Dystopia paves way for illusion and confusion, for the latter half of Sheffield Theatres' 2026 Shakespeare Season.
Under the leadership of actor and director Jamie Glover, the celebrated ensemble are welcomed back to the Crucible stage a month after King Lear ended its run, as they tackle one of Shakespeare’s most cherished works.
Exploring themes of androgyny, gender identity and sexual ambiguity, Twelfth Night consistently ranks as one of the greatest plays ever written and is widely regarded as the perfect comedy.
The story takes place in the (semi-fictional) region of Illyria, located on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea – and draws inspiration from the ancient Baltic region, with which it shares its namesake.
Though under Ottoman rule during Shakespeare’s tenure, Illyria once existed as a group of Venetian-controlled city-states. This can be seen through the playwright’s rose-tinted depiction of a dreamy, romantic landscape, where the whimsical, shipwrecked adventures of Viola and Sebastian inevitably unfold.
