Dungog Shakespearience 2026 - Twelfth Night

Name: Dungog Shakespearience 2026 - Twelfth Night
Start: 2026-10-29T18:00:00+10:00
End: 2026-10-31T18:00:00+10:00
Location: Wangat Lodge

About

Dungog Shakespearience presents Twelfth Night - a romantic comedy full of satire, farce and a deep dive into human nature!

CELEBRATING OUR 5TH YEAR, after sell-out seasons in 2022, 2023, 2024 and 2025.

Wangat Lodge with Shakepearience Australia returns to put on Australia's most unique and superbly crafted Shakespearian productions!

TESTIMONIALS FROM PAST PRODUCTIONS:

'Wangat Lodge is a perfect venue for such an event, from the warm welcome, drinks, show, dinner and the opportunity to chat with the actors, marketing folk and director. I stayed in the lodge and enjoyed the wonderful ambiance of the place.'

'As a seasoned director, Tim’s influence is throughout but it feels like there was significant collaboration with the cast.'

'And, the play was sold out! Often I travel to regional theatres and there are more actors than audience. The merchandise was amazing and I normally don’t buy any, but was compelled by the artwork.'

'The dust was off the text and the vitality of the acting translated Shakespeare’s language perfectly.'

'The quality of the acting, the venue and the event in general was astounding - I felt as if it was created in a major urban hub rather than in regional NSW.'

'It didn’t take long to get together a table of friends and we weren’t disappointed.The director Timothy Weston and his talented and highly professional cast adapted to the natural settings with its tight amphitheatres and spacious decks ,admirably.'

The Dungog Shakesperience in December 2022 was a wonderful melding of creativity and organisation. The privilege of being able to experience Shakespeare in the setting of the beautiful Wangat Lodge - at not just one but four stages - was an experience like no other I’ve had in the realm of theatre.

How our Productions work:

A fully proffessional production and cast by Shakespearience Australia.

Staged across three-four unique outdoor stages, the audience will be guided by the actors through the woods and back again.

The venue is the eco-accommodation and venue centre, Wangat Lodge. A stunning 50 acre wildlife sanctuary on the Chichester River. The performance will not just be seen, but lived. This is the best and original way to experience Shakespeare!

Timing: The show is 2.5 hours long, including a 15-20 minute interval and the short wandering times between stages.

Seating:

Please note, 2 of our stages are rustic bush amphitheatres with bench seating, without backrests. (1 of the stages will be set up with standard chairs with backrests. Our benches and seats are uncushioned. Please BYO cushion if needed for your comfort.

If no back rest is an issue for you, we suggest bringing a portable backrest that can be placed on a bench seat, such as THIS.

We can also set up a limited amount of chairs with backs in the forest ampitheatre areas, so please contact us if you would like this and we will reserve you one/some (depending on availability).

Hearing: Our intimate venue is unamplified. Our professional actors project their voices well, however if you are hard of hearing please let us know so we can reserve you a seat at the front.

Weather: The Lodge has enough covered areas to go ahead with the play, even in wet weather conditions. If the weather is slightly wet (intermittant and/or light enough rain) we will always try and persist in the outdoor stages. So we will go ahead, rain, hail or shine.

Accessibility:

2 of the bush stages require walking down a few stairs, and a 50 meter well made, but somewhat steep/slightly uneven gravel track.
Our volunteers will do what they can to support you. And we can offer hiking poles for stability. But please accept our apology if this is beyond your capacity.

The Lodge has an accessible toilet.

Twelfth Night. The Plot!

LOVE. DISGUISE. DECEPTION.

Step into the dazzling and unpredictable world of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, where nothing—and no one—is quite what they seem.

After a shipwreck separates twins Viola and Sebastian, Viola disguises herself as a young man and is swept into a hilarious tangle of unrequited love, mistaken identity and mischievous deception.

After surviving a shipwreck and believing her twin brother Sebastian is dead, Viola disguises herself as a man, Cesario, to navigate an unfamiliar world. But her new identity quickly complicates everything: Viola falls for Orsino, Orsino is obsessed with Olivia, and Olivia falls for Viola’s male disguise. Meanwhile, Malvolio is cruelly deceived into believing he can transform his social status and win Olivia’s love.

As secret desires emerge and outrageous tricks spiral out of control, the line between love and foolishness begins to blur.

Exploring love, identity, gender, ambition and appearance versus reality, Twelfth Night is a fast-moving comedy filled with romance, chaos and unexpected twists.

Who will find true love? Who will be fooled? And what happens when the masks finally come off?

Come and discover a world where everyone is searching for something—and nobody is quite who they appear to be.

Why is Twelfth Night still relevant 400 years later?

Behind the laughter, mistaken identities and romantic chaos, Twelfth Night asks questions that remain strikingly relevant today. How much of our identity is shaped by how others see us? Why are we drawn to people who don’t return our feelings? How far will we go to belong, gain status or become the person we want others to see?

Directed by Timothy Weston

With over twelve years experience of outdoor Shakespeare including with the world renowned Cambridge Shakespeare Festival, and Sydney's long running and much lauded Shakespeare By The Sea. He has appeared in over thirty Shakespearean productions in his career playing everyone from Malvolio to Mark Antony, Caliban to Horatio. He studied at the University of Sydney and Sydney Theatre School, making his directorial debut in the successful tour of Chekhov's Guns in 2011. In 2022 he took the helm of Dungog Shakespearience to bring professional level Shakespeare to nature based stages, enlivening the productions and making them more accessible to a wider audience. His recent acting credits include four weeks as the eponymous King in King Richard II, Don Jon in Much Ado About Nothing, Aeneas in Dido; Queen of Carthage, David Copperfield in Copperfield! The Musical at the Gatehouse Theatre in London.

ACCOMMODATION AND DINNER Packages available when purchasing your show tickets.

WANGAT LODGE provides a festival-like atmosphere during the Dungog Shakespearience. There will be a Foyer Bar, with beers and wine and soft drinks as well as bar snacks and ice creams.

ACCOMMODATION

Dormitory style (wangat has 10 clean, simple and comfortable dorm rooms with 4 or 6 beds in each) - are booked, as 'add-ons' through this site. You can also contact venue - info@wangat.com.au, if you have specific Qs regarding accomm.
We also have two cottages you can book for the weekend or single night. Melia Cottage and Gumnut Hut. To book these contact Wangat Lodge direct HERE. First in best dressed!

DINNER at Wangat with the actors after the show:

Book through this site, while purchasing your tickets. Each evening we will cater a beautiful meal. Listed where you book your tickets.