The première of a romantic comedy and a Lancaster setting for a Dickens classic are among the highlights of The Dukes next season in Lancaster.
No Fat Juliets (September 26 to October 12), is a plus-sized love story penned by and starring Lancaster-based actress Sue McCormick.
Set in the Lake District, it focuses on Beth, an actress who’s never landed her dream role but finds a dream lover. It’s a Dukes co-production with Oldham Coliseum Theatre and Ladybrain Productions.
An old story with a new twist—A Christmas Carol—is The Dukes festive offering from November 29 to January 4.
Following the success of her adaptation of Treasure Island last year, Coronation Street scriptwriter Debbie Oates turns her talents to Dickens's famous festive story which she sets in Victorian Lancaster.
During autumn and winter, The Dukes also welcomes visiting theatre companies including the return of Northern Broadsides with The Grand Gesture (October 15-19).
Shakespeare fans have Pocket Merchant (October 22) and Shakespeare Schools Festival (November 15) plus I, Malvolio (October 18 & 19), a Dukes and Live at LICA presentation performed at Lancaster University’s Nuffield Theatre.
National Theatre Live screenings include the Bard’s Othello starring Adrian Lester (October 6) and Tom Hiddleston in Coriolanus (January 30). And, for the first time, The Dukes will screen a Royal Shakespeare Company production: Richard II starring David Tennant on November 20.
And not content with a busy season indoors, The Dukes also ventures outdoors when it stages Light Up The Waterways on Lancaster Canal (October 29 & 30) and takes part in Light Up The Streets on November 1.