CONSTRUCTION OF THE RSC’S HOLLOWAY GARDEN THEATRE BEGINS, AS CAST FOR AS YOU LIKE IT ANNOUNCED
DOWNLOAD HIGH RES PHOTOS HERE INCL AS YOU LIKE IT CAST MEMBERS LUKE BRADY AND LETTY THOMAS ‘BREAKING GROUND’ FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF THE HOLLOWAY GARDEN THEATRE
Work on the construction of the RSC’s outdoor theatre, The Holloway Garden Theatre will commence on Monday 1 July. Located in Stratford-upon-Avon in the Swan Gardens on the banks of the River Avon, the theatre will play host to a number of productions over the summer months, including daytime performances of a new 80 minute staging of Shakespeare’s As You Like It (18 July – 1 September); The Two Gentlemen of Verona (22-24 August) presented by the RSC’s young Next Generation Act young company of actors aged 13-18; and free weekend Open Stage community productions and events (20 July – 1 September).
The Holloway Garden Theatre makes a welcome return to Stratford, after first being seen in 2021 when it was used for outdoor performances of The Comedy of Errors during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey, RSC Co-Artistic Directors, said:
“We are delighted to be bringing back the hugely popular Holloway Garden Theatre to Stratford. We are very grateful for the support of Charles Holloway OBE, and look forward to building on the success of its sell-out summer season in 2021. Brendan O’Hea’s production of As You Like It is just the thing for those looking for compact Shakespeare. Running at 80 minutes and with performances at 2pm and 5pm, it’s ideal for families and for daytime visitors to the town. And what better way to enjoy Shakespeare during the summer than in the open air by the River Avon?
“We can’t wait to see what our talented young acting company do with The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and, if you fancy some free theatre at weekends, our Open Stage community productions are just the ticket. If you’ve not seen a show at the RSC before then The Holloway Garden Theatre might well be the perfect introduction to what we do here.”
As work on the theatre begins, casting is announced for director Brendan O’Hea’s production of Shakespeare’s timeless comedy, As You Like It which will run in the theatre 18 July - 1 September. The 80-minute daytime production is likely to appeal to those both new to Shakespeare as well as those already familiar with the story. Performances will take place at 2pm or 5pm, and on some days at both times. A full performance schedule can be seen here.
Luke Brady and Letty Thomas make their RSC debuts as the sparring lovers, Orlando and Rosalind. They are joined by Ned Derrington (Oliver/Corin); Peter Dukes (Charles the Wrestler/Duke Senior); Trevor Fox (Jaques/William); Natasha Magigi (Phoebe/Amiens); Chris Nayak (Silvius/Duke Frederick); Christina Tedders (Celia); Susannah Van Den Berg (Audrey/Le Beau); Rachel Winters (Understudy); and Duncan Wisbey (Touchstone/Adam). Full bios can be seen here
Brendan O’Hea is a director, actor and writer. His extensive work at Shakespeare’s Globe includes: as director, The Comedy of Errors, Pericles and Twelfth Night; and, as actor, The Tempest, Cymbeline and Measure for Measure. He also appeared alongside Judi Dench in Gregory Doran’s RSC productions of The Merry Wives of Windsor and All’s Well That Ends Well. Film roles include Quantum of Solace and Mrs Brown.
Talking about As You Like It, Brendan O’Hea said:
“I’ve always adored As You Like It. Not only is it peppered with eccentrics, it contains a wrestling match and more music than any other Shakespeare play. But above all it’s a celebration: Shakespeare sets off a confetti canon of love in all its different forms.”
Joining Brendan O’Hea (Director) on the creative team are: Liam Bunster (Set and Costume Designer); Catherine Jayes (Composer); Jonathan Ruddick (Sound Designer); Siân Williams (Movement Director); Rachel Bown-Williams and Ruth Cooper-Brown (Fight Directors); and Matthew Dewsbury CDG and Martin Poile CDG (Casting Directors).
The Holloway Garden Theatre will also host a production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona 22-24 August. Twenty-five members of the RSC’s Next Generation Act young company will perform a new re-interpretation of the play for audiences of all ages, directed by Paul Ainsworth. Aged between 13-18, young company members are made up of students from 12 cities and towns across England including Birmingham, Blackpool, Bradford, Cumbria, Hastings, Hull, Kent, Leicester, Northampton, Newcastle upon Tyne, Sudbury, and York.
And on weekends between Saturday 20 July – Sunday 1 September, The Holloway Garden Theatre will be the brand-new home of free performances by community and youth groups. The Open Stage programme brings together a wide range of student, community and semi-professional productions, performances and workshops. The Open Stage performance schedule can be seen here.
The Holloway Garden Theatre is generously supported by Charles Holloway OBE. Charles was recently given an OBE in the King’s Birthday Honours List recognising his arts philanthropy.
For media enquiries, please contact:
Dean Asker, Senior Media Relations Officer, RSC
dean.asker@rsc.org.uk or 0778 9937759
LISTINGS INFORMATION
AS YOU LIKE IT
Thursday 18 July – Sunday 1 September 2024
Press performance: Wednesday 24 July, 5pm
Director Talk: Monday 22 July (post show)
Post Show Talk: Thursday 29 August (following 5pm performance)
Captioned performances: Sunday 4 August, 5pm and Monday 26 August, 5pm
Audio Described performances: Thursday 8 August, 2pm and Monday 26 August, 2pm
NEXT GENERATION: THE TWO GENTLEMEN OF VERONA
Thursday 22 – Saturday 24 August 2024
All performances will be Captioned and have Integrated BSL Interpretation
NOTES TO EDITORS
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
The Holloway Garden Theatre is generously supported by Charles Holloway OBE
RSC £10 Tickets for 14-25s supported by TikTok
The RSC Acting Companies are generously supported by The Gatsby Charitable Foundation
Next Generation’s The Two Gentleman of Verona is supported by the Halabi Thomaz Foundation
Next Generation Act Company bursary places are generously supported by The Leverhulme Trust Arts Scholarship
RSC Next Generation is generously supported by the Andrew Lloyd Webber Foundation, John S Cohen Foundation and Noël Coward Foundation
Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)
The Royal Shakespeare Company 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 agency for creativity and culture. We have set out our strategic vision in Let’s Create that by 2030 we want England to be a country in which the creativity of each of us is valued and given the chance to flourish and where everyone of us has access to a remarkable range of high-quality cultural experiences. We invest public money from Government and The National Lottery to help support the sector and to deliver this vision. www.artscouncil.org.uk.
Following the Covid-19 crisis, the Arts Council developed a £160 million Emergency Response Package, with nearly 90% coming from the National Lottery, for organisations and individuals needing support. We are also one of the bodies responsible for administering the Government’s unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, of which we delivered over £1 billion to the sector in grants and loans. Find out more at www.artscouncil.org.uk/covid19.
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