About D&S Productions
D&S are a company who:
- Are passionate about creating quality, local theatre
- Value people – whether that is performers or audiences. We know you have a lot of choice in where to spend your time and money
- Are deliberately inclusive
- Committed to raising money for good causes and charities close to our hearts or the storylines of shows we perform.
- Look for ways to collaborate with others to raise the bar of amateur theatre
Meet our board of trustees
Donna Dale
Chair & Trustee
Donna has performed on stage since the age of three when she joined Lyn McKenzie’s Dance School and then went on to join Christa Stage School, aged fourteen. In 1987, she played her first lead role, Katie Brown, in the musical Calamity Jane with EPMTC.
Since then, Donna has taken part in many shows performing in both the chorus and lead roles. Donna went on to direct her first show with EPMTC, Oliver, in 2014 and caught ‘the directing bug’! She then directed Sister Act in 2015, which she was delighted to learn, had been nominated for six NODA Awards. In 2017, she directed 9-5, 2018 Wizard of Oz and the iconic play A Wonderful Life and latterly, one of her favourites, RENT in 2019. In 2020 D&S brought Shrek the Musical to The Brindley. In 2022 she took to the stage, once again, and played the part of Vicky Nichols in The Full Monty, followed by directing Calendar Girls in October 2022.
Chris Mellor
Trustee
Chris has been part of D&S Productions since it’s infancy, and has been one of the key driving forces behind the charity.
Whilst Chris does not tread the boards with D&S he does take great pride in keeping the charity functioning often on hand with the administration and finances of the company. You will often see Chris, Front of House for our shows but also is a key player in the operations backstage and keeping the show running smoothly too.
Gemma Walker
Trustee
Gemma has previously performed as Georgie in The Full Monty, Wise Gold in Flint Street Nativity and particularly enjoyed taking on the role of Gingy in Shrek the Musical. Gemma has performed twice in Rent and she has recently played Mrs Cohen amongst many other roles.
Off stage, Gemma has directed and choreographed multiple musicals in schools, has delivered West-End summer schools with the company Stage-Ed across the UK and is a full time SENCO, Assistant Headteacher and high school performing arts teacher.
D&S productions are an award winning community theatre group and registered charity (no. 11188585) based in the Ellesmere Port/Chester area who regularly perform at the Brindley theatre in Runcorn and other local performance spaces. We belong to NODA (National Operatic & Dramatic Association).
D&S productions took their first productions (Shrek the musical and The Flint Street Nativity) to the stage in 2021 as the world was beginning to come out of the global, Covid-19 pandemic. Acknowledging the changing attitudes and commitments of audience members and performers alike we knew D&S had to do be committed to doing things a little differently.
