Apr to Jul 2017 Box office: 0333 666 3366
Welcome to The RONDO – Summer 2017
Welcome… …to Summer at The Rondo Theatre – and our fab new Ticketing System. The Rondo is pleased to announce that we have a new and improved Box Office service for our shows. We’ve teamed up with the lovely people from Ticket Source to provide a modern booking facility that’s more convenient for audiences. You can book directly online via www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre. And once you’ve made your booking, Ticket Source gives you a variety of options to receive your tickets: Ticket Source can email you an ‘e-ticket’ to print at home - all you have to do is bring your printout with you to the theatre. Mobile tickets can be sent to your smartphone and include the unique booking reference and barcode for us to validate or scan at the theatre. And TicketSource also offers a Physical Ticket printing option so you can have the tickets posted to you for that ‘Retro’ Experience – handy if you don’t have access to a printer or mobile phone, or if you’d like to gift tickets to someone else. And if you’re ‘Old Skool’, you can still book your tickets over the phone, if that is your preference: our new booking line is: 0333 666 3366. Happy Booking! Please note that Booking Fees apply – but we’ve kept these as low as possible!
BATH DRAMA
Gothic By Colin Barnes Wed 26 - Sat 29 Apr • 7.30pm • Full £12 Concs £10 • Community A double bill to celebrate the gothic short stories of W.F. Harvey, Robert Aickman and Edith Nesbit. Adapted for the stage by Colin Barnes
The Paradise Club The Paradise Club meets regularly to frighten each other out of their wits. But someone has been doing this too well. Could this be the last meeting ever?
All Hallows’ Tide Hugo and Fran have it all. Good jobs and all the luxuries of modern life… So what could be so daunting about a getaway weekend in deepest Suffolk? Where’s the mobile signal and why are the bells all ringing? And what happens when they stop?
Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre
ACTA COMMUNITY THEATRE
Gas Girls Fri 5 May • 7.00pm • Full £4 Concs £4 • Community The untold story of the women who made Mustard Gas in Avonmouth, Bristol. ‘How would anyone even know there was a story to tell, if I said nothing? So I passed it on, the story, everything that happened, all about us Gas Girls’. A riveting and moving WWI centenary show. The story of the women, the beliefs that drove them, the hardships and the friendship and humour that bound them together. “A fantastic portrayal of a real life story. Very powerful, the more so because it was true.”
MERRIMAN PRODUCTIONS
The Drowsy Chaperone Music and Lyrics by Lisa Lambert & Greg Morrison. Book by Bob Martin & Don McKellar Wed 10 – Sat 13 May • 7.30pm • Full £12 Concs £10 • Community Merriman Productions return to the Rondo Theatre after the sell-out success of Acorn Antiques with this hilarious musical comedy - The Drowsy Chaperone, the Tony Awardwinning affectionate parody of the great American musicals of the 1920s. When a die-hard theatre fan plays his favourite cast album, the characters literally come to life in his bedsit. The stage is set for hilarious musical farce, with two lovers on the eve of their wedding, a bumbling best man, a desperate theatre producer, a notso-bright hostess, two gangsters posing as pastry chefs, a misguided Don Juan and an intoxicated chaperone, all the ingredients for an evening of madcap delight.
Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre
WHOLE HOG PRODUCTIONS
Pugilist Specialist By Adriano Shaplin Fri 19 – Sat 20 May • 8pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Professional Four highly trained US Marines are assigned a top secret mission to eliminate a high profile Middle Eastern leader. Triple Fringe First winning, Pugilist Specialist won every major award at the Edinburgh Festival with this soaring and timely play dissecting the American military’s hunt for evil in foreign lands. A darkly humorous, punch in the guts play.
“Remarkable and riveting. It’s hard to imagine more brilliant or arresting new writing” – Daily Telegraph “A masterpiece. A vivid and timely play” – Time Out
Mark Thomas: Predictable (Work in Progress) Tue 23 & Wed 24 May • 8pm • Full £10 • Comedy Few predicted the events of the past year. Mark sets out to find what the future has in store for us by asking the audience what their predictions for the future are, creating a fantastical, hilarious and sometimes accurate vision of the world. This show is all about gambling on the future. Based along the lines of his 2011 show Manifesto, Mark takes suggestions from the audience to create a snapshot of the future. Age 16+
Box office 0333 666 3366 SOFTSOD ARTS PRODUCTIONS
Fragile Man By Jood Martin Fri 26 May • 8pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional On an isolated hilltop two men must confront their darkest secrets and deepest fears in a chance encounter destined to change their lives forever. An unsettling and insightful drama exposing two men’s fight for truth, justice and survival. Developed into an original script through improvised workshops, Fragile Man highlights the difficulties that can accompany ‘becoming me’ and the mental and emotional struggle we face to know our true selves. Its themes* delve deeply into our shared experiences of being human and the daunting reality of our own fragile mortality. This is a preview performance ahead of Edinburgh Fringe. *contains adult themes
NOS THREE THEATRE
Blooming Out By NOS Three Sat 27 May • 8pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional Blooming Out is a clown show, interpreted by two Brazilian actresses, that explores in a light and comic way the most intriguing moments of the feminine universe. The fascination of beauty, girly plays, the first time putting on make-up, the body’s development including its feminine parts, arrival of the period, the first kiss, virginity loss, oppression and fear, maternity, love, demands and social taboos, work, happiness and growing old; these are some of the many fascinating and scary themes that build the story of this plot. Blooming Out uses only non-verbal language, creating touching scenes of great power and beauty.
