Oxford Playhouse and the Bodleian Library welcome back Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour from the 16-29 July with three of Shakespeare’s wittiest comedies performed in one of the UK’s most glorious locations. In this unique theatrical event set in the Bodleian’s Old Schools Quadrangle, audiences can experience theatre as it was performed in Shakespeare’s day, with the chance to vote at each performance for which play they’d like to see.
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In a first for Shakespeare’s Globe, a company of eight actors will perform one of three plays each night: The Merchant of Venice, The Taming of the Shrew and Twelfth Night. In-keeping with Elizabethan tradition - and with thrilling unpredictability - the choice of play will be put into the hands of the most powerful members of the house: the audience!
In The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare dramatises the competing claims of tolerance and intolerance, justice and mercy in some of his most highly-charged scenes, while in the character of Shylock he created one of the most memorable outsiders in all theatre.
The Taming of The Shrew, Shakespeare’s outrageous comedy, introduces one of theatre’s great screwball double-acts, a couple hell-bent on confusing and outwitting each other right up to its controversial conclusion.
Filled with a cast of unforgettable characters, Twelfth Night combines cruelty with high comedy and the pangs of unrequited love with some of the subtlest poetry and most exquisite songs Shakespeare ever wrote.
Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour is presented as part of the Playhouse Plays Out programme, which brings theatre to unusual locations across the county. Firmly established as one of Oxford’s annual cultural highlights, this is set to be a truly special experience all round.
Tickets for Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour at the Old Schools Quadrangle start at £10 and are available from the Ticket Office on 01865 305305 or book online at www.oxfordplayhouse.com
