19:00, Wed 21st June 2006 at Clare College Fellows' Garden
18:00, Thu 22nd June 2006 at Clare College Fellows' Garden
19:00, Fri 23rd – Sat 24th June 2006 at Clare College Fellows' Garden
Easter May Week

It just isn’t poor old Antigonus’ day. Leontes, king of Sicilia, has flown into an unexplained fit of jealousy, accusing his best friend of fathering a child with his wife, Hermione. It is Antigonus’ inauspicious task to take the rejected baby away. Tormented by nightmares and wracked with guilt, things can’t get much worse for the loyal Sicilian lord... until he is victim of Shakespeare’s most infamous stage direction: Exit, pursued by a bear.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. The baby, Perdita, grows up a beautiful, virtuous maiden – and it becomes just a matter of time before she discovers her true roots as princess of Sicilia, and is reunited with her remorse-stricken father. But how will all the pieces fit together? Will everything turn out happy in the end? And what on earth is the bear all about?

The much-acclaimed Clare Actors tackle something a little bit different for their summer project. Everyone’s seen the standard summer Shakespeare fare – but few troupes have braved the challenges of one of the bard’s least known (and most enchantingly enigmatic) plays. The Winter’s Tale proves in emphatic style that time and nature are the great healers – and just how easily a nightmare can turn into a glorious dream.

Tickets can be booked in advance by emailing tickets@clareactors.com.