Super Hamlet 64: Parody DLC By Edward Day Thu 1 June • 7:30pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional An ocarina, a ukulele and a thirst for revenge. Lecoq trained Edward Day battles four decades of videogame nostalgia in an explosion of Shakespeare, live music, video projection and 16 bit mayhem. Exploring our workaholic culture and addiction to technology, Hamlet drives himself to the brink of sanity in an unending quest to kill his uncle and win at life. Contains mimed violence.
Box office 0333 666 3366 MIKE SCOTT AND DAVID C JOHNSON
“Still Doing It” By Mike Scott and David C Johnson Fri 2 Jun • 8pm • Full £10 Concs £9 • Music/Poetry A show full of original songs, poetry and banter that is witty, pithy, and acutely observed. How did popular, talented singer/songwriter, Mike Scott, ex-pupil of Penpole Point Secondary School and David C Johnson, funny, prize-winning performance poet, ex-cadet of the Nautical College Pangbourne, find themselves writing a show together and sharing a stage? Their entertaining and original show attempts to answer this question, as they talk, sing and poetise on School, Sport, Travel, Art and the Consequences of Getting Old. They maybe of a certain age, but they are definitely “Still Doing It”
CROON PRODUCTIONS
Spaghetti! Sat 3 Jun • 8pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional A puppet theatre Spaghetti Western. A jail break! 2 gunslingers ride into town, as a Wild West frontier town made from pianos materialises before your eyes! Tumbleweed, the saloon is humming, a bank job, the bell chimes, the coffin maker is busy, the noose sways in the wind. Justice is best delivered with a gun on your hip and a cigar on your lip. Made for grown-ups but suitable for all ages.
RESTLESS THEATRE COMPANY
Network Tales Wed 7 Jun • 8pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional Ever wondered who you are sitting next to on the train? Do overheard conversations, unusual luggage and first impressions make you ponder? Let our Train Conductor carry you away with madcap stories of passion, grief and mystery as he responds to these brief glimpses into the everyday lives of your fellow passengers. As night falls, climb aboard at Bath Spa with Anna and Stuart, and find out if they can get to grips with the less romantic practicalities of love on the tracks.
“This is a comedy drama well worth seeing, train travel will never be the same again!” – Sally Wells, The Daily Fringe
Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre MOONSON.CO PRESENTS FOR BATH FRINGE
Robin and Bina Williamson: Songs, Stories and Music Thu 8 Jun • 8pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Music Robin and Bina Williamson work together so well because they create a perfect balance of voices. They draw on a wide variety of original and traditional songs, stories and music from Celtic, English, Indian and Old Timey roots; celebrating the turning year and the mystery of being alive. Robin is legendary worldwide as musician, storyteller and writer and painter. He has fore-fronted many genres over his 50-year career. He plays harp and guitar. Bina is an inspired and gifted singer, songwriter and multiinstrumentalist in her own right. She has a hauntingly sweet melodious voice. She plays bowed psaltery, plucked psaltery, auto harp and long neck dulcimer. Their soulful performances as a duo feature their East West vocal harmonies and their own unique interweave of songs stories and music.
“An evening of enchanting entertainment” – Edi Stark, Radio Scotland, Celtic Connections. “Enthralling musicianship” – Glasgow Herald
“Pure beauty through simplicity” – Robert Plant
THE ACTOR’S WHEEL
A Clockwork Orange By Anthony Burgess Fri 9 Jun • 8pm • Full £12 Concs £10 • Community ‘I see what is right and approve, but I do what is wrong… Choice is free but seldom easy’ The Actor s Wheel return with a brave and striking production of this infamous literary classic, which encapsulates a nightmarish vision of youth culture, questions social conformity and challenges our freedom of choice. Burgess’ beautiful ‘Nadsat’ language is brought to life by a dynamic and vibrant ensemble in this highly physical and energetic production.
