FIFTY years ago, when Chichester Festival theatre was first conceived, part of its innovative approach to drama was a theatre tent set in the grounds of the adjacent park.

It is fitting then that as the Festival marks its golden anniversary, a new temporary structure has arisen that is proving just as innovative.

Theatre on the Fly has not only captured the imagination of the regular Festival Theatre-goers, but has also drawn in a large proportion of the local community in much the same way as the original theatre tent.

Back then the tent was a training ground for the likes of director Sam Mendes. Today the Theatre on the Fly is offering the opportunity for more new talent to prove their worth.

The temporary structure is hosting three new productions as well as a number of one-off theatrical events during this anniversary season for the Festival. Each of the main productions is being directed by a new name – Anna Ledwich, whose production of Dennis Potter’s Blue Remembered Hills opened to critical acclaim, Michael Oakley, who is currently staging Playhouse Creatures by April de Angeles, and Tim Hoare, whose production will be the world premiere of Penelope Skinner’s Fred’s Diner.

All of the co-artistic directors were involved in the plans for the Theatre on the Fly, including its design and setting.

For visitors to the site, the new structure is unmissable. Placed between the existing Festival, and Minerva theatres, and opening on to the large parkland beyond, the Theatre on the Fly looks like, and is intended to look like, something thrown up in the space of a couple of weeks that will never withstand the rigours of the oncoming winter weather.

Indeed, it is a little sturdier than its wooden frame clad in plastic pond liner (yes, B&Q are one of the sponsors) would seem to imply. It has, after all, managed to survive some pretty awful summer weather this year.

Not that much allowance is given for the elements during the performances themselves. For Blue Remembered Hills the giant barn-like doors to the theatre were open for much of the time, allowing the cast to include the park beyond as part of their stage setting. When it rained the cast got wet.

For artistic director Michael Oakley, the design of the Theatre on the Fly has enabled him to make full use of one element of theatrical drama that was denied to directors in the original tent.

“We realised we could make use of a fly tower in this structure that means I can actually have my characters fly,” Michael said.

“I’ve also been able to make use of painted backdrops for Playhouse Creatures which is something that audiences have not seen for some time.”

For Michael and his co-directors, working on the Theatre on the Fly project has enabled them to gain experience of skills other than directing, with the need to consider the running of the house, the full use of the structure and its design and durability.

The way that the local community have reacted to the arrival of the theatre has added to the sense of achievement.

“Local people seem to take the structure to heart, watching it being built and seeing the way the productions interact with the park. I hope this will mean many people who do not usually come to the theatre will be drawn in,” said Michael.

For Michael, the end of the Festival’s anniversary season marks the end of his time with them as a trainee director, during which he has worked with Trevor Nunn and helped to stage productions over the last two years.

And as it is for the actors and directors who will move on at the end of the season, so it will be for the Theatre on the Fly, which will be dismantled.

But the legacy will live on.