William Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale performed in Birkenhead Park _320
A FREE, open-air run of William Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale begins this evening in Birkenhead Park.
It is directed by former Brookside actor Neil Caple and stars Pauline Fleming, best known for her television work including Coronation Street.
It turns out that despite the well- known names, the real stars of the show are dozens of amateur volunteers from the wider community.
The remarkable project, several years in the planning, actually came out of a reading initiative. rather than an established theatre group.
Jane Davis, director of The Reader Organisation, runs a weekly Shakespeare group as one of more than 70 Get Into Reading social outreach groups in the region.
The groups help people with their literacy skills and revive a love of reading. and improve general confidence that can help improve people’s mental health and employment prospects.
Mrs Davis said: "We read Shakespeare in a very open and easy way, not at all like your memories of school, – talking over things we do not understand, trying to make the plays real to ourselves and having a good laugh along the way."
After taking the group on a trip see a Shakespeare play – some had never been to the theatre before – the enthusiasm was so great that plans for a 2008 production were full steam ahead.
Director Caple has moved the action to the 1930s. and aside from Fleming, the cast is made up of volunteers and first-timers doing it all for the love of Shakespeare.
Jen Tomkins of the Reader Organisation said: "There’s been a lot of in-kind help. Birkenhead Sixth Form College gave us somewhere to rehearse and we could borrow some costumes from the Everyman and Playhouse.
"It’s made a significant impact on everyone who has got involved. You can see that already – people who two years ago wouldn’t have read aloud in the reading group are now up on stage."
"There’s been such a camaraderie and support given to them they have all had the confidence to get up there."
Performances of The Winter’s Tale will be in the open air at Birkenhead Park tonight at 7.30pm, tomorrow (Friday) at 2pm and 7.30pm, and Saturday at 2pm and 7.30pm.
Tickets are free and can be obtained from Birkenhead Park Pavilion (Mon to Fri, 10am – 4pm), or from the Reader Organisation directly on 0151 794 3849.
Audience members are advised to bring warm clothes and something to sit on, as well as food and drink if they wish to picnic.
