Shakespeare al Fresco:

A Dream Come True

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One person who believed strongly in the potential appeal of Shakespeare’s plays to a Chiltern’s audience, and to local amateur drama enthusiasts, was Michael Wiseman, a retired manufacturer of optical lenses and long-standing Beaconsfield resident. He had already, together with his wife Aviva, been much involved in the amateur dramatic worlds of Amersham and Beaconsfield. Both Michael and Aviva loved the Bard’s plays and were particularly keen on spreading their enthusiasm to the younger generations.

Realising the many practical difficulties that faced the established drama groups in staging Shakespeare’s plays, it was Michael’s dream to start a completely new company. Supported by Aviva’s determination and organisational skills the Chiltern Shakespeare Company was formed in 1986, with Michael guaranteeing its viability in the formative years.

The company’s first three productions were staged indoors at Oakdene School in Beaconsfield, and whilst this enabled the company to establish its roots and a promising core of actors and supporters, it was a chance conversation between Aviva and Lady Burnham which led to the very kind invitation to use the wonderful setting at Hall Barn to stage future plays in the open air. This, without any doubt, was the breakthrough that Michael and Aviva had been seeking and from which the company never looked back.

The British have a passion for outdoor drama which, given the vagaries of our climate, might almost appear perverse. It seems pointless to try analysing this obsession in any depth; it’s probably more sensible simply to classify it as one of those attractive but sometimes perilous activities — such as picnicking — that we don’t seem able to do without!

The first play to be performed at Hall Barn was A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 1989, with its mainly sylvan setting appropriately realised in the delightful and extensive grounds. Since then the annual Chiltern Shakespeare Company production at Hall Barn has become something of an institution, drawing total annual audiences approaching 5,000 people from Buckinghamshire, London and through the Thames Valley area.

The popularity of the plays has grown steadily and many would agree that the quality of the productions has achieved consistently high standards. The company too has become more experienced in its staging of the event and its provision of facilities and general administration, all of which rely on enthusiastic volunteers giving their own free time to the cause.

Michael and Aviva’s desire to make the Bard accessible to younger playgoers has been answered year on year, whilst junior actors and actresses are encouraged to take regular part in the productions. A few years after his death in 1999, Aviva commented: “Michael said once that he set up the company in one of his madder moments and that his joy was simply in being part of an organisation putting on a show and knowing that the audience was having fun.”

The Merry Wives of Windsor is our 16th Shakespearean production at Hall Barn for which we remain much indebted to our hosts, Jenefer and Andrew Farncombe, to our loyal audiences, as well as to our players and production teams. Our thanks go to you all for your support and enthusiasm.

The company’s philosophy is to present Shakespeare’s play in a broadly traditional style and to make them readily understandable and enjoyable. We are an amateur organisation performing to near-professional standards and recruit our performers, directors, stage and production staff from a wide catchment area centred on Beaconsfield. Membership is not formal and there are no subscriptions.

We always welcome new people. Auditions for our annual productions are normally held in February each year, followed by rehearsals from March until the staging at Hall Barn in June.

We need both actors / actresses as well as volunteers to help with a variety of enjoyable jobs connected with putting on the annual show — such as selling tickets, publicity, helping with costumes and make-up, or getting involved with the intricacies of set design and construction, lighting and sound.

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