Colten Care home residents perform Shakespeare plays

Residents at Colten Care homes in Dorset staged their own mini versions of Shakespeare's most famous works to celebrate the bard's birthday, which historians believe was on April 23, 1554.

At Whitecliffe House in Blandford, residents and staff acted out scenes from Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream, complete with costumes and props.

Whitecliffe House resident Lois Ramsden as Macbeth Picture: Colten Care

Sybil Fish, who played Friar Lawrence in Romeo and Juliet, said: "Doing these performances has been most enjoyable and made us use our grey matter to remember the lines. Practice makes perfect. It took my back to my school days - when I was in the school play I always had to play the man."

Ruth Horrocks was thrilled to make her stage debut at the age of 88 playing the starring role of Juliet. She said: "I feel quite proud of myself for doing it."

Fellow resident Coralie Jackson, who played one of the witches in Macbeth, said: "I remembered many of the lines from having studied the play at school, especially 'double, double, toil and trouble'."

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All the performances were coordinated and scripted by companionship team member Caroline Pugh, who combined the rhyming couplet style Shakespeare used in his plays with some more topical phrases. When Romeo thought Juliet had died, not realising she was asleep, Caroline wrote: "Now this is where confused thoughts start to roam, for the plague (just like Covid) had kept the messenger at home."

Caroline said: "Several of our residents remember reading the plays at school, while for others it was their first opportunity to explore them. For one of two as well, it was their first opportunity to do a little acting.

"Lots of people wanted to play the parts of the witches in Macbeth and they were excited about the witches hats."

Lois Ramsden, who played Macbeth, said: "We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and the set looked lovely. the companionship team put in a lot of hard work to make this happen."

Julia Puia, companionship team member, said: "It was a very entertaining way to wish a happy 457th birthday to William Shakespeare. Everyone got into character, dressing up and doing accents with their lines."

For more information on Colten Care homes, visit www.coltencare.co.uk/