This is Haslemere met Amanda O’Brien, a local resident who really satisfies that old adage that if you want something done, just ask a busy mum.

Amanda and her husband, Philip O’Brien, set up Imagine That Productions (ITP) a Community Interest Company in 2016. They and their co-directors draw together a cast of amateur performers and they work with expert musicians, stage management and production teams, putting together shows of the highest quality in Haslemere. Amanda and Philip lead the ITP team and work with the cast from start to finish.

But, let’s rewind …. By training, Philip and Amanda are both opera singers and they originally met in Leeds when they were performing in Das Rheingold. At that time, Amanda was living in The Midlands and Philip lived down here and was directing many shows at King Edward’s School in Witley. They moved to Hindhead in 2009. Philip was working professionally as an opera singer, Amanda had already been working as a classical singer in Opera and Oratorio for the previous 10 years. With the responsibility of bringing up a young family, they made the decision to diversify more into teaching and set up the Haslemere Singing Studio, which they now run from their home in Headley Down. Amanda works as a singing teacher at several independent schools locally, for example, Highfield and Bookham, Aldro, St Ives School. She also helps with the running of The Haslemere Singing Studio which is thriving and is Company Manager of ITP. All these roles are interconnected with ITP.

Both adults and children attend the Haslemere Singing Studio for lessons (classical and increasingly popular musical theatre). Amanda and Philip recognise that you have to have opportunities to perform. That is exactly what ITP provides for local amateur singers. ITP means singing students have the opportunity to perform in two or three musical events every year. This includes one large show every year at Haslemere Hall. This Summer will be their ninth show in the hall – The Sound of Music! They supplement this large showpiece with two or three smaller events throughout the year. In these smaller events all of the singers are pupils of The Haslemere Singing Studio but they open up the Summer show to auditions for anyone who’d like to join.

We had hoped that This is Haslemere might be given the chance to audition for The Mother Superior in their Sound of Music production this August but (a blessing for our readers) the cast was selected months ago. Generously, Amanda offered an audition for next year’s musical but it’s a state secret as to which show they will select….

At This is Haslemere, we have attended several past musicals produced by ITP and the standard is very high. It’s not just the singing - Amanda and Philip spend a lot of money and time working on the whole staging and the production. In a nutshell, they told us it’s about giving their amateur singers a professional experience. So, they surround their amateur cast with professionals and give them the opportunity to perform in a pro setting. For example, they've got a professional singing director in Philip O’Brien, and a professional choreographer in Reece Millard (Britain’s Got Talent, Disney +) who is young and energetic and brings high standards to the cast. There’s also expert lighting designer Kevin Wright, who was deputy manager at The Electric Theatre.

What is clear is that Amanda and Philip are really keen to innovate. This year, for The Sound of Music they're bringing in a revolving stage to Haslemere Hall, which is the first time that stage type will have been used at the Hall! They are constantly bringing in new ideas to make the stage look different and push the boundaries of what ITP can do within Haslemere Hall. Residents may remember the car on the stage for their Chitty production or their extended stage for The Wizard Of Oz.

This summer’s ITP Sound of Music production was cast in January. All the cast receive one-to-one singing lessons to help them prepare the role and then, rather like a pop-up theatre situation, ITP runs with an intense two-week production period.

As mentioned earlier, this will be the ninth year ITP have performed in Haslemere Hall. Philip actually first performed in Haslemere Hall in 1993 with Opera Omnibus. He has also sung with Opera South and most recently in 2023 with Haslemere Musical Society. Not many people can say that they've been singing Opera at Haslemere Hall from over 30 years from 1993 to 2023! Indeed, their daughter Scarlet had her first outing as a wee baby to see her father in La Perichole at Haslemere Hall and then she herself sang the lead role of Dorothy on the same stage last year. It goes without saying that both Scarlet and her younger brother Sam (he performed the lead role in Oliver!) feel like Haslemere Hall is a second home.

But Scarlet and Sam and their current friends are not the first ITP generation. Many singers have grown up through ITP and have gone on to university and music colleges. And they keep coming back! Holly, who's singing the role of Maria in The Sound of Music, is returning from studies at Trinity Laban to rejoin her ITP friends.

ITP has all ages in their cast and the adults help mentor the younger singers. The children come from different schools and different backgrounds and they form new friendships in a lovely safe space.

ITP is fortunate to receive support via grants. In the past, they have received money from East Hampshire District Council. They also offer limited ITP bursaries for talented youngsters who cannot afford lessons or the show fees. ITP are additionally supported by The Humphrey Richardson Taylor Charitable Trust who provide a generous grant to go towards production costs. The HRTT is a trusted supporter of amateur groups who perform in Surrey. ITP also have a group of really supportive patrons who gift money annually in return for reserved tickets at their smaller events and also out of the genuine desire to be involved.

All in all, it is a huge undertaking to put on these great musical theatre productions in Haslemere. Amanda manages the business end of ITP and has developed a variety of skills whilst developing the CiC, including fundraising and managing the budget. Each production costs approximately £30,000. The bulk of this is covered by box office receipts. That is why it is so important for them to sell tickets. They always perform over the August bank holiday weekend and they consciously choose shows that are family friendly. This year, they’ve added an extra show to catch people who are going away for the bank holiday weekend. The extra show will be on Thursday 21st August at 7.30pm. The cast pay a small fee to take part, but it's very minimal. Many of the professionals who work for ITP either work on a reduced fee basis or pro bono. Philip and Amanda offer their services for free, treating it as a two-week working holiday. We certainly got the sense that this is very much a family affair for them. Both their children are involved. Even Patch their dog had a starring role in The Wizard of Oz last year. Even though it is extremely hard work, it's a wonderful highlight of the year for the O’Briens and for their wider ITP family.

During our chat, Amanda gave a special mention to Sarah Jane Chimbwandira one of their five directors who has been hands on in offering support. By day, Sarah Jane is CEO of Surrey Wildlife Trust and she offers her expertise in business management and also incredible support with costumes. More generally, ITP relies on a great volunteer team of about 40 people including parents and local volunteers.

If you’d like to get involved with ITP, help for the current show is required for costume alterations as well as spot lighting. Do get in touch with the team here. 

To book tickets for The Sound of Music, check out the booking link here. 

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