SOUTHEND SHAKESPEARE COMPANY
presents
THE WINTER'S TALE
by William Shakespeare
Dixon Studio, Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
19th April - 23rd April 2016
presents
THE WINTER'S TALE
by William Shakespeare
Dixon Studio, Palace Theatre, Westcliff-on-Sea
19th April - 23rd April 2016
Miracles can happen...
Magical, Lyrical and Musical...!
Part drama, part comedy and part romance, Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale has it all
Magical, Lyrical and Musical...!
Part drama, part comedy and part romance, Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale has it all
William Shakespeare’s The Winter's Tale is actually grouped amongst one of the Bard’s many comedies and it would seem that there are many who would consider the play as one of Shakespeare's late romances. However, it has often been termed as a play of two parts with its first act filled with intense psychological drama and a second act that is comedic and supplies a happy ending.
Scott Roche
Leontes, the King of Sicilia, is played by Scott Roche who has also performed in the SSC's productions of Noel Coward's Cowardy Custard as well as playing the title role in Othello. As Leontes, he accuses his beloved pregnant wife (Jo Seymour) and best friend King Polixenes of Bohemia (Andrew Sugden) of adultery. Assuming that the daughter the Queen gives birth to is illegitimate, Leontes orders that the child be banished. This error in judgement leads to tragedy and 16 years of repentance on the part of Leontes until the story reaches its magical conclusion. Full of surprises, this most quirky of Shakespeare's plays includes songs, dances, miracles and even a bear!
Chairman and director, Jim Carter, has chosen to make full use of the second act’s opportunity to provide a feel-good factor for audiences and has brought together some of Southend’s finest musicians to form a band who will join the actors on stage and become part of the production.
Fortunately, Jim didn’t need to look too far to find the band, he has wittily named "The Bohemia Boys" as cast member, Amy Wilson’s partner Jason who plays with local band, The Phrogs, was on hand to provide his vocal and harmonica, washboard and kazoo playing skills. He explains, “Jim approached me and asked me if I'd be interested in getting involved. I figured it was something different to your average gig, so I thought why not!”
Further recruits were Lee Jackson, a long-term member of the Southend Shakespeare Company, who provides ukulele, tea-chest bass and vocal harmonies, Chris Musson, a guitar player, whose dexterity has previously been heard in the SSC's production of Othello and Jack Corder providing vocal harmonies, percussion and kazoo. He, too, has appeared in a previous SSC production - An Ideal Husband
I ask Jason what the biggest challenge has been for the band during rehearsals and he confesses, “Although the songs themselves were fairly easy to learn, for me, the challenging thing was incorporating them into a play, as it's something I've never done before.” He adds, “Remembering cue bites and positioning on stage is something I'm getting used to – and also remembering to “act” at all times when on stage!!”
Lee, who as well as having acted with the group before, has also played guitar and accordion for the group’s productions of Othello and Antony & Cleopatra, adds, “When we're moving around the stage and playing a song, it's sometimes difficult to hear what the other members are playing, so it can be hard at times to keep the timing right with the others!”
All the words to the songs they will be playing are originally from the script but Jim researched the kind of music he wanted the group to go with and recorded a few bits and pieces for the band to listen to.
He says, “The style I was looking at was mostly for a fifties-early sixties feel. A couple of the tunes were inspired from Bo Diddley and also an Elvis Presley song. So audiences can expect to hear the sounds of fifties rock and roll, early sixties beats, skiffle, country, folk and gospel inspired music.”
After hearing them myself playing at rehearsals, I can’t help but wonder if the band have any plans to stay together in the future; they sound amazing and you'd never guess for a moment that they'd only been working together for just a few months.
“There are no solid plans at the moment,” Jay tells me, “but there's talk about maybe getting together to play a few local events coming up in the summer. Might even play the odd open mic or two if anyone fancies it!”
Fortunately for the lucky audiences of The Winter’s Tale, they won’t have to wait until the summer to see if the band re-form or not as they will be performing every night at The Dixon Studio of the Palace Theatre in Westcliff-on-Sea and will certainly be playing a big part in providing the happy ending that Shakespeare desired, for one of his most classic plays.
Don't miss it !!!
Tickets available online at www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call 01702 351135
Chairman and director, Jim Carter, has chosen to make full use of the second act’s opportunity to provide a feel-good factor for audiences and has brought together some of Southend’s finest musicians to form a band who will join the actors on stage and become part of the production.
