SATTF

Back in November I'd been looking without success for a production of 'King Lear' for the two Year 12 Literature groups I co-teach. I am teaching 'King Lear' to both so it seemed incredible luck when I found this production advertised in a copy of 'The Big Issue' I bought from Anna - one of the Issue sellers I stop and chat to in town when I am there..

Two minibuses booked, several staff including two who would be happy to drive the 'buses, and 28 students keen to go and I booked tickets, sorted out all the money, permission slips, Risk assessment forms completed, quadruple checked everything at intervals between then and yesterday morning. Last minute reshufflings yesterday when a student pulled out ill and the one reserve had to turn her day upside down (and her mother's too) in order to join us gave me something else to think about.

And then we were off.

I have seen many Shakespeare productions over the years - in London, Stratford and other cities as well as smaller productions. One memorable time years back was seeing Anthony Hopkins in 'Anthony and Cleopatra'. In our cheap as chips student base rate ticket seats 'up in the gods' of the London theatre we sweated buckets throughout the production and, afterwards, four of us stood in a relieved huddle outside at the end cooling off and breathing the night air. We had unknowingly stood next to the stage door where suddenly Anthony Hopkins appeared still wiping the stage make-up from his face. There was a stunned moment of silence on both sides - he clearly wasn't expecting anyone to have got out as soon as we had and we were doing a double take assessing whether it really was the man himself... Clutching our programmes we launched ourselves at him and he gracefully signed them for us, while telling us how hot it had beeen on stage and how he was grateful for the cool night air. Chipper little me, not at all awed by the presence of this great actor, piped up indignantly, 'Hmph, well if you think it was hot on stage, you should have tried being up in the gods where we were!' My companions' jaws dropped and Anthony Hopkins looked at me curiously before agreeing politely, finishing our autographs and heading off into the night. I still have that programme :-)

I have happy memories of dashing into London as a student to see many really good productions and Iain and I have taken ourselves off to Stratford to see the odd production in the past. I was determined that if I was going to take these students to see what would probably be their first experience of proper grown up theatre and almost certainly their first Shakespeare performance and spend so much of my own time organising and taking such a trip (I calculated about three days - in hours - of my own time for all the prep plus the trip itself) then it was going to have to be a good one.

Andrew Hilton is one of our best directors and the Tobacco Factory has a fabulous reputation nationally and internationally. With only around 250 seats and an intimate theatre-in-the-round arrangement, we were drawn in to the magic, power and intelligence of this play. My students were engrossed from start to finish - it got them and kept them transfixed from Act 1 scene 1 through to Act 5 scene 3. Even allowing for the fact Lear is my favourite Tragedy, this is my favourite production of any Shakespeare I have seen. It is the first time theatre has moved me to tears.

I really hope that such a vibrant, 'real' production sits in the students' memories and gives them a desire to see and experience more in the future.

If you recognise John Shrapnel who plays Lear it might be because you saw him play Julia Roberts' agent in 'Notting Hill' or one of his other film roles or maybe you have seen him in one of his many other theatre roles. He was perfect as Lear - bullish, proud, stubborn, fragile and humble.

We didn't see 'Lear' leave the theatre at the end, but we did see 'Cornwall', 'Albany' and we think 'Kent' too cycled off into the night....