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Love's Labour's Lost (2009) |
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| | Outdoor Production of
Love's Labour's Lost
25th-29th August 2009
The Riverside Players are returning to
Heythrop Park
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Four young men try to do the right thing, and set self-denial and self-improvement above self-indulgence – but they are young men, and, confronted by four pretty young women, they find themselves compromised by love.
Set in the beautiful grounds of Heythrop Park, the Riverside Players’ production of Shakespeare’s charming early comedy, Love’s Labour’s Lost, brings the young King of Navarre and his friends out of their splendid Georgian palace to study amongst the trees and lawns, and brings the lovely young Princess of France and her ladies to visit them – while the locals look on in amazement and amusement.
With a delightful variety of characters – the self-important schoolmaster, the sycophantic curate, the extravagant Spanish nobleman, the precocious page-boy, the good-natured yokel and the saucy country wench – this promises to be the perfect setting for a summer’s evening of gentle and witty entertainment.
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KING OF NAVARRE - Ben Baxter
BEROWNE - Alan Madrell
DUMAINE - Sam Prior
LONGAVILLE - David Sturgess
DON ADRIANO DE ARMADO - Nick Quartley
MOTH - Ben Smith
HOLOFERNES - Michael Furness
SIR NATHANIEL - Colin Macnee
COSTARD - Paul Stephenson
BOYET - Colin Burnie
CONSTABLE DULL - Andrew Pitman
FORESTER - Tom Burnie
MARCADE - Mike Harding
PRINCESS OF FRANCE - Fleur Yerburgh-Hodgson
ROSALINE - Jess Bridge
MARIA - Isobel Burnie
KATHARINE - Alice Evans
JAQUENETTA - Alex Hedges
The Riverside Players have been performing Open Air Theatre since 1951 and this year will be returning to Heythrop Park for just 5 performances.
Heythrop Park can be found on the A44 between Oxford and Chipping Norton. The postcode for SatNav equipment is OX7 4NF.
The theatre bar will be open from 7pm and during the interval.
There is plenty of car parking space and you are welcome to bring a picnic to enjoy in the grounds of Heythrop Park prior to the performance. Sorry - no dogs allowed.
Performances are in the open air theatre and summer nights can get cold – so please wear suitable clothing.
All seating is unreserved and has back rests. The majority is also raked.
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| Synopsis | The play opens with the King of Navarre and three noble companions, Berowne, Dumaine, and Longaville, taking an oath to devote themselves to three years of study, foreswearing bodily pleasures and the company of women. One of the companions, Berowne, refuses to take the vow seriously, and argues the merits of sensual love, but is overruled and promises to abide. Berowne then reminds the King that the Princess of France has an appointment to meet him in order to discuss the surrender of the region of Aquitaine. The King denies the Princess and her retinue (which includes three lovely young women) entry into his court, insisting that they camp at a distance. The King and his friends then interview the Princess and her companions, and each falls in love with one of the ladies. | | | | The main plot is supplemente? by several other comic subplots. A bombastic Spanish swordsman, Don Armardo, woos a low-born country wench, Jaquenetta, assisted by Moth, his witty page, and Costard, a country bumpkin. There are also two pedantic scholars, Holofernes and Sir Nathaniel, who sometimes speak to each other in schoolboy Latin. In the final act, the comic characters stage an inept pageant to entertain the noble persons, just as the mechanicals perform a barbarous play for the court at the end of A Midsummer Night's Dream. | | | At the end of this lighthearted play, events suddenly take a darker turn. News arrives that the Princess's father has died and she must leave to take the throne. The nobles swear to remain true to their ladies, but the ladies, unconvinced by their youthful ardour, demand that they wait a whole year to prove their seriousness. The play thus ends with no weddings, a surprising conclusion for an Elizabethan comedy. There is evidence that Shakespeare may have written a sequel, Love's Labour's Won which has since been lost. | | | Ticket prices: | | | Advance: £10 On the door: £12.50 | | |
Pre-show dinner and overnight accommodation
is available at Heythrop Park | | |
How to find us
Heythrop Park can be found on the right hand side of the A44 from Oxford to Chipping Norton as you travel through Enstone. Follow the Heritage brown signs. The postcode for those of you using SatNav equipment is OX7 4NF.
There is plenty of car parking space and you are welcome to bring a picnic to enjoy in the grounds of the hotel prior to the performance. Sorry - no dogs allowed.
Once inside the grounds follow the Riverside Players signs to find the theatre.
Why not make an evening of entertainment and enjoy a pre-show dinner in Heythrop Park's magnificent restaurant. You might also consider staying the night at Heythrop Park.
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Productions 
