Apollo Theatricals

Tickets for Robert Bolt's "A Man For All Seasons" are gathering momentum. Don't forget to get yours soon in order to avoid disappointment!

Information about the Tudor period and King Henry VIII's reign from www.apollo-theatricals.co.uk and tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

We look forward to welcoming you.

The plot of “A Man For All Seasons” thickens and the net closes in on Sir Thomas More as the play progresses.

Performances from 30 October to 2 November at the Cirencester Organic Farm Shop. Don’t miss it! Tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

SOME TEARS AND LAUGHTER

More dramatic moments and some laughter in between.

Tickets are selling fast and so remember not to miss out.

Tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

More dramatic moments and some laughter in between.

Tickets are selling fast and so remember not to miss out.

Tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

Some dramatic moments in “A Man For All Seasons” are beginning to develop convincingly. And the axe is hovering!

Tickets are selling fast and so remember not to miss out.

Tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

Robert Bolt's "A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS" from Apollo Theatricals.

REHEARSALS MOVE ON APACE

The pictures tell it all for this week as rehearsals move forward!

See website at www.apollotheatricals.co.uk and tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

REHEARSALS MOVE ON APACE

The pictures tell it all for this week as rehearsals move forward!

See more photographs at website at www.apollotheatricals.co.uk and tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

THEATRE IN THE ROUND

Here we see how a scene is shaped for threatre-in-the-round when Sir Thomas More is on trial.

More information from www.apollotheatricals.co.uk.

We are certainly getting there!

Every rehearsal raises the standard for “A Man For All Seasons” and that’s what rehearsals should be all about!

Tickets from www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

Tickets for Robert Bolt's A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS are now on sale from Ticket Source at www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.
More information from www.apollotheatricals.co.uk.

Tickets for A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS in Cirencester are now on sale from Ticket Source at www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.
Further information from www.apollotheatricals.co.uk.

Tickets for Robert Bolt's A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS are now on sale from Ticket Source at www.ticketsource.co.uk/apollo-theatricals.

More information from www.apollotheatricals.co.uk

THE PLAY SHAPES

The play begins to take shape as rehearsal continue. The cast learn to grapple with the tragedy inherent within :A Man For All Seasons" – a thought-provoking play with depth and dramatic intensity.

THE PLAY SHAPES

The play begins to take shape as rehearsals continue. The cast learn to grapple with the tragedy inherent within A Man For All Seasons –– a thought-provoking play with depth and dramatic intensity.

LOCAL TUDOR HISTORY

Following the dissolution of Cirencester Abbey in the reign of Henry VIII, an area of the confiscated land was bought from Elizabeth I in 1564 by Dr Richard Master, the Queen’s physician. The present owners the Cirencester organic farm, the Chester-Master family, are the descendants of Richard Master and the farm’s name, the Abbey Farm, has its origins in his purchase of ex-church property.

A silver cup was made for Anne Boleyn in 1535 and she eventually passed it on to her daughter, Elizabeth. When Elizabeth became queen she handed the cup to her physician in gratitude for his services to her. The silver cup is now housed at the Parish Church of St John the Baptist in Cirencester.

Sudeley Castle near Winchcombe in Gloucestershire is the burial ground for Queen Katherine Parr, the last and surviving wife of King Henry VIII, where she lived in later life. Sudeley Castle has been visited, therefore, by Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn, Lady Jane Grey, Queen Elizabeth I and Richard III. It is now home to the Six Wives Exhibition in the fifteenth century West Wing which houses replicas of the Tudor costumes used for Dr David Starkey’s television series.

St Mary’s Church in Fairford has been visited by Henry VIII and the carved chancel screens display the pomegranate as the royal insignia of the king’s first wife, Catherine of Aragon. St Lawrence Church in Lechlade has a similar link to Catherine of Aragon, who lived at Lechlade Manor, with her pomegranate insignia on the stone above the vestry door.

Henry and Anne Boleyn also visited Tewksbury Abbey and Thornbury Castle in order to drum up support for church reform when King Henry had converted England to the Protestant faith.

