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The Review - THEATRE by SIMON WROE
Published: 2 August 2007

Cast from Twelfth Night

The Bard - slightly mad and absolutely hilarious

TWELFTH NIGHT( PREVIEW)
Coram's Fields

SOME are born into greatness, some achieve it, others can catch it throughout August when the magic of Twelfth Night’s Illyria is brought to life in Coram’s Fields.
Following the success of last year’s Midsummer Night’s Dream, the award-winning Principal Theatre company is once again indulging in a “very midsummer madness”, revamping another Shakespeare classic in the fledgling open-air venue.
Love-struck Viola, Count Orsino and the comical bumblings of Malvolio and Sir Toby Belch are all brought into the 20th century, now treading their twisted fates at the end of the Second World War.
Local children will join professional actors in the full-scale outdoor production.
Television and stage actor Christopher Biggins, one of Principal’s patrons since it began, explained that the charm of the productions lay in its creative interpretations of the Bard’s text.
“It’s not absolutely ‘to the book’ but its very good fun and it makes it accessible,” he said. “They put in extra songs – it’s all slightly mad and archaic and absolutely hilarious.”
Biggins, a Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre veteran, said he had never acted in Twelfth Night himself, but given a chance would love to play the slow-witted Sir Andrew Aguecheek.
For now he will have to be content with watching like the rest of us, which promises to be ample reward in itself. Bring the family and a picnic.

• Twelfth Night runs from August 2-18 at Coram’s Fields
(Thurs to Sat only). For more details call the box office: 020 8807 6680

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