Sitting In The Cheap Seats

Casting details are announced for the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) 2021 summer outdoor production of  The Comedy of Errors  which runs between 13 July – 26 September in the  Lydia & Manfred Gorvy Garden Theatre  in Stratford-upon-Avon.  This specially constructed outdoor performance space is located in the Swan Theatre Gardens, flanked by the River Avon and overlooked by the Swan Theatre.   

The Royal Shakespeare Company have today announced their winter season, including the next step of their campaign to cover all of the Bard’s work. Read on to find out more!

Antony Sher’s diaries, charting his exploration of some of Shakespeare’s most iconic roles, could easily be marketed as essential ‘how to’ guides for young actors , his honesty and anxiety must be reassuring for performers who no doubt all feel the same way at various points in their careers.

Sope Dirisu as Caius Martius Angus Jackson bookends the Royal Shakespeare Company ’s Rome season, his traditional dress Julius Caesar having opened it he now caps it off with a modern set Coriolanus . If the latter is the least well known of Shakespeare’s Roman plays its central theme – dissent of the masses against an ignorant ruling class – is surely as pertinent as any of the Bard’s work in the current climate.

Josette Simon and Antony Byrne. Photo by Helen Maybanks After the heated political tension of Julius Caesar , the Royal Shakespeare Company ’s Rome season continues with a foray into Egypt for Antony & Cleopatra . The mood here is, initially at least, much lighter than the previous visit to Mark Antony but there are still tensions in Rome!

Andrew Woodall as Caesar. photo by Helen Maybanks It’s an accepted cliché that, whatever the prevailing political mood there is a Shakespeare play that adequately reflects, comments on or holds a mirror up to it. Like all the best clichés it has become so ingrained in the consciousness of theatregoers because it is largely true. Thus at a time when we worry about the power of world leaders like Trump and the ability of political parties with extremist views to gain momentum Julius Caesar seems incredibly apt.

There’s no better way to kick the post-Christmas blues than an early January trip to the theatre, so this year we decided to go an extra step and head to Stratford upon Avon for a short break. Of course, when you’re in Stratford you’d be mad to miss a trip to the Royal Shakespeare Company so we booked well in advance to see The Tempest .

Photo by Ellie Kurttz (c) RSC For many actors Lear is the ultimate role, hence the proliferation of productions that appear every year. In 2016 alone we’ve had Timothy West, Don Warrington and Michael Pennington all pop up in the role and Glenda Jackson is currently giving us a female perspective over at the Old Vic. RSC stalwart Antony Sher ’s take on the role has been something we’ve been waiting a few years for… so how does he do?

the company of Much Ado About Nothing There’s something special about seeing a Shakespeare play for the first time – so the chance to see two, on the same day and in linked productions couldn’t be missed. A couple of years ago the Royal Shakespeare Company paired Love’s Labours Lost with Much Ado About Nothing (renamed Love’s Labours Won) in a gorgeous setting amidst the Great War to much acclaim. This year they’ve revived the production, with many of the original cast and have brought it to Chichester Festival Theatre .

Photo by Helen Maybanks (c) RSC After two nights of pretty intense action from the Royal Shakespeare Company I was glad to be seeing something a little lighter on my return visit to the Barbican Centre (we were in Stratford-Upon-Avon on Monday to see their new production of King Lear before heading to London and you can read our review of Tuesday night’s Doctor Faustus here ).

It’s a rare feeling to sit in the audience for a play and feel you truly don’t know what to expect – in the age of social media it’s impossible not to have a good idea what to expect, but when two men walk onto the stage at the beginning of Faustus, stare each other in the eye and light a match cast, crew and audience will all find out together who will take the titular role.

I was lucky enough to see the  Royal Shakespeare Company ‘s production of Cymbeline in Stratford back in May and, for a play that has always seemed troublesome, it made for incredibly engaging viewing in large part due to a stunning cast of performers and a fascinating setting. Check out the trailer here and then go see it for yourself, it transfers to the Barbican later this year.

I’m a relatively new convert to Shakespeare. Going to an all-boys secondary school in the mid-nineties there was very little focus on arts subjects and it put me off the bard for a long time. Even when I finally started going to see productions of Shakespeare’s plays I was wary of the Royal Shakespeare Company . These were the protectors of the canon and surely would be the toughest to truly appreciate! Then I saw Antony Sher as Falstaff…

Check out the trailer for the latest from the Royal Shakespeare Company  by reading on below…

This year may be the battle of the Cymbeline s, with the Royal Shakespeare Company presenting their take while the Globe present two versions, one currently running in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse and Imogen (a “retitled and reclaimed” production) part of Emma Rice’s inaugural season. Last year the two establishments presented alternate takes on The Merchant of Venice with Polly Findlay ’s RSC production the first to arrive on DVD.

The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) returns to the Barbican in November with Henry V, followed by a major theatrical event in January 2016 to mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death – with performances of all four productions of Gregory Doran’s history plays in repertoire.

Very exciting news this morning as the Royal Shakespeare Company  announce their spring/summer season for 2016. A special year as it marks the 400th Anniversary of Shakespeare himself! Read on below for full details.

Full casting is announced for the Swan Theatre production of Marina Carr’s new play based on the epic tale of Hecuba, directed by RSC Deputy Artistic Director Erica Whyman with Derbhle Crotty in the title role, opening on Thursday 24 September 2015.

It won’t shock any of our readers to hear we’re very excited about The RSC  presenting Henry V as part of their winter season. Their Henry IV was a highlight of 2014 and both productions, alongside the acclaimed Richard II from a few years back, head to London for an exciting run of the “Henries” cycle!

It’s strangely comforting to realise that even the greatest actors have their fair share of fears and worries over their performances. Though most performers work hard to hide them, in his latest book  Year of The Fat Knight   Antony Sher  (a Sir himself) confronts those feelings head on in a brilliantly honest and wonderfully engrossing diary that encompasses the days between the  Gregory Doran  deciding to direct the Henry plays and opening night at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.