Wednesday
All week, Trinity Theatre Club perform their interpretation of the classic 1980s play Outside Edge. Written by Richard Harris in 1979, it’s the comic tale of a cricket team trying to win a game while sorting out their various marital problems. Famously adapted for a TV series which ran from 1994-1996, you can now see it in its original stage version all this week. Tickets start from £12 for Friends of Trinity. www.trinitytheatre.net
You’ve still got time to catch a screening of Ocean’s 8, the next instalment in the heist movie franchise, which is playing this evening and tomorrow evening at The Hop Farm’s Moonlight Drive-In Cinema. The all-female film, which stars Sandra Bullock, Helena Bonham Carter and Cate Blanchett, focuses on a group of criminal women aiming to rob a multi-million dollar diamond from New York’s infamous Met Ball. Will they pull it off? Tickets cost £25 per vehicle if you want to find out www.moonlightcinema.com
Every Wednesday from 7pm until 9pm, the Angel Indoor Bowls Centre in Tonbridge welcomes beginners to their ‘Have a go at bowling’ evening. For more information, visit www.angelibc.co.uk
BoostFit classes are now being held on Wednesday evenings at 7pm at St Gregory’s Catholic School. They cost £5 for a one-hour session. For more details, see www.boostfit.com
Thursday
Local poet Louise Campbell has written a book of poems about patients and nurses on a psychiatric ward. Entitled The Ward, it has its launch this evening from 6pm at the Salomons Centre for Applied Psychology (part of Canterbury Christ Church University) in Meadow Road, Tunbridge Wells. It will also feature readings from the event’s guest poet, John O’Donoghue, author of Sectioned, which won Mind Book of the Year 2010. Copies of The Ward will be on sale for £5.
Beacon Academy in Crowborough is holding its Visual Arts Summer Exhibition this evening from 5.30pm to 8pm. Showcasing the talents of its students from all year groups, it will have a wide range of artwork on display, including paintings, graphics and photography. The event will be held in the school’s Creative Learning Centre.
Jazz on The Pantiles is still in full swing. To make it a really special event, why not avail yourself of One Warwick Park Hotel’s Bubbles and Burger deal, which costs just £10 per person? For more details, see www.onewarwickpark.co.uk
Friday
This is the final week to catch the Keratin exhibition at Trinity Gallery. Its focus is on the natural beauty of birds’ feathers. Assembled by multi-media artist Eddie Vanderwerif, it is a stunning collection of drawings that will draw your eye to the intricate detailing found on a variety of different birds. Open daily from 10am until 10pm.
The Festival Theatre at Hever Castle welcomes the stage show The Magic of Motown this evening from 8pm, so if you’re a fan of this musical genre you’ll enjoy hearing classic hits by the likes of The Jackson 5, Martha Reeves and Smokey Robinson being played al fresco. Tickets can be booked through the box office, open Monday-Friday 9.30am-5pm, on 01732 866114, or online at www.heverfestival.co.uk
Local charity IMAGO is hosting a fundraising quiz night at Tunbridge Wells Football Club from 7pm. Teams of six people are invited to join at a cost of £7 per ticket. To book, call 01892 530330 or email: hello@imago.community
Saturday
The popular Maize Maze at Penshurst Place opens today and runs throughout the summer until September 2. Open from 11am until 6pm (last entry is at 5pm), this year’s theme is time travel, so the maze has been designed to resemble a clock face. There’s also an optional new shorter route to explore To find out more, visit www.penshurstplace.com
From 3pm until 4pm this afternoon, St Saviour’s Church in Tonbridge will be hosting a Summer Tea Party to which all are welcome. As well as delicious treats to savour, there will also be a short talk by parish member, teacher and mother Alyson Bleakley. The church is located on Dry Hill Park Crescent and entrance is free.
Staying in Tonbridge, this weekend sees the Southborough School of Dance Charity perform a variety of shows, including ballet, modern, tap and jazz today and tomorrow. Saturday’s performance is at 5.30pm and Sunday’s is at 3.30pm, and both shows will be staged in the Mac Theatre at West Kent College, Brook Street. Ticket prices are £12 per adult and £6 for children aged under 18. Under-3s go free. Ticket sales proceeds will go to the Zama School of Dance in Cape Town, South Africa, towards their ‘Development’ Fund’ for talented township pupils, and the Southborough School of Dance Fund. For more on the performances, email: info@danceschoolkent.co.uk
There’s also jousting at Hever Castle to enjoy all weekend. Visitors are welcome to watch ‘Henry VIII’, ‘Anne Boleyn’ and the Knights of Royal England battle it out on horseback. Entrance is free with the normal admission price. See
www.hevercastle.co.uk
Over at the Assembly Hall in Tunbridge Wells, The Dreamboys are on performing, so if you’re a fan of muscles and sexy moves put to music then make sure you book tickets, which start at £21.50. www.assemblyhalltheatre.co.uk
Entertainment of a different kind is on offer over at Scotney Castle, where there is an outdoor performance of the Shakespeare comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream from 7.30pm. Tickets are priced £13 for adults and £8 for children. www.nationaltrust.org
Sunday
Go Ape at Bedgebury is great for thrill-seekers to get stuck into. Children must be aged at least ten years old and be a minimum of 1.4m tall to participate in this tree-top adventure. For tickets and timings, visit www.goape.co.uk
Join the Friends of Grosvenor and Hilbert Park for a day of outdoor games and picnicking from midday onwards. The fun day marks the start of national Love Parks Week, which runs all of next week. You can bring your own food, games and entertainment and have a wonderful time.
Monday
Tunbridge Wells Museum & Art Gallery continues to exhibit Staffages: 2018 – a collection of photographic works which highlights the connections between museum object, site and viewer, created by artist Steffi Klenz.
Trinity Theatre’s Silver Screening at 10.30am is the Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks classic romantic comedy Sleepless in Seattle. There will be a 15-minute interval halfway through and tickets cost just £5. See www.trinitytheatre.net
Tuesday
The Odeon cinema transmits a live screening of the film Spitfire, an ‘epic, sweeping tale of determination, vision and courage’. In essence it’s the story of the world’s most famous fighter planes used in deadly combat. Told in the words of the last surviving combat veterans, it also boasts amazing aerial footage from the world’s top aviation photographer and rare, digitally remastered, archive film. Following the screening there will be a special Q&A hosted by RAF Honorary Group Captain Carol Vorderman.
Country Wife production revamped
The Rotherfield Players present their production of The Country Wife. Its director, Kate Organ, tells the Times why the group opted for this notorious restoration comedy
wE at the Rotherfield Players will be presenting our summer production from July 26 to 28.
We’ve chosen to put on William Wycherley’s ‘The Country Wife’, a fun-filled restoration comedy, and will perform it outdoors in the beautiful setting of the garden of the village’s Kings Arms pub.
Set in London in the early 18th century, The Country Wife consists of three interwoven storylines which rather hilariously illustrate the relationships, sexual conduct and manners of the time.
For many years the play was considered too outrageous to perform due its bawdy nature, but since the 1920s it has once again become a favourite amongst audiences, and is hugely acclaimed by critics thanks to its sharp social satire.
The Rotherfield Players have been going since 1976, when we put on our first performance The Happiest Days of Your Life.
Our approach to theatre has always remained the same. We like to enjoy ourselves, whether we’re rehearsing or performing.
And we try to encourage the development of youngsters in the group, and hope to achieve the highest quality performances possible.
So if you come along to see us in The Country Wife, then you’ll not only relish seeing a classic piece of comedy theatre performed al fresco, but also have the chance to hear live music and songs and witness our theatrical ethos first hand.
We believe that our production of Wycherley’s play is a colourful frolic – or an early 18th-century version of a Carry On film, if you like!
Why not come along and judge for yourself
To purchase tickets for The Country Wife, go online to www.rotherfieldplayers.co.uk
The Rotherfield Players will also be touring the play to The Noah’s Ark pub in Lurgashall, Sussex from August 2-4. Tickets for these performances are available directly from the pub.
