On 29th July 1909, a group of enthusiastic amateurs met and Coventry Operatic Society was born!

Originally named Coventry Amateur Operatic Society, the first production, Iolanthe, opened on 9 May 1910 at Coventry Hippodrome. This was then followed by HMS Pinafore, Patience, The Gondoliers and Princess Ida. The Great War meant very restricted activities, and HMS Pinafore was performed in 1916 at the Baths Assembly Hall. In 1918 the society revived Iolanthe at the Empire Theatre. During WWII activities were suspended until 1945 when The Arcadians was performed. From then until the present time the society went from strength to strength. In 1982 we dropped 'Amateur' from our name and performed Kiss me, Kate at the College Theatre due to the demise of the Coventry Theatre- formly known as the Hippodrome. Since then, the College Theatre has become our 'home'.

We have always tried to produce 'firsts' - Fiddler on the Rood, The Sound of Music, The Scarlet Pimpernel and The Witches of Eastwick. It has always been our aim to encourage young people to join the society and some have gone on to make a successful life in professional theatre e.g. Dave Willetts and Nikki Ankara (the Phantom and Christine) in the West End and Richard Armitage, who has become a well-known TV actor, to name but a few.

In November 2005 we performed Rodgers and Hammersteins Carousel. This was followed by the highly successful Scarlet Pimpernel in November 2006. Then we went on to perform Bob Carlton's Return to the Forbidden Planet in April 2007. A musical concert called Aspects of Life in November 2007. After this we performed the musical comedy The Witches of Eastwick in June 2008.

In November 2009 we performed our last show at the College Theatre, the Butts called Step into Christmas. Our most recent production was Copacabana which we performed in June 2009!

We have a versatile and talented membership, which has been shown in the great variety of shows and concerts performed by the society over many years. In our centenary year, we will move 'home' again - this time to the Belgrade Theatre. What a splendid way to celebrate our centenary!

We have just finished a successful run of Disney's Beauty and the Beast and now we look forward to welcoming our audiences back for another "loverly" musical "My Fair Lady" next June 2011 once again at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry!


Belgrade Theatre: http://www.belgrade.co.uk

Imagine Theatre: http://www.imaginetheatre.co.uk/

The National Operatic and Dramatic Association: http://www.noda.org.uk/