The Dukes Creates Treasured Memories Thirty Years On

“Williamson Park is the most extraordinary wonderland for putting on a piece of theatre.”

So says The Lord of the Rings star Andy Serkis who appeared in The Dukes very first outdoor walkabout production in 1987 and is now one of the theatre’s  Honorary Patrons.

Thirty years on, The Dukes will celebrate three decades of promenading in the park with a visit to Treasure Island this summer.

The Lancaster theatre’s reputation for producing top quality walkabout productions is such that it won the 2016 UK Theatre Award for Best Show for Children and Young People with its version of The Hobbit last year.

The Hobbit proved so popular that performances later in the run sold out so this year The Dukes is recommending people to book early to avoid missing out.

The awardwinning team behind last year’s sell-out production are giving Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic novel – Treasure Island – a new twist for 2017.

Director, Joe Sumsion said: “Treasure Island is a fantastic story and our version will offer an amazing journey for a child – in fact, for anyone – to go on.  I think people love the idea of adventure on the high seas and, for us, theatrically, there’s lots of exciting potential.”

Treasure Island will be performed in Williamson Park from July 4-August 12. With every performance, the audience will follow the action by moving from one fantastic location to another to enjoy a rare theatrical experience which has become the UK’s biggest walkabout theatre season and attracted more than 500,000 people since it began in 1987.

In Debbie Oates’s version of Treasure Island, the audience will meet Jem Hawkins, a girl with a plan – to escape her troubles, travel the world and make a new life for herself.

The problem is that she’s chosen the wrong crew: an opinionated parrot, a bunch of pirate buffoons and the terrifying Long John Silver watch over her every move.

The audience will join Jem’s search for treasure through the winding paths and entrancing woodlands of Williamson Park which for previous Dukes outdoor shows have transformed into Neverland, Oz, Ancient Greece and Middle Earth.

To book tickets for Treasure Island, which is recommended for anyone aged 5 plus, ring The Dukes Box Office on 01524 598500 or visit www.dukes-lancaster.org.