14:00, Fri 19th – Sun 21st June 2026 at Cloister Court Queens' College
Easter Week 7 to May Week
LOVE’S LABOUR’S LOST
‘Vows are but breath,
And breath a vapour is’ (V.III.65)
Dr Samuel Johnson heralded Love’s Labour’s Lost as one of the most Shakespearean of Shakespeare plays. It is a witty comedy and a great feat of linguistic sophistication which simultaneously laments the inadequacy of linguistic sophistication. It is brimming with poetry, and mockery of poetry. Taking place within the romance-brewing confines of a lush walled garden, we watch a group of male students forbid themselves from falling in love in order to commit to their academic pursuits. Yet this promise is abandoned almost as swiftly as it is made… Us students may well identify with promising the ultimate academic come back only to watch it fritter away as the potential joys of a social life come calling. Shakespeare’s mockery of performative academics is all too familiar for a Cambridge audience, therefore, BATS is setting this version of Love’s Labour’s Lost in our very own Queens’ College, taking inspiration from Ian Judge’s version set on the Oxbridge punting lakes in 1914. However our version will hurtle into the present day, giving audiences a window into current Cambridge life in all its brilliance and occasional ridiculousness. Above the facades and false promises, love emerges as the greatest pursuit of all.
Join us in Queens' annual May Week Show, taking place upon the sunny lawns of Queens' Cloister Court, to bring to life Shakespeare's hilarious feast of language, lessons and lovers.