Welcome
Claque are the founders and leading exponents of community plays. Since 1979 they have been transforming the way in which people view theatre and community through large-scale and inclusive community plays.
“The plays ... are very much about shared energy. It’s an old fashioned notion; a couple of hundred people come together and surprise themselves by what they can do.” Times Educational Supplement
Claque Theatre began life as the Colway Theatre Trust with the production of the Lyme Regis community Play in 1978. The Trust was formed by Ann Jellicoe as a vehicle for exploring and developing the community play as an accessible and innovative form of theatre. In 2000, Colway relocated to Kent and changed its name to Claque to reflect the South East's close proximity to Europe.
Under the direction of Jon Oram since 1985, Claque has produced 50 community plays across the United Kingdom, in Canada, the United States and Europe. The plays are always of high artistic quality which they achieve by working closely with the community over a two year period,, developing skills, researching, and devising in collaboration with with leading playwrights and experienced directors and associates from across the theatre disciplines. Together, the production teams offer design, set and stage management services as well as creative and educational workshops, Empty Gallery installations and events..
“The plays ... are very much about shared energy. It’s an old fashioned notion; a couple of hundred people come together and surprise themselves by what they can do.” Times Educational Supplement
Claque Theatre began life as the Colway Theatre Trust with the production of the Lyme Regis community Play in 1978. The Trust was formed by Ann Jellicoe as a vehicle for exploring and developing the community play as an accessible and innovative form of theatre. In 2000, Colway relocated to Kent and changed its name to Claque to reflect the South East's close proximity to Europe.
Under the direction of Jon Oram since 1985, Claque has produced 50 community plays across the United Kingdom, in Canada, the United States and Europe. The plays are always of high artistic quality which they achieve by working closely with the community over a two year period,, developing skills, researching, and devising in collaboration with with leading playwrights and experienced directors and associates from across the theatre disciplines. Together, the production teams offer design, set and stage management services as well as creative and educational workshops, Empty Gallery installations and events..
News
THE MIGRANTS' TABLE
Creative Arts Course for Migrants
Course Structure and Accessibility
The course is designed for migrants, agency workers, and support staff, offering a welcoming space for everyone to participate. Sessions take place every Thursday from 2nd October to 18th December 2025, and resume from 9th January to 26th March 2026, from 12.30 pm to 2.30 pm.
Creative Assignments and Approach
Participants will engage in creative assignments meant to ignite inspiration and encourage the design of their own activities. These exercises are intended to solve problems, foster meaningful connections, and enhance everyday life. The course emphasises breaking free from habitual patterns to build empathy and creativity, encouraging new perspectives on the world.
Learning Outcomes
Through active participation in the creative process, individuals will develop skills to navigate the modern world with agility, resilience, and imagination. The programme encourages curiosity, helping participants discover their creativity, inventiveness, and improvisation skills.
Collaboration and Self-expression
The group will learn effective collaboration, creating a safe, supportive environment where everyone can stretch their imagination without fear of failure or judgment—including from themselves. The ultimate goal is for each participant to find their unique voice and share it confidently with others.
Course Themes and Artistic Expression
While migration is a recurring theme—exploring notions of home, journeys, and experiences of displacement—many assignments will focus on generating ideas personal to each participant. Expression will be invited through drawing, making, writing, painting, food, movement, improvisation, and the individual skills and interests that participants bring to the group.
REGISTER FOR THE COURSE WITH WEST KENT MIND
To register a place on the course, click the link below (or copy and paste to google search)
https://westkentmind.org.uk/i-want-help/creative-minds/the-community-table/
The course will be led by Jon Oram and Maryjane Stevens. Jon is artistic director of Claque Theatre, a company that founded the community play, he has produced, directed or written over forty of them across Britain, in Canada, USA and Europe, involving literally thousands of people. He is also a leading improvisation teacher. Maryjane is a dramaturg, director, producer with a wealth of participative arts experience, she’s a trained drama teacher and multi disciplined community artist and performer. She and Jon are both improvisors with Claqueur impro theatre and perform fully improvised plays.
The course is designed for migrants, agency workers, and support staff, offering a welcoming space for everyone to participate. Sessions take place every Thursday from 2nd October to 18th December 2025, and resume from 9th January to 26th March 2026, from 12.30 pm to 2.30 pm.
Creative Assignments and Approach
Participants will engage in creative assignments meant to ignite inspiration and encourage the design of their own activities. These exercises are intended to solve problems, foster meaningful connections, and enhance everyday life. The course emphasises breaking free from habitual patterns to build empathy and creativity, encouraging new perspectives on the world.
