CORNWALL’S Miracle Theatre is celebrating the end of its summer tour of Peer Gynt, which reached audiences at 52 performances across over 30 venues in Cornwall, Dorset and the Isles of Scilly.

The company faced high temperatures, a performance affected by lightning and a van breakdown along the way. Yet the three-month tour, which saw the company perform in castles, gardens, historic houses and other beautiful outdoor locations, continued and has received an exceptional response from audiences, with Miracle reporting some of its strongest feedback to date with 95% of audience feedback giving Peer Gynt four-or five-star ratings.

“I loved every minute of it. All actors owned the stage right the way through. Fantastic change of characters with different physicality. Great fun. Inventive staging. Just wonderful.”

Alongside the show, sponsorship from Jolly’s Drinks helped Miracle raise additional funds via a series of pop-up bars.

With temperatures reaching record-breaking levels during the summer, Jolly’s cold drinks proved particularly popular.

“We’re hugely grateful to Jolly’s Drinks for supporting this year’s tour,” Sarah Ferrie, Managing Director, Miracle Theatre.  “Rural touring comes with additional travel and transport costs as we move a production and a company of artists to around 30 different venues. The support from Jolly’s and the income from the pop-up bars, helps us meet some of those costs and continue taking professional theatre to audiences who might otherwise have to travel considerable distances to see it.”

For Miracle, it is precisely this ability to take professional theatre to audiences in distinctive, and sometimes challenging locations, that makes the company’s rural touring programme so important and why partnerships with local businesses can make such a difference.

“We’re proud to support Miracle Theatre and the fantastic work they do bringing great theatre to audiences across Cornwall and beyond. As a Cornish business, supporting local organisations and the communities around us is incredibly important. It was brilliant to see audiences enjoying Peer Gynt with a cold Jolly’s in hand, while the pop-up bars helped raise valuable funds for the tour. We’re delighted to have played our part in such a fantastic summer of theatre.” Cheryl Ingram, Managing Director, Jolly’s Drinks