Shakespeare in Love Programme

From the Director’s Chair Good den and be truly welcome hither.

On behalf of the entire cast and crew, welcome to tonight’s performance of ‘Shakespeare in Love’. The bard wrote ‘Many can brook the weather that love not the wind’ and we truly hope that you’ll not just endure whatever the elements throw at us this evening. We hope you will relish entering the world of London in 1593 and step into the breeches of audiences gone by who, under ‘this most excellent canopy’, would gather at the Rose Theatre or the Curtain Theatre.

Whether they came to the lords’ gallery to be seen and admired or to create mayhem in the yard for just a penny, audiences experienced the work of some of the greatest minds in history. First among equals was undoubtedly William Shakespeare himself.

It is a privilege to tell this story, albeit based on speculation, made famous by the 1994 Oscarwinning film version, starring Joseph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Dame Judi Dench and a raft of other acting legends.

Young Will Shakespeare has writer’s block and needs some inspiration. His ideas for his new comedy, ‘Romeo and Ethel the Pirate’s Daughter’, are less than genius and the owner of the theatre is under scrutiny from the producer, to whom he owes money. Meanwhile, across town, a rival theatre performs Will’s ‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’, and heaven forbid, they added a dog, all without his permission!

The high-spirited young lady, Viola De Lesseps, who knows Will’s work very well, wishes to be on the stage. This, of course, is against the law in Elizabethan England, but it doesn’t stop her from trying. Disguised as a young man and going by the name Thomas Kent, Viola attends auditions for Will’s next play, the very one he is struggling to finish.

The story unfolds and commotion leads to uncertainty about what will happen to Will’s new play and where the players will go. What will the future hold for young Will Shakespeare?

The cast have given it their all to breathe life into this fantastic and challenging script. I am grateful to each one of them and to the many others involved in making this production happen.

Some are listed under the Production Team but there are many others whose names do not appear. Finally, but by no means least, I would like to thank parents and guardians, relatives and friends as well as our wonderful Boarding staff for cajoling, encouraging and offering all sorts of support to each of our cast members.

Shakespeare rarely mentioned Christmas, as it was still tradition to give gifts at New Year, but suffice to leave you with this from ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.

Joy, gentle friends!

Joy and fresh days of love accompany your hearts!

Mr Williams Head of Drama

Setting: London 1593

Cast List WILL SHAKESPEARE Alicia Wang KIT MARLOWE Dru Basiah Ulasi FENNYMAN Josh O’Brien HENSLOWE Jesse Gibbons LAMBERT & ensemble Henry Lewis FREES & ensemble Ciara Day RICHARD BURBAGE Isabella Worton VALENTINE & ensemble Sophie Lomas QUEEN ELIZABETH 1 Issy Jusu-Sherriff TILNEY – Lord Chamberlain Isobel Beddoe VIOLA DE LESSEPS Phoebe Lyons NURSE Polly Fitzsimmons-Taylor RALPH (Nurse/Petruchio) & WAITER Kobi Abass ROBIN (plays Lady Capulet) Joshua Worton ADAM (plays Gregory) & HEAVY I Violet Bessant SAM (plays Juliet) & HEAVY II Iya Njopa-Kaba NOL (plays Benvolio) & PROTEUS Clemente Vazquez Alvarez-Rua PETER (plays Tybalt) & CATLING John Radford NED ALLEYN Tallulah Byrne WEBSTER Charlie O’Brien WABASH, ROWER & ensemble Christian Castle LORD WESSEX Harry Hall SIR ROBERT DE LESSEPS Max Pietrzak MOLLY, BARTENDER & ensemble Amelia Hawthorn PRIEST Mr G Bickersteth QUICKLY, KATE & ensemble Jemima Kawa DOG Bean GUARDS and GUESTS Members of the Company

Creative & Production Team

DIRECTOR Mr Andrew Williams DIRECTOR’S ASSITANT & Mr Alasdair Linn STAGE MANAGER BACKSTAGE CREW Mr Gavin Bickersteth Mr Mitchell Bond Daniel Pipe King-David Ulasi CHOREOGRAPHY Mrs Sarah Molina FIGHT DIRECTION Mr Christian Reid Miss Megan Barnes-Rolf SOUND ENGINEER & Mr Gary Clark OPERATOR LIGHTING DESIGNER Mr Stephen Partington LIGHTING OPERATOR Harrison Lincoln TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Mr Harrison Lincoln SET DESIGN & Mr Andrew Williams CONSTRUCTION Mr Alex Cass Mr Barry Jelbart WARDROBE Mrs Katie Worton Miss Emma Stephens POSTER DESIGN Mr Stephen Partington PROGRAMMES Mrs Denise Gardner PUBLICITY & TICKETS Mrs Lisa Bateman Miss Lana Krilic Miss Alice Talbut Miss Louise Dunt DOG HANDLERS William Bidwell Mrs Claire Bidwell PROPERTIES CYGAMS (Young Gen) TECHNICAL HIRE Event Sound & Light COSTUME HIRE Dressing Up Box With special thanks to the Estates Team, the Site and Security Teams, the Domestic and Catering Teams for their contributions throughout the preparation and rehearsal period, as well as tonight’s performance.

Thank you to the Senior Leadership Team for their firm commitment to the creative arts and to this production in particular.

Production Photos

To view the full set of production photos, as well as cast headshots, visit: www.photoalbumboutique.com/NHS-SIL Password: NHSSIL2021

A Look Back...

We are excited to announce, and ask you to save the date for our next major production...

wednesday 23 - friday 26 march 2022