King John

To mark the 800th anniversary year of the Magna Carta, Artistic Director James Dacre directs Shakespeare's King John in the twelfth century Holy Sepulchre Church in Northampton, which was often visited by King John and his court.

Partly set in Northampton, Shakespeare's early history play charts one King's struggle to retain the crown against claims that he is not the rightful heir. This ambitious new production sees a large company of actors and musicians transport the church back in time to a twelfth century world of politics, power struggles, unlikely alliances and inheritance battles.

Written during a time of great political uncertainty, King John explores, in this election year, whether the power struggles of the ruling class have changed.