Dreams and Dreamtime

Streams of Evocation

Dreams and Dreamtime

by Anne Warrington

Poetry Performance at Garrick’s Temple to Shakespeare, Hampton, 29^th March

Review by Hilary Jones

On a near-spring evening by the Thames, the classical pavilion, Garrick’s Temple to Shakespeare offers a beautiful venue, even in twilight drizzle. Here, Poetry Performance’s production of Dreams and Dreamtime showcased an array of themed poems written by the Bard and other talented writers. It was presented by fourteen poets, actors and musicians who were dressed smartly in black, giving the right touch of elegance to their splendid surroundings.

The venue took Poetry Performance away from its usual haunt upstairs at The Adelaide, “the Queen of pubs”, in Teddington where it meets on the first Sunday of every month, into the public’s view, in an exposition of pieces scripted and compiled by Anne Warrington, who directed the performance, with the support of Kenneth Mason.

Arranged in four sections or chapters, it was opened and gently narrated by Graham Harmes and Heather Montford. We were eased into the first section, From Shakespeare’s Forest to Modern Reverie. An impressive reading by Francis Abbott with Bottom’s speech from Midsummer Night’s Dream merged smoothly into Webster’s speech from The White Devil, a deft reading by Sue Bell. Fran Thurling’s The Going’s Not Gentle This Night was read by Laurie Coombs followed by Pillow, written and presented by prolific poet Adam Woods. The Dennis Tomlinson’s enigmatic Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, with Snake as Dennis’ second poem, followed. All these pieces were powerfully presented.

The Table and the Chair by Edward Lear was acted by Rory Gilbert, Laurie Coombs and Keith Wait. A very apt nonsense piece to conclude this chapter, it was great fun and a complete change of mood.

In the next section, Reflections on Mortality – Poetic Meditations on Death and Farewell, Christina Rossetti’s beautiful Dreamland piece was read sensitively by Sue Bell, and Francis Abbott, with great presence, read a quite different piece Dreamland, by Lewis Carroll.

Keith Wait enacted The Soldier’s Dream with poignancy, and David of the White Rock was sung unaccompanied by golden-voiced Annie Morris. The vibrant Polonia Palace, was written and read by Dennis Tomlinson. Concluding the first half with the iconic and eerie The Raven, Francis Abbott did not disappoint us with Poe’s haunting words.

The dubious weather did not deter any of the audience, and the atmosphere grew jollier. We were happy to still queue up for a drink outside in the fading light, despite the elements.

Embraced by the theme Echoes from the Quiet Hours on our return, we gave ourselves to Stephen Foster’s Beautiful Dreamer sung by Annie Morris and accompanied by Ian Lee-Dolphin, a gentle way to bring us into the second half.

The talented James Brockbank wrote and presented But I Can Dream with words that stayed with us, and likewise for Nights from relative newcomer Rory Gilbert, which was beautifully done. Mist was performed smoothly by Kenneth Mason, and A Fondness For Facts and Walberswick was written and welcomed by the prolific and clever Heather Cook. The gentle Dream Land was written and performed by Ian Lee-Dolphin, an appropriate end to this particular chapter.

The last section, intriguingly entitled Where Dreamtime Touches the Present, opened with Annie Morris’ God of Darkness, read by Laurie Coombs, followed by Fran Thurling’s clever piece What You Say at the Exhibition, which was performed by Sue Bell.

Annie Morris sang The Song of the Stars – a Native American poem and was sensitively accompanied by Ian Lee-Dolphin.

Keith Wait presented a stunningly illustrated book from which he did great justice to The Rainbow and the Serpent, a story from the Billabong, and Annie and Ian sang the beautiful Gaelic lullaby Dream Angus that wound the events of the evening down nicely.

Concluding with Francis Abbott’s vibrant reading of Prospero’s speech from The Tempest, this slick presentation had been full of insight and skilled writing. Dreams and Dreamtime made a great evening in what was a very distinctive event.

Hilary Jones, March 2026

Photography by Heather Moulson and Julian Ward