Rehearsals are gathering speed for Lichfield Players’ production of Lords and Ladies, Irana Brown’s adaptation of the fantasy novel by Terry Pratchett.

Adrienne Swallow is Nanny Ogg in “Lords and Ladies”

With two weeks to go before opening night, the actors, all 28 of them, are working hard under the direction of David Titley to produce a truly fantastic and colourful evening’s entertainment.

With a list of characters including witches, wizards, elves and an orang-utan (and a few “normal” people as well), costumes play a key part in this production, and the Players’ wardrobe supervisor, Lesley Westrop, has assembled a ten-strong team who have been making and adapting costumes and will be helping the actors with their changes during performances. Lesley reports that the orang-utan hasn’t arrived yet as he is still at the cleaners, but he will definitely be ready in time for the first night!

The plot? Well, there’s disagreement among the witches, there’s a royal wedding coming up, the King is very concerned about agriculture, and a group of rude mechanicals is rehearsing a play to be performed for the wedding guests. And then there are the “Lords and Ladies”.

Who are they? Here’s a clue: if you mention the word “elves” then the elves will appear and try to take over your world – so you have to call them something else.

Gina Martin plays Granny Weatherwax

If you’re a fan of Terry Pratchett, a regular theatregoer, or you just fancy seeing a play that’s different, you will enjoy this spectacular production. It runs from Wednesday 1st to Saturday 4th February in the main auditorium of the Lichfield Garrick, and tickets are now on sale at the theatre. Telephone the box office on 01543 412121 or book online at www.lichfieldgarrick.com