Theresa Brockway plays Rosalind

Treading in the footsteps of some of the most distinguished leading ladies of the English stage is the challenge facing a young actress in the second outdoor play of the summer at Lytham Hall.

Theresa Brockway will be in the spotlight as Rosalind in Illyria’s production of Shakespeare’s As You Like It on Sunday July 7, a role completely different from her last two open air appearances on the Lancashire coast.

Theresa, who trained in drama at The Academy of Live and Recorded Arts in London, is excited to be playing probably the most demanding role of her career so far.

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“My recent summers have been hugely enjoyable touring with Illyria’s first two musical shows, Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance and HMS Pinafore.

“I was the rather homely Buttercup, the Bumboat woman, in HMS Pinafore last year, so taking on the bewitching Rosalind, Shakespeare’s longest female role, is a significant change.

“It’s a part which all the most-celebrated English actresses have tackled – Peggy Ashcroft, Vanessa Redgrave, Maggie Smith and Fiona Shaw to name but a few – so I know I have to really stretch myself.”

Theresa is looking 
forward to playing in the superb setting Lytham Hall offers for outdoor performances once again.

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“Lytham Hall is one of my favourite venues on tour. The audience is always large and knowledgeable and the location is quiet and free from traffic noise. There are four separate pairs of lovers in As You Like and one of the challenges for the whole cast, when playing in the open air, is to maintain that important sense of intimacy, but still to be heard.”

And of course it’s going to be a particularly special night at Lytham Hall for James 
Dangerfield who plays my suitor Orlando as he will be playing in front of his parents and friends in his home town. ”

See www.illyria.uk.com and at www.lythamhall.co.uk or by phone 01 253 736652.