Blanket On The Ground

We both enjoy Shakespeare, so were pleased to see that there was to be an Open Air Production up at Burnham Deepdale this week. Dalegate Market is a little cluster of shops, some permanent, others 'pop-up' and they often have special events.
The Strange Fascination Theatre Company is a Norfolk group, a couple of years old, and their patron is Terry Molloy . He is Mike Tucker is you're an Archers Addict, or Davros if you are a Whovian, and he lives less than 12 miles from Cornerstones.
Sadly he was not in attendance on Wednesday, when we arrived with our tickets and our picnic blanket and snacks. Some of the audience had gone to Glyndebourne lengths, with wicker hampers, bottles of bubbly and baskets of grapes. I had a Snickers bar and a can of coke!
The play itself was fantastic - five people playing all the parts, with brilliant changes of costume, performed at lightning speed. And they struck [mostly] to the Bard's script.
They took account of the children in the audience, made Brexit jokes, and even came and chatted to us in the interval - and afterwards hung about for photographs and conversation. This despite the fact that the last 20 minutes saw continuous rainfall. Nobody moved, but we did put on jackets and some folk produced umbrellas.  The girl who played Titania made all the costumes [it was lovely to see them close up afterwards] and the set. Puck and Helena played recorder and flute - and all of them sang and danced. It was such fun.

beforehand - a few props in the field

 

Helena plays the flute

Thesius and Egius put the world to rights [that's Hermia in the background]

Puck dances and sings and enchants us all

The Rude Mechanicals [Snug, Flute, Quince and Bottom] rehearse 'Pyramus and Thisbe' 

Snug was French - so that gave an opportunity for the Euro-jokes

Bottom chats to people during the interval

Afterwards, Demetrius, Helena, Oberon, Puck and Titania posed for this blog. If you get the opportunity to see them perform, take it, I don't think you will be disappointed. Definitely *****

At Christmas they are doing some MRJames Ghost Stories, with Mr Molloy.  I do hope that is when I am in Norfok again! 

Thank you, Strange Fascination, for a lovely evening

[I should add that Bob and I suddenly felt cold and damp when it was all over - so went off up the coast to Wells and sat in the car with cups of tea and a portion of chips, at 10.15 at night!! We were also stiff - next time we will take folding chairs rather than a blanket on the ground]