Decades of success, from small beginnings to award nominations
Although Keynsham Light Opera Group have been in existence for more than 50 years, the first talk of forming a light opera group in Keynsham actually began during the First World War, when several Gilbert & Sullivan operas were performed. But it was not until April 1966 that local people began to meet to study musical comedy , leading to the formation of Keynsham Light Opera Group in 1967.
Our first production
Our first full-scale production took place in April 1969: Trial by Jury with excerpts from Bizet’s Carmen. The show took place at Saltford Hall, one of the venues where KLOG still performs. However, in 1969 the stage hadn’t even been completed! Tickets cost four shillings (20p), and the budget was £33, with profits donated to the Red Cross.
A strong presence
With very few interruptions since then, KLOG has been entertaining the local community with musical productions, maintaining our high quality and production values for over 50 years. We are run by an elected Committee of members, who give up (a great deal of) their time to organise various aspects of the group.
How we perform today
We perform two shows each year, traditionally in April and October. The Spring show is normally a “traditional” musical, while in Autumn we give free rein to our imaginations and produce our own, original show, which is normally more of a “concert-style” production
Important fundraising
Although we generally perform to full houses, it costs a great deal to put on such good shows, and we therefore have to find additional sources of income. It is never easy to fundraise, especially in our current tough economic times, but KLOG members regularly hold fundraising events such as carol singing, band/theme nights, car boot sales and more.
We are always on the lookout for ways in which we can raise additional funds. One of our most popular is through character sponsorship. If you represent a local business, organisation or charity we would be very interested to discuss ways in which you can benefit from advertising, sponsoring or being associated with a KLOG production: we perform to up to 1200 local people, twice a year, as well as at the Keynsham Music Festival and the Keynsham Farmers’ Market. We have dedicated local supporters that play a vital role in ensuring the continued success of the group. If you feel you can help too, please get in touch.