Best outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire this summer

The Lord Chamberlain's Men: As You Like It

Outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire

Blankets and fold-up chairs at the ready; Oxfordshire is awash with outdoor theatre this summer. From light-hearted kid-friendly shows to popular classics that pack a punch, you’ve got plenty of outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire to pick from this year. Welcome to your concise guide to outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire for Summer 2022.


  • The Oxford Shakespeare Festival 2023

    The Oxford Shakespeare Festival 2023

    When: 19 June to 12 August
    Where: Oxford Castle & Prison

    The Oxford Shakespeare Festival is back for its 13th year! This outdoor theatre experience that takes place in the castle yard of Oxford Castle & Prison will see Wild Goose Theatre, BMH Productions, and Siege Theatre will be putting on marvellous performances of Shakespeare’s finest classics.

    Read more: The Oxford Shakespeare Festival 2023

    • Much Ado About Nothing with Queens Park Arts Centre

      Much Ado About Nothing with Queens Park Arts Centre

      When: 23 July
      Where: Waddesdon Manor

      Queens Park Arts Centre’s Unbound Theatre present its latest Shakespeare tour, bringing the Bard’s work to audiences across Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire. This brand-new production of Shakespeare’s iconic comedy is perfect for fans of the Bard as well as those a bit suspicious of Shakespeare.

      Buy tickets Read more: Much Ado About Nothing with Queens Park Arts Centre

      • Waterperry Opera Festival 2023

        Waterperry Opera Festival 2023

        When: 11 to 20 August
        Where: Waterperry Gardens

        2023 is a momentous year for the Waterperry Opera Festival, with eight productions this summer, including revivals of the critically acclaimed productions of Mansfield Park (Dove) and Peter Rabbit’s Musical Adventures (Haydn/Potter). Headlining the festival are brand new productions of Carmen (Bizet) and WOF’s first double-bill, Acis and Galatea (Handel) / Dido and Aeneas (Purcell). These are not to be missed.

        Buy tickets Read more: Waterperry Opera Festival 2023
        Summer art season at Berrybank Amphitheatre - the first-ever 500-seater Amphitheatre in Cotswolds to open

        Summer at the Amphitheatre at Berrybank Park

        14 June to 04 September
        Amphitheatre at Berrybank Park

        The Amphitheatre in Cotswolds will be home to an exciting new performing arts season from 14 June to 04 September. A rich and varied programme will launch the first-ever Cotswold Comedy Festival. Expect Jazz, Opera, Broadway and West End music, Outdoor Cinema, Family Events, Cabaret, and the Real Garden Festival – a day of outdoor discovery, ecology and music.

        And with Shakespeare on bicycles, Illyria Outdoor Theatre’s flying Peter Pan and Opera Anywhere’s sing-along Pirates of Penzance, Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour’s production of Julius Caesar, along with The HandelBards’ bicycle-powered Twelfth Night and an exciting new version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by The Duke’s Theatre Company later in the season, there’ll be something for everyone to enjoy.

        Find out more

        Discover more: Amphitheatre at Berrybank Park

        The Three Musketeers at Oxford Castle & Prison

        The Three Musketeers

        16 & 17 June
        Oxford Castle & Prison

        First up at the Oxford Prison & Castle, Morgan & West present The Three Musketeers – A whimsy, wit, and (s)wordplay for the whole family. Sharpen your swords, lace up your boots, and stick a great big feather in your hat for this fun-for-all-the-family retelling of Alexandre Dumas’ novel.

        Can the marvellous Musketeers retrieve the Queen’s prize diamonds? Will the nefarious Cardinal Richelieu get away with his dastardly scheme? Can three actors play fifteen characters in just about an hour?

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Oxford Castle & Prison

        Much Ado About Murder at Wroxton Abbey

        Much Ado About Murder

        22 June
        Wroxton Abbey, Banbury

        Wander amongst the grottos, lawns and woodlands surrounding this stunning Jacobean manor house – the perfect setting for a murder mystery! This original murder mystery will set five suspects under the spotlight, and we will depend on the audience to find answers.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Wroxton Abbey

        The Lord Chamberlain's Men: As You Like It - 01

        The Lord Chamberlain’s Men: As You Like It

        23 June
        Waddesdon Manor, Aylesbury

        The Lord Chamberlain’s Men – the all-male company with a history stretching back to William Shakespeare himself – invite you to join them this summer for the sparkling comedy, As You Like It, at Waddesdon Manor.

