What a week we’ve had here at SMP! The excitement started with not just one, but TWO birthdays among the esteemed members of our production team. First up was our producer, Dogberry, and all-round source of joy Mr Warren McWilliams, who celebrates turning 40!
Honestly, he doesn’t look a day over 39-and-a-half.
And if that wasn’t enough, later in the week was the birthday of our show’s writer! Unfortunately Mr William Shakespeare couldn’t join us in the festivities due to being 555 years old and very dead. (Incidentally this was also the anniversary of his death! One thing about us theatre people, we’re very good at knowing when to make a dramatic exit)
So there we were celebrating the lives of two great men responsible for some of the greatest works in the history of the stage (Mr Shakespeare boasts an impressive 37 scripts compared to Warren’s 10, however Warren has a somewhat higher chance of increasing his total in future). And so we chose to celebrate like the refined, professional group of thespians we are.
We got hammered
Fortunately Monday was the Easter bank holiday, which meant a day off from rehearsal and not having to admit which of us were suffering from a 2-day hangover
Later in the week, Wednesday was a landmark day in SMP’s history! After 60 years of making our home at Cannon house we’ve found ourselves having to say goodbye and move on. So we shuffled off down the road to find another venue that we can all squeeze into (theatre groups have a surprising amount in common with hermit crabs) which is how we’ve found ourselves rehearsing inside the lovely scout hut at Southgate cricket club.
First off, now that we’ve worked out all the scenes, and gone through the dancing it was time to sit down and do some singing. Which was absolutely not just an excuse for Kate to serenade us en masse with her admittedly beautiful voice
After which we finally blocked the masquerade ball scene. It’s going to be a stunning setpiece, set amongst the gorgeous bury lodge park, with the elegantly clad partygoers dancing gracefully around the banks of the pond. But you don’t even need to imagine it, because we created a 100% accurate scale model that perfectly encapsulates the beauty of the scene:
Flawless.
It’s been a tumultuous time for the group, first bidding a tentative goodbye to our theatre in January, taking on a brand new open-air Shakespeare featuring singing and dancing which is new to all of us (and probably pretty unique in the 400 year history of the show itself), and now taking the first steps into our new home. But we’re still together, still loving every moment, and in 5 weeks time we’re going to have something very, very special to show you all. After all, in the exact words of everyone’s favourite God of Thunder:
(Look you gave me the blog THIS week, you’re getting at least one Avenger’s reference. What did you expect)
Hopefully in another 60 years time when we end up looking for a new rehearsal space I’ll have joined good old Will Shakespeare in being comfortably dead. Until that time, here we are and we’re ready to leave our mark
… I meant that metaphorically but whatever.
Tickets are already on sale at the usual spot. You don’t want to miss this one. We’re not just inviting you to watch our show. You’re invited to join it. And we’re all working incredibly hard to make sure it’s truly fantastic
Just ask John here
Tickets are limited to 100 tickets per performance so please book early to avoid missing out on a unique show. You can order your tickets by clicking the banner below.
