Welcome to The Principal Theatre Company
A wonderful summers evening for a theatre-hungry North London – The Stage
The Principal Theatre Company is an award winning professional theatre company based in North London.
Their patrons are Lynda Bellingham, Christopher Biggins, Ruth Madoc and David Burrowes MP.
Principal was founded by Paul Gladwin in 1999, and after Elizabeth Rowden performed in Principal’s 2007 show ‘Twelfth Night’ she knew that she wanted to be a part of Principal’s future. As a result they are now Joint Artistic Directors.
Principal’s Manifesto: To present annual open-air, professional Shakespeare productions that are accessible to ALL – after all it is called a ‘play’!
Whatever the weather, you are promised nothing but sunshine on stage – Time Out
Principal are dedicated to interpreting Shakespeare in a manner which makes what is often regarded as ‘difficult’ work extremely accessible. Their lively ‘no frills’ approach, with simple storytelling and minimal sets, has not only won the company critical acclaim, but enabled both established and new audiences to enjoy Shakespeare regardless of language or theatrical convention.
They wish to fill the gap in artistic and cultural entertainment in Enfield, Southgate and in London communities further afield.
One of the best open-air shows of the year – Barnet Press
They aim to provide high quality productions in terms of professional actors and actresses, set design and stage management. They also aim to nurture local talent by offering a number of parts to local drama school graduates, hopefully giving them a springboard to launch their careers and thus further represent the local community in the arts.
A theatrical event not to be missed… quality Shakespeare – The Guardian
Principal’s shows are renowned for their humour and lively spirit. Paul and Elizabeth aim to create a refreshing ensemble style by ensuring all of their cast members (usually around 20) are equally valued and appreciated. This results in shows full of laughter, vitality and clarity.
July 2011 – We are extremely proud to announce that ‘The Tempest’ is Time Out Critic’s Choice – a “spellbinding” production!
June 2011 - Much Ado About Nothing and The Tempest are now playing across London until Aug 6th! Please see www.millfieldartscentre.co.uk for a list of all performance dates and venues. Great reviews coming in including The Stage saying that we “should not be missed… a production that sparkles and fizzes with energy and joy“.
Feb 2011 - Ruth, our Musical Director, can be seen in the West End smash hit – ‘Woody Sez’ until April 2nd, Paul has been directing 3 UK Shakespeare tours and will then be directing for The Courtyard Theatre whilst Elizabeth has been working once again with The Orange Tree Theatre.
Jan 2011 – Happy New Year! We are VERY excited about this year with 5 shows planned, a panto, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, Robin Hood and an Ibsen! Follow us on Twitter @principaltheatr.
Dec 2010 - Sleeping Beauty is on the road, schools are loving it and tickets for our public shows are selling out fast! Our pantomime for 2011 will be ‘Mother Goose‘ – the panto with eggs-factor!
Sept 2010 – Paul is busy directing two UK tours for The Young Shakespeare Company – ‘Twelfth Night’ and ‘Macbeth’. He is very excited about working with some brilliant actors, including some cast members from this summer’s smash-hit double bill.
July 2010 - Both shows are proving to be smash hits… The Stage said that “The Taming of The Shrew” is “a delightful, entertaining outdoor production” whilst Whatsonstage said it is “a great night out”. The Enfield Advertsier is calling it “a mind-boggling collaboration, crafted with creativity and care which must been seen”. The Stage has also said of Macbeth that “strong performances and inventive interpretation make this an absorbing night out” – well done everyone!
April 2010 - Paul has completed another successful Shakespeare Showcase for professional actors at The Lion and Unicorn Theatre and one actor has already secured a tour of ‘Macbeth’ as a direct result from being seen in it!
April 2010 – Paul has had a fantastic meeting with the Royal Shakespeare Company with regard to his directing. The RSC are planning to view his work this Summer.
March 2010 - A busy couple of months for Paul and Elizabeth, they have worked for The Oxford School of Drama, East 15 and run a series of ‘Spicy Macbeth’ workshops all over the UK.
Jan 2010 - Paul is directing a UK tour of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ for The Young Shakespeare Company. Elizabeth is also working for The Young Shakespeare company, in association with The Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond.
Sept 2009 – Paul and Elizabeth are very excited to announce that next year, Principal’s 10th Anniversary year, they will be staging TWO of Shakespeare’s masterpieces – his classic comedy of the sexes “The Taming of the Shrew” and the infamous Scottish play, “Macbeth”.
