Coriolanus
"Why did you wish me milder? Would you have me
False to my nature? Rather say I play the man I am."
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
Downing College Gardens
When civil unrest wracks Rome as the famine-ravaged underclass battle the ruling elite, a war hero steps into the spotlight to serve his nation—only to turn on it and seek its overthrow. Shakespeare’s rarely produced tragedy comes to visceral life in the intimacy of Downing College Gardens in a powerful and enthralling production, revealing Shakespeare’s themes of ambition and delicate democracy that will particularly resonate in our current global political climate.
a gripping, challenging and worthwhile production ...an enthralling and passionate performance... an excellent production
Tickets for Coriolanus will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!
Twelfth Night
"If music be the food of love, play on;
Give me excess of it!"
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
King's College Gardens
(entrance via Queen's Road only)
Wit, music, romance and revelry are the food of love at this comedic feast of lovers and fools. Viola and her twin brother are shipwrecked in the magical land of Illyria, each believing the other drowned. Disguised as a young man, and entering the service of the lovesick Duke Orsino, Viola woos the wistful lady Olivia for her new master and finds herself in a most unusual and hilarious love triangle. Merry deceptions and mistaken identities abound in this lilting comedy until true love finds its way.
A beautifully-paced, thoughtful and intelligent production, with plenty of action offsetting moments of real pathos and tragedy
Tickets for Twelfth Night will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
"I have had a dream, past the wit of man to say what dream it was"
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
St John's College Gardens
(entrance via Queen's Road only)
The beautiful gardens of St John’s College form the perfect setting for Shakespeare's delightful fairy-tale world of love, jealousy and youthful exuberance. This captivating production brings to life all the magic and humour of Shakespeare's best-loved play. Why not invite your children to come along dressed as fairies to add to what promises to be a spectacular evening!
...as hilarious as anything you would see at the RSC
Tickets for A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!
The Comedy of Errors
"There’s not a man I meet but doth salute me
As if I were their well-acquainted friend"
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
St John's College Gardens
(entrance via Queen's Road only)
Shakespeare’s brilliant farce of mistaken identity and slap-stick frivolity is set in the superb setting of St John’s College garden. Antipholus (of Ephesus), with his servant Dromio, think their twin brothers (also called Antipholus and Dromio) have been drowned at sea many years earlier. But Antipholus (of Syracuse), with his servant Dromio, come ashore, with neither knowing the other exists. The locals constantly confuse the pairs (even including Antipholus’ wife!) and the comedy of errors ensues. Don’t miss this fast-paced and sparkling production.
A greatly skilled and athletic young team, playing fast, open, attacking theatre
Tickets for The Comedy of Errors will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!
As You Like It
"All the world’s a stage
And all the men and women merely players"
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
Trinity College Gardens
(entrance via Queen's Road only)
The spectacular Fellows’ Garden of Trinity College is the perfect setting for one of Shakespeare’s most popular and fun-filled comedies. Following some courtly mishaps, Rosalind, her cousin Celia, and the clown, Touchstone, escape to the Forest of Arden and revel in nature and the seemingly simple life. As love notes grow on trees and romance rules the land, wit and wrestling, poetry and music create a rare theatrical enchantment.
…breathtaking energy and talent... the CSF keep the comedy spinning like a top
Tickets for As You Like It will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!
Macbeth
"By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes"
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Every evening (except Sunday) at 7.30pm
King’s College Gardens
(entrance via Queen's Road only)
As “light thickens” and darkness falls, the atmospheric and breath-taking backdrop of King’s College Fellows’ garden provides the perfect setting for Shakespeare’s powerful exploration of murder, prophecy and ambition, in a world steeped in power-mongering, sorcery and war. An unexpected prophecy sends Scottish general Macbeth on a feverish and murderous quest to become king. Spurred on by his ruthless wife, all must fall before them. Don’t miss this dynamic and bloody production!
No knee-bending to trendy revisionism, but rather a tour-de-force of Elizabethan drama
Tickets for Macbeth will be available to buy online nearer the festival - please check back soon!