Playboy of the Western World by JM Synge

I thought this was excellently performed by Stamford's Shoestring Theatre company.  I was quite able to suspend disbelief and be carried along by the story of Christy Mahon and his fearsome murderous deeds.  I particularly enjoyed the Widow Quin character, though all were well-played. The scenery of the shebeen, with a view of the Mayo coast beyond was perfect too.

Interesting too to read about the play's reception when it was first performed in 1907.  It seems political correctness is by no means a modern invention.  Nationalists claimed it wasn't political enough, and others saw the use of the word "shift" as a reference to Kitty O'Shea's adultery with nationalist leader Charles Parnell, and as an insult to the women of Ireland. And the premise of the play - that a village would idolise a man who claimed to have killed his father - was taken as a terrible insult to Irish peasant life.

All in all though - very entertaining and full of humour.  And I hadn't realised that "playboy" meant "trickster.

Dark Earth - by Eastern Angles at Flag Fen

On a visit to Flag Fen about six weeks ago, we saw posters for this show, and decided to give it a whirl.  From blistering heat to cold autumn evening - though the hint of chill and the bright moonlit skies added to the atmosphere when we arrived, and when we left the performance tent during the interval. 

Eastern Angles is a touring theatre company founded in 1982 and based in East Anglia, at Ipswich and Peterborough.   They perform in many rural venues, and around Peterborough. The play we watched has a cast of local amateur performers.  

They are performing Dark Earth by Forbes Bramble.   It is set in 1690, with William of Orange and Mary on the throne. A group of landowners and partners employ a Dutch engineer, Jacob de Vriess to drain Oxay Fen and convert it into productive farmland.  Opposition comes from the local villagers, who use the fen for their food and materials for building, and also from the pastor whose fascination with archaeological finds brings him into head-on collision with the orthodoxy of the church.  Against this background personal dramas play out, involving love, money, authoritarian family structures, witchcraft and two deaths.

The outstanding actor was Lucy Formby as Katja de Vriess. Her expert manipulation of the tragic and comic elements of her character was one of the high points of the show.

The sound effects were excellent - particularly the eerie bird calls. Visually it was striking - the puppets of birds, especially an egret, along with a pike, dogs and a hare.  Sound and visuals combined dramatically in the scene where one of the villagers is drowned in the floods.  

The setting itself with the floor space as water, as ice for some enjoyable skating scenes, as well as interiors was imaginatively used and fitted in with the reality outside.  

Sunset over the fens

A Midsummer Night's Dream at Tolethorpe, Stamford.

This is a play I studied when I was eleven and it's one I remember pretty well. Sure, Leonie had reminded me of the "wild thyme" speech - she was learning it by heart with her kids, and involved me.

The play is ideal for an outdoor setting, and the Tolethorpe stage , with its back drop of trees, and its imaginative use of lighting and height was just the job.  Romance, comedy, fantasy, fairies, magic potions, a jealous Oberon and a careless Puck all add to the magic.  Very neatly set off by the workmen's acting of Pyramus and Thisbe.

Very entertaining.

Stamford Shakespeare Company in Twelfth Night

Entertaining, easy to follow, and the twins were alike enough for suspension of disbelief to work. Usual magical setting, and good weather.  Excellent Toby Belch and Andrew Aguecheek, but why would Viola ever fall in love with a drippy duke Orsino - the character, not the actor!

A Winter's Tale at Tolethorpe

As usual a very enjoyable performance by Stamford Theatre company in their outdoor theatre at Tolethorpe Hall..  Some good set pieces - sword dance and morris dancing,  Especially liked ... as Paulina, ...as Autolycus, and ... as the young shepherd.