Sept 2009 - Paul has been signed by Richard Ireson at Narrow Road as a director.
Sept 2009 - It appears that SEVEN members of the ‘As You Like It’ cast had interest from agents after being seen in the show. Well done everyone!
Aug 2009 - Well, the rather unpredictable summer is over and ‘As You Like It’ draws to an end at the beautiful Coram’s Fields in Bloomsbury. Paul and Elizabeth would like to say a massive thank you to all the cast and crew for an hilarious summer and a fantastic production – loved by the audience and the critics alike!
Aug 2009 – ‘As You Like It’ – 4 out of 5 stars from Time Out! (and well deserved too!) Please see our past productions page for the full review. Local press give rave reviews including; “the sunniest and funniest production of ‘As You Like It’ that I have ever seen” (Enfield Gazette) – please see our past productions page for all reviews.
Paul Gladwin – Joint Artistic Director
Paul trained as an actor at the Guildford School of Acting, and since 
graduating boasts a vast body of acting work in repertory, touring and television - including: Macbeth & Bottom for Michael Bogdanov’s English Shakespeare Company, Chekov’s ‘The Duel’ at the Lyric Hammersmith, Benedick, Petruchio and Sir Toby for Principal, Macduff & Pompey Bum in No’ 1 tours of ‘Macbeth’ and ‘Measure for Measure’, Joseph Merrick in ‘The Elephant Man’ in a tour of Barcelona/Catalunya – plus many more. TV credits include: Doctors, Crimewatch and 8 episodes of Peak Practice.
Paul has recently built a reputation as a director & teacher of Shakespeare & the Classics. His directorial debut came in 2004 with a full scale open air production of ‘Romeo + Juliet’ for Principal. This was followed in 2005 with assistant directing work on ‘The Tempest’ and ‘Hamlet’ for the Young Shakespeare Company. Paul then directed open air productions of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (2006) ‘Twelfth Night’ (2007) and ‘Romeo + Juliet’ (2008) as well as last summer’s critically acclaimed production of ‘As You Like It’, which received 4 out of 5 stars from Time Out (please see review section).
Paul has directed Primary School tours of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (2008, 2009, 2010), ‘Twelfth Night’ (2008) ‘Romeo + Juliet’ and ‘Macbeth’ (2009) all for the Young Shakespeare Company. He has also directed Secondary Schools tours of ‘Much Ado About Nothing’, ‘Richard III’ (2008) ‘The Tempest’, ‘Romeo + Juliet’ and ‘Macbeth’ (2009) again for the Young Shakespeare Company. Last June Paul was invited to teach ‘Romeo + Juliet’ to the First Year Acting students at Mountview and this year he has worked for The Oxford School of Drama and East 15. Paul also runs Shakespeare workshops and showcases for professional actors (see the professional workshop page for details). Paul is represented as a director by Richard Ireson at Narrow Road.
Elizabeth Rowden – Joint Artistic Director
Elizabeth hails from the West Country and trained at Exeter 
University obtaining a BA (Hons) First Class in Drama, specialising in acting and directing. She then moved to the big smoke and trained at The Central School of Speech and Drama gaining an MA in Acting Musical Theatre.
Since graduating in 2006 Elizabeth has worked extensively as an actress, touring the UK and Ireland with various companies. Recent theatre credits include Puck in ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’, Lady Anne in ‘Richard III’, a Witch and Storyteller in ‘Macbeth’ (all UK tours for The Young Shakespeare Company), Paula in ‘The Suitcase Kid’ (UK No.1 Theatre Tour for Watershed), Mrs. Hutchins in ‘The 24 Hour Plays: Mayfly’ (The Old Vic), Maude in ‘Me and My Girl’ (London Palladium), Guildenstern in ‘Hamlet’ (White Bear), Fairy Fulfillment in ‘Mother Goose’ (Chipping Norton) and last Christmas she stole the show as The Queen of Hearts in ‘Alice in Wonderland’ (New Theatre Royal Portsmouth).
She has also worked professionally as an ASM on a UK tour for Watershed’s ‘The Suitcase Kid’ and as a CSM for Principal’s 2008 show ‘Romeo and Juliet’ and their 2009 hit ‘As You Like It’.
Elizabeth has a true passion for the Bard and ensuring that the beauty of his language and the poignancy of his stories are kept alive and relevant. Her role within Principal is one of producing, marketing, and basically everything that happens outside of the rehearsal room!
