A wheel spinning Shakespeare

Handlebards is a group of performers who present Shakespeare in quite an original way. And, while it may seem a little odd, it makes the Elizabethen more than a little accessible to a modern audience.

The women we saw performing Romeo and Juliet tonight were exceptional fun. They were Charlotte Driessler, Eleanor Chaganis, Lucy Green and Sian Eleanor Green. If they are performing anywhere near you, get a ticket and go, you won’t be disappointed.

It was at the end of quite a busy day for us both though in very different ways. Mirinda had to drive to Buckinghamshire to speak at a conference while I spent quite a bit of the day cooking.

After the gym (easier than yesterday) I shopped then headed home. After a bit of necessary admin it was lunchtime then run around the park time. Once back home I was chained to the kitchen.

The first task was to make some Paleo bread for work tomorrow. I was very happy with the result.

After cleaning up the bottle of balsamic vinegar I dropped on the kitchen floor, I then set about making the famous (limited) Chez Gaz mayonnaise.

While I cooked, I must admit that I watched most of the Russia v Saudi Arabia opening World Cup match. Russia won 5-0.

Once Mirinda arrived, we had time for salad and venison before leaving for the Maltings and the Handlebards.

For tonight’s performance we were sitting outside, chairs set up on the car park road, while the performance was on the grass.

This worked very well, particularly on such a lovely evening.

The play was performed at a million miles an hour with more energy than I’ve ever seen. And funny! It was hilarious. The women excelled in every department.

Mind you, I thought Juliet was a little less innocent than she at first led us to believe. And the nurse was a bit fond of strawberries.

After the interval the cast had a bit of fun with a member of the audience (Rob) who was thereafter singled out every now and then. Eventually he had to take the dead Romeo’s place on stage. Then he had to be the dead Juliet as well. He was great sport.

Overall, it was a wonderful night of maniacal insanity carefully wrapped up in iambic pentameter.