Trying on Henry IV costumes

What’s Wrong With Angry? By Patrick Wilde starts today and runs until Saturday 7th July. See last week's blog for details.



Shi being laced into her lady in waiting costume

The theatre is very busy getting ready for our annual Shakespeare production in the beautiful Caversham Court Gardens. This year we are presenting Henry IV, Part One in full period costume. Most of the costumes have been hired from a company called History in the Making who have a treasure trove of a warehouse near Portsmouth full of weapons, army vehicles, obsure props and of course a whole range of costumes.

Matt Tully showing off his Henry IV costume

The costumes arrived at the theatre on Saturday and were sorted out by the wardrobe team headed by Liz Paulo and Louise Butland. They were all ready for the actors to try on Sunday afternoon when a team of volunteers were ready with needle and thread to make any alterations.












We even have chain mail for the battle scenes. These can't really be altered easily and trying them on a couple of the chain mail tunics proved to be too short and would leave the wearers vulnerable in a battle. Liz and Louise will have to try and get some longer ones from the costume company of see if the National Theatre, who are supplying some additional costumes, have any available. We can't have leave our brave knights exposed on stage!

Matt Dury trying on his chain mail

 

If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

What’s Wrong With Angry? By Patrick Wilde, 2nd - 7th July 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12th - 21st July 2012, Caversham Court Gardens

Calendar Girls by Tim Firth, 13th - 22nd September 2012, Progress Theatre

What's wrong with Angry?

Progress Youth Theatre are well into rehearsals for their next production What's wrong with Angry? I sat in on part of one of them. This is a hard hitting play about a gay school boy in the early 1990s, a time when it was still illegal for 16 year old homosexuals to have sex. What struck me about the play was the believability of the teenage interactions. The desperation to be part of the group; to find someone, anyone, for that all important final slow dance; the boys who think you'll be happy to  go with them because 'you're not exactly an oil painting'.

An action scene from 'What's wrong with Angry'

The cast were managing in this rehearsal without one of the main characters. They had to make do with either someone standing in for him and reading his lines or talking to the space where he should be while the director read in the lines. In fact the director himself was standing in for Ali Carroll who couldn't make this rehearsal. They did however have their stage-manager, Fiona McNeil, who was watching the action and working out what props and furniture need to be bought on and off, and more importantly, who is going to do it.
If you are interested in what goes on at Progress Theatre then sign up to this blog. Enter your email in the box under ‘about us’ and click on subscribe. New postings are made weekly so you won’t be swamped with emails.

Coming up -

What’s Wrong With Angry? By Patrick Wilde, 2nd - 7th July 2012, Progress Theatre

Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 12th - 21st July 2012, Caversham Court Gardens