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Theatre in Southern England: OxfordshireThe county town of Oxfordshire, of course, is Oxford, the home of the oldest university in England. Only slightly less old is Cambridge, and the two are regarded as the premier universities in the UK. When they meet each other in sports competitions, they are national events, so one would expect the two to be very alike. And so they are, as universities. But the two ciies are very different, and so, therefore, are the relationships between "town and gown". But for the university and what it attracts (Silicion Fen, for instance), Cambridge would be a small market town. Oxford, however, is bigger and has an industrial history, and so, although the university inevitably has a major effect upon the city, it is not as big as the effect of the other university on Cambridge. The same is true of theatre in the two cities: in Oxford it is much less closely tied to, and influenced by, the university. For instance, Oxford has two national touring houses: the Apollo, which seats 1826, is far larger than any Cambridge theatre, and the Oxford Playhouse, at 613 seats, is little smaller than Cambridge's biggest theatre (apart, that is, from the Cambridge Guildhall, which is a multi-purpose venue, not a pure theatre house). There is no equivalent of Cambridge's ADC. The nearest to it is the Burton Taylor Theatre (built in 1973 by donations from Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor), but, although owned by the university, it has been managed by the Playhouse since January 1995. It seats only fifty people. For 24 weeks of the year it presents student productions, and for another 24 it is given over to fringe theatre. The Old Fire Station Theatre - as its name suggests, an old fire station - is a studio venue, a joint venture between Cameron Mackintosh Productions, Oxford City Council and Apollo Leisure. The latter actually runs the theatre. It seats 183. It gives twenty weeks to student drama and 32 to commercial theatre and new product. Finally there is the Pegasus Theatre (120 seats), another studio venue, which aims to promote "new, innovative and accessible performances", and is also involved in youth theatre. It has three limited seasons a year. There are four other theatre venues in the county. In Banbury is the Mill Arts Centre, a 17th century mill to which a purpose-built theatre was added in 1990), which presents a mixed programme in its 200-seater theatre and the 110 seat Millers Bar. The Chipping Norton Theatre is an arts centre, whcih seats 235 and presents a mixed programme, whilst at Henley-on-Thames (best known for the Henley Regatta), the Kenton Theatre (240 seats) is mainly used by local amateur groups, but it does present some professional shows and concerts. Finally, Wallingford's Corn Exchange, a 187-seater arts centre, is concerned with middle-of-the-road performing arts.
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