Split Second Productions will return to Gloucestershire’s Berkeley Castle in summer 2017 with a new open-air Shakespeare double bill of Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Much Ado About Nothing, set during World War II, will follow Benedick, Claudio and a band of returning soldiers as they visit the Duke of Messina and quickly fall head over heels for the Duke’s daughter, Hero and his niece, Beatrice.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be set in the heart of a mythical forest surrounding Athens as “the course of true love never did run smooth”.
The cast includes Ross White (Theseus / Oberon and Claudio), Lylla Schillinger (Hippolyte / Titania and Margaret), Angus Berryman (Lysander and Benedick), Hannah Baxter-Eve (Hermia and Hero), Alexander Myers Allen (Demetrius and Friar / Borachio), Madeleine Hatt (Helena and Beatrice), Thomas Berkeley (Peter Quince and Don Pedro), Al Coppola (Bottom and Dogberry), James Eley (Flute and Don John), Jessica Alade (Starveling and Ursula / Balthazar), Lou Turner (Snout and Antonio), Charles Beaven (Snug / Egeus and Conrade / Verges) and Adam Boardman (Puck and Leonato).
Returning to direct is Jaq Bessell who has directed in New York, London and in regional theatres across the USA. Her career began at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis and she was head of research at Shakespeare's Globe during Mark Rylance's tenure.
The season runs from Sunday 25 June until Tuesday 11 July.