Arts

The all-male acting troupe The Lord Chamberlain's Men arrived in Guernsey in early June 2009 with their presentation of Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare.

Theirs is one of three productions being staged at the castle over the summer, with Illyria performing The Mowgli Stories in July and Oddsocks arriving in August to perform Shakespeare's Richard III.

Rehearsing before the children's matinee

Each run of outdoor performances is staged in the castle's Middle Ward, next to the former hospital building.

This was Paul Brendan's first summer tour for the Lord Chamberlain's Men, and he played the part of Malvolio. He said arriving in Guernsey comes as a relief as they stay in one place for four nights:

"Mainly we do one night stands, so we have to arrive at the venue, set-up and do the show and immediately the show finishes at ten o'clock at night, take it all down again and drive off to the next B&B before doing the same the next day. So it's exhausting".

Shaun McKee, who played Viola, said the chance for a rest is not the only reason to appreciate a stay in Guernsey: "Not many companies can do a performance of Twelfth Night looking out over the sea and the coast of Guernsey so it is nice and that's a big plus of the tour".

Tom Bell beside the noon-day gun

The theatre productions make more work for the Castle Coordinator Tom Bell, but he is happy to see more people exploring the castle as a result of the plays and the Castle Nights musical evenings that attract large crowds during the summer.

He said: "These events make local people think about what they've got and they're visiting the castle at other times much more readily and much more regularly".