Tolethorpe Hall was acquired by the company in 1977 and they performed their first production of Hamlet in the same year. The grounds boast a natural amphitheatre which has since been converted into a canopy covered auditorium but still has the benefits of an outdoor theatre. It is ideally situated in the grounds allowing visitors to picnic before the performances, or indeed enjoy a cooked meal inside the hall. The fact that the theatre is outdoors means that performances can use the natural surroundings (and lighting) as part of the staging and the canopy covering means that whatever the weather, the show will go on.
This was the first time I had seen The Winter’s Tale and although I had read a synopsis of the play before hand it wasn’t one I was terribly familiar with...the only quote I could think of from it was the stage direction “Exit pursued by a bear”. Nevertheless my love of Shakespeare took over and I watched eagerly as each scene unfolded. The open air aspect of the theatre really added to the magic and intimacy of the performance and despite the rain gave it a very realistic setting.
For those of you unfamiliar with the play, The Winter’s Tale is one of Shakespeare’s later plays and whilst originally classed as one of the comedies, some have re-categorised it as a romance whilst other critics consider it to be one of the problem plays because of the mixture of intense drama in the first three acts combined with the comedy and happy ending of the final two acts.
The Winter’s Tale tells the story of King Leontes of Sicilia and his childhood friend, King Polixenes of Bohemia. Polixenes has been staying with Leontes as his guest in Sicilia but after 9 months decides to return home. Leontes tries desperately to persuade him to stay but to little effect. He then encourages his wife, Queen Hermione to persuade him. She is successful in carrying out his request but Leontes, puzzled by how easily Hermione persuades Polixenes to stay when he had failed, becomes consumed with jealousy. He believes that Polixenes and Hermione are having an affair and that the child she is carrying is not his but Polixenes. He orders Camillo to poison Polixenes but instead the two of them escape and flee to Bohemia. Hermione is arrested and gives birth prematurely to her daughter whilst in jail. Leontes considers killing the child but instead orders Antigonus to abandon it elsewhere. At her trial Hermione’s innocence is declared by the Oracle who also predicts the death of Leontes son if he doesn’t believe Hermione. Leontes defies the Oracle and then hears news that his son has died. Hermione faints and is reported to be dead. Leontes then promises to mourn his dead wife and son every day for the rest of his life. Meanwhile Antigonus has carried out Leontes’ wishes and abandoned his daughter, Perdita in Bohemia; he is pursued and killed by a bear. Perdita is found with a large sum of money by a shepherd and his son and is taken home raised as one of their family.
Sixteen years pass and in Bohemia, Polixenes and Camillo become aware that Florizel (Polixenes' son) is in love with a shepherdess. In disguise, they attend a sheep-shearing festival and confirm that the young Prince Florizel plans to marry a shepherd's beautiful young daughter (Perdita, who knows nothing of her royal heritage). Polixenes objects to the marriage and threatens the young couple. Eventually, with a bit of help from the comical rogue Autolycus, Perdita's heritage is revealed and she is reunited with her father Leontes. The kings are also reconciled and both approve of Florizel and Perdita's marriage. They all go to visit a statue of Hermione kept by Paulina. Miraculously, the statue comes to life and speaks, appearing to be the real Hermione, who went into hiding to await the fulfilment of the oracle's prophecy and be reunited with her daughter.
Although the Stamford Shakespeare Company is an amateur company, there were many parts I thought were performed to a professional standard. The dancing, choreography and costumes were all excellent and whilst some performances from the cast were slightly underwhelming, it was on the whole a very enjoyable show. I liked the fact that unlike other amateur performances I have seen, the actors were cast in age appropriate roles thereby adding to the credibility of each character and their relationship to each other. There were excellent performances from both actors playing the Kings and the young actors playing Florizel and Perdita also were worthy of a mention.
I did enjoy both the production and the visit to Tolethorpe Hall and hope to return again next season to see further productions. It is a truly beautiful and picturesque setting and is also steeped in history as I found from notes on The Stamford Shakespeare Company Website....
“Tolethorpe was the birthplace, circa 1555, of Robert Browne who became the leading and most active campaigner for the Separatist movement seeking a separate church from the Church of England at the time of Queen Elizabeth I. Also known as the Brownists, Shakespeare referred to the movement in a line in "Twelfth Night" of Sir Andrew Aguecheeck: "I would as lief be a Brownist as a politician".
It was Browne's followers, mainly from Lincolnshire and East Nottinghamshire, who sailed on the Mayflower in 1620 to become the Pilgrim Fathers of America. Their first harvest is commemorated on Thanksgiving Day. Browne could be said to be the Father of the Pilgrim Fathers linking his home, Tolethorpe Hall, with the birth of America. Descendents of the Browne family of Tolethorpe were among the pioneers of the early days of America, especially in Baltimore, Maryland, and Watertown, near Boston, Massachusetts. The names of two of them, Richard and Abraham, Puritans who arrived with Wintrop's fleet in 1630,are recorded on the monument to the pioneers at Watertown. Browne's son, Edward, was one of Lord Baltimore's gentlemen who surveyed Baltimore and the State of Maryland.
The oldest house in America, preserved and open to the public was built in 1698 at Watertown by Abraham Browne, the grandson of the early pioneer, mentioned above. The first shot in the American Revolution which drew British blood was fired by Solomon Browne on Lexington Green in 1775.
The last member of the Browne family to live at Tolethorpe Hall was Countess Mary Pomfret who, died childless in 1839. It was the end of 300 years of the Browne dynasty at Tolethorpe. “
For more information on the Stamford Shakespeare Company and their forthcoming productions, please see http://www.stamfordshakespeare.co.uk/default.asp
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