Head back to the summer of love ... no, not Woodstock 1969, but Newbury 1996 thanks to The Watermill
THE CAST has been announced for a new open-air theatre show about to head to The Watermill in Newbury. Camp Albion is to tour villages in Berkshire and beyond from June 15, before coming to the Newbury stage for a summer season.
The play is set in Newbury, back in 1996.
With nine miles of ancient woodland under threat, and a local community bitterly divided over the proposed route of the new bypass, the backdrop is a poignant one.
When Cassie returns home for the university holidays, she meets Dylan, a beguiling road protester who draws her into a world of rickety treehouses, lentil stew, druidic rituals and stoic resistance. But her mother has other ideas, and as battle lines are drawn, Cassie must face the personal cost of activism.
In a time before smartphones, Twitter, Greta Thunberg and Extinction Rebellion, the ‘Third
Battle of Newbury’ was one of the definitive environmental campaigns of the 1990s.
A new play with music, Camp Albion explores the heroism, humour and heated debate of this extraordinary moment in the town’s history.
Hannah Brown (The Magician’s Elephant – RSC, Preludes – Southwark Playhouse) will play ‘Cassie’,
Kate Russell-Smith (Harry Potter and The Cursed Child - The Palace Theatre, A Curmudgeon’s Guide To Round Robin Christmas Letters - The Hope Theatre - Offie nominated for Best Actress) will play ‘Foxglove Sue / Viv’ and Joe Swift (Pool (No Water) - The Royal Court, The Greatest Hits Of Lily And John - The Other Palace) will play ‘Dylan’.
The play’s author, Danielle Pearson, said: “Camp Albion is a story I’ve been itching to tell for years.
“It’s a love letter to my hometown, a coming-ofage tale, and an exploration of the personal cost of activism.
“It’s a true honour to be bringing it to life with this fantastic cast and creative team, and I can’t wait to share this piece as part of the Watermill’s 2022 rural tour.”
Camp Albion will run from Wednesday, July 6, until Saturday, July 16.
A Camp Albion Festival will run alongside the production, with interactive workshops for all the family to explore the themes of the play.
For more details, call the box office on: 01635 46044, or log on to: WWW.WATERMILL.ORG.UK