Twelfth Night;

The union of Hazlewood and Shakespeare. 

By Anna | June 7th 2023

If you’ve ever visited us at Hazlewood, or heard about us on the grapevine, or perhaps seen a snap on social media, then you’re probably aware of one venue we posses that makes us very special indeed. Our Woodland Amphitheatre. 

It all started about eight years ago when our woodland wedding venue was born. After years of strolling through the beloved woodland, our owner took a small section of this treasure trove of tracks and trails and added a hint of glamour. A touch of boho chic. A tipi. A pizza oven. A pagoda. And thus from then on, you could host your special day in a mystical and romantic haven we like to call, the woods. 

As per our ethos of ‘how can we make this more glorious?’ we thought, why not add some theatre? After finding an appropriate location nestled deep in the woods, the team got cracking on clearing, building, and repurposing the area. We are now left with what is quite possibly (quite certainly) the most upmarket and definitely most magical outdoor entertainment venue in Yorkshire. Cast on a slope, the woods offer you an almost ‘in the round’ viewing experience with a set that can interweave, adapt, and change as freely as the branches swing above your head in the breeze. 

When selecting exactly what we wanted to showcase in our venue, we had to think hard. Out of the box. Our amphitheatre’s first premiere was in the summer of 2022. We had an original children’s musical written for us and performed by a gang of professional actors. “Legends Of The Castle” ran in the August heat and entertained hundreds.

Where do we go now? What’s our next move? Naturally, it’s Shakespeare. Naturally, it’s Twelfth Night. 

Hazlewood Castle is honoured to be welcoming The Festival Players Theatre Company to our open-air amphitheatre this June. Founded in 1986, the Festival Players is now a well-established professional company and continues to grow its international reputation. With Dame Judi Dench as its patron, the group of all male actors strive to, and succeed in, making magic onstage. 

Twelfth Night is the pursuit of love, disguise, mistaken identity, hilarious trickery and so much more. This colourful, enriching performance is assured to kick off your summer of love. 

The performance begins at 7pm on Monday 19th June, with the venue opening from 6pm in time for refreshments and a stroll. 

Tickets here: click