Hear the story of a forgotten Elizabethan star on the big stage

Tortive Theatre will be bringing its five-star Edinburgh Fringe showShakespeare's Fool to Stafford Gatehouse Theatre as part of its national tour, bringing audiences up to date with the life of Will Kemp.

The show on Thursday, September 14. will see BIFA-nominated actor and stunt-clown Robin Leetham perform a show about an Elizabethan entertainer famed for his comedic performances in Shakespearean plays, but who died around 1603 in obscurity.

A spokesman for Tortive Theatre said: "Tortive Theatre’s smash-hit, five-star Edinburgh Fringe show 'Shakespeare’s Fool' is about to kick off its third UK tour and brings to life a forgotten superstar of the Elizabethan age.

"Will Kemp was a celebrity like no other and was largely responsible for the success of Shakespeare’s early work.

"If Kemp was in a play…it sold! He rode the waves of celebrity to their highest peak, until…he fell out with William Shakespeare.

"Kemp died alone and poverty stricken, not very far from the original Globe Theatre, of which he was an original shareholder, and faded into obscurity.

"A world away from his former life, having supposedly originated some of literature's best-known characters, including Bottom, Dogberry, and Falstaff.

"Join Cavaliero Kempe as he gives his final performance to an audience of a mouse and a marrote, and tells us what really happened between him and William Shakespeare. A bittersweet tale, told by an idiot."

Since its premiere in 2021, the show has played all over the UK and has appeared at two international Shakespeare Festivals, including at the National Theatre of Romania.

Tortive Theatre said it was delighted to bring its tour of Shakespeare’s Fool at the Gatehouse Theatre in Stafford on Thursday, September 14.

Tickets are available from gatehousetheatre.co.uk or on 01785 619080.