Dunstable Rep is the amateur theatre company based at The Little Theatre. Our members produce a varied season of six plays per year, bringing each production to life both on stage and behind the scenes.
We’re a welcoming community of performers, directors, technicians, makers and theatre lovers. Whether you want to audition, help backstage, volunteer front of house or simply enjoy outstanding local theatre, there’s a place for you at Dunstable Rep.
The history of Dunstable Rep
Dunstable Repertory Theatre began in 1945, when a group of young people staged a production of Quiet Wedding. They enjoyed the experience so much that they decided one play simply wasn’t enough—and formed a theatre company of their own.
Throughout the late 1940s and 1950s, Dunstable Rep performed at the old Town Hall, building its sets in a nearby garage. The company staged three productions each year, regularly played to packed houses and attracted a growing community of members.
A company without a stage
The old Town Hall was demolished in 1964 to make way for the Queensway Hall, also known as the Civic Centre. Its 800-seat auditorium was well suited to large events, but lacked the intimacy needed for many of the Rep’s plays. Although the company staged several plays and pantomimes there, filling such a large venue proved difficult.
From 1966, the Rep took its productions to Brewers Hill School, Kensworth Village Hall and Maldon. Using simple travelling sets, the company performed mainly comedies and farces to supportive audiences. But life on the road was never quite the same as having a theatre to call home.
The Little Theatre is born
In 1964, the former library beside Chews House became vacant. The Rep’s committee approached the Chews Foundation with an ambitious proposal: to lease the building and transform it into a theatre.
That ambition became a reality four years later. On 7 October 1968, Dunstable Rep staged its first production at the newly converted library, now named The Little Theatre.
After more than two decades of performing in town halls, schools and village halls, the Rep finally had a permanent home.