Get ready for an enormous lineup of fantastic theatre productions in Kent this summer.
You'll be blown away by Shakespeare, scandalised by Opera and spirited away with Peter Pan and many other sensational productions all under the summer sun.
Dracula: The Bloody Truth
Experience a new (slightly silly) take on the most famous vampire story ever created with this open-air production from Tunbridge Wells-based Trinity Youth Theatre taking place at The Festival Theatre at Hever Castle.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Monday 30th May 2022 at 8 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/dracula-the-bloody-truth
Three Inch Fools present: Twelfth Night
Get ready for a production of William Shakespeare's riotous comedy Twelfth Night which will be weaved with mischief and hilarity thanks to performers Three Inch Fools who have taken the Bard's work to new heights.
Where: The Loggia, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Tuesday 31st May 2022 at 7.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/twelfth-night-by-william-shakespeare
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte's famous gothic novel has been adapted by Polly Teale for the stage in this upcoming performance by Edenbridge-based Another Way Theatre.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Wednesday 1st June 2022 at 7.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/jane-eyre
Peter Pan
Outdoor theatre company Illirya will be amazing viewers with their adaptation of J.M. Barrie's classic children's book Peter Pan at Hever Castle and Tonbridge Castle this summer. Little ones will be amazed to see real flying and their favourite characters bought to life in such a vivid way.
Hever Castle
Where: Anne Boleyn’s Walk, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Friday 3rd June 2022 at 2.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/peter-pan
Tonbridge Castle
Where: Castle St, Tonbridge TN9 1BG
When: Saturday 20th August 2022 at 4 pm
More information: www.ticketsource.co.uk/illyria-peter-pan
Patience
Charles Court Opera returns to The Festival Theatre at Hever Castle with a hilarious 19th-century comic opera by W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan that satirises the vanity and pretentiousness of meaningless fads and the aesthetic movement of the 1870s and 1880s.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Sunday 5th June 2022 at 8 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/patience
The HandleBards present: Twelfth Night
Twelfth Night gets a bicycle-powered production courtesy of the most unique outdoor theatre troupe of them all, The HandleBards who match the unlikely craft of Shakespeare with cycling to hilarious effect.
Where: Riverhill Himalayan Gardens, Riverhill, Sevenoaks, TN15 0RR
When: Saturday 11th June 2022 at 5 pm
More information: www.handlebards.com/twelfth-night-riverhill-himalayan-gardens
Othello
Kent's favourite travelling theatre Changeling Theatre are back for Summer 2022 at many locations around the county with Shakespeares' tragic masterpiece Othello.
More information: www.greatbritishlife.co.uk/changeling-theatre-summer-2022-tour-dates
Changeling Theatre present: The Important of Being Earnest
Theatre lovers will not want to miss the wisecracking wit of Oscar Wilde's deviously fun play The importance of Being Earnest from Changeling Theatre which will be watchable at many locations around the county.
More information: www.greatbritishlife.co.uk/changeling-theatre-summer-2022-tour-dates
The Winter's Tale
Experience a radical take on one of the Bard’s most famous late “romances”, in the delightful gardens of the White Rock Inn this summer.
Where: Underriver, Sevenoaks, Kent TN15 0SB
When: Friday 1st to Sunday 3rd July 2022 and Thursday 7th to Sunday 10th July 2022 at various times
More information: www.ticketsource.co.uk/sevenoaksshakespearesociety
Slapstick Picnic present: The Importance of Being Earnest
Get ready for cucumber sandwiches and the irreverent wit of Oscar Wilde with Slapstick Picnic's deliciously devious adaptation of The Importance of Being Earnest on the beautiful grounds of Emmett's Garden.
Where: Emmetts Garden, Sevenoaks, TN14 6BA
When: Sunday 10th July 2022 at 7 pm
More information: www.tickettailor.com/slapstick-picnic-importance-of-being-earnest
Heartbreak Productions present: Twelfth Night
Heartbreak Productions' hilariously modern take on Twelfth Night takes the classic and spins it on its head and enters the characters into a reality-tv dating show “Twelve Nights” which feels very Love Island meets big brother.