“Watching them perform is like stepping into a dream… Each time you think they must be running out of ideas, the next scene surprises you further” (Faustus tour 2015) “The Actor’s Wheel have produced a truly powerful performance. Flawless and captivating from start to finish.” (The Caucasian Chalk Circle tour 2016)
Box office 0333 666 3366 EAMONN FLEMING IN ASSOCIATION WITH LITTLEMIGHTY PRESENTS
Confabulation Sat 10 Jun • 8pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Professional A show about memory and making stuff up. Every act of remembering is an act of storytelling. So here’s mine. It starts with a spotty teenager at a Motorhead gig and ends up at the cutting edge of Memory research. The bellowing fans, the smell of beer and sweat, the thunderous music. When I think back, it’s all so vivid. And it’s all completely made up. Join me, Eamonn Fleming, writer, performer and ‘O’ level Biologist (Grade C), as I stumble through the amazing world of Memory Palaces, False Memories and Werther’s Originals. Confabulation is a funny and startling show about not being able to trust a single thing you remember about your past. Suitable for audiences aged 12+
BLUE LEAF THEATRE
That Moment By Dougie Blaxland Wed 14 – Sat 17 Jun • 8pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Professional How far would you go to achieve your dream? This farcical comedy centers around failing actress Alicia Harding. Alicia regales us with how one audition led her to be landed with the director’s nightmare of a dog, Titus, who not only causes trouble in her personal life but delights in using the living room carpet as his personal toilet. As Alicia finds her way into the director’s email account, she takes matters into her own hands. Will her gutsy attitude serve her well or ruin her career forever? A fast paced, witty, one-woman show, it’s not to be missed!
RONDO THEATRE COMPANY
Terry Pratchett’s© Wyrd Sisters adapted for the stage by Stephen Briggs Wed 21 – Sat 24 Jun • 7.30pm • Full £12 Concs £10 • Community Terry Pratchett© takes Shakespeare’s Macbeth and then turns it up till the knob comes off. It’s all there … a wicked duke and duchess, the ghost of a murdered king, dim soldiers, strolling players, a land in peril. And who comes between the Kingdom and destruction? Three witches. Granny Weaterwax (intolerant, self- opinionated, powerful), Nanny Ogg (down to earth, vulgar), and Magrat Garlick (naïve, fond of occult jewellery and bunnies). RTC’s annual charity show, this year in aid of Peggy Dodd Centre who provide companionship and stimulation for dementia sufferers in a safe and comfortable environment.
Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre SCHOOLHOUSE PRODUCTIONS
A Doll’s House By Henrik Ibsen. A new version by Simon Stephens Wed 28 & Thu 29 Jun • 8pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Professional Nora, a wife, mother and silly little spendthrift, has kept a secret from her husband, Torvald for years now. As the truth is forced out into the open the cracks in their happy marriage begin to show. Initially condemned as a pro-feminist work, Ibsen’s nineteenth century masterpiece has been newly adapted for the stage by Simon Stephens and highlights just how relevant the once controversial themes of the play still are today. – 365 Bristol
– RemoteGoat
Beerey Fri 30 Jun & Sat 1 Jul • 8pm • Full £12 Concs £10 • Professional Beerey is based the true experiences of Sue and Elle during and since the arrest and conviction of their husband and father as part of Operation Disorient (one of the UK’s biggest international drugs smuggling busts). They tell their stories with heart-breaking honesty, and often a great deal of humour... It makes you wonder, what would you do if your perfectly ordinary family was suddenly swept into the nightmare of an international drugs smuggling bust? If a member of your family is accused of a crime, will everyone believe you’re all guilty? At the time of writing the ‘Freshwater Five’ - as they are known - are still being held in prison, and their families are still fighting to get new evidence to prove their innocence assessed by the Criminal Cases Review Commission. www.5men104years.com is the website set up to tell the full story of all the men and families involved. All profits generated from the show will go to The Centre for Criminal Appeals, a not for profit solution to the shortage of investigation and legal representation for criminal appeals - www.criminalappeals.org.uk Please note - there is some distressing subject matter, and some swearing.
BATH OPERA
Rigoletto By Verdi Fri 7 – Sat 8 Jul • 7.30pm • Full £14 Concs £13 • Opera Bath Opera’s touring company returns to the Rondo with a new production of Verdi’s 1851 masterpiece, Rigoletto. Packed with glorious tunes and intense emotion, it takes the audience on a roller-coaster ride of joy, love, despair and murder. Based around the court of the libertine Duke of Mantua, this production is set in 1930s Italy, in the decadent years before the second World War. Arrogant aristocrats mingle with nightclub hostesses, while the Duke’s favourite comedian, Rigoletto, pokes malicious fun at anyone who shows the slightest sign of vulnerability. But Rigoletto has a secret: his beautiful daughter Gilda, whom he keeps hidden away to preserve her honour. She is everything to him, and he is terrified that someone in this amoral, licentious city will find and seduce her. He doesn’t realise that some of the courtiers have already discovered her and, thinking she’s his mistress, are planning to kidnap her. Musical direction by Peter Blackwood, stage direction Alexandra Denman.
