The Tempest in the Sunshine

Summer brings many good things, and one of them is open-air Shakespeare. There are several excellent companies and Illyria's Comedy of Errors last summer was a delight. Last year Theatre of the Dales did King Lear - this year it's The Tempest and I was fortunate to see the dress rehearsal last week.

I took some photographs and it's strange to see them - I was away on an island with Prospero and Miranda, but looking at the photos there are all these people sitting in the background! Because the production was in the round, all my photos have the audience in and it's clear that all ages were enjoying it.

Here's Ariel:

Here's Caliban, who had injured his hand in Real Life - it just contributed to his generally dishevelled appearance:

and here's Trinculo - always good to see authentic Elizabethan costume - -

Although it was supposed to be a dress rehearsal, it felt much more like a proper performance. It's great to see what some good actors can do with just minimal set - I love this kind of theatre.

The audience member below had dressed for the occasion and barked his disapproval of Caliban.

You can see this production at the Quaker Meeting House, Rawdon, on July 15th: at Jervaulx Abbey on July 16th: at Knaresborough Castle on July 19th and at Shibden Hall near Halifax on July 21. And I recommend that you do - it's magic! If you would like more details, leave me your email address as a comment on this blog and I'll send you more information.