The production begins at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds on 13 October, with press night at The Old Library Colchester on 18 October, and tours to a further 21 venues.
HighTide has revealed full casting for the upcoming tour of Ghost Stories By Candlelight, Elayce Ismail directs Katie Cherry (Sara and Izzy), Elizabeth Crarer (Natalie and Mary) and Loren O’Dair (Balladeer) in this modern twist on the genre.
Written by Kelly Jones, Shamser Sinha and Nicola Werenowska with music and songs composed by Georgia Shackleton the production begins at Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds on 13 October, with press night at The Old Library Colchester on 18 October, and tours to a further 21 venues including many non-traditional theatre spaces in the East of England. The production will also run at Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe from 23 – 25 November.
A HighTide production, in association with Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds, Harlow Playhouse and Shakespeare’s Globe
GHOST STORIES BY CANDLELIGHT
Written by Kelly Jones, Shamser Sinha and Nicola Werenowska
With music and songs composed by Georgia Shackleton
East of England tour
13 October – 12 November at various times
Press Night: Wednesday 18 October, The Old Library, Colchester
Cast: Katie Cherry (Sara and Izzy), Elizabeth Crarer (Natalie and Mary) and Loren O’Dair (Balladeer)
Directed by Elayce Ismail; Designed by: Charlotte Henery; Lighting Consultant: Andy Purves; Design Assistant: Lauren Connolly; Wildlife and Folklore Consultant: Lora Aziz; Dramaturg: Clare Slater; Production and Stage Manager: Mitch Donaldson; Associate Producer: Karen Goddard
A sea mist descends.
The hound howls.
Sodium streetlights twitch.
A falcon soars above, on the hunt.
Gather close for a candlelit evening of chilling, contemporary tales, and haunting new folk music from the ‘Witch Counties’ of East Anglia. What happens when the ghosts of the past creep up on us today?
“A welcome reminder of how intimate and ambitious theatre can be.”
The Stage on HighTide’s previous shows
Ghost Stories by Candlelight is supported using public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England, generously supported by East Suffolk Council, and sponsored by Adnams.
Kelly Jones’s theatre credits include When You See Me (Scottee and Friends), BUMP (New Wolsey Theatre), Room to Escape (BBC Arts), Comma (Sherman Theatre), Garden Paradiso (Mercury Theatre), The People’s Platform (Common Wealth Theatre).
Shamser Sinha’s theatre credits include Our White Skoda Octavia (Eastern Angles, Derby Theatre and UK tour), Three Sat Under the Bunyan Tree (Polka Theatre, Tara Theatre and UK tour), Khadija is 18 (Finborough Theatre) and The Dissidents (Kiln Theatre Young Company).
Nicola Werenowska’s theatre credits include The Secret Garden (Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds), The Paradis Files (Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, UK tour), Silence and Hidden (Mercury Theatre Colchester, tour), Guesthouse (Sir John Mills Theatre, Ipswich, East of England tour) and Tu I Teraz (Hampstead Theatre, tour).
Georgia Shackleton is a folk singer and musician who specialises in working with traditional material from East Anglia. Her self-penned songs and traditional re-workings achieving national radio play on BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 4, BBC 6 music and a BBC 3 live session.
Elizabeth Crarer plays Natalie and Mary. Her theatre credits include The Tempest (Wiltshire Creative), The Snow Queen, Lark Rise to Candleford (Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Insane Root Theatre), The Ballad of Maria Marten (Eastern Angles, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough),Macbeth, Matilda the Empress (Rabble Theatre Company), When the Rain Stops Falling (Old Fire Station, Oxford), Shakespeare Undone (Natural Theatre Company), The Temples of Minerva (Butterfly Psyche), Bronte, Hamlet, Othello (The Watermill Theatre), Emily: the making of a militant (Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds) The Disappearance of Sadie Jones (Bike Shed Theatre), Aunt (Th Royal Exchange), Breakfast at Tiffany’s (Theatre Royal Haymarket), The Applecartand The Browning Version (Theatre Royal Bath).
