Oddsocks' production of The Merry Wives of Windsor lives up to expectations (From Hereford Times)

Oddsocks' production of The Merry Wives of Windsor lives up to expectations

10:21am Monday 6th February 2012 in Leisure

ODDSOCKS have been bringing their special brand of Shakespeare to Herefordshire for many summers.

But, for the first time, their annual winter tour brought a little February sunshine to the county when they staged their production of The Merry Wives of Windsor to the Bishop of Hereford’s Bluecoat School.

With an individual style honed over many years by husband-and-wife directors, producers and actors Elli Mackenzie and Andy Barrow, Oddsocks always remain faithful to Shakespeare’s text.

But they add their own unique ingredients to ensure an unforgettable experience for the audience.

It’s no different this time with the action set in the 1950s and based around the Two Pies Café.

In the usual Oddsocks fashion, the audience are watching actors playing actor members of the Television Repertory Company perform a TV play.

And this clever device assists the usual comic inventiveness that we have come to expect from Oddsocks over their many previous visits.

The five-strong troupe quickly establish a strong rapport with the audience, particularly Oddsocks veteran Andrew McGillan whose talents have graced several of the company’s previous productions.

McGillan includes Falstaff among his three roles – all members of the cast have to play at least two parts – but it’s Elli Mackenzie as Mrs Page who gets the biggest laugh with a remarkable piece of ‘interaction’ with the Bendix Gyramatic.

This summer, Oddsocks will be back on tour with Julius Caesar, hopefully back in Herefordshire. Don’t miss them.