Theatre by the Lake
Theatre by the Lake has a setting on the shores of Derwentwater no other professional theatre in Britain can match. Each year it stages up to nine of its own productions of classic, modern and new plays on its two stages and has won multi-starred reviews from national critics. It also hosts festivals of literature, jazz, film and mountains. Daytime and evening refreshments are available from light snacks to pre-theatre meals.
There are lifts to all levels and wheelchair users can get to all front-of-house and backstage areas. Both auditoria have enhanced-hearing and induction loop systems.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.theatrebythelake.com, where you can now choose your own seat and see the view of the stage before you buy. Alternatively, call the Box Office on 017687 74411 – it’s open from 9.30am to 8pm daily.
Location
The theatre is a five minute walk from the town centre (follow signs for the Lake), with Allerdale Borough Council’s Lakeside pay & display car park immediately adjacent to the theatre building. There are bus links with Ambleside to the south, Carlisle to the north, Penrith to the east and Cockermouth and Workington to the west.
Cara Dillon
Cara Dillon, an extraordinary, multiple award-winning Irish folk singer, and acclaimed musician and producer Sam Lakeman, will captivate listeners once again with their exquisite and enthralling live performance.
Throughout an enviable career which has seen them explore opportunities to tread many different paths – from releasing folk crossover albums on indie label Rough Trade; recording on Disney soundtracks to collaborations with orchestras and even leading dance DJs – Cara has continuously chosen to firmly plant herself within the landscape of her Irish cultural heritage and that’s something to celebrate.
Their enduring partnership has ensured they have remained at the very pinnacle of the folk genre for well over two decades and this performance will feature a selection of acoustic songs from previous releases and may also include material from her highly anticipated 2024 release,“Coming Home”, her first in over six years. Within it Cara effortlessly blurs the lines between spoken word and song to stunning effect, exploring profoundly personal memories, her native Co. Derry and the people, places and customs she holds closest to her heart; revealing a newly found freedom to express herself within the tiniest of details and life’s larger mysteries.
Join Cara and Sam for an intimate evening full of exceptional music and the genuine warmth they bring to the stage.
The Enormous Turnip
Help save the day as we pull The Enormous Turnip out of the ground before it takes over the planet!
Living in their tiny shed squeezed in amongst the garden tools, Mr and Mrs Chickweed’s amazing prize-winning vegetables have taken over everything! Before they retire, they can’t resist planting one last seed, try for one more champion vegetable and one more trophy!
But no one knew that a vegetable could grow bigger than the cat, bigger than the dog, bigger than you and me put together! It’s gigantic, it’s blocking out the light and it’s still growing!
Suitable for all the family (recommended for ages 3-10).
Directed by Niki McCretton
Music by Matthew Huxley
Stuff and Nonsense make inspiring shows for families. We unite creativity and imagination, so that children and adults can learn together and inspire each other. Our shows are co-created with children and incredible artists. We also teach, lead workshops, give schools resources and work with families to learn and make things.
Stuff and Nonsense have delighted over a quarter of a million people this decade alone.
Invest in your children’s imaginations: join us in the theatre and take playfulness home with you!
Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure For Kids
Join world record-breaking beatboxer SK Shlomo who makes amazing music with just a mouth and a mic, and has performed around the world with legends like Bjork, Ed Sheeran and Rudimental.
Their 5-star sell-out show Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure for Kids is back.
Anybody can become one of this sonic superhero’s sidekicks in a world of funny sounds, brilliant noises, and cool music, whether they’re aged 1 or 101!
The Wizard of Oz
We’re not in Keswick anymore…
From Aunty Em’s Cumbrian cottage Dorothy dreams of returning to her old life in London. But as she climbs out of the window to run away, a storm whisks her up, and she gets far more than she bargained for.
How do you get from Oz to London? There’s only one person who could possibly help – The Wizard!
For Christmas 2025 join Dorothy and her faithful companion Toto on an adventure down the yellow brick road, facing witches and flying monkeys and making new friends. Along the way she learns that there’s no place she’d rather be than home with Aunty Em.
Inspired by the book by L. Frank Baum, this brand new adaptation of the classic story features all your favourite characters – a very brave lion, a big hearted tinwoman and a super smart scarecrow, and brings Oz right up to date with original pop songs. It’s the perfect treat for all the family – just don’t forget your magic shoes!
Cumbrian Christmas Cracker
Open the season of goodwill at the ‘Cumbrian Christmas Cracker’
A nostalgic evening of seasonal readings, poems, dialect and music. Author Alan Cleaver, Countrystride producer David Felton and special guests unpack a stocking of seasonal gifts featuring memories of past times, traditional yuletide food, a journey into Cumberland dialect and tunes, and the inevitable fire-side ghost story.
Little Gift
Meet Ted, a cautious old soul living all alone in a busy, bustling town. He likes it that way. It’s quieter and safer. Until one extraordinary day, a surprise visitor turns his lonely life upside down.
Told by a very special performer, with a playful mix of puppetry, music and song, Little Gift is a tender and warm story about friendship and the joy to be found just around every corner.
Your enquiry will be sent directly to Theatre by the Lake. Please fill in as much detail as you can.
