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Bear with me: Sun Bear @ParkTheatre

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If The Light House is an uplifting tale of survival, Sarah Richardson’s Sun Bear gives a contrasting take on this. Sarah plays Katy. We’re introduced to Katy as she runs through a list of pet office peeves with her endlessly perky coworkers, particularly about coworkers stealing her pens. It’s a hilarious opening monologue that would have you wishing you had her as a coworker to help relieve you from the boredom of petty office politics.  But something is not quite right in the perfect petty office, where people work together well. And that is her. And despite her protesting that she is fine, the pet peeves and the outbursts are becoming more frequent. As the piece progresses, maybe the problem lies in a past relationship, where Katy had to be home by a particular hour, not stay out late with office colleagues and not be drunk enough not to answer his calls. Perhaps the perky office colleagues are trying to help, and perhaps Katy is trying to reach out for help. It has simple staging

In rehearsal: Porgy and Bess

Rehearsal images have been released for The Gershwins’ Porgy and Bess which runs at Regents Park Open Air Theatre from 17 July to 23 August.

In this production dialogue will replace the sung recitatives, but the loss of some of the original material might be offset by the glorious surrounds of Regent's Park Open Air Theatre. While it is unlikely to feel as warm as South Carolina in the summer, it will no doubt feel a lot more atmospheric than a traditional theatre space.

Porgy and Bess is full of so many memorable songs including ‘Summertime’, ‘I Got Plenty of Nothing’, ‘I Loves You Porgy’ and ‘It Ain’t Necessarily So'.

A landmark piece of American theatre, this adaptation is the second recent attempt to musicalise the work. The first was by Trevor Nunn which played at the Savoy Theatre six years ago. This adaptation was recently on Broadway.


Porgy and Bess will be directed by Regents Park Open Air Theatre’s Artistic Director Timothy Sheader, with a book adapted by Suzan-Lori Parks and a musical score adapted by Diedre L. Murray.

Photo info and credits
1. Cedric Neal as Sportin' Life and Timothy Sheader
2. David Shrubsole (Musical Director and Orchestrator), Simon Lee (Conductor) and Nicola Hughes as Bess. 
3. Phillip Boykin as Crown, Timothy Sheader and company. 
4. Rufus Bonds Jr as Porgy and Company 
Photos by Johan Persson

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