Walliams and The Bard get park OK
COMEDIAN David Walliams and playwright William Shakespeare will have their work performed in Stockport after fears it would damage a park were allayed.
Theatre company Heartbreak Productions had requested permission in December to put on a performance of The Midnight Gang, by the Britain’s Got Talent judge.
And at the same time Handle Bards Tour Company asked to stage a version of Romeo and Juliet.
Both request, for shows at Bramhall Park, were made through the council’s museum service but were turned down by the Bramhall and Cheadle Hulme South Area Committee.
The reason was parking for the performances will be on the park’s archery lawn and fears had been raised of the damage cars could do to it.
But the groups behind both productions have promised to pay for ‘any irreversible damage caused’ and the events can now go ahead.
A council spokesman said: “Approval was not given owing to concerns over the use of the archery lawn for event parking.
“The organisers have sought to address these concerns in a revised traffic/parking management plan.
“This lists procedures designed to mitigate against any adverse effects of this event and also gives undertakings to address the future use of the archery lawn and the wider issue of parking in the park.”
Permission for both was given at another Bramhall and Cheadle Hulme South Area Committee on Thursday last week.
Other measures that will be taken to address fears will include the installation of temporary vehicle trackways if bad weather is predicted.
To address general concerns, there will only be four events a year that use the archery lawn for parking and these will be limited to between April and September, when hopefully drier weather will prevail.
Both will be open air events for families on the croquet lawn and for up to 500 people. Romeo and Juliet will be held on June 29. The Midnight Gang - set in a hospital and telling the story of five children’s nighttime adventure - takes place on July 14.