The Tempest

by William Shakespeare

directed by Annie Eddington

musical direction by Martin Plackett

produced by Sara Knight

 

On the 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare’s death 'The Tempest' is an appropriate play to perform, regarded by many as his farewell to the stage. An ensemble of 9 actors and 3 musicians bring this mystical play to life through music, physical action, visual images and of course, Shakespeare’s language. One of his shortest plays, it is about magic, monsters and the marooned, shipwrecks and shape-shifting, and about the necessity for reconciliation and forgiveness.

The Tempest is ready for a veritable storm of performances in July when we will celebrate 400 years of William Shakespeare’s legacy - our famous playwright and poet who was born and died on the same day, 23rd April:

·         The Quay Theatre in Sudbury from 5th to 9th July at 7.45pm.

·         Two outdoor performances at Magpies, Great Maplestead on 16th and 17th July at 2pm

·        The Tempest then goes on tour, to Un Teatro Entre Todos in Laroles, Spain as a part of Me Vuelves Lorca 2016!

An outdoor theatre in the Spanish town of Laroles - “Un Teatro entre Todos” (A Theatre for Everyone), is a project run by an English woman, Anna Kemp, converting two traditional Alpujarran circular threshing floors into an outdoor performing space, currently seating 250 people.  Anna has already had experience of outdoor theatre, having previously worked in the spectacular surroundings of the Minack Theatre in Cornwall.

Annie Eddington and Sara Knight worked extremely hard to obtain sponsorship to fund the trip, with the expressed intention of benefiting both Sudbury and Laroles by creating a link between two community-based theatre groups, both located in rural areas, and both with high artistic aspirations.

Not only will The Tempest be touring to Spain but the sources for the story are believed to originate from the Spanish Caribbean, making the Spanish link doubly pertinent.  Live musicians will bring this mystical play to life by combining the music of Spain with the words of Shakespeare and two of the cast are also musicians which increase the possibilities for soundscapes and songs. 

We are fortunate in having two professional musicians to guide and lead us. As a classical guitarist, Martin has a reputation for polished musical performances throughout the UK.  His recordings, which include the premiere recording of Sir Malcolm Arnold’s Fantasy, have been broadcast on Classic FM and BBC Radio 3. For our production he has not only set Shakespeare’s words to well-known Spanish tunes and some English music from the Shakespearean period, but is playing them for us. His wife Janine teaches and plays clarinet, piano and saxophone across Suffolk and Essex, and we are delighted that she is joining us to play recorder and clarinet and to support our singing with her teaching and her voice.

‘We are such stuff as dreams are made on’