In 1971 the Port Elizabeth Shakespearean Festival requested that a open air theatre be developed in St Georges Park and this request was approved by the city’s Parks and Recreation Committee. The driving force behind this was Bruce and Helen Mann, doyens of the theatre in PE. The theatre comprises a stage and grassed area with grassed tiers where seats are placed.
It is utilised by the Port Elizabeth Shakespearean Festival which stage their annual Shakespear play there, but is open to anybody wanting to hire the venue for an event.
This would be a superb spot to see a Shakespearean play, or any other for that matter. Thanks for the link. I saw a Shakespeare play in Jo’berg performed in Zulu, and I loved it!!
that must have been great! I was never much into Shakespeare as a kid, but when I was 14 we went to Rome. It coincided with the fact that we were studying Julius Caesar at the time. Something about standing on the actual steps of the forum and imagining the scene…et tu Brute?… really moved me deeply and brought it to life for me and I suddenly realised how wonderful his work was!
These are great photos ! What a lovely setting for a Shakespeare play ! For more info and photos about Port Elizabeth and South Africa also have a look at trivago. All the content on trivago has been added by its members and visitors.
In the ’70s our class had to attend the play, Othello. Brings back lots of memories seeing the theatre again after about 32 years.Loved the blog very much as I get to see lots of places I used to go as a kid.Thanks for the beautiful pics of my beloved PE!!Henny Bongers, Duiven, The Netherlands
hi fritz, I am registered on Trivago, and many of the PE photos are mine! Just finding it a bit time consuming at the moment.Hi Henny, glad to bring back memories! If there are other things you want us to feature, let us know, and we’ll do our best to include them!
Hi Sam, thanks for the offer. That would be great! I lost contact with a friend of mine about 7 years ago. Maybe through your site we’ll meet again or find old schoolmates. My request is to see some pictures of my old school HTS PE on 1st ave Newton Park.Henny Bongers
Looks like a great concert venue, or a beautiful place to get married.
What a beautiful venue. I can just imagine sitting there listening to Shakespear. Diane
Great idea. Cape Town has a similar one in Maynardville Park in Wynberg and we have been going to the annual Shakespeare production for the past ten years or more. Always a highlight.