On November 17, 1994, I witnessed a little-known event in Star Trek history: the premiere of the one-and-only (so far) Star Trek play at the Churchill Theatre in South Bromley, Kent. The try-out run ran through November 26, 1994. Regrettably, the production didn't subsequently make it to the West End, and it now is difficult to find information about the production. Occasionally, you may see a program from the production up for auction on eBay.

The premiere was still a bit rough around the edges, but that was to be expected; the cast and crew clearly had put a lot of effort into the production, and it was far more enjoyable the "Star Trek Generations" movie, which premiered almost simultaneously.

The basic plot: Klingon Commander Kazh-aar and a mysterious alien named Arethusa attack the Enterprise with a superweapon called the "vortex," which allows them to project Kirk, et al. into both alternate realities and into the past, with no memory of their previous lives (thus creating opportunities for both drama and humor).

Cast and crew information for the production, taken from the program, follows.