Celebrating a hundred years of Catholics in theatre

Celia Imrie with Raj Bajaj

The Catholic Stage Guild, founded in 1911, and renamed as the Catholic Association of Performing Arts in 2009, is celebrating its centenary this year. Past members have included Sr Alec Guinness, Peter Finch and Cyril Cusack.

Earlier this month members performed sketches, poetry and songs as part of the centenary celebrations at the Club for Acts and Actors in Covent Garden.

Chairman, actor Richard O'Callaghan, was the hit of the evening with a monologue by Peter Cook - “I could have been a Judge”, performed whilst consuming a bowl of muesli. Richard will be shortly be seen in Haunting Julia by Alan Ayckbourn at Riverside Studios Hammersmith - the first time it will have been performed in London.

Another CaAPA member, Dominic Hecht is also in the cast, previewing from 25 May and running until 3 July.

CaAPA on the road will be presenting a shortened entertainment at Denville Hall, a home for retired showbusiness people in May, with other venues planned throughout the year.

Recently the annual Student Evening was held at the Club for Acts and Actors and ALRA drama school finalist, Raj Bajaj, won the Sir Alec Guinness Award, presented by actor Celia Imrie. Actor Kenneth Cranham, Hubbard Casting and a representative of Spotlight, the stage directory, were also on the panel. The award entitles the recipient to a year's membership of the Actors Centre with vouchers for classes, free entry in Spotlight and a year's supply of The Stage newspaper.

Archbishop Vincent Nicols, patron of CaAPA, will be celebrating a Mass on 20 May at Corpus Christi Church, Maiden Lane to mark the centenary. The church is known as the Actors' church and the parish priest, Fr Alan Robinson, is chaplain to CaAPA. A gala concert will be held at the Cathedral Hall in September.