Scotney Castle
Where: Lamberhurst, Tunbridge Wells TN3 8JN
When: Friday 22nd July 2022 at 6 pm
More information: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/heartbreak-productions-twelfth-night
Tonbridge Castle
Where: Castle St, Tonbridge TN9 1BG
When: Sunday 14th August 2022 at 6.30 pm
More information: www.heartbreakproductions.co.uk/twelfth-night
Quantum Theatre presents: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Quantum Theatre will unleash magic and mayhem upon Scotney Castle with their rip-roaring production of Shakespeare's beloved A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Where: Scotney Castle, Lamberhurst, Tunbridge Wells TN3 8JN
When: Friday 22nd July 2022 at 6 pm
More information: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/quantum-theatre-midsummer-nights-dream
The Wagon of Dreams
Jellyfish Theatre presents an exciting family-friendly show following three friends on an undersea adventure complete with a real retro campervan at this year's The Festival Theatre at Hever Castle.
Where: Anne Boleyn’s Walk, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Thursday 4th August 2022 at 2.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/jellyfish-theatre-presents-wagon-of-dreams
The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Benjamin Bunny
Capture the imaginations of young ones with this adventure of Peter Rabbit and his cousin Benjamin as they cause mischief in Mr McGregor's garden.
Beatrix Potter's classic tales have been adapted for the stage by Michael Whitmore and will be bought to life by Quantum Theatre.
Where: Scotney Castle, Lamberhurst, Tunbridge Wells TN3 8JN
When: Saturday 6th August 2022 at 6 pm
More information: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/quantum-theatre-peter-rabbit
As You Like It
Mistaken identities, cross-dressing confusion and a whole load of romance collide in this delightful comedy performed by The Lord Chamberlain’s Men, an all-male company inspired by and named after the very company that Shakespeare himself worked with for over a third of his career.
Where: Emmetts Garden, Sevenoaks, TN14 6BA
When: Thursday 11th August 2022 7.00 pm
More information: www.ticketsource.co.uk/national-trust-emmetts-garden-as-you-like-it
Carmen
This year, Georges Bizet's famous Opera Carmen gets the Opera Brava treatment with a sumptuous adaptation of the tragic romance sung in English rather than its original French.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Saturday 13th August 2022 at 8 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/carmen
La Traviata
Opera Brava's lavish adaptation of Giuseppe Verdi's world-famous opera La Traviata is set to be a rollercoaster of romance and tragedy that will have you utterly enthralled from beginning to end.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Sunday 14th August 2022 at 8 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/la-traviata
The Pirates of Penzance
A young apprentice pirate Frederick, who was born on a leap year on February 29th finds out that his contract with the Pirate King will not expire on his 21st year but only on his 21st Birthday, making him locked into servitude up to 84 years old.
Where: Castle St, Tonbridge TN9 1BG
When: Sunday 28th August 2022 at 7.30 pm
More information: www.ticketsource.co.uk/illyria-pirates-of-penzance
The Mikado
Charles Court Opera brings The Mikado by comic opera geniuses W.S. Gilbert and Arthur Sullivan back to Hever Castle for the second year in a row thanks to popular demand. Set in Japan this satire on 19th-century British politics and institutions has become one of the most enduring examples of Savoy Opera.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Monday 29th August 2022 at 8 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/mikado
Illyria presents: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Shakespeare's famously mischievous play A Midsummer Night’s Dream comes to The Loggia at Hever Castle which could not be a more perfect location for the fantastical fairy comedy on a summer's night.
Where: The Loggia, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Tuesday 30th August 2022 at 7.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/midsummer-nights-dream
Julius Caesar
Shakespeare's Globe is one of the most revered dramatic institutions in the world and this year they are taking Julius Caeser on the road around the UK. This fantastic production will be watchable over two days at Hever Castle this September and proves to be an unmissable event for fans of the bard.
Where: Two Sisters’ Theatre, Hever Rd, Hever, Edenbridge TN8 7NG
When: Wednesday 21st September at 7.30 pm and Thursday 22nd September at 2 pm and 7.30 pm
More information: www.heverfestival.co.uk/julius-caesar
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