Box office 0333 666 3366
Rondo Drama Club
Rondo Drama Summer School
create, develop, perform
The Rondo Drama Summer School is a unique experience where you’re encouraged to share your creative ideas (however crazy or bizarre!). You then get the chance to devise a play, improvise it and perform it to your parents and friends under the lights on the famous Rondo Stage. The sessions are run by Paulo Baigent, an experienced theatre director and drama workshop leader.
Summer Term Ages 8 – 15 • 4.45pm – 6pm • £80 Rondo Drama Club is a unique experience where your children are encouraged to share their creative ideas and work together to use the best of them to devise a totally original play. They then get the chance to improvise, rehearse and, finally, perform it under the lights on the famous Rondo Stage. The sessions are run by Paulo Baigent, an experienced theatre director, educator and drama workshop leader. Rondo Drama Club’s weekly sessions take place at St. Stephen’s School, Lansdown with dress rehearsals and end of term performances at the Rondo Theatre itself. At Rondo Drama Club we are committed to raising confidence and self-esteem in a fun and nurturing environment. So if your children are into drama, love to have fun, are full of ideas and eager to share them, then book them in for our next term at The Rondo Drama Club. Please note: participants must be available for the final rehearsal on Sunday 16 July and for the end of term show on Monday 17 July.
Week A: Mon 24 - Fri 28 July Week B: Mon 21 - Fri 25 Aug Mon - Thurs: 10am - 4pm; Fri 10am - 7pm Cost £95 per week For more information, please email Paulo at: speaktomegabriel@gmail.com or book via www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre
Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre Become A Rondo Volunteer Acting as a Rondo Theatre volunteer is a great way of getting closer to the theatre, music, comedy and other fantastic events on offer at this fantastic venue. In return, you get to see the shows for free, as well as to make new friends and socialise.
Our volunteers work mainly as bar staff or on front of house and are an essential part of the success of The Rondo. Volunteering normally means working on two or three shows a month. It’s great fun – and you get to see a huge variety of performances for free! If you’d like to volunteer, please contact the Theatre Director, Ian McGlynn: ian@rondotheatre.co.uk
The RONDO Theatre ST. SAVIOURS ROAD, Larkhall, Bath, BA1 6RT www.rondotheatre.co.uk
INFO Box Office: Ticket Agent - TicketSource www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre
Find us on…
Booking Line: 0333 666 3366 Please note: booking fees apply - but we’ve kept these as low as we can! Concessions: Concession prices are available to children under 18, full-time students, Equity Members, unemployed benefit claimants, disabled people and those whose sole source of income is a DSS state retirement pension. Groups: Buy ten tickets and get an additional ticket free. Door Sales: Doors open 30 minutes before the show. Tickets are available to buy on the door for all events at The Rondo.
Charity No: 1000051 Parking: On street after 6pm. The Rondo Theatre Company is our resident community theatre company. If you want to get involved in performing or backstage work, visit www.rondotheatrecompany.org Theatre Director: Ian McGlynn. email: director@rondotheatre.co.uk Marketing Coordinator: Alison Farina. email: marketing@rondotheatre.co.uk
Latecomers: For security reasons, it may not be possible to admit latecomers. So please be prompt!
Associate Directors: Hannah Drake, Alison Farina, Jazz Hazelwood, Philippa Howard, Shane Morgan.
Access: The main entrance to The Rondo has excellent disabled access. We have a disabled toilet and the front row is available for wheelchairs. Pre-booking recommended.
Programme Design: GAS Design. Tel. 01249 712657 www.gas-design.co.uk
RONDO DIARY
Box office 0333 666 3366 Web bookings: www.ticketsource.co.uk/rondotheatre
DATE
SHOW
GENRE
26 – 29 Apr
Gothic
Community
5 May
Gas Girls
Community
10 – 13 May
The Drowsy Chaperone
Community
19 – 20 May
Pugilist Specialist
Theatre
23 – 24 May
Mark Thomas
Comedy
26 May
Fragile Man
Theatre
27 May
Blooming Out
Theatre
1 Jun
Super Hamlet 64
Theatre
2 Jun
Still Doing It
Music/Poetry
3 Jun
Spaghetti!
Theatre
7 Jun
Network Tales
Theatre
8 Jun
Robin & Bina Williamson
Music
9 Jun
A Clockwork Orange
Community
10 Jun
Confabulation
Theatre
14 – 17 Jun
That Moment
Theatre
21 – 24 Jun
Wyrd Sisters
Community
28 – 29 Jun
A Doll’s House
Theatre
30 Jun – 1 Jul
Beerey
Theatre
7 – 8 Jul
Rigoletto
Opera