The world of amateur dramatics has always been an easy target for mockery.

Hammy acting, wobbly sets, fluffed lines, fierce rivalries and puffed-up, melodramatic producers – all ticked boxes when it comes to the am-dram stereotype.

To be fair, it’s a stereotype once rooted in truth. Like parish councillors with delusions of power, am-dram luvvies have long been associated with inflated ego and of taking themselves a little too seriously.

But this is now a rather dated image, as anyone who has witnessed amateur theatre over recent years will know. Today’s amateur productions are often so slick they could rival big-budget professional shows. I was thinking this while watching Bradford Catholic Players’ show The Producers last week. Well-paced and beautifully directed, with excellent performances, it blurred the lines between amateur and professional.

I grew up with amateur dramatics, as it was my mum’s passion. It began with school choirs and plays then, as a college student, she appeared in Gilbert & Sullivan operettas and went on to join amateur societies.

For as long as I can remember she was rushing off to rehearsals, learning lines in the bath and belting out showstoppers while cooking tea. From Showboat to Desert Song, Oklahoma to South Pacific, she would tread the boards. As a child I’d often hang around backstage, surrounded by costumes, wigs and assorted home-made props, and watch as cast and chorus slapped on the greasepaint.

Everyone was there for the love of it and there was a great sense of camaraderie that extended to after-show parties, usually in someone’s living-room. Many of my mum’s friendships were forged in am dram; it was a big part of her life.

I often think of her when writing my weekly amateur theatre column for the T&A’s entertainment guide. Bradford has a long tradition of amateur dramatics, largely rooted in the mills which had workers’ choirs and theatre groups, and with many junior sections breathing new life into societies, the scene continues to thrive today.

Across the district there are devoted souls giving up their spare time to bring productions to life – taking on lead roles, hoofing it in the chorus, stitching costumes, hammering nails into props, painting scenery and repairing lighting. By day they work in banks, schools, offices, factories and shops, but when the curtain rises they’re Calamity Jane, Billy Bigelow, Nellie Forbush and Captain Von Trapp.

Amateur theatre is a significant part of Bradford’s industrial and cultural heritage and continues to unite people of various ages and backgrounds. If you still think it’s flimsy sets and over-acting, maybe you’re the one stuck in the past.