CAOS Musical Productions, formally known as Chichester Amateur Operatic Society, was formed in January 1910 by the lay vicars of Chichester Cathedral and some local business men of the City. They met on Thursday afternoons(which was early closing day) and planned their productions.

The first performance that these good folk staged was Gilbert & Sullivan’s ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ in May 1911, which was performed in East Street, at the Corn Exchange. For those of you that know the area, the company Next have their building on that site now.

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Some years ago we changed the name of the Society to CAOS Musical Productions to reflect the wider variety of Musical Theatre which appeals to the modern day audience. That said, we do perform Gilbert & Sullivan and other Operettas occasionally. In June 2011, as a tribute to ‘Our Ancestors’ and to celebrate our 100th Anniversary we did perform ‘The Pirates of Penzance’ in a fairly traditional way but with a more modern slant.

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CAOS have previously performed at the Minerva Theatre in Chichester and have enjoyed full houses for several of our productions there.  Included in that list are Hello Dolly, Guys & Dolls, and most recently The Sound of Music in 2012.  Since then due to refurbishment at the Festival Theatre CAOS have performed at many different venues across the area including Westbourne House School, Alexandra Theatre in Bognor Regis and at the Riverside Theatre.