What's On
15-25 JULY 2026 BOOK TICKETS
Hamlet - Open Air at Reading Abbey Ruins
by William Shakespeare
This July, Reading Abbey Ruins presents a fresh and fast-paced interpretation of Shakespeare’s greatest play, Hamlet.
Aged just 20, Prince Hamlet is clever yet tormented. His father has died in suspicious circumstances, his widowed mother has remarried his uncle, who has seized the Danish throne, and the woman he loves, Ophelia, is heading towards a tragedy of her own. Their two families are bound together in a relentless descent from which no one will escape unscathed. It's a world of spies, lies, and pretences. Dark humour intermingles with grief, betrayal, and madness, culminating in a conclusion as devastating as any in theatre.
3-12 SEPTEMBER 2026 Book Tickets
Cold Comfort Farm
In this classic comedy set in the early 1930s, orphaned Flora Poste "possesses every art and grace save that of earning her own living”, so decides to live with her eccentric relatives, the Starkadders, at Cold Comfort Farm. Forceful and organised, she decides to impose order on their chaotic lives. This is a story full of incident and larger-than-life characters, including a doddery old farm hand obsessed with his cows, a fire-and-brimstone preacher, and a forbidding matriarch who once saw something nasty in the woodshed.
A rollicking romp to kick off our 80th season at Progress.
Gala performance on Sunday, 6 September at 2.00 pm
Relaxed performance on Saturday, 12 September at 2.30 pm
This amateur production is presented in association with Concord Theatricals Ltd
See our 2025-26 Season of Plays and upcoming 2026-27 Season of Plays.
Please note that various themes may be distressing to some audiences. See our list of Content Warnings.
If you need assistance, please email: [email protected]
Note: We cannot offer refunds, but you can exchange your tickets for another show date in advance of the date on your current tickets. To do so, please email [email protected]