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Peter Huntley Productions & Red Handed Theatre Company bring The Belle's Stratagem to Southwark Playhouse

project created by TheBellesStratagem, project category Theatre
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Thank you for helping us reach our target! As this is a profit share show every extra penny we raise will go towards making sure we can give our team a payment at the end of the run so please don't stop donating!

We are raising money for the first revival of Hannah Cowley's Georgian masterpiece in over one hundred and fifty years! One of the most popular plays of its time, The Belle’s Stratagem has not been performed in over a century. It is now vivaciously revived by Jessica Swale, director of widely acclaimed The Rivals (Southwark Playhouse) and Bedlam (Shakespeare’s Globe). The Belle’s Stratagem features Gina Beck, Jackie Clune, Hannah Spearritt, TMA Award winner Maggie Steed and Robin Soans leading a stellar 16-strong cast.

London, 1780. And it’s marriage season. But one group of wily women are determined to challenge the status quo.

Young Letitia Hardy is shocked when her fiancee returns from the Continent convinced that English women are dull. Defying convention, she sets out to gain his love with an ingenious scheme to prove him wrong.

Meanwhile, Sir George is trying desperately to protect his wife from the evils of high society. He hasn’t counted however on two of London’s most rambunctious wits, Miss Ogle and Mrs Rackett, making it their mission to convert her into a lady of fashion.

THE BELLE’S STRATAGEM will feature Marc Baylis as Courtall, Gina Beck as Letitia Hardy, Holly Blair as Mrs Fagg, Cassandra Bond as Kitty Willis, Jackie Clune as Miss Ogle, Samuel Dent as Crowquill, Tim Dorsett as Villers, Mark Fountain as Dick, Jeremy Joyce as Saville, Michael Lindall as Doricourt, Christopher Logan as Flutter, Joseph Macnab as Sir George, Nigel Munson as Silvertongue, Hannah Spearritt as Lady Frances, Maggie Steed as Mrs Rackett and Robin Soanes as Hardy.

Directed by Jessica Swale
Designed by Simon Kenny
Music by Laura Forrest-Hay
Lighting Design by Christopher Nairne
Produced by Peter Huntley Productions in association with Red Handed Theatre Company

The Reviews are in!

Posted on 12/09/2011

Dear Wefunders, Once more, we would like to say a huge thank you to you all! We have received some rather lovely reviews & would like to share some quotes with you: ★★★★ 'Theatrical entrprise like this makes you proud to be British' Libby Purves in THE TIMES ★★★★ 'Witty, spirited and eminently revivable'- Michael Billington in THE GUARDIAN ★★★★★ 'Witty, clever and polished... the cast were faultless'- Public Reviews ★★★★★ 'An unmissable entertainment' - Fourthwall Magazine ★★★★ 'A delightful production, a Georgian gem'- Exeunt Magazine The show would not have been possible without your contributions. We hope to see you all at the Southwark Playhouse very soon if you haven't been already!

Thank you!

Posted on 14/08/2011

Thanks to your generosity we have now reached our funding target! From everyone involved in the production, thank you! The production is actually costing around nine times the limit we set on We Fund and every penny we raise will help us deliver a profit to our cast, creatives and crew who are all working for free. Thank you again! Peter

Amazing!

Posted on 13/08/2011

Hi all, Our We Fund account has been live for just over 24 hours now and we've already raised a whopping 95% of our target - thank you for your generosity and, in the case of Gina Beck, thank you for giving away your ballet shoes! Although our target is £1,500 the show will actually cost around £14,000 to mount. We are seeking to raise this in several different ways - next week we'll host a garden party for example. If, and hopefully when, we reach our target we'd still love your support and you can email me on info@peterhuntley.net to find out how else you can donate - if you say you came via We Fund we'll honour the perks! All the best Peter Huntley

First Midnight!

Posted on 13/08/2011

Yesterday at 1:25pm, the production team of The Belle's Stratagem received an email to tell them our Wefund page had gone live. Less than 12 hours later, we have managed to reach 75% of our target and we cannot thank you enough. We are overwhelmed and amazed by the amount of generous support that has been shown for this production & we look forward to seeing you all at the Southwark Playhouse! Many of us with Peter Huntley Productions and Redhanded Theatre Company have given a lot of time to get this show on it's feet and seeing how well this project is being received makes all the time and effort worthwhile... and this is just the start! Remember! We only get the money that has been pledged if we reach our target, so keep spreading the word! Once we do reach the target, the rewards can still be earned and every extra penny goes straight on the production too. Every penny counts, every penny helps! Rehearsals for the production began this week. The cast have been very excited to get started and we will be posting some rehearsal photos very soon! Once again, thank you to all our backers so far. You are too kind for words! All the best from the Cast, Crew, Creative & Production Team!
Name Amount
stageleft 200
Darren1640Lord 200
gemmabishbosh 149
celia imrie 100
Sian Biddlecombe 50
Kaatie 50
Sam4God 50
Ro 50
KJP 50
weefieryredhead 50
Laineee 50
Divaoftheatre 50
Access London 50
singswaytoomuch 50
keith_beck 50
mcbash 50
ross_phillips91 30
Deborah de Moll 25
nicholaslyrics 25
scottishfraggle 25
sarahuntley 25
fost01d 25
Jason Devoy 25
Nigel Hadden-Paton 25
kittywomble 25
niall.bailey@gm... 25
scottishfraggle 25
ClaireMc 25
allyfox 20
weefieryredhead 20
John Morrison 20
TimProtteyJones 10
luke0380 10
DougalIrvine 10
Notaboutheroes 10
Mikeyworrall 5
kirst25 1
Name
TheBellesStratagem
ginabeck
Kaatie
nicholaslyrics
Sam4God
weefieryredhead
Ro
Deborah de Moll
Laineee
sarahuntley
fost01d
keith_beck
celia imrie
Troupe Ltd
Jack Rothery

111%

£1660 Wefunded
of £1500 Target
37 Wefunders
35 weeks 5 days ago

  1. Pledge £10 or more

    A tweet from the producer to thank you for supporting the show!

  2. Pledge £25 or more

    A thank you in our programme or for any pledges received after our programme print deadline, we will arrange a thank you on our Facebook page!

  3. Pledge £25 or more

    For any pledges of £25 or more received after our programme print deadline, we will arrange a thank you on our Facebook page!

  4. Pledge £50 or more

    A thank you in the programme!
    AND
    A poster signed by the cast!

  5. Pledge £100 or more

    A Thank You in the programme!
    AND
    A pair of Tickets!

  6. Pledge £200 or more

    A Thank You in the programme!
    AND
    A pair of PRESS NIGHT Tickets!

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TheBellesStratagem