Pedalling from venue to venue with all of their set, props and costumes on the back of their bikes, the HandleBards are a four-strong troupe of actors who are spending the summer bringing environmentally sustainable Shakespeare to venues across the UK. Join the troupe at Castletown House and Gardens for a bicycle-powered production of Shakespeare’s ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ like you’ve never seen before. In usual HandleBards style, expect riotous amounts of energy, a fair old whack of chaos, and a great deal of laughter. And what’s the play about? Well – a group of soldiers return from the war to a household in Messina, kindling new love interests and re-kindling old rivalries. The parallel love stories of Beatrice, Benedick, Claudio and Hero quickly become entangled with scheming, frivolity and melodrama in Shakespeare’s famous comedy. This is an outdoor production, so please bring a chair or blanket to sit on, a picnic to dig into, and dress for the weather! ★★★★★ – “The HandleBards’ Much Ado About Nothing delivers on everything” – Liverpool Echo ★★★★★ – “Explodes with energy and is a genuine treat from start to finish” – The Stage, on the HandleBards’ Twelfth Night