THE ADC THEATRE
The official home of the Amateur Dramatics Club and the main theatrical space for student productions, the ADC is a hub of dramatic activity. It hosts the biggest, most extravagant shows (the annual Footlights Panto and European Theatre Group Tour Show, to name a few), as well as a plethora of smaller or one-man shows (Anything But was a recent favourite of mine). Though there is no hard and fast rule about this, ADC shows are generally of a high quality, and they often choose preferring bigger, crowd-pleasers instead of riskier options.The theatre itself is surprisingly small considering its enormous reputation, and will easily fill up for a mainshow. ‘Mainshows’ are the first production of the evening, usually starting around 7.45pm, with the ‘lateshow’, a shorter, usually hour-long production, beginning shortly afterwards around 11pm. That said, productions always seem to maximise stage-space, which can be enlarged or contracted depending on the size of the show.
As well as drama and comedy, the ADC occasionally plays host to concerts and academic talks. It also has a fantastic (and cheap) bar, which serves cocktails themed to the mainshow.
Good For: Big productions, drama, variety, safer options.
Not So Good For: Size, unconventional theatre, new writing.
Fun Fact: Four out of the five directors of the National Theatre, (Sir Peter Hall, Richard Eyre, Sir Trevor Nunn and Nicholas Hytner) are alumni of the theatre.

THE CORPUS PLAYROOM
Though owned by Corpus Christi College, the Playroom is a central landmark for thesps of all Cambridge colleges. Far smaller than the ADC, the Corpus Playroom is tucked away on St Edward’s Passage (just opposite King’s College), and is intimate to say the least. The problem is less one of seating (there is a surprisingly large capacity of 80), but stage size: there is very little room for manouvre, and the front row danger that an actor might fall into your lap is quite immediate.
The modest size of the Playroom’s stage creates certain logistical issues, such as entrances and exits; I have seen productions at the Playroom where off-stage actors are forced to stand awkwardly at the sides of the stage. On the bright side, the Playroom’s dinkiness makes it perfect for less experienced comics to perform at Smokers (Corpus holds them frequently), whilst giving certain performances a warmth and immediacy that can be lost in larger venues such as the ADC.
More awkward than the size of the Playroom, however, is its shape: the L-shape of the room can sometimes create a sense of alienation, as performers find it difficult to address both halves of their audience. I have occasionally witnessed comics attempting to use this to their advantage, such as one Corpus Smoker when Pierre Novellie divided his audience into two ‘tribes’. Not sure about the shelf life of this tactic, though.
Good For: Small productions, stand-up, Smokers, first-time actors.
Not So Good For: Reliable quality, large productions, tech.
Fun Fact: Stephen Fry wrote the play Latin! for the opening of the Playroom in 1979.

THE JUDITH E WILSON STUDIO
The Judith E. Wilson sits in the basement of the English Faculty building on the Sidgwick Site, making it absolutely great for a post-library theatre trip, but mildly inconvenient otherwise. It is a robust, basic theatre space, with no fixed seating or backstage area. Like the ADC, it is used not only for drama, but also for literary talks and poetry readings, and is therefore a firm favourite with many an English student.
The Studio is known for putting on few, but good (and free) student productions. This term we’ve got the rather formidable-sounding combination of Richard III and Goodbye Iraq.
Good For: Off the beaten track, poetry, literature, small productions.
Not So Good For: Location, big productions, comedy.
Fun Fact: The poet Louis MacNeice spoke at the Studio for the 1958-9 Judith E. Wilson Lecture on Poetry and Drama, on the subject of ‘Lyric into Drama’.

THE PEMBROKE NEW CELLARS
Tucked away in the basement of Pembroke’s Foundress Court, this dark corner of Cambridge theatre is hard to find, but worth the finding. While it has played host to some notorious stinkers (take a bow, Fresher: the Musical) the Cellars have also, under the supervision of the Pembroke Players, produced some fine new work such as Unconditional. Look out for new writing What? World and Indelible Acts later in the term

THE FITZPATRICK HALL
This converted badminton court in Queens’ College makes for a surprisingly good theatre venue. While the raked seating is rarely filled and feels a bit distant from the stage, the acoustic from all the wood is very nice, and the technical possibilities of the large space are impressive. The dressing rooms are a crèche by day, so you always have the satisfaction of knowing that actors are enjoying Mr Men books backstage.

THE REST
There’s the very out-of-the-way Newnham Old Labs, the Howard Theatre at Downing, and a whole host of converted theatres in just about every college. Even King’s Chapel is getting in on the act this term.
Rivkah Brown