Theatre by the Lake Archives - North West End UK

25Nov

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Wizard of Oz – Theatre by the Lake

Following the A66 to Keswick leads to the start of a magical journey along the Yellow Brick Road at Theatre by the Lake this festive season. The set is simple and beautiful. The opening scene with the full moon over the Lakeland fells with a storm brewing. This ain’t Kansas, but it is a beautiful retelling of Dorothy’s adventures with the scarecrow, tin man and lion. Sonia Jalaly’s production, based on L Frank Baum’s classic this is a beautiful retelling that has something for all ages. After moving from London to Keswick, to live with her Aunt Em, Uncle Henry and cousin Rosie, Dorthy wants to run back to her old home. However, she ends up in the land of Oz, where she meets the brilliant Munchkins. This is where the magic kicks in. With the looks, costumes, fun and drama of Elt...

Di and Viv and Rose – Theatre by the Lake

24Sep

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Di and Viv and Rose – Theatre by the Lake

I was transported back to the 1980s and student life in a northern town at Theatre by the Lake in Keswick through Amelia Bullmore’s play Di and Viv and Rose. A story of three girls who meet for the first time in their student halls of residence, this play captures their lives and friendship over the following three decades. The minimal set brought back to life the decade of the gettoblaster, bright sportswear, and a time when students had grants and no free tuition. The three very different characters - Di, a working-class, northern lesbian, Rose, a middle-class, innocent and yet promiscuous southerner, and the more mysterious Viv, a feminist whose wardrobe came from the 1940s, and who was determined to work her way to the top of academia. This funny and moving play takes us...

27Jun

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Noises Off – Theatre by the Lake

The summer season is underway in the Lake District, and Theatre by the Lake is attracting many tourists to see a farce about a farce that wouldn’t have looked out of place in an end-of-pier theatre. Noises Off, in some ways, is the mother of the hugely successful ‘Play that went wrong’ productions that are taking the West End and TV by storm. Written in 1982 by Michael Frayn, it breaks the fourth wall and literally turns the theatre 180 degrees to present the behind-the-curtain tale of a touring theatre company. Though written in the 1980s, this farce has a much earlier feel to it, and some of the references may be lost on a younger audience. A telephone plugged into the wall is a key part of the production, as is the stereotype of the alcoholic old actor and the Benny Hill-style you...

12Apr

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

King Arthur – Theatre by the Lake

The best of British comedy and tales brings joy to Keswick’s Theatre by the Lake as Le Navel Bete rides into town with their hilarious performance of King Arthur. The trio bring the untold story of how the legend of King Arthur and his Camelot was born with the very best of physical comedy. The Lake District theatre audiences will be familiar with the work of writer and director John Nicholson who has teamed up with Le Navel Bete. Nicholson brought a very unique and comic production of Hound of the Baskervilles to Theatre by the Lake last year. Those who love this style of silliness and insider perspective to a production will not be disappointed by King Arthur. The opening scene sets the tone and high bar for the comedy to follow. The three actors are in the stocks for treason...

The Hound of the Baskervilles – Theatre by the Lake

17Aug

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

The Hound of the Baskervilles – Theatre by the Lake

The audience at Theatre by the Lake are howling with delight at the new production of the Sherlock Holmes classic The Hound of the Baskervilles, writes Karen Morley-Chesworth. This three-person production is a complete retake on the detective novel by Arthur Conan Doyle. The fourth wall isn’t broken, it is demolished in this hilarious retelling of the popular tale. Adapted by Steven Canny and John Nicholson, this hit West End production captures all the elements of British comedy - farce, physical humour and clever witty lines. This is a fast moving play that all the family can enjoy together. Sherlock is called in to investigate the death of Sir Charles Baskerville, who died on the moors, after what is believed to have been an attack by a giant dog. Sir Henry has inherited the ti...

8Jul

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Brassed Off – Theatre by the Lake

Music is a universal language, and it has been at the heart of many working class, Northern communities for generations. And audiences at Theatre by the Lake get the privilege this month of hearing and feeling how brass band music welded people together, gave them strength and pride. The stage adaptation of the hit film Brassed Off blasts into the Keswick theatre and touches the soul. The actors who have come together for this production, in association with the Octagon Theatre Bolton, and Stephen Joseph Theatre, are more than triple threats, they are triplet blowing brass players, who blend seamlessly in with local bans people from Penrith Town Band. The bandsmen and women give a great musical and acting performance in this production. The story of the ballot on whether to tak...

7May

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Northanger Abbey – Theatre by the Lake

From the novel by Jane Austen comes a play by Zoe Cooper that brings 21st century humour and gender politics to the original early 19th century text, writes Karen Morley-Chesworth. With interaction with the audience, breaking down the fourth wall as well as a number of taboos that would have made Miss Austen blush, this production opens with lively style. Rebecca Banatvala as Cath, the heroin of this and her own story commands the piece with gusto. Banatvala is the powerhouse of this production, which is anything but your expected adaptation of an Austen novel. AK Golding and Sam Newton play a number of different roles that create Cath’s world – her parents, the neighbours who take her to Bath for the season and the first love of her life, Hen and her new found female friend Iz. ...

Little Shop of Horrors – Theatre by the Lake, Keswick

2Apr

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Little Shop of Horrors – Theatre by the Lake, Keswick

The atmosphere in the main house at Theatre by the Lake is electrifying as Audrey Two takes centre stage for this energetic and magical production of the classic Little Shop of Horrors, writes Karen Morley-Chesworth. The set designers need a shout out for their adaptable New York florist shop on Skid Row. The cast are really versatile and first class – quadruple threats of acting, singing, dancing and musicians. Opening this musical extravaganza is the trio of Chiffon, Crystal and Ronnette played by Janna May, Zweyla Mitchell dos Santos, and Chardai Shaw play along with the house band, Migdalia van der Hoven on Drums with Musical Director, Gabrielle Ball. The production hits the ground running, and it doesn’t disappoint. Oliver Mawdsley as the central character, orphan Seymour who...

School for Scandal – Theatre By The Lake

19Mar

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

School for Scandal – Theatre By The Lake

Style with great content arrived at Keswick's Theatre by the Lake as Tilted Wig brings School for Scandal to the main auditorium, writes Karen Molrey-Chesworth. This adaptation of RB Sheridan's comedy of scandal and gossip, written in 1777, is now set in the late 1950's early 1960s. And the costume department has really taken the brief and run with it. The styling of this production is second to none. The stage is set with three plinths holding three telephones, that are integrated into the spreading of society gossip. The luxurious deep red tones of the set create the background glamour to this high society tale. Sir Peter Teazle has recently married, after a long life as a dedicated bachelor. His new wide is the social climbing, money-motivated Lady Teazle. Joseph Marcell ...

23Nov

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

A Little Princess – Theatre by the Lake

The retelling of a classic children's story provides the perfect family production for Christmas at Theatre by the Lake in Keswick. The World Premiere of A Little Princess at the Lake District theatre brings to life the magic of storytelling that touches the heart with the highs and lows of Sara Crewe's young life - the daughter of a British Army Captain and a low-cast Indian woman during the time of the uprising against Colonial rule. When Sara is brought to Lancashire, England for her education, the story of her life changes forever. The original Frances Hodgson Burnett novel set in 1901 glamourises the British Empire, as we discovered in an interesting exhibition about the production in the first-floor bar and gallery space. However, Amanda Dalton's adaptation is set in 1...