May is Newham Heritage Month! The festival will take place throughout May under the theme Shops, Docks and Factories with live participatory events and online activities taking place across the borough to showcase the rich and diverse heritage of Newham. You can find out more here.

We also wanted to use this time to tell you about some of the longest-serving members of the Stratford East team.

Velma Fontaine, Operations Co-ordinator

When did you start working at TRSE? 
October 2007

What was the first TRSE show you saw?
Marilyn and Ella

What was your role?
Administrative Assistant

What were your first impressions of Stratford East?​
I never knew a building that looks like nothing is happening from the outside, could have so much happening when looking from the inside!

What was your first week like?
Hectic!

What are some of your earliest working memories of TRSE?
Nice people, moving atmosphere, and getting lost around the Building. (What had I let myself into?)

How is your working life different from when you started to now?
Many staff have come and gone, many that I had close working relationships with (and still have). There have been lots of digital developments, updated IT equiment, doing much more and getting used to constant change.

Stuart Saunders, IT Systems Manager

When did you start working at TRSE?
I first worked at TRSE freelance on Ken Hill's The Curse of the Werewolf, which was 1994 (Mother of God!). I did several shows that year as a freelancer, ending with Zorro, also written and directed by Ken and during which he sadly passed away. I started full-time for the production of Dusk Warriors as Deputy Chief Electrician in 1995.

What was the first TRSE show you saw?
That would be The Curse of the Werewolf.

What was your role?
Deputy Chief Electrician (Sound)

How has your role changed?
I’m in my 5th role for Stratford East. I started as Deputy Chief Electrician, then became Chief Electrician. When the building closed for refurb I became production manager for several touring shows as well as a couple for TRSE. I returned as Chief Electrician when the refurb was complete. Then I became Recourses and Technical Manager, and now IT Manager. Lots of change!

What were your first impressions of Stratford East?​
I was surprised at how small the team was in the building. A lot of work done by very few staff. And, in many cases, several members of the same family! The building was, effectively, as it was when it was built, so very few offices. Many of the dressing rooms were being used as offices and you had to traverse the building up and down very narrow wooden stairs and the only way from one side to the other was across the upper circle.

All the offices were piled high in paperwork (no computers!) and the staff were crammed into every corner.  It was quite a dark building too, very few windows. But I remember it was a very good atmosphere and a great bunch of people.

What was your first week like?
Very long. Everything on the production was done by the in-house team. There were very few freelancers. I remember being thrown in at the deep end!

What are some of your earliest working memories of TRSE?
During my first couple of years the work put on stage was primarily geared around Black review comedy shows. Presented by groups like the BiBi Crew and The Posse and later the monthly improv show, Blaggers. Theses were strongly promoted by Philip Hedley and always played to full houses. They were incredibly successful. We also used to present the monthly Variety night on a Sunday. Again they were very well attended even though the show was made up on the day and you never knew what act would appear on stage next! Always great fun though. My other main memory is its location. The theatre stood on its own with a large grass bank where the Picture House is now, and we would sit out there to have lunch. Next to the theatre, was the car park and a portacabin, which we used as the rehearsal space. The theatre feels a bot more boxed in now!

How is your working life different from when you started to now?
Well, I started during the previous century, so it's changed a fair bit.

Photo: Ade Ikoli, Dave Cauchi, Pierre Fabre, Stuart Saunders, '90s in Stratford East Green Room.

Photo: Dawn Walton, Jamie Zubairi, Mark, Greg Palmer, Stuart Saunders, Matt Jones, Karen Rabinowitz

Graeme Bright, Buildings & Facilities Manager

When did you start working at TRSE? 
March 2002

What was the first TRSE show you saw?
Baiju Bawra

What was your role?
Bar Manager

How has your role changed?
In 2007, I became Theatre Manager taking responsibility for both Bar and Front of House teams, and in 2010 Building & Facilities Manager.

What were your first impressions of Stratford East?​
It has a family feel and was very friendly.

What was your first week like?
Very daunting, but also exciting.

What are some of your earliest working memories of TRSE?
Staying up all night getting everything ready for a Royal Visit from Prince Edward and the Countess of Wessex. And then Joan Littlewood's death and being asked to run the bar at the wake in Hampstead.

How is your working life different from when you started to now?
It's hugely different as I’m now based in an office on the 2nd floor ensuring the building is safe and accessible whereas I used to be Front of House dealing with patrons directly.

Photo: Philip Hedley, Prince Edward in the bar at Stratford East. Graeme Bright far right.

Angela Frost, Box Office Manager

When did you start working at TRSE? 
August 1994

What was the first TRSE show you saw?
A pantomime when I was 5 or 6.

What was your role?
Usher

How has your role changed?
I went from Usher to Head Usher and as soon as I was 18, I started work in the bar. I started in the Box Office so I had three part-time jobs. I did that for a few years until I started full-time in the Box Office. I then became Supervisor and then in July 2008, I became the Manager.

What were your first impressions of Stratford East?
​Very busy, great shows. Felt very lucky to have such an excellent local theatre.

What was your first week like?
Scary! We had a busy show by The Posse and there was a Saturday 11pm performance, which was chaotic in a good way. It was my first experience of dealing with the public and was thrown straight in at 16. I really enjoyed the vibe and knew I wanted to work there for as long as they would have me.

What are some of your earliest working memories of TRSE?
We were working on a show and Joan Littlewood came back and didn’t tell anyone she was coming. She bought a ticket to sit in The Gallery (row E of the Upper now) and refused to sit in house seats. She wanted minimal fuss but word got out within a few minutes she was in the building… she did not move seats and announced that that seat was good enough for her and that’s where she was sitting.  It was her first visit for years to the theatre.

How is your working life different from when you started to now?
We have computers and headsets! I just walked in off the street and said I needed a job to the Front of House Manager who just happened to be in the foyer and she told me to come back the next day at 6pm wearing all black and that was my first shift, that doesn’t happen now!

Asha Bhatti, Box Office Supervisor

When did you start working at TRSE? 
February 1993

What was the first TRSE show you saw?
The first show before I started work was Bel Ami and then when I started it was Aladdin.

What was your role?
Box Office Assistant

What were your first impressions of Stratford East?
My first impression of TRSE was that there was a relaxed feeling around the building compared to my previous job!

What was your first week like?
My first week was pretty much just shadowing my colleagues, some of whom I still work with today.

What are some of your earliest working memories of TRSE?
Gosh there are so many... one that springs and that still hasn’t changed is Murray Melvin standing and telling me one of his many amazing stories about Theatre Workshop.

How is your working life different from when you started to now?
Working life back then, there were only three of us working in the little old Box Office and it was far more manual. We had huge physical seating plans and ticket books. Thankfully, it's all computerised now!

 
Asha with Nadia Fall (2019), and Asha with Kerry Michael (2017).