Twelfth Night will be this year’s Sheffield University Theatre Company (SUTCo) Shakespeare in the Park production, and the final SUTCo show of the 2024/25 academic year.
Following an open ballot, the play triumphed over both The Tempest and The Comedy of Errors to claim SUTCo’s last production slot, set for week 11 of semester two.
SUTCo have also opened applications for the show’s production team.
In a social media post announcing the results this morning, the theatre group proclaimed that “[their] SITP [Shakespeare in the Park] 2025 will be […] Twelfth Night! And our prod team application forms are open!”.
Twelfth Night received 51% of the popular vote, followed by The Tempest at 36% and The Comedy of Errorstrailing on 13%, and marks the first time in several years that Twelfth Night has claimed the slot, narrowly missing out in both 2023 and 2024.
Following twins Viola and Sebastian, Twelfth Night recounts the events of a shipwreck that leads Viola to fall in love with Duke Orsino, who’s love, Countess Olivia, falls in love with Viola.
A classic Shakespearean love triangle, the play was published in 1623 in Shakespeare’s First Folio and has since been adapted countless times into stage productions, television, radio and film formats.
Unlike regular SUTCo productions, Shakespeare in the Park productions are not proposed with a production team, which is instead open for applications following the play’s announcement.
As a result, SUTCo have opened applications to join the production team for Shakespeare in the Park: Twelfth Night, with the team consisting of a Director, a Production Manager and a Producer, as well as at least one additional member.
The Director is tasked with the overall management of the production, as well as managing the cast during rehearsals, whilst the Production Manager is charged with the technical team and technical vision of the show, and the Producer tasked with publicity and sponsorships.
Applications to join the Twelfth Night production team are considered by Projects & Workshops Officer Darcey Severne, whilst also consulting with SUTCo’s Welfare & Inclusions Officer, and Technical Manager, where necessary.
The show will be staged in May in Crookes Valley Park, with two matinee performances on consecutive days, similarly to last year’s As You Like It.
The final SUTCo show to be named, it joins Accidental Death of an Anarchist, The Effect, It Came From The Ice and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival production Peace Circle in SUTCo’s 5-show line-up between now and the 2025/26 academic year.
With auditions expected for both Twelfth Night and Peace Circle in the first half of semester two, four productions’ tech calls open or yet to be launched, and Twelfth Night looking for a production team, opportunities to get involved with SUTCo before the end of the year are wide, and a chance for new or returning talent to try their hand at any role within SUTCo productions before the academic year is out.
Applications to join the production team of SUTCo’s Shakespeare in the Park: Twelfth Night are open until January 22nd. Applications can be submitted here
