Cambridge puts on a huge number of student-led productions a year, often with over 40 a term. Considering that Cambridge terms are relatively short, only eight weeks long with a rogue week zero thrown in there, to have such a quantity of student productions is astounding. At first glance, it seems to be a good marketing campaign to convince students inclined to theatrical pursuits to come to Cambridge rather than a drama school, but if one truly interrogates this statistic the main question seems to be: how is this actually possible? With the cohort of incoming freshers only just starting to come to terms with the rapid and slightly chaotic world of Cambridge theatre, now feels like the right time to examine the sheer dedication ADC regulars must have in order to put on a show in as little as three weeks!

In the Cambridge theatre world, once the infamous CamDram vacancy notification comes up for audition and production team applications, it is all systems go. Auditions and recalls can sometimes happen within the course of one week and you are then thrown into rehearsals to somehow put on an ADC show in under a month. When one is in the swing of a characteristically hectic term at Cambridge, putting on a full scale show in such a small time frame seems almost commonplace – however, this can be a rather harmful attitude for theatre freshers. Students involved in theatre are often juggling supervision work and some sort of social life all whilst cycling across Cambridge as they try to find an underground rehearsal room.

“Once the infamous CamDram vacancy notification comes up for audition and production team applications, it is all systems go”

It is important for Cambridge audiences and the students involved in the shows themselves to appreciate what an incredible feat it is to put on a show whilst being a student at one of the most academic universities in the world. This article is certainly not arguing that there should be less shows put on at Cambridge, one of the most exciting things about the Cambridge theatre scene is its fast paced nature, but there needs to be slightly more understanding for these busy theatre students and the pressure they are under.

Of course, the actors do an incredible job of learning lines, blocking and coming to grips with a character alongside their academic studies, but the creative team are also in need of some serious praise. When the audience arrives at the ADC or Corpus Playroom to enjoy a night of theatre, a key aspect is the technical side of the show – the set, lighting and sound.

Late nights are spent devising how to best create a fly-in sliding door, and it is probably correct to assume that it will be created by a dedicated student carpenter in 5 days ready for the opening night. Legend has it that some technical rehearsals have lasted over 12 hours at the ADC. This is not only testament to the sheer complexity and the professional standard of technical designs audiences in Cambridge have come to expect, but it also highlights once again, the hard work that Cambridge students commit to productions in their already busy schedule.

“Dedication will get you a long way, but planning is also key to Cambridge being able to continue to put on so many productions”

Dedication will get you a long way, but planning is also key to Cambridge University being able to continue to put on such a multitude of productions. For any aspiring directors at Cambridge, the website CallTime will become your best friend. CallTime allows people to input their entire calendar, and the director can compare it against everyone else’s schedule and somehow put a rehearsal timetable together. Too often the calendar appears to nearly be entirely red (meaning no one is available at the same time) but small pockets of time sandwiched in between a seminar and a netball match can be found. Time is of the essence in all rehearsals and meetings and should always be used as productively as possible as getting the whole team in one room at the same time is a luxury!

However, this hectic intensity of creativity, planning, and rehearsing may seem abnormal to a fresher, but is, I believe, why there is always such a buzz surrounding Cambridge theatre – the chaotic rush is what the students live for and why once you start theatre at Cambridge you can’t quite find a way to leave! This is certainly not a plea for the schedule to change, but more a recognition of the efforts of those slightly wired theatre kids who are often running on very little sleep…