Touring theatre to return with a Shakespeare comic masterpiece
Ashbourne Festival organiser TIM CHALLANS talks us through another of the event’s favourite performances
FOLLOWING their Ashbourne debut at the 2021 Festival the touring theatre company Illyria are returning with a new outdoor Shakespeare production.
This time we will not be constrained by social distancing rules and, hopefully, the weather will be better.
Despite incredibly unseasonal weather last year the company received a standing ovation for their fast-paced Comedy of Errors.
This year it is bringing A Midsummer Night’s Dream, argusingle ably Shakespeare’s most accessible play, with many great characters and jokes.
This timeless comic masterpiece explores every colour in the spectrum of love from arranged marriage, to elopement; from infatuation to hatred; from chivalric devotion to sex.
Add to this bawdy mix a heady, and typically Shakespearean brew of confusion, magic and mischief you have the perfect and timely comedy for a mid-summer evening.
Five couples – three human, one fairy and one mythical – find their relationships sorely tested when a group of amateur theatricals bumble into the forest to rehearse a play.
Despite its underlying themes it is very light hearted and suitable for all the family.
Illyria has made award winning outdoor theatre for thirty years. It travels across the United Kingdom every summer bringing stories to life for family audiences. Grab some snacks, a blanket and get our favourite people together for a marvellous evening in the beautiful surroundings of Offcote Grange. The show starts at 7.30 but we recommend that you bring your picnic earlier. A Midsummer Night’s Dream is on 2 July at 7.30pm in the garden of Offcote Grange just outside Ashbourne.
Details of this and other events are in the Ashbourne Festival brochure, on posters around the area, on the Festival website, social media and in more articles coming soon.
Tickets for some events are selling very quickly and we have just released more tickets for the popular Comedy Night.
Full information and links to buy tickets are on the festival website www.ashbournefestival.org
Grab some snacks, a blanket and get our favourite people together for a marvellous evening in the beautiful surroundings of Offcote Grange.