In addition to this she has tread the boards in two Principal shows – in 2007’s ‘Twelfth Night’ as Feste’s Fabulous Singing Filly and in 2009’s ‘As You Like It’ as Celia of which Time Out stated; “Elizabeth Rowden’s Celia battles it out for comedy performance of the evening”.
2011 Season – Much Ado About Nothing & The Tempest
Capel Manor (Enfield) – June 21st – July 2nd
Southgate C.C. – July 12th – July 16th
Coram’s Fields (Bloomsbury) – July 21st – August 6th
Please visit www.millfieldartscentre.co.uk for full production dates and times.
Box Office – 020 8807 6680
“should not be missed….a production that sparkles and fizzes with energy and joy” – The Stage
Quotes from reviews for the 2010 Season
The Taming of The Shrew & Macbeth
“a delightful, entertaining outdoor production” – The Stage
“they create a thoroughly playful and enjoyable evening … a great night out” – Whatsonstage
“a mind-boggling collaboration, crafted with creativity and care which must be seen” – Enfield Advertiser
“strong performances and inventive interpretation make this an absorbing night out” – The Stage
Principal’s 2009 smash-hit success – ‘As You Like It’
4 out of 5 stars – Time Out
The most striking feature of Paul Gladwin’s assured production is the absolute clarity of the story, beautifully delivered by the cast…whatever the weather, you are promised nothing but sunshine on stage – Time Out
The sunniest and funniest production of As You Like It that I have ever seen – Enfield Gazette
2009 – AS YOU LIKE IT
4 out of 5 stars – Time Out
The most striking feature of Paul Gladwin’s assured production is the absolute clarity of the story, beautifully delivered by the cast…whatever the weather, you are promised nothing but sunshine on stage – Time Out
The sunniest and funniest production of As You Like It that I have ever seen – Enfield Gazette
The picture perfect set and kaleidoscopic costumes harmonise with the tone of this effervescent piece as Principal prove that Shakespeare’s works can be creative and innovative as well as comprehensible and faithful… the perfect summer evening – Remote Goat
2008 – ROMEO + JULIET
3 out of 5 stars – Time Out
A fabulously rich production… expect humour, tragedy, and a cosy evening of great entertainment – WhatsOnStage
One of the best open-air shows of the year – a triumph of a tragedy – Barnet Press
2007 – TWELFTH NIGHT
4 out of 5 stars – Time Out
A lively production…maximum comedy…hilarious….an exuberant evening – Time Out
One of the best open-air theatre companies in London… some excellent performances that wouldn’t be out of place with The Royal Shakespeare Company… a great night out – Enfield Advertiser
2006 – A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
4 out of 5 stars – Time Out
Terrific…you can’t knock the energy and straightforward storytelling of a company eager to please their audience and happily succeeding in doing so – WhatsOnStage
A lively production that will delight families in particular… an exuberant evening – Time Out
2005 – HENRY IV PART 1 AND 2
A theatrical event not to be missed… quality Shakespeare – The Guardian
2004 – ROMEO + JULIET
A military-inspired Much Ado About Nothing, a magical Midsummers Night’s Dream, a tearaway Twelfth Night and a tempestuous Taming of the Shrew showed that our area (Enfield) could rival the best that town has to offer – The Weekender
2003 – TAMING OF THE SHREW
The costumes are sumptuous and the sword play is scintillating – Enfield Gazette
2002 – TWELFTH NIGHT
A wonderful summers evening for a theatre-hungry North London – The Stage
2001 – A MIDSUMMER NIGHT’S DREAM
A glorius triumph, bold and beautiful. Demands to be seen – Enfield Gazette
2000 – MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING
A stylish production – The Times
Principal School Workshops
Paul, Elizabeth and Principal Theatre Company’s resident Musical Director Ruth Clarke-Irons, have pooled their 21 collective years experience of Theatre In Education and have created an informative and musical set of Shakespeare workshops for 6 to 11 year-olds.
Exploring a Shakespeare play of your choice, Paul, Liz and Ruth use drama games, storytelling, rhythm and music exercises, and physical and vocal drama activities to travel with the children through the plot of the story.
We actively involve the children so that they obtain a level of appreciation and understanding by not being taught to or at but by experiencing group discoveries together in a fun fashion!
An in-school integrated musical workshop and drama performance with Paul, Liz and Ruth lasts two and a quarter hours, costs £250 (inclusive of VAT) and is suitable for one or two classes of children. Two performances on the same day (either of the same play or two different plays) costs £400 (inclusive of VAT).
