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What's On at Penlee
Click below to find out more about what's on now and coming up at Penlee House.
What's On
+44 (0)1736 363625
Opening times
Monday to Saturday (closed Sundays)
CURRENT HOURS
10.30 am - 4.30 pm
(last admission 4.00pm)
Admission £4.50 adults,
£3.00 concessions,
under 18s FREE
ADMISSION FREE ON SATURDAYS
SUMMER HOURS
From Easter Saturday
to 30 September:
10.00am - 5.00pm
(last admission 4.30pm)
WINNER Cornwall Tourism Awards GOLD
South West Tourism Excellence Awards GOLD
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Penlee Open Air Theatre
The Open Air Theatre in Penlee Park had its first season in the early 1950s. The Theatre seats around 300 people and, being situated in the middle of Penzance, it has ample parking, lending itself to an ever increasing audience. The theatre was little used until the late 1980s but since then more companies have used it each year, drawn by its sylvan setting in this peaceful park.
A wide range of performances take place throughout the summer season which usually runs from July to September. In previous years, these have included Circus, Choirs, Bands, Musicals and Plays ranging from Alice in Wonderland to The Taming of the Shrew.
The theatre is now managed by Scott Hodges on behalf of Penzance Town Council and it is intended that there will continue to be a full summer programme, including both professional and high quality amateur productions.
SUMMER 2012 at
PENLEE PARK THEATRE
in association with Penzance Town Council and Golowan
www.penleeparktheatre.co.uk
Sunday 17 June 7.30pm
Golowan present Miracle Theatre's
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST by Oscar Wilde
Cornwall’s Miracle Theatre’s productions are witty and inventive – one of the highlights of our summer!
Audiences of all ages enjoy the full ‘open air theatre experience’, by bringing along well stocked hampers, cushions and blankets. This summer Miracle is performing ‘the funniest play ever written’ ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ by Oscar Wilde.
Set in 1912 with the Titanic sinking, mass production just beginning on the Morris Oxford and the Turkey Trot causing outrage across the dance floors of polite society, this tale of the strange contents of a handbag found at Victoria station cries out for the sort of surreal treatment that has become Miracle’s hallmark…expect a hilarious high energy performance!
Oscar Wilde’s ‘trivial comedy for serious people’ is a masterpiece of sharp wit and preposterous plotting.
Adult £12, Concession £10, Child £8
BOOK HERE
www.miracletheatre.co.uk
Sunday 24 June 1pm-5pm: free
Golowan present GROOVE IS IN THE PARK
An afternoon of acoustic music from local young musicians including Nancherrow and Helston youth projects, featuring young people from Humphry Davy, Mount’s Bay, St. Ives, Cape Cornwall and Helston, Truro and Penwith Colleges.
Also featuring the work of young musicians who've taken part in the Golowan song-writing project, in partnership with the National Trust.
This promises to be a fantastic afternoon of high-quality music.
More details to follow...
Funded by FEAST and Friends of Golowan
Sunday 1st July 3.30pm
Penlee Park Jazz Picnic with Johanna Graham
Johanna is supported by:
- Martin Bowie (guitar)
- Tim Greenhalgh (double bass)
- Damian Rodd (drums).
Johanna Graham is an established jazz singer with a distinctive voice influenced by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Julie London and contemporaries such as Stacey Kent.
Her varied repertoire extends from Rodgers and Hart through to Astrud Gilberto’s Bossa Nova and sixties pop classics penned by Bacharach and David.
Come and enjoy the soulful sounds of jazz classics in this special performance as a quartet.
Thursday 5 July 7.30pm
Chapterhouse Theatre presents Pride and Predjudice
Take a step back in time with Chapterhouse Theatre Company to meet Elizabeth Bennet and her sisters. Whilst her mother tries determinedly to pair her off with the detestable Mr Collins, Elizabeth meets the rude and abrupt Mr Darcy. But is there more to him than meets the eye?
Join family and friends for what promises to be the most splendid evening of the summer and revel in this most renowned of love stories. After all, it is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.
Chapterhouse Theatre Company prides itself on creating fully accessible, traditional, and innovative productions. They have established a reputation for being one of the most successful and acclaimed touring companies in the country.
Adult £13.50, Students and children £9, Family £40
BOOK HERE
Adult £13.50, Students and children £9, Family £40
BOOK HERE
Monday 9 July 7.30pm
BishBashBosh Presents
The TIN VIOLIN
Written by Alan M Kent Directed by John Hoggarth
The life of the violinist and composer Joseph Emidy is one of the most extraordinary of modern times. Born in Guinea, West Africa in 1775, at the height of European colonialism, Emidy was first captured as a slave by the Portuguese, then kidnapped by the British Navy, serving as a fiddler on The Indefatigable during the French wars.
Landing at Falmouth, Cornwall and being presented with a magical tin violin made by an illiterate miner, Emidy became a musical genius of the early nineteenth century.
Boy Josh finds himself embarking on a thrilling journey through worlds familiar and unknown. His epic adventure demands a resistance against the most savage of oppression before he finds freedom and love in music and song. On the way he meets mad sailors, gabbling Cornish fools, crazy fishermen and a woman who softly plays the strings of his heart.