Learning Outcomes
Through active participation in the creative process, individuals will develop skills to navigate the modern world with agility, resilience, and imagination. The programme encourages curiosity, helping participants discover their creativity, inventiveness, and improvisation skills.
Collaboration and Self-expression
The group will learn effective collaboration, creating a safe, supportive environment where everyone can stretch their imagination without fear of failure or judgment—including from themselves. The ultimate goal is for each participant to find their unique voice and share it confidently with others.
Course Themes and Artistic Expression
While migration is a recurring theme—exploring notions of home, journeys, and experiences of displacement—many assignments will focus on generating ideas personal to each participant. Expression will be invited through drawing, making, writing, painting, food, movement, improvisation, and the individual skills and interests that participants bring to the group.
REGISTER FOR THE COURSE WITH WEST KENT MIND
To register a place on the course, click the link below (or copy and paste to google search)
https://westkentmind.org.uk/i-want-help/creative-minds/the-community-table/
The course will be led by Jon Oram and Maryjane Stevens. Jon is artistic director of Claque Theatre, a company that founded the community play, he has produced, directed or written over forty of them across Britain, in Canada, USA and Europe, involving literally thousands of people. He is also a leading improvisation teacher. Maryjane is a dramaturg, director, producer with a wealth of participative arts experience, she’s a trained drama teacher and multi disciplined community artist and performer. She and Jon are both improvisors with Claqueur impro theatre and perform fully improvised plays.
PLAY in the MOMENT
One of the great joys during the past three years has been developing an impro form we are calling play in the moment, working towards creating 50 -60 minute improvised plays. I have gone back to look at the original purpose of exercises and games created by Keith Johnstone in the early 1960’s for the writer’s group at Royal Court Theatre. He devised exercises to help writers when they felt blocked, to unlock their imaginations, to be present in the moment, to explore narrative and storytelling, and status. The work inspired some of the major plays in British Theatre, and influenced such writers as Ann Jellicoe, John Arden, David Cregan, Arnold Wesker. The work was serious but they discovered the Impro games had entertainment value, they laughed a lot. Keith thought it would be interesting to show them in public so he and group of actors created Theatre Machine who went out demonstrated the games in front of audiences. Improvised plays were illegal at the time because of censorship, so the idea of an improvised play was impossible. Today, the games and exercises are the mainstay of most impro shows, used almost solely because of their comic effect. Most of today’s improvisers rely on the rules of the games but have forgotten or are unaware of their underlying purpose. I wanted to re-discover the value they had for writing plays and to see if we could make a play spontaneously.
We have abandoned rules in favour of principles, we have no format or preconceived idea of what we are going to do, we start with nothing, we have no plot or character or dialogue in mind and walk on stage knowing nothing about the play ahead. But then the lights go up and we look at our stage partner and begin to discover everything, because every thing we need is in them. We never think about what happens next, but rather respond to what just happened because brings us closer to being present in the moment. We are pleased to performing our first public full length plays at our local fringe festival in Tunbridge Wells. I can’t tell you about the plays until after the show, but if you come along you will discover the story at the same time as we do, in the moment.
We have abandoned rules in favour of principles, we have no format or preconceived idea of what we are going to do, we start with nothing, we have no plot or character or dialogue in mind and walk on stage knowing nothing about the play ahead. But then the lights go up and we look at our stage partner and begin to discover everything, because every thing we need is in them. We never think about what happens next, but rather respond to what just happened because brings us closer to being present in the moment. We are pleased to performing our first public full length plays at our local fringe festival in Tunbridge Wells. I can’t tell you about the plays until after the show, but if you come along you will discover the story at the same time as we do, in the moment.
EVERYBODY’S THEATRE- Democratising the art of the community play
After five years of delay and frequent distractions, I have made a concerted effort over the past six months to complete writing *Everybody's Theatre: Democratising the Art of the Community Play*. Throughout its development, the book has had several titles, with two enduring the longest: *The Art of the Community* and *Community Plays and How to Avoid Them*. Titles are significant as they reflect the central theme of my writing. Initially, *Community Plays and How to Avoid Them* was chosen because the book aimed to highlight that there is no precise model to follow in developing a community play. People often seek a roadmap, but a genuine community play involves a journey of discovery and mystery, encouraging deviation from the beaten path, which often leads to more interesting experiences.
