ALL THIS IS BUT A DREAM
For Barbara and John Huddart
On this calm summer evening the North Sea falls
unheard on the wide sands below the castle
in whose inner ward the play is set – and we
(an eclectic collection of friends)
have brought folding chairs, prosecco, pop,
and fish suppers from Seahouses nearby
along this coast of raiders and saints.
‘My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite,’
says Juliet, a canny lass – though all
four players are canny lasses in this
very British, outdoor, touring ‘tale of woe’.
In the interval the sun sets like fire,
a titian furnace stretched across The Borders,
out-performing any artifice –
and when, in the last act, beyond the charmed
arena of spots and floods, night falls
and the air chills, bats, out of ancient crevices,
flitter between the words and over the shore.
Note: See The Handlebards.
Alan Horne
September 11, 2019Great last section, David, especially the bats and the words! This must be at Dunstanbrough Castle which is extraordinary. I’ve never seen the Handlebards but hear that they are very good.
David Selzer
September 11, 2019Thank you, Alan. It’s Bamborough Castle, 10 miles or so north on the same coast.
Dave Williams
September 16, 2019Captures the evening atmosphere and occasion wonderfully reminding me of the outdoor theatre in Cornwall- really like this one!