Funny, tragic and compelling, the play offers an extraordinary parable of humanity that raises questions about identity, belonging and place, and also turns upside- down preconceived ideas about West Britain and the continent of Africa.
Rich with dialect, dance and decadence, this play will make you jig your heart out...
Adult £10, Concession £8, Child £6, Family (2+2) £28
Check out BishBashBosh: http://www.bishbashboshproductions.co.uk/
Sunday 15 July 3.30pm
Penlee Park Jazz Picnic presents ZENA and THE JAZZ WARRIORS
Zena and the Jazz Warriors are a quartet specializing in swing and mainstream jazz with a broad appeal. Their repertoire includes the standards of the great American songbook and a number of vocal favourites.
From the traditional 'All of Me' or 'Ain't Misbehavin' to the more mainstream 'All The Things You Are' or 'Stella By Starlight', along with a good selection of bossa nova's and jazz waltzes too. There should be something for everyone.
Entertaining you with an eclectic mix of traditional and contemporary jazz are:
Zena Smith: Guitarist and Singer
Lukas Drinkwater: Double Bass
Dan Hughes: Clarinet and Alto Saxophone
Tom Jackson: Drums
Adult £5, Child £3, Family(2+2) £15
Friday 20 July: 7.30pm
The Ash Tree Actors present The Miners Tale and The Fishermans Tale
A double bill of hilarious comedy tales about a lonely Cornish miner who finds happiness through a series of mishaps and a hairy misunderstanding, and a fisherman's biting tale of love's conquest over life's insecurities and the elements.
Expect an excellent rumbustious performance with laughs guaranteed.
Ash Tree Actors create original Cornish theatre in rhyming verse, accompanied with live music.
£8/ £6.50 concession
Sunday 29 July 2pm
Penlee Park Troyl with TROS AN TREYS Cornish Dance Group
Tros an Treys are a Cornish dance group that were formed in spring 2008 and are based in Penzance. The name means ‘noise of feet’, and they wear the colours of the Cornish Chough (red, black and silver). The dancers are from all age ranges, and the band includes a wide array of musicians who love to play Cornish music, old and new!
The afternoon 'Troyl' will include a performance of Cornish dance, music and song with the opportunity to get involved in community dancing (i.e. everyone joining in).
This is a free event, so come along and enjoy the Cornish music and dance.
Tuesday 31 July/ Wednesday 1 Aug 7.30pm
Illyria present
HMS PINAFORE by Gilbert and Sullivan
I am the lowliest tar that sails the water
And you, proud maiden, are my captain's daughter!
In 2011 Illyria raised the bar for the major UK open-air touring theatre companies by becoming the first and only one to add Opera to its regular season. The ticket sales, acclaim and feedback from last season's "The Pirates of Penzance" all vouch for its enormous success.
Set on board the warship HMS Pinafore, the opera cheerfully mocks such Great British institutions as Class, Patriotism and the Royal Navy. Josephine the captain's daughter is in love with Ralph a common sailor, but her father wants her to marry Sir Joseph Porter, First Lord of the Admiralty. The couple are caught as they elope from the ship and Ralph is locked in the ship's dungeon. Only when certain revelations are made by Buttercup, a dockside vendor, can everyone end up freely marrying their true hearts' loves.
This wonderful comic opera gets the complete Illyria treatment, faithfully performed by a reduced cast on a beautiful nautical set, and accompanied by a Musical Director on keyboard.
Adult £12.50, Child £8, Family (2+2) £35
Sunday 5 August 3.30pm
Penlee Park Jazz Picnic present DJAZZ CELTICA
Djazz Celtica are an acoustic band, playing an innovative mix of gypsy jazz and original compositions. They emulate the music of Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grappelli from their 'Hot Club De France' in the 1930s.
Djazz Celtica are:
Pamela Betowski: jazz violinist, composer and author of ’The Gypsy Jazz Melody Book’ for violin. Violin tutor at University College Falmouth, and South West Music School. Pam has performed widely, including The National Theatre and the Albert Hall, and has composed for Radio, Television and Film.
Noel Betowski: ’hot club’ lead and rhythm guitarist, Irish bouzouki player and visual artist. Noel has also performed widely, on stage, radio and television and with many line-ups.
Syd Greenfield – double bass and vocals.
Plus guest guitarists Douglas Linaker and Neil McPhail.
Adult £5, Child (under 16) £3, Family £15
Thursday 9 August/ Friday 10 August 7.30pm
Illyria present
HENRY V by William Shakespeare
Cry God for Harry, England and St George!
Many companies offer open-air Shakespeare. But only Illyria has won 4 international awards for their Shakespeare productions.
In 2012 Illyria celebrates its 20th anniversary, the queen's diamond jubilee and a minor sporting event in London with Shakespeare's most popular historical drama. Full of patriotism, pageantry and poetry, it tells the gripping story of an inexperienced king who leads a small and weakened army into the battle of Agincourt against the might of the French battalions. With towering odds stacked against them the English win a sweeping victory. But after such an extraordinary military conquest, how will Henry fare with the greatest challenge of all - the conquest of Princess Catherine's heart?
This stirring play has twice been the subject of major film adaptations, one starring Laurence Olivier and another starring Kenneth Branagh. Brimming with excitement, romance and a surprising amount of comedy it is now performed by Illyria, as originally written, with a reduced cast and on a stage inspired by those of the mediaeval touring troupes.
Adult £10, Child £6, Family (2+2) £28
Tuesday 14 August/ Wednesday 15 August 7.30pm
Miracle Theatre present THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST by Oscar Wilde
Cornwall’s Miracle Theatre’s productions are witty and inventive – one of the highlights of our summer!
Audiences of all ages enjoy the full ‘open air theatre experience’, by bringing along well stocked hampers, cushions and blankets. This summer Miracle is performing ‘the funniest play ever written’ ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ by Oscar Wilde.
Set in 1912 with the Titanic sinking, mass production just beginning on the Morris Oxford and the Turkey Trot causing outrage across the dance floors of polite society, this tale of the strange contents of a handbag found at Victoria station cries out for the sort of surreal treatment that has become Miracle’s hallmark…expect a hilarious high energy performance!
Oscar Wilde’s ‘trivial comedy for serious people’ is a masterpiece of sharp wit and preposterous plotting.
Adult £12, Concession £10, Child £8
Wednesday 22 August 7.30pm
The Festival Players present
RICHARD III by William Shakespeare
Shakespeare has crafted a Machiavellian character of gargantuan ego and ambition, Richard Duke of Gloucester, who will stop at nothing to gain the Crown.
Playing in splendid period costume, the Festival Players Theatre Company is thrilled to bring you the drama of the last King of England to be killed in battle.
In its inimitable colourful, energetic, and crystal-clear style this all-male ensemble promise an unforgettable and exciting theatrical experience.
Adult £10, Concession £8, Child £6, Family (2+2) £28
Tuesday 28 August: 7.30pm
Bash Street Theatre Co. present
THE STRONGMAN
With silent comedy, circus skills, live music and a little bit of magic, THE STRONGMAN is a brand new family show from the award-winning Bash Street Theatre Co.
A two-bit circus has arrived in town and The Strongman and his ill-treated Circus Girl companion are looking for new acts to join the show. When an itinerant traveller appears on the scene, he is put to work, but not quite in the way he had imagined!
Inspired by Charlie Chaplin's 1928 film 'The Circus' and the 1954 film 'La Strada' by Federico Fellini, Bash Street Theatre's new silent movie-style show tells a story of intrigue and jealousy, with a big helping of comedy and musical 'joie de vivre'.
The show is ideal for all ages.
Adult £10, Concession £8, Child £5, Family (2+2) £27
Since 1991 Bash Street Theatre Company have built a reputation for inventive and fast-moving comic-strip shows. They have been delighting audiences, both young and old, with their unique style of circus-theatre at major festivals and theatres worldwide.
Thursday 6 September/ Friday 7 September 7.30pm
ParklifeTheatre present
OUR VILLAGE
Welcome to 'Our Village'. We hope you enjoy your stay......
Parklife Theatre are a new community company devising original theatre, based in the open-air theatre. 'Our Village' is an exciting collaborative and innovative show rolling out the seven basic narratives into one colourful, creative, epic adventure of life.
In its rebirth from rags to riches this comedic journey and 'tour de farce' takes the audience on a quest to overcome the force that threatens them. Caught up in a smokescreen of myth and legend, all is not as it seems to be.
You think you know village life, yet scratch the surface and something other is lurking!
Parklife Theatre combine a plethora of original music, physical theatre, sound, dialogue and narrative to keep you entertained into the dusky hours.
Directed by Mali Hill
Adult £8, Concession £6, Child £4, Family £22
Suitable for all ages over 10
Supported by Penlee House and Penzance Town Council.
LOCAL BOX OFFICES:
'Epics' Entertainment
15, Causewayhead, Penzance, TR18 2ST (just below the Savoy Cinema)
St Ives Guildhall
Street-an-Pol, St Ives, TR26 2DS
Concession rates : Over 65s, Full-time Students, Those in receipt of Benefits.
Child rates : Under 16
Family rates : 2 adults and 2 children.
(Note: not all events offer a concessionary rate)
Tickets are also available for all shows on the gate on the date of each performance.
The gate opens 60 minutes before the scheduled start time. Seating is provided.
Refunds are only given if a show is cancelled: performances will go ahead except in the worst of weather.
Please bring whatever you need for a comfy and cosy experience: warm clothes, waterproofs, blankets, cushions, rugs, picnics etc.
Refreshments are available.
PARKING
The nearest car park is above Penlee Park, entrance from Alverton Terrace.
MORE INFORMATION
and you can check us out on facebook...
For further information, please contact:
Town Clerk's Office +44 (0)1736 363405
Town Clerk's Office +44 (0)1736 363405
Companies wishing to book the theatre should contact:
Scott Hodges +44 (0)7814 248901
scot@penleeparktheatre.co.uk
Scott Hodges +44 (0)7814 248901
scot@penleeparktheatre.co.uk