20/04/2023 Award winners!
The Limelight Theatre Company are celebrating becoming double award winners at the recent NODA East awards day in Stevenage!
Matilda JR. Show Director Anna Lawrence – Youth Performer Award Winner Flo Rymarz – Producer & Musical Director Zelda Rolfe
The morning of Sunday 16th April started rather early for Zelda, Martyn, head girl Chloe and Office Manager Karen. The morning forecast was chilly, with sun due to appear later in the day. A two hour road trip promised and delivered, much talk about the day ahead. With Zelda on duty from 10am on the NODA Youth stall, it was a chance to talk to several other youth theatre companies throughout East Anglia. It is always great to chat with like minded people about our passion for theatre, especially youth theatre. With the AGM finishing late morning, we made our way into the awards ceremony, eager for lunch and the awards.
Joining us on the day was Matilda JR. Director Anna Lawrence and our AWARD WINNER Flo Rymarz and family. With the announcement earlier in the year that Flo had won the NODA East Youth Performer award, we all waited excitedly for her award to be announced. We are so very proud and pleased for Flo achieving this award. She put in such great effort to capture the essence of Roald Dahl’s Matilda and this is a much deserved award.
Prior to that announcement, we waited with everything crossed whilst the other awards were announced. Best Drama, Best Pantomime, Best Musical, all in “Act 1” of the awards luncheon and then after a short interval “Act 2” started. Best Poster and Best Programme competition winners were announced.
Next up was Best Youth Production and…………………………………………
Yes!!!! The Limelight Theatre Company were announced as the winners!!! Head Girl Chloe was presented with our certificate, to much applause.
With Best Technical & Best Online productions awards coming before the Best Youth Performer, Flo was quite relieved to finally receive her certificate!
These are fantastic awards for an amazing collaboration of everyone involved with our Matilda Jr. production – cast – crew – chaperones & helpers – parents & guardians – sponsors – advertisers – suppliers and of course the vision of our Director, Anna Lawrence and the financial backing of our Producer and Musical Director Zelda Rolfe – MASSIVE CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE INVOLVED 💚 What a day!
Press Release
Limelight Theatre Company are double winners at the National Operatic and Dramatic
Association (NODA) Awards.
Thursday 20th April 2023
Zelda Rolfe – Limelight Theatre Company – T: 01603400096 – E: hello@limelightnorwich.co.uk
Norwich-based Limelight Theatre Company were delighted to be double winners at this year’s NODA East Award ceremony.
Their 2022 production of Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical JR, scooped the award for the Best Youth
Production, as well as cast member, Flo Rymarz, winning Best Youth Performer.
With theatre audiences returning after the pandemic, it was always a gamble for Producer and Musical Director Zelda Rolfe to bring her biennial productions back to the stage in Norwich, and on Wednesday 1st June 2022, 35 children, aged 6 to 18 years took to the boards at the Maddermarket Theatre, Norwich. The run of seven performances of Roald Dahl’s Matilda the Musical JR was very well received by the audience.
The nominations for the NODA East awards were put forward by the local representative back in January, in readiness for the awards luncheon on Sunday 16th April 2023 and Limelight were delighted to announce in February, that Flo Rymarz, playing the lead role of Matilda, had won the Best Youth Performer award. The production was also nominated for Best Youth Production, the award for which was announced at the gala luncheon.
On Sunday 16th April, the Producer and Musical Director Zelda Rolfe, the Director of the production Anna Lawrence, Limelight’s Head Girl Chloe and award winner Flo, all attended the NODA East Awards luncheon 2023 at The Forum in Stevenage.
After the lunch, Zelda Rolfe said “Knowing we had already won one award was fantastic, but to be nominated for the whole production was very exciting. It really was the icing on the (chocolate) cake to win this award”.
End.
About Limelight Theatre Company
Limelight Theatre Company is run by Zelda Rolfe and is based on Aylsham Road in Norwich. Offering weekly classes for children in vocal coaching, drama, musical theatre, acrobatic arts, and commercial jazz. The company also offers performing arts classes for home-educated children, adult drama and are proud to work with Active Norfolk for the Big Norfolk Holiday Fun programme, offering school holiday opportunities for children who are eligible for free school meals.
NODA is the national body that represents amateur theatre. Any amateur theatre society can become a member of NODA. It was founded in 1899, “to protect and advance the interests of operatic and dramatic art, and of societies engaged therein”. NODA’s membership continues with over 2,000 society members and over 1,000 individual enthusiasts staging musicals, operas, plays, concerts and pantomimes in venues ranging from the country’s leading professional theatres to village halls.
