For the second year, we’re running a trip to Chester Gang Show.

For those that aren’t familiar of what a Gang Show is, here is a brief summary:

A Gang Show is a theatrical performance by  members of Scouting. Young people make up the majority of the cast, or Gang, with adult leaders and parents helping out behind the scenes. Gang Show offers a great opportunity for young people to work together as a team on a high profile project and to stage a ‘shop window’ event to demonstrate their talents to the people of Chester and surrounding area.

We have a rich history, and have performed in venues across Chester over the years, but our home since 2008 (with the exception of one year) is the new Vanbrugh Theatre, Kings School.

The production team and Gang, all volunteers, participate in many hours of planning, writing, composing, choreographing, building stage scenery/props, making costumes and rehearsing for several months before the actual performances. In order to reach the required performance standard for a Gang Show, a high level of commitment is needed from all involved in the production as well as support from their families.

The format of a Gang Show is essentially a revue or variety show; song, dance and short comedy sketches are the most common items.  The material in our programme is far from conventional, and can include all forms of song, dance and acting – we’ve tried pretty much anything from Broadway to the West End, Hollywood to Bollywood, Shakespeare to end-of-the-pier… Some of the material is well-known, other material is original to Chester Gang Show, often even devised by the young people themselves.