From Friday 27th to Sunday 29th March 2026, The Folk of Gloucester will be celebrating international theatre day with a festival weekend showcasing acting and writing talent from Gloucestershire and beyond.
The historic Tudor building on Westgate Street will host a festival featuring a range of shows from lively comedies to serious drama.
“We have been hosting theatre shows for a while now and it seemed good to have a weekend celebrating theatre,” says Events Manager John Bassett. “The good thing about a festival is that it gives a chance for audiences to see the rich diversity of performances and provide performers with the opportunity to try out new works. The tickets are being kept low at £8.00 and £6.00 for concessions to make performances as accessible as possible.”
The festival kicks off on Friday with a special “Soup Theatre” performance by Dreamshed Theatre of Dancing With Auntie: a two-man comedy about a New Year’s Eve party in a 1970s Manchester home. This 1:00pm performance includes a bowl of homemade soup in the ticket price.
Other shows include Something Rotten: a reimagining of Hamlet by Brighton-based Monkeydog Theatre. The highly acclaimed one-man play retells the classic Shakespearean tragedy from the point of view of the evil uncle Claudius.
“Something Rotten” by Monkeydog Theatre has been praised for its deceptively clever analysis of Shakespeare through laugh-out-loud moments
Local actor and musician Edward Derbyshire presents Keats at the Keyboard, in which he performs Keats poems while accompanying himself live on piano with music of his own composition.
The Elver Wars by Eely Good Productions is a family-friendly sketch-based romp through the history and science of the European Eel, including Gloucester’s role in the fate of this fascinating creature. Meanwhile, in Any Scene Will Do, the Fab Libs present improvised comedy sketches based on audience members’ dreams.
Two shows which take a more personal stance are Spaniel in the Works’ The Smoking Show: actor John Bassett’s everyday tale of life, cigarettes and matters arising – and Lizzie Bean’s Phuckets and Rainbows, taking audiences on a rollercoaster ride through the highs to the lows of an ordinary girl’s commitment to living an extraordinary life.
More details and booking information can be found on The Folk of Gloucester website.