Henry I tickets go on sale

MIDSUMMER might seem like a long way away, but a Readingbased theatre company wants people to start getting the dates in their diaries now.

Rabble’s outdoor production this year will be Henry I, a play written by Beth Flintoff.

It will be held in the Abbey Ruins in Reading’s The Forbury, and runs from Thursday, June 15, through to Saturday, July 1, with previews two days before it opens.

The show looks at what happens when William the Conqueror dies.

Henry, the spare royal son, gets nothing.

Only his beloved sister remains faithful as his brothers scramble for power and England suffers.

But Henry’s position changes. Power surges into his hands, love beckons and the world falls at his feet. What must he do to hold the crown?

Audiences will have to wait five months to find out.

The company received a £100,000 grant from Arts Council England to help with the staging of the show.

Peter Heslip, South East Director, Arts Council England, says: “It’s wonderful to see that so many people will have the opportunity to participate in this exciting new educational project by RABBLE Theatre.

“Arts, culture and creativity have a vital role in empowering people – giving us the opportunity to discover our history and explore challenging themes, as well as helping us to feel a sense of pride in the places where we live and work.

“We’re pleased to be able to support this exciting project thanks to National Lottery players.”

Tickets cost from £16 to £29. n For more details, or to book, log on to: https://rabbletheatre.com/ henry-i-of-england

Enjoy some Gallic charm with Alan

THIS weekend, there’s an opportunity to enjoy a gig that promises some Gallic charm.

Alan Clayson is heading to The Ship Inn arts centre in Thatcham for his show Clayson Sings Chanson.

He explains: “As well as works by Jacques Brel, Charles Aznavour, Scott Walker and other chansonniers, Gallic and English, we - me and keyboard player Andy Lavery - venture into curious but connected realms, ranging from an arrangement of French symbolist poet Paul Verlaine’s Un Grand Sommeil Noir to Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich’s Last Night In Soho.

“This is sung absolutely straight and, by contrast, Sweeney Todd The Barber - which I used to do with my group Clayson and the Argonauts, but hadn’t unveiled in public for a quarter of a century.

“Prefaced by an explanatory talk that is as entertaining as it is educational this show will appeal to both chanson devotees, those interested generally in Gallic culture and folk merely seeking fun.” n For more details, or to book tickets, costing £12, for Saturday’s show at The Ship Inn, log on to: shipinnarts.org and alanclayson.com/gigs

Alan is an author, as well as a singer, and has written a biography of Jacques Brel, La Vie Bohème.

And he’s performed at the Rising Sun Arts Centre in Reading recently, which led to some unexpected avenues. “Consequences of that performance were a short-notice double-header with John Cooper Clarke, and a booking the following weekend for Berkshire’s French Society,” Alan says.