like ebay and vinted and new from online dance shops and sites like amazon for approximately £18-20 pounds. All younger girls and boys will also need a plain black lace up dap type of shoe that we have been using for many years. They are generally available online or from places like Primark and cost under £10. If anyone is really struggling, please have a word as we have a few pairs but only in a few sizes.
Finally, Thank you all for your continued support. Please continue to spread the word about CLOKS and see if we can get plenty of people coming to our shows and fundraising events. The children and adults all work really hard and it is lovely for them to play to a full house.
We look forward to waving to you at the Carnival which will be our next venture.
Best Wishes
Maria and the CLOKS team. XX
GETTING INVOLVED WITH CLOKS
I understand that this is a difficult one, especially at the moment,t but moving forward we will be in great need of parents, friends etc. becoming more involved and helping especially during show week and on our committee. A lot of the existing committee is made up of parents of children who have moved on. They are there because they love CLOKS and it has made a real difference to the lives of their children. We have youngsters who are in their mid twenties who still talk fondly of their CLOKS days/shows and friendships have been forged and continue to thrive from their time together. None of this would have been able to take place without a strong team of people willing to give up their time to help. We are incredibly lucky to have a great production team who give us great lighting, sound, props etc. but we will soon need new committee members,general helpers, front of house volunteers and chaperones during show week. Without any of the above CLOKS will simply fizzle out as the existing people hang up their hats. Please, please have a good think about this and if you want to see CLOKS continue then new people are going to have to come forward.
We held a lovely get together and informal evening back along so everyone could come along and see what CLOKS is all about, sadly another event like this is simply not going to be possible at the moment but if you are interested in becoming more involved then please just get in touch. We have such fun and we really are a big happy family. We all support each other and are totally united by wanting to reach out to help not only our own children but children from all ages and backgrounds. CLOKS has helped so many children to improve their confidence and self esteem, work as a team and of course get the thrill of being able to perform under the lights and immerse themselves in a world of total magic. Come and join our crazy team and I promise you won’t regret it.
With very best wishes from me and all the CLOKS team.