Abstract

The Broadbent Theatre situated in the village of Wickenby in rurl Lincolnshire, United Kingdom is home to Lindsey Rural Players who originated from the Holton Players, founded by a small community of conscientious objectors at Holton-cum-Beckering, Lincolnshire.
They saw themselves as a ‘redemptive minority, committed to a higher order of morality (as opposed to war) but also, to pointing the way, towards a 'new order' through a communal, agricultural way of life.
Despite little or no electricity and few wirelesses (Radios) during the war, evening entertainment involved musical evenings, singing, poetry and play reading; everyone was welcomed, whether they were from Holton or not. After the war the Holton Players converted an abandoned Nissen hut into a theatre (The Country Theatre) which sadly, met a fiery end. The Players continued to meet in the magnificent drawing room of Holton Hall staging their productions in the bay window and making their entrances and exits through the sliding sashes.
Building on this rich history, this exhibition reflects some of the rebranding and Heritage Mining (commodification of heritage) solutions produced through an iterative, consultative (Action Research) approach, ignited through an intention to rebrand and reinvigorate theatre prior to the onset of the Covid19 Pandemic in 2020.