Henry V

In this version of Henry V, the eponymous hero acts not to save the country, but to save face and his own career. Twas ever thus, of course – but the stakes were never anywhere near this high.

Covid ridden, post-Brexit Britain appears as a post apocalyptic wasteland, standing in stark contrast to a vibrant, multicultural Europe.

The villains of politics wash us with verbose rallying calls while our reality yields to further swathes of grey, turgid, English blandishments. We are the living animals being tested upon by the privileged, as they buffered and untarnished with offshore bank accounts statements as shields.

The Tempest

A group of migrants arrive in a new land and through Shakespeare’s Tempest they explore the meaning of love, forgiveness and new beginnings. Prospero uses magic to conjure a storm and torment the survivors of a shipwreck. Prospero’s Caliban, plots to rid himself of his master, but is thwarted by Prospero’s spirit-servant Ariel. The King’s young son Ferdinand, thought to be dead, falls in love with Prospero’s daughter Miranda. Their celebrations are cut short when Prospero confronts his brother and reveals his identity as the usurped Duke of Milan. The families are reunited and all conflict is resolved. Prospero grants Ariel his freedom and prepares to leave the island.

As You Like It

In the kingdom of Duke Frederick, it’s the cold harsh grey world of business and money, money, money! Rosalind, the daughter of Fredrick's brother the banished Duke Senior is cast out by Frederic and forced to run away to a new life in the forest of Arden with Celia, Frederick's daughter and their motley friend Touchstone. Orlando tries to prove himself in Frederick's world, but is forced to flee to the forest, to escape the jealousy of his brother Oliver, where he meets the banished Duke with his alternative way of living in harmony with the world. The Duke teaches Orlando this alternative way. It is here that he meets again Rosalind disguised as Ganymede, they both discover what it is to love, to be open, to be kind. A fun caper of mistaken identity, freedom to express and be yourself, in an open and inclusive world. Where you can live AS YOU LIKE IT.