O, brave new world that has such people in't!
– Miranda Act V Sc 1
Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan, and his daughter Miranda are castaways on a remote island.
Prospero conjures a tempest when he discovers his usurping brother and the complicit King of Naples on a ship nearby and lures them into his ethereal kingdom.
Though this island seem to be desert
Uninhabitable and almost inaccessible
It must needs be of subtle, tender, and delicate temperance.
The air breathes upon us here most sweetly.
– Adrian, Act II Sc 1
The shipwrecked souls do not realize that they are on the island as pawns as they embark on their own voyages of self-discovery through encounters with the island's reluctant colonisers and their slaves - a magical spirit and the deformed son of a witch.
This island's mine by Sycorax, my mother.
– Caliban, Act I Sc 2
The Tempest is one of Shakespeare's late works, and apparently the last play of which he was sole author. A masterpiece of dramatic invention, its repeated allusions to art, spectacle and illusion have led some to associate Prospero with Shakespeare himself.
Seated outdoors near the sea, be transported to an island that shows us what it means to be human. And as the day ends and swallows turn into stars, St Dogmaels Abbey creates its very own kind of magic.
Cast
Alonso, King of Naples | Simon Beattie |
Sebastian, Alonso's brother | Georgina Ferry |
Prospero, the rightful Duke of Milan | Richard Mitchley |
Antonio, Prospero's brother, the usurping Duke of Milan | Heledd Hart |
Ferdinand, son of Alonso and Prince of Naples | Oscar Stafford |
Gonzalo, an honest old Counsellor in Alonso's court | Geoffrey Summers |
Adrian, a Lord in Alonso's court | Emma Hall |
Francisco, a Lord in Alonso's court | Tim Buck |
Caliban, a savage and deformed Slave | Will Long |
Trinculo, a Jester | Amy Levene |
Stephano, a drunken Butler | Philip Gerken |
Shipmaster, Master of a ship | Tim Chadwick |
Boatswain, Boatswain on a ship | Tim Buck |
Miranda, Daughter to Prospero | Angharad Evans |
Ariel, an airy Spirit | Beth Wardle, Jane Morris, Ed Long, John Holtorp |
Iris, presented by Spirits in the Masque | Emma Hall |
Ceres, presented by Spirits in the Masque | Amy Levene |
Juno, presented by Spirits in the Masque | Jessica Polkinghorne |
Mariners, Nymphs, Reapers, Spirits attending on Prospero | Hermione Miltiadou, Tim Chadwick, Tim Buck, Emma Hall, Ele Beattie, Mike Hall, Rebecca McClusky, Philip Gerken, Sam Morris, Harry Morris and Gabriel Pearcey |
Crew
Director | Henry Morris |
Assistant directors | Will Long & Amy Levene |
Composer | Richard Morris |
Lighting designer & Technical director | David Long |
Sound | Dominic Hargreaves |
Stage carpenter | William Martin |
Costume designer | Stephanie Ross |
Props | Penny Miltiadou |
Puppets | Amy Levene |
Poster Design | Donald Richards, Daniel Clatworthy |
Front of House | Jane Hall, Janet Painter |
Set | Robert Fitzmartin & Henry VIII |
Music
Flute | Eric Sheldon |
Clarinet | Katy Lawrence |
Bassoon | Ben Hardy |
Horn | Laurence Matthews |
Trumpet | Dan Webster |
Percussion | Beatrice Munby, Dan Webster |
Keyboards | Henry Ward |
Violins | Jo Wherry, Emma Booth |
Viola | Beatrice Munby |
Cello | Bob Dent |