Theatre by the Lake has a setting on the shores of Derwentwater no other professional theatre in Britain can match. Each year it stages up to nine of its own productions of classic, modern and new plays on its two stages and has won multi-starred reviews from national critics. It also hosts festivals of literature, jazz, film and mountains. Daytime and evening refreshments are available from light snacks to pre-theatre meals.
There are lifts to all levels and wheelchair users can get to all front-of-house and backstage areas. Both auditoria have enhanced-hearing and induction loop systems.
Tickets can be purchased online at www.theatrebythelake.com, where you can now choose your own seat and see the view of the stage before you buy. Alternatively, call the Box Office on 017687 74411 – it’s open from 9.30am to 8pm daily.
Location
The theatre is a five minute walk from the town centre (follow signs for the Lake), with Allerdale Borough Council’s Lakeside pay & display car park immediately adjacent to the theatre building. There are bus links with Ambleside to the south, Carlisle to the north, Penrith to the east and Cockermouth and Workington to the west.
Cara Dillon
Cara Dillon, an extraordinary, multiple award-winning Irish folk singer, and acclaimed musician and producer Sam Lakeman, will captivate listeners once again with their exquisite and enthralling live performance.
Throughout an enviable career which has seen them explore opportunities to tread many different paths – from releasing folk crossover albums on indie label Rough Trade; recording on Disney soundtracks to collaborations with orchestras and even leading dance DJs – Cara has continuously chosen to firmly plant herself within the landscape of her Irish cultural heritage and that’s something to celebrate.
Their enduring partnership has ensured they have remained at the very pinnacle of the folk genre for well over two decades and this performance will feature a selection of acoustic songs from previous releases and may also include material from her highly anticipated 2024 release,“Coming Home”, her first in over six years. Within it Cara effortlessly blurs the lines between spoken word and song to stunning effect, exploring profoundly personal memories, her native Co. Derry and the people, places and customs she holds closest to her heart; revealing a newly found freedom to express herself within the tiniest of details and life’s larger mysteries.
Join Cara and Sam for an intimate evening full of exceptional music and the genuine warmth they bring to the stage.
The Enormous Turnip
Help save the day as we pull The Enormous Turnip out of the ground before it takes over the planet!
Living in their tiny shed squeezed in amongst the garden tools, Mr and Mrs Chickweed’s amazing prize-winning vegetables have taken over everything! Before they retire, they can’t resist planting one last seed, try for one more champion vegetable and one more trophy!
But no one knew that a vegetable could grow bigger than the cat, bigger than the dog, bigger than you and me put together! It’s gigantic, it’s blocking out the light and it’s still growing!
Suitable for all the family (recommended for ages 3-10).
Directed by Niki McCretton
Music by Matthew Huxley
Stuff and Nonsense make inspiring shows for families. We unite creativity and imagination, so that children and adults can learn together and inspire each other. Our shows are co-created with children and incredible artists. We also teach, lead workshops, give schools resources and work with families to learn and make things.
Stuff and Nonsense have delighted over a quarter of a million people this decade alone.
Invest in your children’s imaginations: join us in the theatre and take playfulness home with you!
Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure For Kids
Join world record-breaking beatboxer SK Shlomo who makes amazing music with just a mouth and a mic, and has performed around the world with legends like Bjork, Ed Sheeran and Rudimental.
Their 5-star sell-out show Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure for Kids is back.
Anybody can become one of this sonic superhero’s sidekicks in a world of funny sounds, brilliant noises, and cool music, whether they’re aged 1 or 101!
The Wizard of Oz
We’re not in Keswick anymore…
From Aunty Em’s Cumbrian cottage Dorothy dreams of returning to her old life in London. But as she climbs out of the window to run away, a storm whisks her up, and she gets far more than she bargained for.
How do you get from Oz to London? There’s only one person who could possibly help – The Wizard!
For Christmas 2025 join Dorothy and her faithful companion Toto on an adventure down the yellow brick road, facing witches and flying monkeys and making new friends. Along the way she learns that there’s no place she’d rather be than home with Aunty Em.
Inspired by the book by L. Frank Baum, this brand new adaptation of the classic story features all your favourite characters – a very brave lion, a big hearted tinwoman and a super smart scarecrow, and brings Oz right up to date with original pop songs. It’s the perfect treat for all the family – just don’t forget your magic shoes!
Cumbrian Christmas Cracker
Open the season of goodwill at the ‘Cumbrian Christmas Cracker’
A nostalgic evening of seasonal readings, poems, dialect and music. Author Alan Cleaver, Countrystride producer David Felton and special guests unpack a stocking of seasonal gifts featuring memories of past times, traditional yuletide food, a journey into Cumberland dialect and tunes, and the inevitable fire-side ghost story.
Little Gift
Meet Ted, a cautious old soul living all alone in a busy, bustling town. He likes it that way. It’s quieter and safer. Until one extraordinary day, a surprise visitor turns his lonely life upside down.
Told by a very special performer, with a playful mix of puppetry, music and song, Little Gift is a tender and warm story about friendship and the joy to be found just around every corner.
Your enquiry will be sent directly to Theatre by the Lake. Please fill in as much detail as you can.