Katie Cherry plays Sara and Izzy. She recently graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) and trained with the National Youth Theatre. This marks her professional stage debut. Her film credits include Hamlet, and NW5.
Loren O’Dair is the Balladeer. Her theatre credits include The Tempest (Pleasance Theatre), The Wind in the Willows (Queen’s Hall Arts Centre), The Prince and the Pauper (The Watermill Theatre), Peter Pan (Troubadour Theatre), Alice in Wonderland (Stephen Joesph Theatre), 84 Charing Cross Road, Ghost Stories, Hamlet, Othello (UK tours), The Grinning Man (Trafalgar Studios), King Lear (Shakespeare’s Globe), Made in Dagenham (Queen’s Theatre, New Wolsey Theatre), The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Romeo and Juliet (US tours), Joan (Derby Theatre), Once (Phoenix Theatre), The Jungle Book (Citizens Theatre), The Johnny Eck and Dave Toole Show (West Yorkshire Playhouse), A Christmas Carol (New Vic), Dream (RSC), Still Waiting (Battersea Arts Centre), Robin Hood (The Dukes, Lancaster), Celebrity Night at Café Red (Trafalgar Theatre), Dick Turpin’s Last Ride (Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds), Ur-Hamlet, The Marriage of Medea (Odin Teatret), Sexting the Cherry (Southbank Centre), Before I Sleep (Brighton Festival), and The Fence (Birmingham Rep). Her television credits include Rellik; and for film Exit Medea, The Deathless Woman, and The Contract.
Elayce Ismail has previously worked with HighTide directing Girls (Aldeburgh Festival, Soho Theatre, UK tour). Her theatre credits include Calvino Nights (Minack Theatre), Love and Other Acts of Violence (Donmar Warehouse), Shedding a Skin (Soho Theatre), Nanjing (Shakespeare’s Globe), Under Milk Wood, The War of the Worlds (Northern Stage), Stay Another Song (Young Vic). Her opera credits include 4:48 Psychosis I (Paris Philharmonic), Our Dark Side and The Moon (Royal Opera House), They Whisper Don’t Gaze at the Stars… (English National Opera) and for film, Nanjing, AMAZON, and Simone.
GHOST STORIES BY CANDLELIGHT
Friday 13 October
Box office: 01284 769505 / https://theatreroyal.org/
Saturday 14 October
Tel: 01206 282931 / https://ipswich.cimuseums.org.uk/visit/christchurch-mansion/
Tuesday 17 October
Box office: 01728 832189 / https://www.longshopmuseum.co.uk/
Wednesday 18 October
Box office: 01206 573948 / https://mercurytheatre.co.uk/
Thursday 19 October
Box office: 01603 877177 / https://nationalcentreforwriting.org.uk/
Friday 20 October
Tel: 01394 279613 / http://twosistersarts.co.uk/
Saturday 21 October
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Tuesday 24 October
Box office: 01502 289726 / https://theseagull.co.uk/
Wednesday 25 October
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Thursday 26 October
Box office: 01223 511511 / https://www.junction.co.uk/
Friday 27 October
Box office: 01493 331484 / https://www.stgeorgestheatre.com/
Saturday 28 October matinee
Tel: 01603493625 / https://norfolk-museums.arttickets.org.uk/ancient-house
Tuesday 31 October
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Wednesday 1 November
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Friday 3 November, 7pm
Tel: 01375 891592 / https://www.yeoldeploughhouse.co.uk/
Friday 10 November
Tel: 01394 450282 / https://froize.co.uk/product/ghost-stories-by-candlelight-friday-10th-november-2023/
Thursday 2 November
Box office: 01553 764864 / https://kingslynncornexchange.co.uk/
Saturday 4 November
Box office: 01263 822347 / https://sheringhamlittletheatre.com/
Wednesday 8 November
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Thursday 9 November
Box office: 01328 710885 / https://www.wellsmaltings.org.uk/
Saturday 11 November
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Sunday 12 November
Tickets available through HighTide / https://hightide.org.uk/
Thursday 23 – Sunday 25 November
Box office: 020 7401 9919 / https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/
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