EMPLOYEE with the Department of Education by day, theatre performer and director by night.
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Bathurst resident John Vickery has it all.
While he was born in England and moved to the Blue Mountains in 1991, Bathurst has been the perfect place for Mr Vickery to call home.
Mr Vickery has lived in the city since 2011, and for the last three years he has been happily relishing every opportunity that has been presented to him by the Bathurst Theatre Company.
His love for the stage grew from a chance opportunity a decade ago while he was living in the Blue Mountains.
A play his daughters were participating in needed a few more actors, and Mr Vickery graciously stepped in for a role you wouldn’t expect.
“I played an ugly sister in Cinderella for a local theatre company in the Blue Mountains,” he said.
Theatre wasn’t always his dream, but after performing in Cinderella, Mr Vickery sensed he had a hidden passion for it within.
“I think I’ve always enjoyed being on stage, but there wasn’t really a right time until now,” he said.
Since his brief appearance as an ugly stepsister, he has gone on to have roles, both on stage and behind the scenes, in a variety of plays including small productions of Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz and Beauty and the Beast.
One of his more recent roles was in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream when it was performed at Abercrombie House late last year.
“I never thought in a million years I would do Shakespeare,” Mr Vickery said.
“That was brilliant.”
He may not have any formal training, but that hasn’t stopped him bringing to life a range of characters, as well as taking on a more authoritative role with directing.
“Sometimes I look back and wish I had [formal training], but I never did,” Mr Vickery added.
Like any performer or director involved in theatre, there are a number of plays he’d like to put his hand up to try.
Les Miserables is something he would certainly love to be involved in, as is Mary Poppins, but those goals may never eventuate in Bathurst.
“When I first came to Bathurst I found it a little bit hard. I thought theatre would be really big here with such a great venue like BMEC,” he said.
“I’d love to do more, but they [the opportunities] aren’t always there.”
Mr Vickery’s attention is now focused on his next production, which is coming up on March 27 and 28.
Bathurst Theatre Company has been busy rehearsing two Sherlock Holmes radio plays for a live audience at the Uniting Church on William Street.
The Musgrave Ritual and The Case of the Dead Adventuress will see talented actors use their voices to
perform the plays as they would have been heard on the wireless in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s.
This style of performance will offer a very different viewing experience for the audience, but it is sure to be loved by young and old.
While there is no physical acting in these particular plays, Mr Vickery said it is no easy feat for the cast, especially as they are yet to rehearse the play with sound effects at the venue.
“With the radio plays you can [rehearse] it all in a month,” he explained.
“It is not as intense because you have the words in front of you, but you’ve still got to have that flow in your voice.”
Mr Vickery hopes the Bathurst community will embrace these plays by coming out to enjoy them.
Tickets will be available at the door on the night, priced at $10 for adults and $5 for juniors and concession.
“It’s not about making money, it’s about people getting out there to see local theatre,” he added.
