CELEBRATE SUMMER AT THE RSC
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New programme of free community theatre announced for The Holloway Garden Theatre from Saturday 20 July to Sunday 1 September 2024
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Interactive sound and light exhibition running from Thursday 8 August on the Bancroft Terrace
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A range of Summer Schools to take place for ages 8+
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New Riverside Terrace dining experience now open from 11.30am daily
The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) today released full details of its Summer 2024 activity in Stratford-upon-Avon which includes free community theatre running for six weeks in The Holloway Garden Theatre, the new Riverside Terrace dining area, family-friendly workshops and activities throughout July and August and a new interactive sound and lighting installation, The Glasshouse.
The Holloway Garden Theatre
The Holloway Garden Theatre will be home to a brand-new season of free performances by community and youth groups running from Saturday 20 July to Sunday 1 September.
The Open Stage programme brings together a wide range of student, community and semi-professional productions, performances, workshops and stories. Visiting companies include Silhouette Youth, Lucid Spark Theatre, Lying Lips Theatre Group and Cotswold Players.
The free performances join the previously announced productions of As You Like It directed by Brendan O’Hea and The Two Gentlemen of Verona with our Next Generation Act young company, directed by Paul Ainsworth, which runs from Thursday 18 July to Sunday 1 September and Thursday 22 – Saturday 24 August respectively.
Full details of Open Stage events can be found here.
Family Friendly activities and workshops
Visitors to Stratford-upon-Avon can also enjoy The Glasshouse; a free, family friendly interactive light and sound installation which arrives in Stratford on Thursday 8 August for three days. This dynamic exhibit changes itself depending on your proximity to it, creating a unique experience for audiences every time.
Running alongside this are family-friendly workshops in storytelling, composition and speaking Shakespeare, from Tuesday 30 July to Wednesday 7 August plus the opportunity for visitors to design their own part of The Glasshouse’s final showcase. Full details of The Glasshouse activities can be found here.
Visitors can also step inside to discover more than 100 years of theatre-making magic with the free exhibition The Play’s The Thing.
Situated inside the Swan Wing of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre building, The Play’s The Thing offers unique insights into the history of theatre-making at the RSC which has one of the most significant Shakespeare and Theatre collections in the world. No advance booking is required, and doors are open every day from midday.
Summer Schools for young people and life-long learners
Budding actors and theatre enthusiasts can take part in a week-long immersive programme for ages 8 and upwards.
Summer School for 8 to 14-year-olds takes place from 19 to 23 August and participants will create their own short production of As You Like It culminating in a special performance for families. From 12 to 16 August, the week-long Summer School for 18 to 25-year-olds returns, with masterclasses, careers talks and practical workshops across the RSC. Featuring a session with the RSC casting team, this Summer School is perfect for actors, directors or Shakespeare enthusiasts early in their career, or those looking to find their way into the theatre industry.
This year we will also be hosting our 77th annual RSC Summer School. Suitable for anyone over 18, it is run in association with the Shakespeare Institute and will be hosted in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre from Monday 12 to Friday 16 August. Guest speakers to include Alfred Enoch, Tamara Harvey and Samantha Spiro.
Further booking information on all Summer Schools can be found here.
Jacqui O’Hanlon, Director of Creative Learning and Engagement said,
“Creativity belongs to all of us and can happen anywhere; indoors, outdoors, in a classroom, in a theatre, in a park. The RSCs summer programme is an invitation to participants and audiences of all ages to come together to make art, connect, discover and learn in different kinds of ways and different kinds of spaces. Whether that’s through our Open Stage programme, through the brilliant Glasshouse installation, in one of our workshops or events or through seeing performances. We hope there is something that ignites creativity in everyone at every age and stage of their lives.”
A new dining experience is now open at the RSC situated beside the River Avon. The Riverside Terrace allows visitors to take in the river views from 11.30am selecting from an all-day menu, which includes salads, meze platters and ice cream sundaes.
A new summer menu is soon to be announced to allow full pre-theatre dining on the terrace during the warmer months.
On stage The Merry Wives of Windsor stars double Olivier award-winner Samantha Spiro as Mistress Meg Page, with Blanche McIntyre returning to the RSC to direct.
The rest of the previously announced season includes a major revival of The School for Scandal directed by Tinuke Craig, Joe Robertson and Joe Murphy’s Kyoto directed by Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin and the RSC’s directorial debut of Tamara Harvey, Pericles, which stars award winning actor Alfred Enoch.
