Wycombe Arts Festival is coming

5:12pm Thursday 17th April 2008

THERE'S something for all at this year's Wycombe Arts Festival, which begins next Saturday. Marking the 44th time the event has been held in the region, the festival brings together drama, music, art and photography in a month-long celebration of the arts.

Keen theatregoers can enjoy Shakespeare with a difference, when The Marlow Players and Les Baladins de Marly-le-Roi drama groups present Macbeth, in French, on Saturday, May 3 at The Shelley Theatre.

Fans of the Bard will also be able to catch Elsewhere's open-air production of As You Like It, from Thursday, May 29 to Saturday, May 31 at Wycombe Museum, Priory Avenue.

Meanwhile, the award-winning play, Irene, written by Gwilym Scourfield, arrives at Church House, Hughenden Park, on Friday, May 2 and Saturday, May 3.

As part of a double-bill called Intimacies, Scourfield's play revolves around a feisty "young" woman of 95, a former Shakespearean actress, who is forced to accept care in a nursing home. Irene features actress Peggy Chamberlen, who lives in Sands and is a seasoned member of Fourways Drama Group.

She says: "Although Irene is in reality confined by a wheelchair, in her imagination she is free. It's a very uplifting piece which has been beautifully written."

For music lovers, the festival offers a wide range of events catering for all tastes.

Among this year's highlights are the City of London Sinfonia's Festival Concert, on Sunday, May 18 at Wycombe Swan and a performance from the Exmoor Singers of London on Saturday, May 24 at All Saints Parish Church, High Wycombe.

Jazz is also well-represented by The Scott Hamlin Quartet, which arrives at Wycombe Town Hall on Tuesday, May 6 and a performance from Wendy Nieper and Valentin Gerlier on Thursday, May 15 at Church House, Hughenden Park.

There are also a host of exhibitions on offer, including the latest work from Wycombe Photographic Society, as well as the Festival Open Art Exhibition. Both events take place at The Guildhall, High Wycombe.

The festival takes place from Saturday, April 26 to Sunday, June 1 at various venues. Tickets: Wycombe Swan, 01494 512000. For a full festival programme, visit www.wycombeartsfestival.org

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