Cornbury Park

Adults £20, Concessions* £15

Wadham College

Evening Performances
Adults £22.50, Concessions* £17.50

Matinee Performances
Adults £17.50, Concessions* £12.50

Under 5s:
Free for all performances.

Bookings can be made through Tickets Oxford on 01865 305 305 or online at ticketsoxford.com

Disabled customers may bring 1 free carer.

*Concessions:
Full Time Students, Under 18s, Over 65s & Registered Disabled. ID will be required.

Ways To Save

See it first
All preview tickets are just £12.50 (1st & 2nd July)

Family ticket
10% off when you buy 4 tickets (must include at least one Under 18 ticket)

Groups of 10+
Every eleventh ticket free. Please contact us on 0844 879 4418 / 07775 946 062

Schools
By arrangement. Please contact us on 0844 879 4418 / 07775 946 062

General Information & Wet Weather Policy

Seating is unreserved tiered with back rests. Rugs available for hire. We are open from one hour before the performance. Babies admitted. Shows cancelled as a result of bad weather are non-refundable though we will endeavour to exchange tickets for an alternative date subject to availability for the 2013 season.

The Merry Wives of Windsor

Shakespeare's domestic comedy of the middle-classes set in the most English of locations - a Summer Garden Fete.

Played out against a backdrop of prize vegetables, cream cakes, raffles and Punch & Judy this will be a production that celebrates farce, the Carry On tradition and all the foibles of the English class system at its most ridiculous.

The annual Windsor Fete becomes the perfect setting for games of jealousy, deceit and revenge where the men of Windsor get outfoxed by the women in their lives. Not least of which is Falstaff, Shakespeare’s loveable rogue, whose plans to woo the women of Windsor hilariously ends in woe!

Performed in the glorious setting of Wadham College Gardens by a troupe of 8 actors, bringing Shakespeare, song, dance and cakes.

Directed by Gemma Fairlie
Design by Adrian Lille

The Oxford Shakespeare Company (OSC) has been resident for a summer season in Wadham College Gardens since 2002, taking over from the ten-year tenure of bold & saucy, meaning there has been professional summer theatre at the college for over two decades. We have presented twenty productions and achieved critical and audience acclaim.

Thereafter the company performed regularly at Hampton Court Palace (including being invited to perform the 400^th Anniversary production of Macbeth in the Great Hall in 2006), Kensington Gardens (the first commercial theatre company invited to do so) and more recently The Tower of London; bespoke commissions.

The Gardens at Wadham are a wonderful setting for Shakespeare and other classic texts, and provide an added appeal to audiences, both local and visiting. The quality and reputation of the OSC has allowed us to work with pre-eminent directors since its foundation including: Mick Gordon, Guy Retallack, Chris Pickles and Bill Bankes Jones, the acclaimed Opera director and now, for the second year, Gemma Fairlie. We have a reputation for excellence in our field, receiving Time Out Critics Choice and 4*& 5* recommendations from national and local press on many occasions.

OSC Productions:

2012

A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Cornbury Park & Wadham College.
Director: Gemma Fairlie. Music: Nick Lloyd Webber and James D.Reid. Costume: Adrian Lillie

Colonel Blood & The Raven. The Tower of London
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

2011

The Comedy of Errors (Revival). Wadham College & Ken Hill House Norfolk.
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie 

The Importance of Being Earnest. Wadham College.
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

2010

The Tempest.  The Walks Gray’s Inn, Royal Observatory Greenwich, Cornbury Park, Wadham College, Hampton Court Palace & Ken Hill House Norfolk.
Director: Mick Gordon. Music: Nick Lloyd Webber. Costume: Dora Schweitzer & Adrian Lillie
“A cut-above most summer Shakespeare experiences, this has it’s own rough magic. A real little charmer”. Lyn Gardner The Guardian 2010 for The Tempest

Private Lives. Wadham College
Director: Nicholas Green. Music James D. Reid. Costume: Adrian Lillie.
"The idea of presenting a Noël Coward comedy in the open sounds ridiculous but turns out to work tremendously well…A perfect evening” Jeremy Kingston The Times ****2010

2009

Romeo & Juliet. The Walks Gray’s Inn, Cornbury Park & Wadham College.
Director: Guy Retallack. Music: Paul Kissaun. Design: Dora Schweitzer & Adrian Lillie.

Cyrano de Bergerac. Wadham College
Director: Sarah Davey Music Lisa Westerhout Costume: Adrian Lillie
“hugely enjoyable evening…it is impossible not to be drawn into this extraordinary performance.”
Oxford Daily Info for Cyrano de Bergerac

The Comedy of Errors. North Garden Lincoln’s Inn & Wadham College
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie
“An exuberant outdoor production (with) faultless performances... hugely warm and engaging, a toe-tapping, heart-warming hoot”**** The Guardian for The Comedy of Errors

2008

Twelfth Night. Cornbury Park, Wadham College, Kensington Palace & Hampton Court Palace.
Director: Bill Bankes-Jones. Music: Nick Lloyd Webber. Costume: Adrian Lillie.
“An unflagging comic delight” Time Out Critics Choice 2008 for Twelfth Night

Telling Tales at the Tower. Medieval Palace at The Tower of London
Adapted & Directed: Nick Green.

2007

A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Cornbury Park, Wadham College, Kensington Palace & Hampton Court Palace.
Director: Jilly Bond. Music: Nick Lloyd Webber. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

2006

The Taming of the Shrew. Cornbury Park, Waterperry Gardens, Wadham College & Hampton Court Palace
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

The Importance of Being Earnest. Wadham College & Hampton Court Palace.
Director: Chris Pickles Music: Paul Knight Costume: Adrian Lillie.

400^th Anniversary Macbeth. The Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace & North Garden Lincoln’s Inn
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

2005

The Merry Wives of Windsor. Cornbury Park, Wadham College, Royal Botantic Gardens Kew, Barnsley House & The King’s Head Aylesbury.
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

Macbeth. Wadham College & Royal Botanic Gardens Kew
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie.

2004

Love’s Labour Lost. Wadham College
Director: Kevin Hosier. Music: Lisa Westerhout. Costume: Adrian Lillie
“Make time to go and see this production. After all, what better way to spend a summer evening than laughing in the company of talented actors and an appreciative audience?”
Oxford Daily Info for Love’s Labour’s Lost

2003

As You Like It. Wadham College, North Garden Lincoln’s Inn & The Walled Garden Basingstoke.
Director: Kevin Hosier. Music: Lisa Westerhout Costume: Adrian Lillie

The Two Gentleman of Verona. Wadham College
Director Tristan Brolly Music: Lisa Westerhout Costume: Adrian Lillie

The Winter’s Tale. North Garden Lincoln’s Inn & Wadham College
Director: Chris Pickles. Music: Paul Knight. Costume: Adrian Lillie
"The cast could not be a higher pedigree…the audience adored it. An ideal way to chill this summer."  What’s On **** for The Winter’s Tale

2002

Much Ado About Nothing. Wadham College, Hartwell House Alysbury & The Walled Garden Basingstoke.
Director: Sarah Davey. Music: Lisa Westerhout. Costume: Adrian Lillie

Dr Faustus. Wadham College.
Director: Kevin Hosier. Music: Lisa Westerhout. Costume: Adrian Lillie
“This is a production to savour and with its emphasis on action and visual effect should be attracting visitors and locals in their droves” Oxford Times for Dr Faustus