These workshops run throughout the academic year. Please contact us via the Contact page on this website for further details and for our latest availability, or phone us direct on 07544 915 184
Quotes from Principal’s Educational Programme
“The workshop was a great success”
(Bishops Stopford)
“At exactly the right level. Students thoroughly enjoyed the session. They gained confidence in dealing with Shakespeare’s language”
(Aylward School)
“Some children, who generally have problems in school, were able to participate and actually enjoy learning”
(Alma Primary)
PRINCIPAL PANTOS – TOURING SCHOOL PANTOMIME – MOTHER GOOSE 2011
After the success of our 2010 ‘dreamy’ school tour of ‘Sleeping Beauty’ we are now accepting bookings for our 2011 show ‘Mother Goose’ - eggs-treme entertainment for all!
Four professional actors will perform at your school for as many children as you can fit in your hall! Our original show with oodles of audience participation, singing, dancing, laughter, sweeties and a water pistol (!!) lasts an hour and a quarter without an interval and costs only £300.
Contact us now for availability in November and December 2011
UPDATE – ‘Principal Pantos’ website COMING SOON!
PAUL’S PROFESSIONAL SHAKESPEARE WORKSHOP & SHOWCASE
‘COME AND HAVE A GO IF YOU THINK YOU’RE BARD ENOUGH’
For the past five years the Principal Theatre Company have run a number of SHAKESPEARE WORKSHOPS for professional actors, culminating in showcases of Shakespeare scenes & monologues for industry professionals at RADA’s Theatres or at The Lion & Unicorn Theatre at Camden Town.
Many of the actors that have taken part in these workshops have gained paid acting work as a result of being seen in the showcases. Obviously this is one of the main aims of the course.
About The Workshops
Paul Gladwin (Joint Artistic Director) takes between 10 – 15 actors and over a period of 4/5 weeks works with them on scenes from several Shakespeare plays. They work for 3 to 4 hours a week studying Shakespeare’s text in detail – breaking down all of the different elements and intricacies as listed below. Each actor then has the opportunity to showcase themselves in a specific scene and monologue.
Through these classes Paul helps the actors find all of the clues that Shakespeare himself set down for us to analyse.
Paul makes the classes fun, but challenging.
The workshops consist of relaxation techniques, getting to grips with the language through Shakespeare theatre games & exercises, text analysis (Working from the First Folio), monologues, duologues and set scenes. Paul works privately with each actor on a set Shakespeare speech – preparing it to audition standards.
After studying the text in detail, Paul then directs the actors in their scenes & monologues, and in week 4/5 the actors stage a showcase of their work in a central London venue. We use a near bare stage and a minimum of props. The emphasis is on Shakespeare’s words and how the actor uses them. We invite a number of industry professionals to cover our work. We also invite family & friends.
The cost of the ‘Workshop and Industry Showcase’ is £250.
The date for the next series of workshops will be posted here and on our facebook page as soon as Paul is able to fit some into his hectic schedule! Please check this site for updates!
Principal also run school workshops alongside our resident musical director – Ruth Clarke-Irons. The workshops aim to explore Shakespeare’s plays through drama games, active storytelling and music. Please see the ‘School Workshops‘ page for more details and how to book a session for your school.
Romeo & Juliet
Twelfth Night
As You Like It
We invite your school to take a ‘gander’ at our touring pantomime for 2011….
Mother Goose
The show with the ‘eggs’-factor!
After the run-away success of our dreamlike “Sleeping Beauty” in 2010, Principal Theatre Company are proud to announce our extended school tour for 2011.
“I would recommend this to any school, what a real treat for staff & children!” – Our Lady of Lourdes, London.
Join us as we follow Mother Goose in this magical tale with her handsome but silly son Jack and his gorgeous girlfriend Jill as they discover that beauty and wealth do not always equal happiness as Priscilla the Goose teaches them the true value of friendship.
Dates are now available for your primary school in November and December 2011
“an extremely professional small theatre experience…the children had enormous fun” – Brookland Junior.
Four professional actors will perform at your school. Our original show with oodles of audience participation, singing, dancing, laughter, sweeties and a water pistol (!!) lasts an hour and a quarter without an interval.
The cost for your perfect Principal panto is £300 for as many 4-11 year olds as you can fit in your school hall.
“It was brilliant, can we book you for next year!” – St Paul’s CofE, London
For details and availability please do not hesitate to contact us at: