Diana Hardie, who organises trips for her group Monocle, took some of her members to the newly-opened Lavender Theatre in Epsom.
The 250-seater open air theatre at Mayfield Lavender, which sits in amongst rolling lavender fields, has hosted its inaugural summer season which Monocle thoroughly enjoyed on their afternoon out at the Surrey venue.
GTO Diana said: “The theatre itself is open air but the audience is sheltered in a covered auditorium. The venue is open an hour-and-a-half before performances to allow you to browse the shop, bar, BBQ and lavender field.”
Irving Berlin’s musical Annie Get Your Gun was on offer for the group, which Diana said featured “cracking new staging” and the whole group made the effort to get dressed up for the show.
She continued: “It took some willpower to resist singing along to songs like There’s No Business Like Show Business, Anything You Can Do, and Can’t Get a Man With a Gun.”
Chum Les, one of the group members, added: “It was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon and such fun to go with friends. The staging was innovative, clever and comic which kept us entertained for the two-and-a-half hours.
“The singing was also exceptional, with simple dance routines added to the fun and the small band played along without missing a note.”
Although the inaugural season has ended for 2023, there are plans to see the summer season expand year on year with a diverse programme of performances.
Based at Mayfield Lavender in Surrey, the theatre was been co-founded by director Joe McNeice and Mayfield Lavender owner Brendan Maye.
The launch this year saw the completion of an investment worth more than £2 million into the Epsom site, which already has a coffee bar, shop, and a full service glasshouse restaurant. Its sister site, Mayfield Lavender Farm in Banstead has been open since 2006.
The venue is a short walk from Epsom Downs train station, although the team can also organise coach spaces by prior engagement, but no later than seven days before the performance date.
For more information go to lavendertheatre.com.
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