For those who were unable to make it along to the Expo for Romeo & Julius last night here are the files with information on the show and character.
Any questions please email: aaronholdaway@gmail.com
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Romeo & Julius – March 2023
Our next production will be Romeo & Julius, a reimagining of Shakespeare’s greatest love story, at Groundlings Theatre in March 2023. We’re looking for actors to join us on this adventure, no experience necessary! Interested? Email Director Aaron Holdaway for more info: aaronholdaway@gmail.com.
Expo for our next two Shows
Come along this Thursday (7th April) at 19.30 to our HQ at the Omega Centre to hear all about our next Two production.
Roseliska and Victorian Music Hall in the Summer at Portchester Castle
The Beggar’s Opera in November at Hayling Island Station Theatre.
Whether you want to be onstage, help out with set, lighting, sound or costumes or are just interested to find out what we’re going to be doing. It’s open to all!
Email us with any questions about the evening
thesouthseashakespeareactors@hotmail.co.uk
Black Ey’d Susan and a Victorian Music Hall
The Southsea Shakespeare Actors are finally back in rehearsal again ready for our first show in over 18 months.
Unfortunately our production of the Two Gentlemen of Verona which was due to be performed in March 2020 and then moved to March 2021 had to be cancelled once again.
However we are back and with a new venue that we’ve not used for a production before. We’ll be performing at the Prisoner’s Theatre at Porchester Castle from Wednesday 28th to Saturday 31st July 2021.
The show?
Black Ey’d Susan and a Victorian Music Hall
Tickets go on sale on 21st June (dependant on lockdown restrictions being eased)
Two Gentlemen of Verona preparations underway
Our much anticipated Spring show of Two Gentlemen of Verona, which had to be unfortunately postponed, is set for 31st March – 3rd April 2021 at the Square Tower, Portsmouth.
Fingers crossed we won’t have a worldwide pandemic to battle with this time.
A reunion is set for the cast to meet up again virtually to slowly start the process of getting the show back to where it was. This reunion will include a read through and be a great opportunity for the team to re-kindle their love for the show.
POSTPONED – The Two Gentlemen of Verona – POSTPONED
Further to the Government’s recent announcement surrounding Covid-19 this evening, we have regrettably decided to postpone all performances of ‘The Two Gentlemen of Verona’ scheduled for this March.
The health and safety of our audience members is always our top priority and it’s therefore imperative we follow the guidelines surrounding social distancing and public gathering outlined by the Government today.
Ticket refunds will be processed automatically. We are taking immediate steps to ensure this happens as soon as possible.
If you have any questions surrounding this announcement, please feel free to contact us via the usual channels, or email southseashakespeareactors@hotmail.co.uk.
We sincerely apologise for any inconvenience this causes. We very much look forward to welcoming you to the production in the not too distant future, when it is safe to do so.
Any Dream Will Do
Well no it won’t! There’s only one dream that will do, and that is our production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which hits the stage from Wednesday 23rd November. Click on the link for tickets.
In other news
- A big thanks to the Gnawing cast for a fantastic evening of rodent-related foolery. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much human flesh stuffed into such small costumes! It was a great night and thoroughly enjoyed by all of us in the audience
- Straight after A Midsummer Night’s Dream we move on to our Spring 2020 production, Two Gentlemen of Verona. Expo and audition dates are available through this link
- If you’re an SSA member you’ll know that Friday 13th December will be lucky for some, and unlucky for others! See the Facebook page for details………….
What Links Gerbils, Dreams, Gentlemen and Portchester Castle?
No, I couldn’t think of anything either……………………except the SSA of course! Your favourite Shakespeare company is heading into a very busy period, so hop on board the Bard Bus (I apologise, that’s terrible) and hold on tight. First it’s the gerbils, with Gnawing on 28th September at Titchfield Community Centre. There will be 4 blokes and 1 woman in gerbil costumes, an open bar, a hilarious script, and it’s even got a warning for adult content – what more could you want!
Hot on the heels of something that Shakespeare most definitely wouldn’t have written comes one his most popular works – A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Rehearsals are in full swing, and it promises to be a magical production.
As observant readers will have noted from my last post, our Spring 2020 play will be Two Gentlemen of Verona, so plenty of info to come on that. What you won’t know is that the 2 gents will be followed by the SSA appearing at Portchester Castle! In a recent announcement from that nice Mr Nick Downes, it was confirmed that we have secured a summer slot for an as-yet-undecided production in this beautiful location, which promises to be hugely exciting.
The next 12 months promise to be full of action, so keep visiting this site to keep up to date with everything we will be doing.
Gerbilicious
Blimey, busy, busy, busy………………………deep breaths, here we go!
- Confirmation that Rob Bartlett’s Gnawing is being staged at Titchfield Community Centre on Saturday 28th September at 7.30pm. It stars a bunch of SSA luminaries so you won’t want to miss it, click here for tickets. It’s about gerbils you know……………………
- Our Autumn production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is on the tracks and heading full tilt for the station. Casting is done, read-throughs are starting, and it won’t be long before rehearsals kick off. The production is at the Station Theatre, Hayling Island, from Wednesday 20th to Saturday 23rd November, click here for more details and for tickets.
- We are proud to announce that our Spring 202o production will be Two Gentlemen of Verona, directed by Jacquie Penrose. It will be the first time we have staged this play since 1973, and if the production is anywhere near as interesting as Jacquie’s pitch it will be fabulous both to be in and to watch. The play will be on from 25th to 28th March 2020 at the Square Tower, Portsmouth, but before that we have the expo, on Thursday 28th November 2019 at HQ. This will be followed by auditions on Thursday 5th December at 7.30pm and Sunday 8th December at 2pm, both at HQ.
- Finally – an update on our buildings. We successfully vacated our wardrobe/storage building in Stamshaw a few weeks ago, and are now firmly ensconced in the “New Place”, a luxurious (well, big) garage space in Drayton. Over the next few months we will be reshaping the interior to maximise the space, so a big thank you to the City Council for renting the property to us, and to all the members who helped with the move.
Daydream Believer
So it’s official! Our Autumn 2019 production will be A Midsummer Night’s Dream, directed by Paula Bartlett and Aaron Holdaway. The important dates for now – Tuesday 21st May at 8pm for the expo (straight after the AGM), auditions 1 on Tuesday 4th June at 7.30pm, and auditions 2 on Wednesday 12th June, also at 7.30pm. All of this takes place at our HQ in Omega Street.
Talking of the AGM – it’s at 7.30pm on Tuesday 21st May at HQ, if you are a member, or interested in joining us, then please don’t miss it – and then stay on for the MSND expo!
Finally advance notice – Rob Bartlett has been busily scribbling away and the rodents will be returning. Yes, it’s time for Gnawing: The Gerbils Return (this may not be the official title!). The provisional date for this magnum opus is Saturday 28th September, presented at Titchfield Community Centre. More new as we get it………….