OPINION: Harrogate Theatre season will kick off with four plays in four weeks
We had one of the most important pantomime meetings of the year last Friday, which is the set design model presentation from our designer Morgan Brind.
It is strange talking Christmas in a heatwave, but planning and writing is an all-year-round process. Morgan presented a beautiful scale model of how Sleeping Beauty will look in every scene, it truly is a work of art. From this model our workshop will now start to build the main set pieces and paint the many cloths that go towards making the show come to life.
Tickets are already selling fast so do book early to guarantee the seats you want over the festive period.
We are now approaching our maintenance period where we take a break to check and clean every piece of equipment. It’s an arduous but very necessary task. Our production team continues to work flat out over the summer period.
Looking forward to autumn, we kick off the season with four exciting dramas in four weeks, sponsored by the Vet Dentist Harrogate, starting with Brighton 1984 from the brilliant and multi-award-winning Philip Stokes. Set on a hugely significant night in British history, the play looks at how a tragedy changed the individuals caught up in it and the wider political and societal landscape.
That’s followed by the Hitchcock classic, Dial M for Murder, a tour de force of psychological tension brought thrillingly back to the stage for 2026 by Phil & Ben Productions in association with Eastbourne Productions.
The John Godber Company makes a welcomed return to Harrogate Theatre with the Highway Man based on the Dick Turpin story. It is a gritty and witty portrayal of Yorkshire and the man that exploited its growing wealth.
The final play in our September drama series is an adaptation from the contemporary classic novel Private Peaceful. A moving family drama and a powerful reminder of the human cost of war written by Michael Morpurgo, the acclaimed author of such tremendous work as War Horse. If you book tickets for two or more of these plays at once you save 10 per cent.
I must also mention Harrogate Dramatic Society’s production of Jerusalem by Jez Butterworth in October largely regarded as one of the best plays this century. I’m looking forward to that.
October sees the return of our Comedy Festival. Paul Merton, Suki Webster, Laura Smyth, Maisie Adam and Seann Walsh are amongst many others that provide a mixture of household names and exciting emerging comics.
Do have a look at some of the spectacular shows at the Royal Hall and Harrogate Convention Centre, there is a range of music for everyone as well as celebrity speakers and ‘evenings with’. There are also our cream tea and gin tours that are informative and a fun way to get to know our beautiful theatre, they also make a splendid alternative present or treat for someone.
As ever thank you for your continued support, we couldn’t have the range of artists visiting Harrogate without it.