20 Years in 20 Weeks - Looking back to Bard in the Botanics 2007
/20 YEARS IN 20 WEEKS
This week we continue our look back over 20 years of Bard in the Botanics by reflecting on our 2007 season – and 6 years in to the journey of the company, we hit some stormy waters!
The year started with another successful collaboration with Cumbernauld Theatre and North Lanarkshire Council – this time a staging of Joe Calarco’s brilliant “Shakespeare’s R&J”. The play sees four young students at a repressive boarding school sneak away one night to read a banned text – “Romeo and Juliet”. As they act out Shakespeare’s tale, their own stories become intertwined with the original text, creating a powerful exploration of repressed desire, youthful passion & rebellion against authority. Originally written for 4 male actors, we couldn’t resist – in the grand tradition of Bard in the Botanics – exploring the play from the perspective of 4 female characters. Sarah Chalcroft played Romeo; Michelle Wiggins was tempted back to the company to play Tybalt & the Nurse; newcomer Rebecca Sloyan was cast as Juliet & Benvolio while Jennifer Dick took on the mammoth task of playing Mercutio, Friar Lawrence and both Lord & Lady Capulet (she’s always up for a challenge!). The show played at Cumbernauld Theatre before touring venues across North Lanarkshire.
The cast of “Shakespeare’s R&J” at Cumbernauld Theatre, 2007. From L to R: Sarah Chalcroft, Michelle Wiggins, Rebecca Sloyan, Jennifer Dick
As we moved towards the summer season, trouble began to loom for the company. Huge expansion in our early years had placed Bard in the Botanics firmly on the map but had also accrued a financial deficit which we were still struggling to manage. In order to secure the future of the company, 2007 would have to see us stage a reduced season of work.
And so that year’s season saw us stage two of Shakespeare’s most well-known titles – “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Othello” – with a company of just 5 actors (with a sixth joining for Othello).
In “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, each actor took on a character from one of the 3 worlds of the play – the mortals, the fairies and the “rude mechanicals” – with Puck acting as a mischievous “ringmaster” of proceedings. He began the play lurking near the playing space, looking like a threatening “ned”, bouncing a football repeatedly and often making the audience feel quite uncomfortable. Then, suddenly, he invaded the space, drew four apparent audience members up into the action and magically sent them spinning into Shakespeare’s story. It was an inventive take on this popular title and even if the restrictions of the small cast stretched credibility perhaps a little too far at times – Duke Theseus could only appear as a disembodied voice emanating from a nearby tree! – the energised, versatile performances of Paul Cunningham (Bottom & Demetrius); Beth Marshall (Hermia, Titania & Starveling); John Macaulay (Lysander, Oberon & Flute); Lisa Gardner (Helena, Fairy & Snug) and Ewan Donald (Puck) kept the action clear and the audience engaged throughout.
The company of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”, 2007 (Photo credit: Pete Searle)
While the reduced cast size and popularity of the title were designed to ensure “Dream” could help the company through a difficult financial year, the weather had other ideas! The run of “Dream” saw us face the wettest weather Bard had experienced to date, leading to 5 performances (a third of its total run) being cancelled – the outlook was beginning to look bleak!
So it was a real blessing for the company that 2007 saw the reopening of the Kibble Palace, after a 3-year renovation. The gorgeous new glasshouse, recreated from its original design, was and still is a sparkling jewel in the Botanics’ crown and “Othello” was the first show to play in its new incarnation. The intimate domestic action of “Othello” had seemed unsuited to outdoor performance so the reopening of the Kibble Palace was a perfect opportunity to stage our first production of this powerful tragedy. Paul Cunningham, after his stunning debut as Leontes in 2006’s “The Winter’s Tale”, led the cast as Iago in a chilling performance in this pared-back, modern dress production.
John Macaulay (Othello) & Lisa Gardner (Desdemona) in “Othello” (2007)
Perhaps the project we are most proud of in 2007 was our “B in the Park” summer school. 9 young people came together to create a new production of “Twelfth Night”. Watching their love of Shakespeare grow, their confidence develop and their performances as young actors blossom under the tutelage and direction of Associate Artists, Jennifer Dick & Sarah Chalcroft, was incredibly rewarding.
Christine Park as Malvolio in “B in the Park: Twelfth Night” (2007)
But the bad weather experienced during “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” had taken its toll by the end of the season. Despite our attempts to manage our financial issues with a reduced season etc., the company still ended up in a worse situation than before and our future was in jeopardy. Of course, we’re still here so clearly we were able to navigate those tough times and the following year, 2008, really turned the company’s fortunes around but more on that next week!
Looking back on 2007, Artistic Director, Gordon Barr, had this to say:
“There’s no doubt that this was a difficult year for Bard in the Botanics and for me as Artistic Director. I remember spending nearly as much time dealing with financial crises as directing the shows, which is not what anyone wants! Thankfully, some brilliant actors and creatives meant that the work did not suffer and I’m proud of what we staged but I learned some tough lessons that year. And I think it’s important to acknowledge the difficulties we faced in 2007 because the history of a company is not just its triumphs but its trials as well – and we’re incredibly proud that we survived and have gone on to thrive as a company – it’s a big part of our story.”
FUN FACTS:
- “Shakespeare’s R&J” allowed the company to begin introducing a wider representation of queer identities in classical text – something that has become core to our identity in subsequent years in characters including Benedick & Bertram (originally Benedick & Beatrice); Timon of Athens; Richard II; Hamlet & Ophelia; Angel (2018’s version of the Nurse in another Romeo & Juliet); Touchstone, Andrey (originally Audrey); Silvia & Phebe in 2019’s “As You Like It” and many more.
- The random items which made up the set for “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” - a ladder; a large scramble net; interwoven straps hanging from tree branches – might have looked eclectic but were all carefully chosen to enable the show to stay at eye level for the audience. Dream is a play with a lot of “lying down” – for sleeping or perhaps other purposes(!) – and in a site-specific setting where audience & performance are on the same level, it can disappear into the ground. The more “vertical” set pieces prevented the actors from spending most of the play rolling on the ground, out of sight of the audience – the things you have to consider when working outdoors!
- Returning to the Kibble Palace for “Othello” was a steep learning curve for the company. We tried to use the space like a traditional theatre with rows of audience facing the performance area, all on the same level – which meant that the majority were just staring at the head of the person in front! When we next returned to the Kibble Palace in 2009, the audience configuration had changed to the traverse seating (i.e. audience on 2 sides, facing each other) which we have come to know & love – and which ensures everyone can actually see the play!
2007 COMPANY:
Gordon Barr (Artistic Director); Fi Carrington (Wardrobe Supervisor); Sarah Chalcroft (Actor – R&J; Director – B in the Park); Paul Cunningham (Actor); Jennifer Dick (Actor – R&J; Director – B in the Park); Ewan Donald (Actor); Brian Gardiner (Designer – Othello); Lisa Gardner (Actor); Kenneth Harvey (Actor); Emma Hullin (DSM); John Macaulay (Actor); Beth Marshall (Actor); Barry McCall (Stage Manager); Sarah Paulley (Designer – Dream & R&J); Pete Searle (Lighting Design – R&J); <slight> (Sound Design – Dream & Othello); Rebecca Sloyan (Actor); Laura Walshe (Stage Manager R&J); Michelle Wiggins (Actor)
