Another Heartbreak Play

So impressed were we with Heartbreak Theatre's A Midsummer Night's Dream, that Meava, her boyfriend Luke and I decided to see another play. This one was an all male cast performing Henry V, in Jesmond Dene, a picturesque valley garden about a half hour walk north-west of Newcastle city centre. We'd had a couple of gorgeous, hot (25 degrees!) and sunny summer days so Maeva and Luke were in very light clothes. I was in jeans and a longsleeve t-shirt. They both laughed at my overnight-sized bag, in which I'd packed 2 jumpers, my coat and a throw-rug, but I've found the English weather to be quite changable and it was, once again, an outdoor performance. By the time we got to the Dene the temperature had dropped and the audience were sitting there in their coats.And halfway through the play the fog rolled in! So we did need all the cold weather gear after all!

The play was great. They had set it as a sixth form (year 12) preoduction in honour of a deceased former pupil. They wore school uniforms and added relevant prop costumes to represent all the different characters. Once again, it was a small cast (of six) playing all the roles. They particularly hammed up the female and French roles. But the St Crispian's Day speech was beautifully tragic. The only thing missing was Patrick Doyle's heartbreaking soundtrack. My photos of the evening were all disappointingly blurry: I may have been shivering too much to hold the camera still! But this one gives a flavour...