Performers at Shakespeare North Playhouse have just five days together to produce a scene from every one of the Bard's 36 plays in the collected volume known as the First Folio.
Led by actor, author and Shakespeare scholar Ben Crystal, Lights On / Lights Off is an ambitious exploration of ‘quick-raise’ Shakespeare, where creatives work rapidly in an Elizabethan-style rehearsal process. Each of the four shows will feature a scene from one of the 36 plays and none will be repeated, so anyone keen to watch something from each play will need to see all four shows (22nd - 2.30pm & 7pm; 23rd - 1.30pm & 6pm).
The shows, in the venue's main Cockpit Theatre, will be part of a celebratory programme for Shakespeare’s birthday weekend.
Ben said: “If anyone has ever grown-up or experienced Shakespeare as something that isn’t for them, then come and see Lights On/ Lights Off and listen to this local group of actors speak these 400-year-old words."
Open rehearsals for pre-booked groups and tours take place on April 17-21, with the shows themselves on April 22-23 – no booking needed.
More info here