Celebrating its 10 year anniversary this summer, The Lord Chamberlain's Men will tour a production of Romeo and Juliet around the UK and Europe from 10 June - 29 September 2014. The foremost open-air Shakespeare touring company in the UK performs to over 40,000 people annually without any public or corporate financial support.
On being given permission directly from the Lord Chamberlain at Buckingham Palace, Producer Mark Puddle joined with seven young actors to follow in the footsteps of the original Lord Chamberlain's Men; the troupe of travelling players which William Shakespeare worked with for most of his career. Since The Lord Chamberlain's Menfirst toured the UK with their inaugural production of Macbeth, the last ten years have seen the company travel over 100,000 miles, to over 200 venues in seven different countries, performing over 1000 shows to more than 275,000 people.
Today, The Lord Chamberlain's Men perform Shakespeare's plays, with an all-male cast of actor-musicians, in full Elizabethan costume, in numerous outdoor locations across the UK. Following the same principles that Shakespeare himself championed, The Lord Chamberlain's Men combine clear, bold and dynamic storytelling with music, songs and comedy in every performance. The touring cast are responsible for set construction, costume maintenance and transportation from venue to venue.
Mark Puddle, Producer of The Lord Chamberlain's Men said:
"In our first years we toured to a handful of venues. Today we now play to capacity audiences at some of the most beautiful and historically important venues in the country however our core goal remains exactly the same: to bring simple, concise and clear storytelling to our audiences."
The Lord Chamberlain's Men also offer a series of matinee performances for schools across its season. These performances are followed by a post-show question and answer session with the Company. The school matinee program also provides a valuable teaching resource for students to gain a greater insight into the plays, history and Shakespeare himself.
Mark Puddle also created and runs Westend Stage, the UK's first West End summer school. Over the past eight years, Westend Stage has become Europe's premier performing arts summer school for young people. Broadway Stage, the New York equivalent of Westend Stage, will launch in 2016.
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