The Rondo Theatre Company - Past Productions

The Seagull By Anton Chekhov - Adapted and Directed by Dr. John Reid

23-26 March 2011 Rondo Theatre

'It's a comedy with three female and six male roles, four acts, a landscape (view of a lake), lots of talk about literature, little action and 180 lbs of love.' This was Chekhov's light-hearted description of his work-in-progress to a friend in 1895.

But the play dealt with a very old theme, in a new and challenging manner: it was a theme that was very close to Chekhov's heart at that time, the struggle for personal freedom - within a particular social group, in a particular place, at a particular time. The focus is upon the young and how their most cherished ideals, about love and work and art, are put to the test of time and experience. Chekhov had experienced this struggle himself in an especially acute form. He was very conscious that until he had 'squeezed the slave out of himself', his own development as a writer had been hindered by those class feelings of social inferiority. He was increasingly aware that his TB imprisoned him in his own body and inhibited his yearnings for sexual and emotional freedom. How to break free of one's personal fixations, hang-ups and obsessions - that is the question that the young of any age must face.

The circumstances of Chekhov's own life demanded extraordinary existential courage but they also enabled him to understand keenly the need for such courage. There is a stoical acceptance that failures will occur, like Konstantin's suicide, but the true climax of the play is Nina's rejection of her own fatalism - her courage to be. 'To me, Nina's part means everything in the play.'

The Rondo Theatre Company's Ambitious Autumn 2010 Production was,

'Silent Laughter'

by Billy Van Zandt and Jane Milmore

Directed by Paul Olding and Matt Nation

10-13 November 2010

Inspired by Charlie Chaplin and the legends of pre-talky film, SILENT LAUGHTER brings roaring-20's silent movie mayhem live to the stage. New York audiences went wild for this gag-filled water sloshing, bed crashing, pie throwing craziness. Performed in black and white with title cards projected over the actors' heads, and a live theatre organ accompanying every doubletake, this comic tour de force stars a dashing hero who overcomes jail, poverty, World War I and a dastardly villain, Lionel Drippinwithit, to win the girl of his dreams. She is the heiress to the Thickwad Screw Factory, a firm that has been "Screwing the American Public since 1861." The biggest pie fight the theatre world has ever seen caps the silent action. More than a tribute to the slapstick antics of Chaplin, Keaton and Arbuckle - this is a reverential recreation of a bygone era.

The Summer 2010 'Shakespeare In the Park' - 'The Merry Wives of Windsor'

Alan Bennett's 'Kafka's Dick'

Directed by Andrew Hill from 24-27 March 2010

Tedious Kafka aficionado Sydney and his frustrated wife Linda are visited by a reincarnated Franz Kafka and his friend Max Brod. Brod has disobeyed Kafka's instruction to destroy his works after his death, but Kafka's wish for anonymity is due to a very embarrassing personal shortcoming. This surreal play includes a supernatural tortoise, hidden quiche and a finale set in Heaven!

'Road' By Jim Cartwright

The show ran from 25th-28th November 2009 at the Rondo Theatre, directed by Alex Needham.

It's 1987, the miners' strike has been quashed, unemployment in the North is at record levels and Margaret Thatcher has just been voted back into power for a third term. But for seven inhabitants of a Lancashire street, there's a party to go to. Scullery is your earthy guide for the evening, introducing you to an eclectic range of characters all trying to find some kind of escape from their squalid existence, piecing together the fragments of their lives that glint like freshly cut glass on a beer soaked bar...

Jim Cartwright's first play interweaves sparkling humour with pathos, transporting the audience with energy, passion and poetry, leaving you uplifted and reminded of the extraordinary resilience of the human spirit.

"The Taming of The Shrew" at the Botanical Gardens, Victoria Park. 15-18 July 2009.

Bath Drama and The Rondo Theatre Company united once again to bring you a feast of open air Shakespearian comedy. Director Sophie Brooks focused on the comedy, both verbal and physical, in this famous battle of the sexes to ensure it is accessible to families as well as familiar to fans.

Following the successful production of The Canterbury Tales, these open air performances were once again performed in the Botanical Gardens in Victoria Park, Bath. This beautiful outdoor location provides a breathtaking setting for Shakespeare's comedy. With a highly talented cast and colourful period costumes, this was a visual feast for people of all ages.

As usual Bath Drama and The Rondo Theatre Company presented this production as a charity fund raiser. All profits from the performances were donated to Julian House Bath which provides both shelter and support for the homeless.

