Nell Gwynn – Storyhouse in the Park

A Co production between Theatre by the Lake, Shakespeare North and Storyhouse, Nell Gwynn has arrived to finish off the summer season at Storyhouse in the Park this year in its final venue.

Nell Gwynn tells the story of an orange seller who meets theatre manager Thomas Killigrew (Adam Clifford) who is willing to take a chance on her and train her to become an actress, something which is very rare of the time. During her time as an actress, she becomes very famous and people come to see her, including the then king, King Charles 2^nd. Gwynn and King Charles start an arrangement where he pays her to be around, gives her a place to live, a carriage, clothing and that arrangement eventually turns in to love where they shared two children.

We are introduced to the players at the playhouse who are made up of Edward Kynaston (Stanton Wright), Ned Spigget (Burhan Kathawala), Charles Hart (Elliot Harper), writer John Dryden (Jamie Ross) and stage hand Nancy (Sufia Manya).

Many of the scenes take place on stage and backstage at the playhouse where we get to know the people at the playhouse and their characters throughout the piece.

Wright is extremely witty as Kynaston, adding a lot of humour and flare to the character, very likeable. Ross as Dryden delivers a very assured performance and the character is upbeat and adds a lot of light to the scenes. Manya as well as playing Nancy also plays Queen Catherine and Old Ma Gwynn and the speed in which she changes costumes and characters are to be commended, each character big and bold and played to perfection.

Celia Cruwys-Finnigan brings us Rose Gwynn, Lady Castlemaine and Louise de Keroualle and again must be commended with the speed of costume changes and characters, adding much humour to what seemed to be a pretty serious piece.

Rose Shalloo brings Nell Gwynn to life and looks the part with some great humour, a lovely voice and delivers a lovely story but I personally felt there wasn’t quite enough grit and attitude to the character. From what was being told in the story, I felt she was a little too timid and nice for what she’s been through, which could have been a directorial decision but felt I needed a little more. Shalloo also wore a quite distracting large microphone on her cheek which was barely used throughout and didn’t help at times when the character actually needed to be heard which was a real shame.

Guy Charles gave us a great King Charles 2^nd, oozing with charm and wit and winning everyone over.

The set by Jess Curtis was minimal and left us to use our imagination a lot throughout. Costumes were wonderful and perfectly fitting for the time. Lighting was simple but effective and worked well with what is available in the space.

It must be difficult moving a show to different sites, but I found there were times when the main action in the centre of the stage was blocked by other cast members. I also felt, as with the other productions that have been in the park this summer, there was a lack of audience interaction, even to the point of very little eye contact which I felt that in such an intimate space it makes the audience feel less included and I didn’t feel drawn in.

This production does feel rather long and it didn’t teach me enough about Nell Gwynn and more about the men that surrounded her sadly. Maybe that was the point, but I felt it just missed the mark there.

The show moved along at a nice pace with no major flaws just some smaller issues which caused a disconnect for me.

I must make a special mention to all the staff and volunteers at Storyhouse in the Park who are extremely welcoming and do everything within their power to ensure each and every person on that site have an enjoyable, safe time.

Nell Gwynn runs at Storyhouse in the Park at Chester Grosvenor Park until Sunday 6^th September 2026 with tickets available at www.storyhouse.com

Reviewer: Damian Riverol

Reviewed: 25^th August 2026

North West End UK Rating: