Tolethorpe Outdoor Theatre near Stamford launches 2023 season of Shakespeare plays

The curtain has raised on a new season of outdoor theatre at Tolethorpe near Stamford.

This summer Stamford Shakespeare Company is performing two of the Bard’s great works – Measure for Measure, which began on Tuesday last week (June 6), and As You Like It, which started this Tuesday (June 13).

They will continue to run on alternate weeks, with Measure for Measure, a comedy exploring morality and justice, ending on July 29 and the romantic comedy As You Like It lowering the curtain on August 19.

The ‘non-Shakespeare’ adaptation this year is Alan Bennett’s The Lady In The Van, a bittersweet tale of an eccentric friend who is invited over for three months - and stays for 15 years. This runs on alternate weeks from July 4 to August 26.

The 46-year-old theatre, which lies in the grounds of Tolethorpe Hall just north of Stamford, has an outdoor stage sheltered by trees and tiered seating under a roof.

People coming to the performances are invited to bring picnics to enjoy in the grounds beforehand, or they can order food and drinks from the venue, which has a restaurant operated by The Secret Kitchen, and a bar.

The season also provides an opportunity for young people to tread the boards, and Tolethorpe Youth Drama Theatre Makers will perform Blue Stockings, the journey of four young women at Girton College, Cambridge, On July 10, 11 and 12.