Twelfth Night: A Cornish Tale
Twelfth Night: A Cornish Tale
Twelfth Night: A Cornish Tale
June 21 - July 7, 2024
Tickets from just £23.00
Starring SEANN WALSH, NATALIE ANDERSON and BAFTA Winner MOLLY WINDSOR. Sponsored by Staffordshire University, more cast announcements coming soon.
‘If music be the food of love, play on…’
Stafford Shakespeare is proud to present TWELFTH NIGHT: A Cornish Tale at the Gatehouse Theatre.
What’s it all about? Well, it’s a tale of a shipwreck, mistaken identity, girls pretending to be boys, genuine love, unrequited love, drinking, marriage, confusion, a love triangle and . . . well, we can’t give the ending away, can we?
Set in 1960s Cornwall, this vivid production will conjure up childhood memories of visits to Britain’s most beautiful coastline; beaches, fishing villages, costumes and music to match.
It’s a feast for the eyes and ears – and that’s before The Bard’s superb story-telling gets into its stride.
Twists, turns, sight gags, word-play – and some of Shakespeare’s most loved lines all add to this being a production that will leave you longing for more.
And probably another trip down to Cornwall.
The story in brief
Viola finds herself shipwrecked on the island of Illyria.
For protection, she disguises herself as a young man, Cesario, and enters the service of Duke Orsino to deliver love letters to Countess Olivia.
Amid a tangle of mistaken identities and passions, Olivia falls for Cesario, whose heart belongs to Orsino, who is still smitten with Olivia.
When Viola’s twin brother appears, complications peak and the laughter starts to rise like an incoming tide.
Packed with hilarious scenes and some of Shakespeare’s most memorable lines, this production will enthral audiences of all ages.
For long-term fans and newcomers alike, this age-old story has stood the test of time for good reason.
Don’t miss it!
‘Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon ’em.’
(Malvolio, Act 2 Scene 5)
SEANN WALSH
Seann will take on the role of Malvolio.
Described as ‘the best observational comedian of his generation’ (The Guardian), this Edinburgh Award nominee has been touring Back From The Bed throughout 2023 and 2024. His previous tour show After This One, I’m Going Home ended with standing ovations around the country.
Seann has appeared on Live At The Apollo, Michael McIntyre’s The Wheel, 8 Out of 10 Cats, The Last Leg, The Stand Up Sketch Show, Alan Davies’: As Yet Untitled, World’s Most Dangerous Roads, Battle In The Box and Series 22 of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here, where he placed fifth.
Seann can also be heard on his regular podcasts What’s Upset You Now, alongside co-host Paul McCaffrey and Oh My Dog with Jack Dee, where they interview a special guest all about their relationships with their beloved dogs.
You can catch Seann’s stand-up special Kiss on his YouTube channel. Recorded live at the Bill Murray pub, Seann recounts living through the centre of a media storm in his distinctively shambolic, intense and energetic trademark style.
Seann’s acting credits include The Lovebox In Your Living Room, Clown, and The Bystanders which won him the award for Best Actor in a feature film at the 2023 Sydney Science Fiction Film Festival.
This will be Seann’s Shakespearean debut and he said: ‘It is my extreme pleasure to be joining this wonderful cast and playing this legendary comic character in arguably Shakespeare’s funniest play.’
TWELFTH NIGHT: A Cornish Tale producer Mike Groves said: ‘I’m ecstatic about how this cast is coming together and developing our project. Seann is a real talent for us which will continue our work at showing how relatable and easy to understand Shakespeare really is.’
Director Sean Turner added: ‘Seann’s singular comic talents are perfectly suited to this role. I can’t wait to see what fun we can dream up together with this most crowd-pleasing of characters.’
Gatehouse Theatre general manager Gary Stevens said: ‘We are absolutely thrilled to have Seann join us in Stafford this summer.
‘He’s a perfect fit for the role of Malvolio and I can’t wait to see his natural humour mixed in with Shakespeare’s comedy writing. There’s going to be laughs galore, that’s for sure.’
MOLLY WINDSOR
Molly will take on the role of Viola.
She is best known for her roles in the 2009 Channel 4 film The Unloved (2009) and the 2017 BBC miniseries Three Girls (2017), about the Rochdale child grooming scandal.
It was for that role that she won the 2018 BAFTA TV Award for Best Actress.
In 2017, Molly was also named as a BAFTA Breakthrough Brit, one of the 20 members of the prestigious group from the film, television and gaming industries.
She has also starred in hit BBC One series Traces (with Martin Compston), War of the Worlds (with Gabriel Byrne and Elizabeth McGovern) and prime-time ITV drama Cheat.
TWELFTH NIGHT: A Cornish Tale director Sean Turner said: ‘Molly is one of the most exciting acting talents I have ever come across, I am thrilled to be finally working with her, and on one of Shakespeare’s most complex and endearing roles.’
Producer Mike Groves said: ‘Molly is an exciting up-and-coming artist and I’m very pleased she has accepted the role of Viola. We are very lucky to have attracted a talent such as Molly to Stafford Shakespeare.’
Gatehouse general manager Gary Stevens said: ‘We are absolutely thrilled to have Molly join us in Stafford this summer.
‘She is very, very highly regarded in the industry and winning a BAFTA at such a young age just goes to show how prodigious her talent is.’
NATALIE ANDERSON
Natalie will take on the role of Olivia.
She recently played Claire Walker, who met an untimely end in the hit Netflix drama FOOL ME ONCE, starring Michelle Keegan.
She has also featured in critically-acclaimed BBC shows including HAPPY VALLEY and last year’s Stephen Graham drama BOILING POINT, as well as earlier roles in THE ROYAL (ITV) and EMMERDALE (ITV). In 2021 she appeared in the Liam Neeson action film MEMORY, which also starred Guy Pearce.
She said: ‘I’m thrilled to be joining the Stafford Shakespeare company at the Gatehouse Theatre this summer and can’t wait to take on the wonderful role of Olivia in one of Shakespeare’s greatest plays, ‘Twelfth Night’.’
The annual Stafford Shakespeare production has been a highlight of the county’s cultural calendar since 1991 and last year’s A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM attracted a record audience for a drama show at the Gatehouse.
General Manager Gary Stevens said: ‘We are delighted to have Natalie join the cast. It shows again just how prestigious the production is.’
EVOLUTION OF FISHERMEN
We are delighted to announce that Sam Lightfoot-Loftus and Lucinda Freeburn will be returning to Stafford Shakespeare for this year’s production, TWELFTH NIGHT: A Cornish Tale.
They played Cobweb and Peaseblossom in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM last year.
Sam will play the Sea Captain (and understudy for Sebastian and Aguecheeck) and Lucinda will be part of the ensemble (and understudy for Viola and Olivia).
In addition, we have Loris Scarpa joining the ensemble and be the understudy for Feste and Malvolio.
Together, they are three members of the musical band Evolution of Fishermen, which will be providing the originally-composed foot-stomping Cornish folk music that will support this production.
The band are unusual in that they are made up of actor-musicians.
Producer Mike Groves said: ‘For me, it’s always great to have people return to us, as it shows that they’ve enjoyed the previous experience.’
Take a look at the band in action here.
Various
£24, £23, £27, £28, £32
Dates, Times & Book
Stafford Gatehouse Theatre
If music be the food of love, play on
Better a witty fool than a foolish wit
Some are born great, some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon 'em.
