Fabulous Ripon Theatre Festival will unveil a bold reimagining of Shakespeare this week as a stunning finale to a season of more than 160 events in July.

The Dukes Theatre, one of the country’s leading touring companies, will perform Romeo and Juliet at Ripon Races this weekend as part of a three-date tour of North Yorkshire.

Starting at Scarborough’s Esplanade on Wednesday, July 22, then moving on to Harrogate’s Valley Gardens on Thursday, July 23, the final North Yorkshire performance takes place at Ripon Races on Friday 24th July at 7pm, promoted by Ripon Theatre Festival.

Blending dynamic staging, evocative sound, and the enduring power of Shakespeare’s verse, this retelling illuminates the passion, peril, and youthful intensity at the play’s core, inviting audiences to rediscover the world’s most famous star-crossed lovers.

The Dukes Theatre, one of the country’s leading touring companies, will perform Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet at Ripon Races this weekend. (Picture contributed)

placeholder image — The Dukes Theatre, one of the country’s leading touring companies, will perform Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet at Ripon Races this weekend. (Picture contributed)

Known for bold, high-energy productions in spectacular outdoor settings, The Duke’s Theatre Company sets the benchmark for quality and ambition.

The team at Specsavers Ripon sponsored

The community-led Ripon Theatre Festival has proven a big success again with sponsorship from Specsavers Ripon for the fifth year running.

Their donation supported the professional performances at Ripon Arts Hub, the open-air production of Romeo & Juliet by The Dukes Theatre Company at the Old Deanery Hotel, as well as Sunday’s activities, which included the one-woman show about a WW2 nurse, The Poetic Life of Philomena McGuiness, and a selection of lively street acts that took to the stage across Market Place.

Katie Scott, Festival director, said: ‘Ripon Theatre Festival celebrated its five-year milestone, and we are proud of all we have achieved so far, thanks to supporters such as Specsavers Ripon.

"Local support is vital to the ongoing success of the festival, as well as the wider cultural landscape.

"Ticket income makes up less than a third of the revenue required each year, making external backing not just valuable but essential.”

Run by a small team of volunteers since 2022, Ripon Theatre Festival works together with funders, venues and community partners to bring colour and culture across the city, contributing to Ripon’s development as a vibrant place to live and visit.