For further press information please contact: Olivia Scull, Media Relations Officer, RSC Olivia.Scull@rsc.org.uk, 0778 9937759
THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
Wednesday 5 June - Saturday 7 September
Press Night: Wednesday 12 June at 7pm
A co-production with Good Chance
Tuesday 18 June - Saturday 13 July
Press Night: Tuesday 25 June at 7pm
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
Tuesday 2 July - Friday 6 September
Press Night: Tuesday 9 July at 7pm
Friday 26 July – Saturday 21 September
Press Night: Wednesday 7 August at 7pm
The Holloway Garden Theatre
Thursday 18 July – Sunday 1 September
Press Night: Wednesday 24 July, 5pm
THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA
A Next Generation Act production
The Holloway Garden Theatre
Thursday 22 – Saturday 24 August
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
Thursday 19 September - Saturday 28 September
FAMILY SUMMER HOLIDAY ACTIVITIES
CREATE YOUR OWN GLASSHOUSE
Wednesday 31 July at 11am, 1.30pm and 3.30pm for ages 5 and above
Thursday 1 August at 11am and 2pm for ages 6-8 and 9-11
Tuesday 6 August at 11am and 2pm for ages 5 and above
Wednesday 7 August at 11am for ages 6-8 and 2pm for ages 9-11
Thursday 8 to Saturday 10 August from 12pm – 9pm each day for ages 5 and above
Discounts are available for Over 65s, Disabled People and Carers, Families, UK School and College Groups and Groups of 10 or more. Terms and conditions apply. See the website rsc.org.uk or call the Box Office on 01789 331111 for more details and to buy tickets.
£25 tickets will be available for all performances. Terms and conditions apply – see website for details.
A limited number of Premium tickets are available for a supplement of £12.50 on A price seats in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and £10.00 in the Swan Theatre.
Standing tickets are also available in the Royal Shakespeare Theatre and Swan Theatre at £10 – call the Box Office for more details.
At least 25,000 tickets available at £25 or less across the entire year across all performances in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2024. Some of these tickets include our standard lower price band tickets, which already start from £16, but most are £25 tickets available across the other price bands in the theatres.
The RSC is supported using public funding by Arts Council England
The work of the RSC is supported by the Culture Recovery Fund
The RSC is generously supported by RSC America
RSC £10 Tickets for 14-25s supported by TikTok
The RSC Acting Companies are generously supported by The Gatsby Charitable Foundation
New Work at the RSC is generously supported by Hawthornden Foundation and The Drue and H.J. Heinz II Charitable Trust
The Holloway Garden Theatre is generously supported by Charles Holloway
With thanks to Season Supporters Backstage Trust and Miranda Curtis CMG
ICBC is the Headline Sponsor of The Merry Wives of Windsor
Darwin Escapes is the Headline Sponsor of Pericles and The School for Scandal
Pericles is supported by RSC Production Circle member Kathleen J. Yoh
Kyoto is a recipient of the Edgerton Foundation New Play Award
English at Kiln Theatre is supported by Cockayne – Grants for the Arts: a donor advised fund held at The London Community Foundation
Next Generation’s The Two Gentleman of Verona is supported by the Halabi Thomaz Foundation
RSC Next Generation is generously supported by the Allan and Nesta Ferguson Charitable Trust, Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, Halabi Thomaz Foundation, John S Cohen Foundation and Noël Coward Foundation
Next Generation Act Company bursary places are generously supported by The Leverhulme Trust Arts Scholarship
Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) creates exceptional theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, London and around the world, performing plays by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, as well as commissioning a wide range of original work from contemporary writers. Our purpose is to ensure that Shakespeare – and theatre as a whole – is for everyone, and we do that by unlocking the power of his plays and live performance, and with our learning and education work throughout the UK and across the world.
Arts Council England is the national development body for arts and culture across England, working to enrich people’s lives. We support a range of activities across the arts, museums and libraries – from theatre to visual art, reading to dance, music to literature, and crafts to collections. Great art and culture inspires us, brings us together and teaches us about ourselves and the world around us. In short, it makes life better. Between 2018 and 2022, we will invest £1.45 billion of public money from government and an estimated £860 million from the National Lottery to help create these experiences for as many people as possible across the country.www.artscouncil.org.uk
We’re an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation, which means funding thanks to taxpayers and National Lottery players is vital in supporting our work.
TikTok is the leading destination for short-form mobile video. Our mission is to inspire creativity and bring joy. TikTok's global headquarters are in Los Angeles and Singapore, and its offices include New York, London, Dublin, Paris, Berlin, Dubai, Jakarta, Seoul, and Tokyo. <br bcx0"=""> <br bcx0"="">Established in 2003 in the City of London, ICBC (London) plc has provided professional solutions to various clients’ needs. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited London Branch was authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority in 2014, and together with its 100% wholly-owned subsidiary, ICBC (London) plc (collectively referred to as the “Bank”), provides a range of regulated financial products and banking services to its UK, Chinese and international clients, including corporate customers, individual customers and financial institutions. The Bank has specialized teams focusing on Commercial Real Estate, Commodities and Structured Finance, Global Loan Syndications, Trade Finance, Project and Infrastructure Finance and Treasury solutions by way of offering hedging solutions for currency and interest rate exposure via Foreign Exchange products and Interest Rate Derivatives.
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Wayne Sables Project are an award winning, film and multi media company specialising in combining the arts and technology within the professional, corporate, community and educational environments.
