Exit, Pursued by a Bear

Good open-air Shakespeare on a summer's evening is one of The Best Things.

On Sunday I went to see Phoenix and Turtle (the summer company of Theatre of the Dales) performing - perhaps appropriately for much of the weather we've had recently - A Winter's Tale at the Quaker Meeting House in Rawdon.

Somewhat surprisingly, it was a lovely, sunny evening. I took lots of photographs of this excellent, extremely enjoyable production. One hallmark of this company is that the story is always very clear - that's so important, especially when the actors play more than one role. There's a touch of Bollywood too, which is very appropriate for this play.

It's strange, though, because photos of open-air theatre never show quite what you expect. You're watching the play and so you're mentally in Bohemia or wherever: your brain screens out the fact that you're in Rawdon and there are lots of audience all over the place.

So you tend to get photos like this:

Something going on in the foreground, which is the photo I thought I was taking, and lots of people watching in the background.

Also, the light is not often where you wanted - just sometimes it gets it right and the last rays of evening sunlight hit in just the right place:

But sometimes one actor gets more light than another:

And you can just see the top of a gravestone in the foreground, because the performance area was an old churchyard.

Sadly, Emily missed it as she wasn't feeling very well. But this gives us the chance to see it again, at Knaresborough Castle, next Wednesday 18 July at 7.30 - tel 01423 556188.

And you can also see it on
Sunday, 15 July at 3.30pm at The Green, Heaton Grove, Bradford 9 01274 548947

Sunday, 22 July 7pm, Jervaulx Abbey, between Masham and Leyburn, up in the Yorkshire Dales and a glorious venue: 0113 2742231

Friday, 27 July 7.30pm, Sledmere House, near Driffield 01377 236637

But - I hear you cry - I'm reading this from America, or Belgium, or Sydney, or somewhere else a long way away. Well, now's your chance for a trip to Britain. Everyone always says how pantomime is the great British winter tradition: well, Shakespeare in the rain is rapidly becoming the great British summer tradition. And who knows, it might even be sunny. Get on the plane and see!