Ann Jellicoe wrote *Community Plays and How to Put Them On*, sparking discussions about the process and formulating certain aspects of it. My belief is that rigidly adhering to a recipe will prevent one from becoming a true chef. The approach depends on the director’s preferences, the writer’s obsessions, their thresholds, and the nature of the community. Subsequently, *The Art of the Community Play* was chosen to emphasize that these plays should be regarded as serious art forms. Striving for excellence, stepping out of one’s comfort zone, and attempting something new are essential reasons for undertaking such projects.
The core of the book revealed itself only upon thorough review. It advocates for listening to the community, creating diverse opportunities for them to express their viewpoints, exercise their imaginations, foster empathy, and collaborate effectively as a group. Ann Jellicoe eloquently described this as creating a work of art within a community context. The book is currently with beta readers, friends, and I await their feedback, guidance, and judgment. Hopefully, by mid to late summer, it will be ready for submission to a publisher, when I anticipate another stage of hard work. I'm keeping my fingers crossed to have it out there.. finally finished writing my book on community plays It's 37 years since Ann Jellicoe wrote Community Plays and How to Put Them On, a record of the beginnings of the Community Play and a handbook on managing the projects.. An update is long overdue. the work has developed radically over three decades and times are also very different. The book will outline some major developments in my approach all designed to give the community a more meaningful experience and greater input and investment into the plays. It advocate much more centrally placed collaborative position for the community , a role define as a social actor., The professional becomes more in the service of the community to give greater credence to them as creatives and actors and supporting them in defining the content and shape of their
play. I write about the nature of groups and how working collaboratively as a group and finding the collective intent is central to 'finding the play' and working as an ensemble to implicate the audience in the performance. I draw on my experience in educational drama and describe the Drama Search, a form of group role play to explore research material to inform the development of the script. The books working title is The Srt of The Community Play as it focusses more on the creative process and the art form more than the project management. and because I believe it i should be both seen and approached as a serious art form.
Ann Jellicoe wrote *Community Plays and How to Put Them On*, sparking discussions about the process and formulating certain aspects of it. My belief is that rigidly adhering to a recipe will prevent one from becoming a true chef. The approach depends on the director’s preferences, the writer’s obsessions, their thresholds, and the nature of the community. Subsequently, *The Art of the Community Play* was chosen to emphasize that these plays should be regarded as serious art forms. Striving for excellence, stepping out of one’s comfort zone, and attempting something new are essential reasons for undertaking such projects.
The core of the book revealed itself only upon thorough review. It advocates for listening to the community, creating diverse opportunities for them to express their viewpoints, exercise their imaginations, foster empathy, and collaborate effectively as a group. Ann Jellicoe eloquently described this as creating a work of art within a community context. The book is currently with beta readers, friends, and I await their feedback, guidance, and judgment. Hopefully, by mid to late summer, it will be ready for submission to a publisher, when I anticipate another stage of hard work. I'm keeping my fingers crossed to have it out there.. finally finished writing my book on community plays It's 37 years since Ann Jellicoe wrote Community Plays and How to Put Them On, a record of the beginnings of the Community Play and a handbook on managing the projects.. An update is long overdue. the work has developed radically over three decades and times are also very different. The book will outline some major developments in my approach all designed to give the community a more meaningful experience and greater input and investment into the plays. It advocate much more centrally placed collaborative position for the community , a role define as a social actor., The professional becomes more in the service of the community to give greater credence to them as creatives and actors and supporting them in defining the content and shape of their
play. I write about the nature of groups and how working collaboratively as a group and finding the collective intent is central to 'finding the play' and working as an ensemble to implicate the audience in the performance. I draw on my experience in educational drama and describe the Drama Search, a form of group role play to explore research material to inform the development of the script. The books working title is The Srt of The Community Play as it focusses more on the creative process and the art form more than the project management. and because I believe it i should be both seen and approached as a serious art form.
Visit our Empty Gallery Website
The Empty Gallery produce collaborative projects between Claque and a local community or group to create a mobile 'interactive theatre-art exhibitions' that reflect the lives, thoughts and ideas of the community who create it. The creators could be the community within a city, town, village, street, an organisation, an 'interest group' or your community or group. Each exhibition varies in content, size, scale and running time depending on the theme, community and location. We start with an empty shop, a village hall, a school, a gazebo, a bus stop, or anywhere at all. Our most recent projects have been The Aldgate Project for the City of London, and The War Time Silhouette for Rusthall Community Arts