<img src='' title='Event Category: Drama' alt='' id='templ_icon_' width='' height='' /> Event Category: Drama

The Wind In The Willows

“There’s a world outside and I want to see it!”

Mole has been stuck inside for far too long. Finally escaping their underground home they team up with good friends Ratty, Badger and the loveably roguish Toad on an adventure to blow away the winter cobwebs. Mole and the gang must go head-to-head with a motor-car, His Majesty’s Constabulary and a legion of Weasels, Ferrets and Stoats taking up residence in Toad Hall. Can our plucky band of heroes save the day?

Find out in Paperback Theatre’s charming open-air adaptation of The Wind in the Willows.

“fun, funny and utterly charming” – Brum Hour

The HandleBards’ Macbeth

Join The HandleBards for a hilariously high-octane production of Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ like you’ve never seen before. Forget the tears and tragedy, our Macbeth is chock full of mishaps, mayhem and mirth.

We all know the story. Three Witches promise Macbeth the Scottish crown and like any normal people would, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth plot to kill the king. Things get rapidly out of hand from there as foul deeds are done, plots unravel and mysterious spirits appear

The HandleBards are an intrepid three-strong troupe spending the summer touring Macbeth by electric van, bringing environmentally sustainable Shakespeare to venues across the UK.

The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny

Quantum Theatre are back with an enchanting new adaptation of two of Beatrix Potter’s best-loved Tales, The Tales of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny.

Peter and his naughty cousin Benjamin know very well that they are not to go into Mr McGregor’s garden, but they cannot resist and soon they find themselves in all sorts of scrapes, caught In a net, trapped by a snarling cat and face to face with Mr McGregor himself!

How will they ever escape?  Can Old Mr Bunny come to the rescue in time?  And whatever will Mr McGregor make of all those footprints in the flower beds?

Michael Whitmore’s charming adaptation will have you spellbound so why not grab the kids, a blanket and a picnic and join Peter and Benjamin on their hair-raising adventures  – a magical afternoon of fun for all the family.

Romeo and Juliet

A family feud divides the community!
Violence stalks the streets.
Who can see beyond the hate and dare to follow their heart?
A pair of star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet!

Oddsocks return with their new take on this well-loved classic, finding laughs and pathos in the most dramatic of tragedies.

Will Romeo pull himself together to escape with Juliet?
Will the Nurse think of a better plan than the Friar?
Will the audience help the lovers elope?

All will be revealed as Oddsocks create uplifting comedy from the depths of despair in a show that’s the perfect antidote to prejudice.

Read the first night review here

 

Done To Death, By Jove

Created and performed by Nicholas Collett and Gavin Robertson

The Great British Detective tradition! Holmes and Watson meet Poirot and Miss Marple (alongside the usual suspects) in a spoof homage – who murdered Lady Fanshawe!? Why is Matron Maudesly so friendly with one of the guests at the Clinic of Hopes and Cures!? Why have the sound cues got mixed up?

Made all the more tricky to tell, as theatrical knights, Sir Gavin of Robertson and Sir Nicholas of Collett attempt this 6-actor show, given the other 4 are stuck in a broken-down van on the M6. With only the two of them to play all the assigned roles, what could possibly go wrong?

Re-interpreting ‘The Art of Coarse Acting’ with a farcical result, it’s time to guess WhoDunWhat and how…

Warning: Contains hats!

Florence Nightingale: The Lady With The Hammer

1854 – The Crimean war!
A time and place when men know best!
Medical procedures are done with panache: “Bang and the wound is gone” (along with most of the patients), but the surgeons look impressive and that’s what matters………..
Hold on a moment!
Who’s this upstart in a skirt?
She talks back, can add up and makes us wash our hands!
How very dare she?

Oddsocks presents the story of Florence Nightingale in their irreverent, hilarious style this autumn at The Anstice.

A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Oddsocks will be taking to the road again in the summer of 2025 with another high-energy, feel-good, family theatre show. Shakespeare’s most magical, fast paced, hilarious comedy; “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” will be performed in Oddsocks’ inimitable irreverent and knockabout style with live music, comedy action and even some outrageous hunting dogs!

Four lovers run off to the Athenian forest where mysterious woodland creatures play tricks on them with hilarious results and when a troupe of amateur actors decide to rehearse in a glade, the fairies intervention leads to bizarre and outrageous comedy.

Don’t miss out – Catch the Dream!

Much Ado About Nothing

Pedalling from venue to venue with all of their set, props and costumes on the back of their bikes, the HandleBards are a four-strong troupe of actors who are spending the summer bringing environmentally sustainable Shakespeare to venues across the UK.

Join the troupe at Bowring Park for a bicycle-powered production of Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ like you’ve never seen before. In usual HandleBards style, expect riotous amounts of energy, a fair old whack of chaos, and a great deal of laughter.

And what’s the play about? Well – a group of soldiers return from the war to a household in Messina, kindling new love interests and re-kindling old rivalries. The parallel love stories of Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio and Hero quickly become entangled with scheming, frivolity and melodrama in Shakespeare’s famous comedy.

“The HandleBards’ Much Ado About Nothing delivers on everything” – Liverpool Echo

Visit www.handlebards.com to find out more!

HMS Pinafore by Gilbert & Sullivan

Welcome on board HMS Pinafore, flagship of Her Majesty’s Royal Navy – the perfect place to mock such
stalwart institutions as Government, Patriotism and even the Great British Class system! No wonder Queen
Victoria made her most famous utterance about the original production in 1878: “We are NOT amused!”
Josephine, the captain’s daughter, is in love with Ralph, a common sailor. But her social-climbing father
insists that she is to marry Sir Joseph Porter, First Lord of the Admiralty – whose roving eye has already
noticed her. The young lovers are caught as they elope from the ship and Ralph is locked in the ship’s
dungeon. Can revelations made by Buttercup, the dockside vendor, enable everyone to marry their true
hearts’ loves? Full to the gunwales with sharp dialogue and catchy tunes, this timeless comic opera is
performed outdoors by a cast of six outstanding performers from the world of musical theatre, on a
spectacular nautical set and using Sir Arthur Sullivan’s full score.

Performed by award-winning Illyria in the great outdoors.

Illyria supports the Equity union’s Charter for Outdoor Theatre.

The Comedy Of Errors

Pedalling from venue to venue with all of their set, props and costumes on the back of their bikes, the HandleBards are a four-strong troupe of actors who are spending the summer bringing environmentally sustainable Shakespeare to venues across the UK.

Join the troupe in Bowring Park for a bicycle-powered production of Shakespeare’s ‘The Comedy of Errors’ like you’ve never seen before. When two sets of estranged twins are brought together on the same island, this classic comedy takes hold, with mistaken identity, music and manic costume changes a plenty.

This is an outdoor production, so please bring a chair or blanket to sit on, a picnic to dig into, and dress for the weather!