Rehearsals for "A Man For All Seasons" progress

The show is gathering momentum as the cast start to get to grips with words, moves and the meaning inherent within the text.

FIRST BLOCKING REHEARSAL

Thursday night saw the start of blocking rehearsals when the actors begin to move about the stage, plan their entrances and exits and discover when to sit down or stand up. The term "blocking" relates to the time when an artistic director would move blocks of wood – rather than live actors – around the stage in order to plan the stage presentation.

REHEARSALS BEGIN
Rehearsals for "A Man For All Seasons" began in earnest at the weekend when the cast met together to read through and to discuss the play.
Our trusty stage management team kept a watchful eye on the proceedings.

HISTORICAL BACKDROP
The young Prince Harry became King Henry VIII, who reigned from 1509 to 1547, at the age of 17 years. Henry, however, had a rather fragile claim to the throne which his father had established when the Wars of the Roses ended with a somewhat dubious victory for the Tudor dynasty.
Henry VIII was popular when he became king and when he married Catherine of Aragon but, by the time he wanted to marry Anne Boleyn, Henry’s popularity had markedly waned. Catherine was in peril because she had not produced a male heir in order to secure the Tudor line.
Henry eventually took the devastating step of proclaiming himself Supreme Head of the Church of England when the Pope refused to grant him a divorce. This action rocked the nation and the rest of the Catholic world by providing a completely new religious landscape in Britain. Henry, moreover, lost the respect of his people by forcing British Catholics to change to his self-styled religion. The shrewd and accomplished Thomas Cromwell, a commoner and a self-made entrepreneur, was used by Henry to help sway the populace.
Henry had been on friendly terms with the staunchly moral and religious Sir Thomas More since he was eight years old but, in adversity, this deep and long-lasting relationship could not prevail. More, of course, was opposed to a break with the Catholic Church and his stance fuelled voices of dussent in the country which tarnished Henry’s image. More was one of the most renown classical scholars of his age who advocated humanist learning principles in order to spread literacy far and wide.
Because the tyrannical Henry could not take criticism, his revenge became murderous when he expanded the scope of the Treason Act in 1534 and thus he engendered a state of fear in the country which effectively became a totalitarian state. Sir Thomas More, who had become Lord Chancellor on the death of Wolsey, was one of first victims of the new Treason Act. More was eventually executed for treason on a trumped up charge of denial of the monarch’s supremacy and his supposed ingratitude to Henry. More was executed at Tower Hill in 1535. Henry had, by now, transformed himself into a ruthless and unstoppable megalomaniac. More gave an impassioned speech once he had been condemned which caused a huge uproar across the Catholic world.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
England in Tudor times
Everything in England revolved around Henry VIII’s psychotic whims based on his megalomania – his ego was the size of the cosmos. If someone displeased Henry in any way, he/she was as good as dead and so people were easily manipulated and corrupted. Henry legitimately executed nearly 1000 people and he imposed a virtual reign-of-terror dictatorship during his rule. Henry, consequently, despite appearing only once in Robert Bolt’s play, A Man For All Seasons, is the lynchpin of the whole plot.
There was a big class divide in England between the rich and the poor. The poor people (such as the Common Man and the Common Woman) were readily open to bribes from the rich because starvation was constantly threatening the populace.
Working at the court pleased the King and brought great wealth for the royal servant. Noblemen (such as the Duke of Norfolk) were automatically entitled to work at court because of their aristocratic status. Non-aristocrats (such as Sir Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich, Thomas Wolsey and Thomas Cranmer) worked for the King because they were exceptionally bright and they could not risk displeasing the monarch by refusing. The lazy aristocrats always resented the hardworking commoners.
Cardinal Wolsey and Archbishop Cranmer, both of whom were of relatively humble stock, adapted their religious teachings in order to curry favour with the King. Cranmer, however, came a cropper in bloody Mary’s reign when he was eventually burned at stake as a heretic.
The Spanish ambassador, Eustace Chapuys, enjoyed the protection of King Charles V of Spain. But even Chapuys, the master spy and diplomat, only lived in England with Henry’s blessing and then he had to be seen to support the monarch’s decision by attending More’s ex*****on. An ex*****on was, needless to say, an extremely gruesome spectacle.
Women were of no importance in Tudor times other than as a means of producing male heirs and providing some casual sexual distraction. More, with his humanist leanings, however, home-schooled all his children, including his daughter Lady Margaret. Lady Alice, More’s second wife, refused to be educated. Alice initially provided much of the household wealth. William Roper’s religious allegiances waived as a result of his youth but, when his beliefs settled down, he was able to marry Meg with More’s consent.
Henry wanted More to support him in his quest to divorce Catherine of Aragon in order to marry Anne Boleyn because More was an internationally renowned and respected scholar. More and Henry had known each other since childhood.
About “A Man For All Seasons”
The play A Man For All Seasons by Robert Oxton Bolt (1924-1995) is about 90% historical accuracy and 10% poetic licence for dramatic effect.
Sir Thomas More was not all good (he condemned people to be burned at stake for heresey) and Thomas Cromwell was not all bad (he rectified many injustices and regularly gave arms to the poor) although the academics cannot actually agree on the facts. But, for the purposes of good theatre, let us assume that More and his family are the goodies and Cromwell and his cronies are the baddies.

