Sydmonton Festival

The Sydmonton Festival is a summer arts festival presented in a deconsecrated 16th century chapel on the grounds of Sydmonton Court, the country estate of Andrew Lloyd Webber's. It is in Hampshire, located approximately 85 kilometres southwest of London, and was established in September 1975. Its purpose is to introduce new works to a private audience of individuals connected with theatre, television, and film in order to determine their future potential and viable commercialism.

Among the Lloyd Webber projects to receive their first public performances at the festival are Evita, Variations, Tell Me on a Sunday, Cats, Starlight Express, Aspects of Love, The Phantom of the Opera, Sunset Boulevard, Whistle Down the Wind, By Jeeves, The Beautiful Game, The Woman in White, The Likes of Us, and Love Never Dies. His Cricket received its second performance here.

Other projects to debut here include Nunc Dimittis, Masquerade, and Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day by Rod Argent, Cafe Puccini by Robin Ray, Girlfriends by Howard Goodall and Richard Curtis, Love Songs by Charles Hart, La Bête by David Hirson, Yosopv by Kit Hesketh-Harvey and James McConnel, and Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressman Taylor.

Sydmonton

Coordinates: 51°19′01″N 1°17′48″W / 51.3169°N 1.2968°W / 51.3169; -1.2968

Sydmonton is a small village and estate in the Basingstoke and Deane district of Hampshire, England. Its nearest town is Newbury, which lies approximately 7 miles (11 km) north-west from the village.

Governance

The village is part of the civil parish of Ecchinswell, Sydmonton and Bishops Green and is part of the Burghclere, Highclere and St Mary Bourne ward of Basingstoke and Deane borough council. The borough council is a Non-metropolitan district of Hampshire County Council.

History

Romsey Abbey once owned 764 acres of the parish called Sidemanestone in Domesday Book. The church (St Mary the Virgin) was rebuilt in 1853 in Early English Period architectural style. The parish had a population of 160 in 1871.

Sydmonton Court

Sydmonton is the home of the 5000 acre Sydmonton Court estate, formerly the seat of the Kingsmill Family, including Admiral Sir Robert Kingsmill. The estate is currently owned by Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd Webber and is home to the annual Sydmonton Festival.