Shakespeare in the Squares Returns With THE TEMPEST

Shakespeare in the Squares today announces their return to London Garden Squares this summer with Shakespeare's The Tempest, in celebration of their fifth anniversary production. In their most ambitious season to date, with venues now reaching north to Camden Square, east to Charterhouse Square, and south to Wandsworth, the production tours 18 squares across London, opening on 21 June at Arundel and Ladbroke Gardens at 7pm, with previews from 15 June, and runs until 8 July.

From 9 performances in the first year to 22 scheduled for 2022, Shakespeare in the Squares is now a central fixture in the calendar of Summer outdoor theatre, with each production tailored to the individual garden squares. The company works with the garden committees and other local organisations to create a unique community celebration around the play.

Founders of Shakespeare in the Squares, Sue Fletcher and Martin Neild, said today "After two years' of Covid-enforced absence, Shakespeare in the Squares is thrilled to be returning with our joyful production of The Tempest. We are so grateful to the garden squares and parks that have kept the faith, and we look forward to bringing them our best show yet."

Patron of Shakespeare in the Squares, Dame Judi Dench says, "When I first heard about Shakespeare in the Squares, my instant reaction was, 'That is a marvellous idea; why hasn't anyone done it before?' To take William Shakespeare, whose timeless plays always have something important to say about the human condition, into idyllic gardens and other iconic spaces, offers a great opportunity to engage new and non-traditional audiences of all ages."

Sioned Jones directs. She is an actress and theatre-maker and has previously performed in A Midsummer Night's Dream for the company. As a director, her credits include Ljubljana Junction (Roborough Studios), Cocktail Conversation, Madame Life, Christmas Presence (Union Theatre), Basket (Edinburgh Fringe Festival) and Expectations (Oval House Theatre). As an actress, her credits include Small Change (Omnibus Theatre), Martha, Josie and The Chinese Elvis (Park Theatre), Bury The Dead (Brickdust Theatre/Finborough Theatre), Lettuce and Lovage (Menier Chocolate Factory), Thirteen, Women Beware Women and All's Well That Ends Well (National Theatre).

A few words from the Director:

The Tempest has been described by some as the perfect Shakespeare play. It has the love story of Romeo and Juliet, the revenge, intrigue and plotting of Richard III and the magic, fantasy, and comedy of A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was the last play Shakespeare wrote solo (1610-11) and many equate Prospero's relinquishing of magic with Shakespeare's farewell to the stage.

For Shakespeare in the Squares' production of The Tempest, I was very keen that the aesthetic of our show should appeal to a contemporary audience and most of all, be entertaining. Unlike many of his plays, The Tempest is not set at a time of war, and by the end, our characters have 'never had it so good'. So we've swapped Classicism for the classic style of the 1950s and an island location summons a tropical beat.

Sioned Jones, London, Spring 2020

Updated note:

When I wrote the Director's note in January 2020, we really had no inkling of the scale and impact a Global Pandemic was about to wreak on all our lives. As we begin to emerge, battered and blinking from the storm of the past two years, The Tempest's themes are more pertinent than ever: We've all experienced being marooned - alone or in 'bubbles' - for what felt like an age, with all the inherent feelings of confusion, isolation, grief, loss, rage and unfairness. Through the Black Lives Matter movement, there have been the beginnings of a reckoning for the colonial legacy of slavery and historically normalised subjugation of others by those with power and privilege.

In The Tempest Shakespeare captures the point in Prospero's life where, having been usurped by his brother and marooned on an island with his daughter for twelve years, Justice and Freedom are at last in sight for him. Prospero wants the wrongs perpetrated to be brought to account. Though he initially seeks vengeance, he is ultimately prompted by Ariel to reconnect with his humanity, choosing forgiveness and love to end the cycle of violence and setting free his servants and relinquishing his Power (magic) so he cannot be further tempted to abuse it.

All this and much more lies at the heart of this piece but after so much darkness, something lighter is needed. It is also time to celebrate our collective humanity and revel in the opportunity of being back in the world together.

Box Office: www.shakespeareinthesquares.co.uk/tickets/

Performances

Leinster Square W2

Wednesday 15 June 7pm

St James's Gardens W11

Thursday 16 June 7pm

Norland Square W11

Friday 17 June 7pm

Queen's Park NW6

Saturday 18 June 2pm and 7pm

Arundel and Ladbroke W11

Press Night: Tuesday 21 June 7pm

Paultons Square SW3

Wednesday 22 June 7pm

Albert Square SW8

Thursday 23 June 7pm

Elgin and Arundel W11

Friday 24 June 7pm

Camden Square NW1

Saturday 25 June 7pm

Little Wormwood Scrubs Park W10

Sunday 26 June 5pm

Cornwall Gardens SW7

Tuesday 28 June 7pm

Charterhouse Square EC1

Wednesday 29 June 7pm

Ladbroke Square W11

Thursday 30 June 7pm

Formosa Garden W9

Friday 1 July 7pm

St Peter's Square W4

Saturday 2 July 7pm

Wandsworth St Anne's Church SW18

Monday 4 July - Tuesday 5 July 7pm

St James's Square SW1

Wednesday 6 July 7pm

Cleveland Square W2

Thursday 7 July - Friday 8 July 7pm

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