"The setting is lovely…a good evening was had by all, cast and audience." Bath Chronicle review of The Canterbury Tales 2008

Tartuffe by Moliere, 13th to 16th May 2009 at the Rondo Theatre, 8.00pm. Directed by Mike Taylor

This was a rare opportunity for Bath theatre audiences to enjoy one of the great masterpieces of France's favourite playwright.

The play recounts the ravages of inflicted on the peaceful lives of a middle-class household by the con man of the title.

The production is in the traditional style, and makes use of the superlative verse translation by Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Richard Wilbur, while Moliere's genius ensures a feast of sparkling comedy with a few thought-provoking moments thrown in. Mike Taylor's directorial debut.

Black Comedy by Peter Shaffer & Heavy by Jon Thrower 26-29 Nov 2008.

Directed by Matt Nation.

Black Comedy: It's 1965 and at last, Brindsley Miller has got a grip on his chaotic existence:

If all goes well, this very night will put an end to his single, carefree, penniless artist life. A wealthy German art collector is coming to buy some of his works. Deeply impressed, the father of his fiancée Carol, Colonel Melkett, will give consent to their marriage, and everybody will live happily ever after... If only… One simple fuse is all it takes to turn Brindsley's "night-of-his-life" into an hilarious roller-coaster nightmare. Witness the devastating power of Murphy's Law in action as the lights go out and the artist's past returns with a vengeance. High-speed farce with a twist that will be sure to delight.

Heavy: Office politics 1823 style (Department for Weights and Measures):

Gabriel, an over burdened clerk desperate for promotion vs. Daniel, an over qualified upstart who can't stop boasting about his travelling experiences; Jane, a serious-minded career woman vs. Sarah, a spoilt little rich girl with a bit of a jam problem; Sir Charles, an incompetent boss with no plans to retire vs. gin, more than the recommended amount of units. When the balance finally tips how will they all measure up? And when will that ghost of a duck reappear?

WE ARE YOUR MEMORY by Owen Benson Wed 9th to Sat 12th April 2008 at 8pm.

Directed by Owen Benson

Torn between memory and another's desire, Tim's mind is ripped apart. Can he get it together or will he spend the rest of his life living in cardboard boxes in someone else's spare room? Owen Benson's sinister and compelling new play examines memory, how it controls us and the effects of deliberate distortion. Never trust your memory with your life! Exceptional new writing developed through The Rondo Writer's Group.

The Canterbury Tales by Steve Curtis and Darian Nelson. 25th - 28th June 2008 at the Botanical Gardens

The Rondo Theatre Company and Bath Drama present a bawdy medieval comedy featuring The Wife of Bath's Tale, The Merchant's Tale and The Franklin's Tale . . . all in modern English!

PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE by Steve Martin, 14-17 Nov 2007.

Directed by Dave Whitaker.

A richly comic fantasy in which Picasso and Einstein meet in a bar in 1904 before their larger fame sets in. Steve Martin said: "It's really about how exciting it is when you're on the verge of something." What they are on the verge of is the Twentieth Century. Steve Martin has had acclaim for roles in Roxanne, Parenthood, The Man With Two Brains, and Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid. In addition to his collected comic writings entitled Pure Drivel, and Picasso, he has also written a novella: New York Times bestseller Shopgirl, which was filmed in 2005.

Presence by Ian McGlynn 21-24 March 2007 Directed By Matt Nation and Ian McGlynn

Mrs Warren's Profession by Bernard Shaw 29 Nov to 2 Dec 2006 Directed by Matt Nation

Banned for 8 years, the play is now regarded as an astute view of the corruption at the heart of Victorian Society.

Reunion by Ian McGlynn November 2005. Directed by Matt Nation and Andrew Webb

Going back even earlier, there have been a great many wonderful productions at the Rondo. Twelfth Night, The Tempest and the rarely performed King John came from the Shakespeare canon. The Insect Play, Man of the Moment and The Woman who Cooked her Husband by Debbie Issett, Hysteria and Insignificance by Terry Johnson, Brimstone & Treacle by Dennis Potter, Grimm Tales, Look Back in Anger, and The Accrington Pals represent some of the variety of productions we have staged. Closer by Patrick Marber was performed in 2004. The annual outdoor production of "Shakespeare in the Park" has seen plays such as, "Much Ado About Nothing", "Twelfth Night" and "a Midsummer Night's Dream". Over the first three years of this event we were able to donate over £3,000 to Macmillan Cancer relief. And a good time was had by all!