The blood-thirsty monster from Little Shop of Horrors has finally left the Boxmoor Playhouse!
It was great fun while it was there, for this was a show full of talent, drama and good singing; but, despite the bright-green seedlings still nestling here and there in the Props room, it’s time for happier thoughts – with plenty of comedy and romance.
In fact this is already happening as rehearsals for the company’s next production are already well under way. This will be Much Ado About Nothing – the first Shakespeare play to be staged by Hemel Hempstead Theatre Company for some 12 years.
Maggie Harvey is directing this famous comedy, featuring the chequered romance of Beatrice and Benedick, played here by Mariam Gaballa Gill and Simon Vyvyan. The show will be set at the end of World War One, with a band of soldiers returning to England very ready for some rest and relaxation in a country house. There are pretty girls to welcome them, plenty of summer sunshine – but a few dodgy characters intent on causing Big Trouble.
If you want to know whether they succeed or not, you will need to come and see one of the performances at the Playhouse, opposite St John’s Church in Boxmoor. Performance dates are Wednesday, September 18th to Saturday, September 21st at 7.45 pm with a Saturday matinee at 2.30 pm. Tickets are already on sale, so you’d better get booking if you want to secure your favourite seats!
Maggie, who directed Twelfth Night and The Winter’s Tale, the last two Shakespeare plays to be staged by HHTC, is already very excited by the way the production is developing. “I have such a talented cast,” she says. “It’s a big cast – some of them are experienced, regular members and some are newcomers to the society – who are always so welcome. Some are familiar with Shakespeare and very comfortable delivering his lines. For others, it’s a new and initially quite frightening experience and it’s great to see them relax and enjoy a challenging –but exciting – new experience.”
