Posted 8th September 2025
Posted 4 months ago
By Alan Caig
The Merry Wives of Windsor 21-24 April 2026
The image of Falstaff in the laundry basket is inspired by an 18th Century painting by Heinrich Fussli.
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it's our ambition to do better theatre each time...
COMING NEXT
Estuary has a long history of staging Shakespeare, and now we're tackling The Merry Wives of Windsor, the only play Shakespeare wrote set in his own time and country. It's much more of a farce than any other of his plays, and is said to have been written to please Queen Elizabeth I, who had much taken to the character of Falstaff. Rehearsals start after Christmas, and our director is Ian Potts, very experienced in producing the classics with a comic twist. We're at the Matthews Hall in Topsham again, from 21 - 24 April, and we're hoping to tour the show to Powderham Castle for open air performances in June - watch out for more details.
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Estuary Players can boast a long and highly varied list of productions in its 40 years of existence, but its not our track record that's our biggest asset: it's our ambition to do better theatre each time which we feel gives us that edge- the next show is always more important than the last one.
We aren't avant-garde, or experimental, but we do believe that only the best writing gives us the opportunity to bring out the best acting, directing and presentation. We don't always rise to the occasion, but we always try. Why not come and join us, and. whatever your interest or skill, you will find a welcoming and supportive atmosphere. You can still check out our track record though by looking through the past shows list to see if you share our taste.
Upcoming Shows
Estuary Players produces two plays a year in the Matthews Hall in Topsham, usually at the end of April and the end of November. We announce the next show as a rule during the previous one. We also regularly present outdoor versions of our shows in the summer at Powderham Castle, and our topical Mummers' Play is a highlight of Topsham's Charter Day, the last weekend in August.
PREVIOUS PRODUCTIONS
Estuary Players has been going since 1977, so as you can imagine there are a lot of shows to talk about. We have rarely repeated ourselves - take a look at what we have done over the last almost half a century.
What are our upcoming shows?
What do we do?
Drama
Estuary is always on the lookout for good theatre, something for our actors and crew to get their teeth into. Recent examples are A Memory of Water and The Roses of Eyam, two contemporary plays dealing with real issues.
Classics
Estuary has a proud record of putting Shakespeare on the Topsham stage - King Lear was a recent example. Over the years we have performed most of the comedies and some of the tragedies, but we've also done a good deal of Restoration comedy, some Brecht and Chekhov.
Community and New Writing
Right from the start Estuary has been able to draw on writers from its own ranks. The much missed Nick Jones contributed several scripts, some of which were produced professionally elsewhere. In the last few years we have staged several local history shows, highlighting the Exeter Ship Canal and the remarkable history of theatre in Exeter. We came back from the pandemic with our own adaptation of Hardy's Under the Greenwood Tree, called The Mellstock Quire
Comedy
Probably our favourite genre, we like to inject at least a little humour into everything we do, even our local history plays. Loot, Joe Orton's still slightly shocking black comedy, was a recent offering, and we hope to produce a hilarious updated version of Moliere's Hypochondriac very soon. And don't forget our annual contribution to Topsham's popular Charter Day - the fabulous Mummers' Play!
Want to join us?
We welcome all new members, regardless of whether they want to work backstage, on stage or front of house - or even just come and watch. Our auditions and rehearsals are always open if you want to come and meet us first, and we're always delighted to meet new people.
