Looks just like mine! King admires crown while visiting Royal Shakespeare Company production in Bard's hometown
The King was met with cheers as he arrived to watch a sold-out performance of a Shakespeare play in Stratford-upon-Avon
The King was met with cheers as he arrived to watch a sold-out performance of a Shakespeare play in the Bard’s hometown.
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Charles delighted theatregoers when he took his seat near members of the public at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon.
The royal was the surprise guest at a production of The Tempest starring renowned actor Sir Kenneth Branagh.
The Harry Potter star is playing the role of the exiled Duke of Milan, Prospero, for the first time in his career, which has included 35 Shakespeare productions, including Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing and Henry V.
On his arrival, the King was greeted by the Lord Lieutenant of Warwickshire, Tim Cox, as well as the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) co-artistic directors Daniel Evans and Tamara Harvey.
Audience members peered down from the seating in the dress circle inside the auditorium, while others in the stalls got their phones out to take pictures when the royal took his seat near the back between the two.
He also sat near Sir Richard Eyre, who directed the performance for the RSC.
During the interval, the King was handed a drink before he met the RSC’s in-house costume department and admired a crown used in the company’s production of Edward II last year.
He also touched the fabric of a dress worn by Dame Judi Dench in All’s Well That Ends Well in 2003, while he marvelled at David Tennant’s robe and gown from his role in Richard II in 2013 and a costume worn by Sir Antony Sher in a 1984 production of Richard III.
The King described the costumes as “brilliant”.
Charles has been the patron of the RSC since 2024, following in the footsteps of the late Queen Elizabeth II – who held the patronage since the company’s creation in 1961.
The Tempest, which was one of the last plays written by Shakespeare, is running at the theatre until June 20.
Co-artistic directors of the RSC, Mr Evans and Ms Harvey said: “It was a tremendous honour to welcome His Majesty the King back to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre for this landmark production of The Tempest, which marks both Sir Kenneth Branagh’s historic return to Stratford-upon-Avon for the first time in over 30 years and Sir Richard Eyre’s debut with the company after a long and distinguished career directing for the British stage.