        One of the UK’s finest touring theatre companies presents this great play as Shakespeare first saw it performed – in the open air, by an all-male cast and with Elizabethan costumes, music and dance.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Waterperry Gardens

        A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Cogges Manor Farm

        A Midsummer Night’s Dream

        23, 24, 30 June & 01 July
        Cogges Manor Farm, Witney

        This popular comedy by Shakespeare focuses on magical mischief in the woods outside Athens as the King and Queen of the fairies cross paths whilst waiting to attend Duke Theseus’s wedding to Hippolyta. Add to this some run-away lovers, rehearsals for a play to be performed at the duke’s wedding and an ass, and you have the ingredients for a delightful evening of fun.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Cogges Manor Farm, Witney

        The Lord Chamberlain’s Men – the all-male company with a history stretching back to William Shakespeare himself – invite you to join them this summer for the sparkling comedy, As You Like It, at Waddesdon Manor.

        One of the UK’s finest touring theatre companies presents this great play as Shakespeare first saw it performed – in the open air, by an all-male cast and with Elizabethan costumes, music and dance.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Cogges Manor Farm, Witney

        Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour: Julius Caesar / What’s on in Oxford and across Oxfordshire this July / The Oxford Magazine

        Shakespeare’s Globe on Tour: Julius Caesar

        19 to 24 July
        Magdalen College School

        Conspiracy to kill, public broadcast of cunning rhetoric, a divisive fight for greatness – Shakespeare’s Globe and award-winning Director Diane Page bring this startlingly relevant new production of the epic tragedy Julius Caesar to Oxford this summer. Ancient Rome has never felt closer.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Magdalen College School

        Oxford Theatre Guild: The Tempest

        Oxford Theatre Guild: The Tempest

        19 to 30 July
        Oxford University Parks

        Oxford Theatre Guild is delighted to be back in the University Parks for their 2022 outdoor performances of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Witness the enchanted world of Prospera, Caliban, Ariel and Miranda in a natural outdoor setting in the Oxford University Parks.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Discover more: Oxford University Parks

        Rapunzel at Waterperry Gardens

        Rapunzel at Waterperry Gardens

        30 July
        Waterperry Gardens

        Escape into the open-air this Summer with Rapunzel – an exhilarating, heart-warming production about one girl’s longing to break free from her imposed lockdown and explore the world outside. With wicked witches, lovable trolls, a fairytale Prince and miles of golden hair, Rapunzel is the perfect breath of fresh air for all ages.

        Find out more Book tickets

        The Three Musketeers at Waterperry Gardens

        The Three Musketeers

        06 August
        Waterperry Gardens

        Pack up a picnic, a low-backed chair or blanket and join Boxtree Productions in the open air for this show. This family-friendly musical will be an incredible mix of adventure, magical music, comical characters and swashbuckling sword fights.

        Find out more Book tickets

        David Walliams’ Awful Auntie at Cornbury Park and Heath Farm Holiday Cottages

        David Walliams’ Awful Auntie at Cornbury Park

        10 August
        Cornbury Park, Charlbury

        Awful Auntie by David Walliams, adapted for the outdoor stage by Heartbreak Productions, is a truly thrilling tale. Owls, ghosts, chases, escapes, motorcycle rides, and tiddlywinks fill Stella’s days as she evades her menacing Aunt and saves the family home.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Also on at Heath Farm Holiday Cottages on 11 August (view event)

        Opera Anywhere’s HMS Pinafore at Heath Farm & St Mary the Virgin, Long Wittenham

        Opera Anywhere’s HMS Pinafore at Heath Farm

        13 & 14 August
        Heath Farm Holiday Cottages

        This is a tale of mismatched love across different social classes. Josephine is the captain’s daughter and has fallen for lowly sailor Ralph. Yet her father has other ideas – he has promised her to Sir Joseph Porter, the First Lord of the Admiralty. Will love prevail? Climb aboard to find out, and enjoy a feast of fun along the way. Hip hip, hooray!

        Find out more Buy tickets

        Discover more: Heath Farm Holiday Cottages

        The Pirates of Penzance at Cogges Manor Farm / Outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire

        The Pirates of Penzance

        23 August
        Cogges Manor Farm, Witney

        The award-winning outdoor theatre company Illyria is re-staging their much-loved production of The Pirates of Penzance at Cogges Manor Farm. Packed with memorable and well-known Gilbert and Sullivan songs, it promises a unique blend of comedy, melodrama, and glittering wit.

        Find out more Book tickets

        The Duke’s Theatre Company: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

        The Duke’s Theatre Company: A Midsummer Night’s Dream

        25 & 26 August
        Broughton Castle, Banbury

        “The course of true love never did run smooth”. This new, ambitious production by The Duke’s Theatre Company for Summer 2022, with live music, stunning design and theatrical magic, promises to delight audiences with Shakespeare’s most comic and celebrated fairy tale.

        Find out more Book tickets

        Also on at The Amphitheatre at Berrybank Park on Wednesday 24 August, and New Barn Farm (Ditchey Estate), Chalbury on Thursday 27 and Friday 28 August

        The post Best outdoor theatre in Oxfordshire this summer appeared first on The Oxford Magazine.



        from The Oxford Magazine https://ift.tt/Z8eP6mw
        via IFTTT

Comments