THE COMMON MAN

The Common Man is a versatile character who appears variously as Sir Thomas More’s household steward, a boatman, a publican, a jury foreman and, finally, an ex*****oner. The Common Man represents the general populace whose opinions and affiliations change with the wind.
The notion of the Common Man has been exploited by several artists and composers throughout the centuries and his image has portrayed the hopelessness, the aspirations and the idiosyncrasies of the general public in times of adversity. Indeed, Aaron Copland’s Fanfare for the Common Man has been fittingly utilised for the Apollo Theatricals production of A Man For All Seasons.
Robert Bolt has portrayed the Common Man as the one who is most susceptible to corruption and cynicism as a tool in the political machine of Tudor times. There was a big class divide in England between the rich and the poor in Tudor times. The poor people (the Common Man and the Common Woman) were readily open to bribes from the rich because starvation was constantly threatening commoners.
The influence of the populace, however, had to be taken seriously by Henry VIII because his position as monarch was precarious in terms of his claim to the throne. King Henry, however, was not averse to severely punishing those rebels who went against his wishes. Henry wanted his people to service his every whim even as far as divorcing, remarrying and converting the country to a completely new religion.
The part of the Common Man will be taken by Eric Partington and the part of the Common Woman will be taken by Tina Schuster in the Apollo Theatricals production of A Man For All Seasons.

WILLIAM ROPER
William Roper (1496-1578) was a Lawyer and Member of Parliament in Tudor times who formed part of Sir Thomas More’s establishment. Roper became Attorney-General to Henry VIII, having studied law at Lincoln’s Inn in London before being appointed to the King’s Bench.
Roper was the second son of John and Jane Roper who were a prominent Kentish family. The West Gate in Canterbury has now become known as Roper’s Gate in consequence.
Because Roper was young and impressionable, he was susceptible to opposing religious arguments of Roman Catholic, humanistic and Lutheran doctrines – in particular the notion of Justification by Faith whereby sinners must be shown leniency in the eyes of God. Roper, however, returned to the stable of Catholicism through his association with Thomas More.
Roper became the husband of Lady Margaret More and he faithfully supported his father-in-law, Sir Thomas, in adversity. As part of More’s household, Roper gained the confidence and firsthand knowledge of More and he subsequently wrote the famous work written in the reign of Mary I, entitled The Life of Sir Thomas More KNT, published by Forgotten Books which narrates the life and demise of his father-in-law.
As a member of More’s household, Roper met the talented German artist Hans Holbein (1497-1543) who drew his portrait and the Dutch Renaissance humanist and theologian Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536), both of whom were prominent figures of their age and were close friends of the scholarly More. Erasmus described Roper as a man “who is wealthy, of excellent and modest character and not unacquainted with literature”.
The part of William Roper will be taken by Amy Benson in the Apollo Theatricals production of A Man For All Seasons.