POP-UP GLOBE IS BACK
SEASON 3 ANNOUNCED
STARTS THIS DECEMBER

Shakespeare like it’s 1614

Five new plays:
A Midsummer Night’s Dream | The Merchant of Venice |
Macbeth | The Comedy of Errors | Julius Caesar

This summer, join us on an adventure to discover the lost secrets of the greatest theatre in history, Shakespeare’s theatre, the second Globe.

Today we can announce that Pop-up Globe has been given permission to stay popped up in Auckland and continue the adventure to rediscover the extraordinary experience of Shakespeare like it’s 1614. Better special effects, more laughter, more battles and blood. More elaborate sets and costumes. More productions. And of course, more of the storytelling of Shakespeare’s masterworks.

From 7 December, Pop-up Globe will roar back into life at Shakespeare Gardens at Ellerslie Racecourse – the location of 100,000 attendances earlier this year. We’ll be presenting five new productions of Shakespeare’s most popular plays to thrill audiences all summer long. Fans and Pop-up Globe first timers will enjoy this third season alike.

It will begin with one of the greatest stage comedies of all time, A Midsummer Night’s Dream — Shakespeare’s take on love and obsession, directed by Pop-up Globe artistic director and founder Dr Miles Gregory and featuring specialist actors from the Kings Company. There will be 10 special evening performances in the lead up to Christmas.

Opening on 11 January is the tragedy Julius Caesar by Pembroke’s Company — a new company of 11 women and 2 men performing a gender-reversed Julius Caesar; and the very next day, the dark comedy The Merchant of Venice, to be performed in repertory by the Kings Company.

Rounding out this extraordinary festival will be the tragedy Macbeth and the farce, The Comedy of Errors, with dates to be announced.

This isn’t dusty old Shakespeare. This is bawdy, hilarious, brutal and bloodsoaked.

Pop-up Globe will pop down. Enjoy it while it’s up.

The games afoot…

December and January dates are on sale today via Eventfinda. Book now and take advantage of earlybird prices valid until midnight on 4 October. Check out popupglobe.co.nz for more details. 

Pop-up Globe is a three-storey, 16-sided, 900-person capacity theatre. It unites cutting-edge scaffold technology with a 400-year-old design to transport audiences back in time. No matter where they sit or stand in the theatre, audience members are never more than 15 metres from the heart of the action on stage. Sometimes they’ll even find themselves in the play.

Pop-up Globe will again feature all the spectacular theatrical trickery of the Jacobean era, including cannons, flaming arrows, hundreds of litres of fake blood, and hundreds of beautiful bespoke period costume pieces specially constructed by the Pop-up Globe in-house wardrobe department.

Additional features on this journey include:

·         A new garden setting of pergolas, lush plantings, twinkling lights, a new bar, and areas to wander and sit in the gardens with friends.

·         A stunning new Jacobean-style scenic stage front inspired by research and constructed by Pop-up Globe’s in-house team of artisan set makers.

·         New premium experiences for groups, including the option for full food and beverage service in the theatre for 6 to 850 guests

·         A dedicated season of school matinees in February and March

·         Pop-up Globe is the home of the $10 ticket, with $10 groundings available for all shows

Synopses

 A Midsummer Night’s Dream

Justly regarded as Shakespeare’s comic masterpiece, A Midsummer Night’s Dream enchants audiences with a brilliant mix of hilarious comedy and beautiful poetry. See Pop-up Globe’s all-male King’s Company in beautiful bespoke costumes transport you to an enchanted world where anything is possible and nothing is what it seems.

The Merchant of Venice

Friendship, forbidden love, cunning disguises and ancient rivalry build to a nail-biting conclusion in Shakespeare’s most controversial comedy, The Merchant of Venice. Witness Pop-up Globe’s all-male King’s Company take on this powerful and gripping drama.

The Comedy of Errors

Presented by Pop-up Globe’s mixed Queen’s Company, Shakespeare’s most hilarious farce The Comedy of Errorsbrings together two sets of twins in a wild romp. See chaotic confusion and unlikely plot twists come together in a side-splitting finale that cannot be missed.

Macbeth

A haunting and timeless tragedy that explores the darkest corners of the human mind set in a world where the supernatural is real and the quickest way to the top is by murder. Macbeth, presented by Pop-up Globe’s mixed Queen’s Company sees darkness, chaos and conflict unfold.

Julius Caesar

In a world where ambitious politicians vie for the ultimate prize, sometimes the only way to stop your rival is by revolution. But what is the price of revolt? Shining a mirror on dirty politics, Pop-up Globe’s gender-reversed Pembroke’s Company draws back the veil to show the darkness within in the gripping tragedy of Julius Caesar.