Fortunately, Jim didn’t need to look too far to find the band, he has wittily named "The Bohemia Boys" as cast member, Amy Wilson’s partner Jason who plays with local band, The Phrogs, was on hand to provide his vocal and harmonica, washboard and kazoo playing skills. He explains, “Jim approached me and asked me if I'd be interested in getting involved. I figured it was something different to your average gig, so I thought why not!”
Further recruits were Lee Jackson, a long-term member of the Southend Shakespeare Company, who provides ukulele, tea-chest bass and vocal harmonies, Chris Musson, a guitar player, whose dexterity has previously been heard in the SSC's production of Othello and Jack Corder providing vocal harmonies, percussion and kazoo. He, too, has appeared in a previous SSC production - An Ideal Husband
I ask Jason what the biggest challenge has been for the band during rehearsals and he confesses, “Although the songs themselves were fairly easy to learn, for me, the challenging thing was incorporating them into a play, as it's something I've never done before.” He adds, “Remembering cue bites and positioning on stage is something I'm getting used to – and also remembering to “act” at all times when on stage!!”
Lee, who as well as having acted with the group before, has also played guitar and accordion for the group’s productions of Othello and Antony & Cleopatra, adds, “When we're moving around the stage and playing a song, it's sometimes difficult to hear what the other members are playing, so it can be hard at times to keep the timing right with the others!”
All the words to the songs they will be playing are originally from the script but Jim researched the kind of music he wanted the group to go with and recorded a few bits and pieces for the band to listen to.
He says, “The style I was looking at was mostly for a fifties-early sixties feel. A couple of the tunes were inspired from Bo Diddley and also an Elvis Presley song. So audiences can expect to hear the sounds of fifties rock and roll, early sixties beats, skiffle, country, folk and gospel inspired music.”
After hearing them myself playing at rehearsals, I can’t help but wonder if the band have any plans to stay together in the future; they sound amazing and you'd never guess for a moment that they'd only been working together for just a few months.
“There are no solid plans at the moment,” Jay tells me, “but there's talk about maybe getting together to play a few local events coming up in the summer. Might even play the odd open mic or two if anyone fancies it!”
Fortunately for the lucky audiences of The Winter’s Tale, they won’t have to wait until the summer to see if the band re-form or not as they will be performing every night at The Dixon Studio of the Palace Theatre in Westcliff-on-Sea and will certainly be playing a big part in providing the happy ending that Shakespeare desired, for one of his most classic plays.
Don't miss it !!!
Tickets available online at www.southendtheatres.org.uk or call 01702 351135
The band are: (from left to right)
Jason West – lead vocals, harmonica, washboard and kazoo
Lee Jackson – Ukulele, T-Chest bass, vocal harmonies
Jack Corder – Percussion, kazoo and vocal harmonies
Chris Musson – Guitar
Details of upcoming gigs with their other bands:
Jason runs an open mic night at The Smugglers Den in Hullbridge every other Thursday at the moment, and will be moving to every other Wednesday after The Winter's Tale has finished. He will also be playing at a classic car show at The Lawns in Rochford in June this year, with his acoustic duo 'Spring Heeled Jack’.
Chris is in a local funk and soul band 'The King Snakes and A No Good Woman'. One of their upcoming gigs will be Tuesday 3rd May at the Railway Hotel, Southend, as part of their weekly Bluesday Tuesday night. His band will be headlining that night.
Jack has been doing some percussion work with local artist 'Phil Burdett', and is hoping to have his new album out at some point in the near future.
Jason West – lead vocals, harmonica, washboard and kazoo
Lee Jackson – Ukulele, T-Chest bass, vocal harmonies
Jack Corder – Percussion, kazoo and vocal harmonies
Chris Musson – Guitar
Details of upcoming gigs with their other bands:
Jason runs an open mic night at The Smugglers Den in Hullbridge every other Thursday at the moment, and will be moving to every other Wednesday after The Winter's Tale has finished. He will also be playing at a classic car show at The Lawns in Rochford in June this year, with his acoustic duo 'Spring Heeled Jack’.
Chris is in a local funk and soul band 'The King Snakes and A No Good Woman'. One of their upcoming gigs will be Tuesday 3rd May at the Railway Hotel, Southend, as part of their weekly Bluesday Tuesday night. His band will be headlining that night.
Jack has been doing some percussion work with local artist 'Phil Burdett', and is hoping to have his new album out at some point in the near future.
