HELLO

This week we are breathing deep the cooler air of Switzerland after a month in a very beautiful and very warm Avignon!

We were on the leafy banks of the wide-flowing Rhone, under the shade of planes and birches, in the sand, the walled city and the Palais des Papes directly across the river to us, an organic kitchen-farm directly behind us, and to our left a handsome barn, now a destination restaurant.

To our right, at the end of a lovely alley of plane trees, buzzing with cicadas from 8.30am until midnight was Kabarouf, a venue for music and circus, our ever-cheerful hosts and our box office in a small white caravan.

Normally we are only in a place for a week at time, sometimes 2 weeks, but here we had the luxury of almost a month without taking the tent down and putting it up several times.

You would think that this would make life easier for us, but at first in fact not!

It was a new rhythm for us, and took some getting used to, as did the other demands of a major theatre festival – daily flyering, daily marketing, daily postering, not to mention the heat (not so long ago we had been in the spring-time snow in Russia) but halfway in we finally got into it, mostly the siesta, and found our groove.

Our team were amazing and found deep reserves of energy, our thanks to them.

The children found the swimming pool, our audience finally found their way to us (you had to cross the river in a beautiful ferry boat) and our bodies found how to do acrobatics in 40 degrees!

Our friends Camilla and Simone performed their wonderful show PSs PSs each evening and supplied the Italian coffee.

Our dogs became firm friends.

We found how to keep cool. We we found where the best ice-cream in Avignon is (La Princière, in case you need one).

And we now know, at the end of 4 weeks, how to ‘do’ this festival, for next time.

Now we have a week in Switzerland in Gampelen near BERN.

Please see our website for details: www.nicole-et-martin.ch …. ….before sailing to Dover and old and new friends.

Our UK tour is like this:

6, 7, 8 August, Darlington, THE WHITE TENT

on the Lawns of Hummersnott Academy, Darlington, DL3 8AR Booking: via Darlington Civic Theatre

Box Office, 01325 486555 All details here: http://nicole-et-martin.ch/en/tour/

12, 13, 14, 15, 16 August, Inverness

THE WHITE TENT on the lawns of Eden Court Theatre, Inverness, IV3 5SA

Booking and details: https://www.eden-court.co.uk/whats-on/shows/nicole-martin-1

20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 26 August, Prestige

THE WHITE TENT on Went’s Meadow, Presteigne, LD8 2BW

Booking and details: http://nicole-et-martin.ch/en/tour/

We hope you are having a lovely summer and wish you a wonderful August.

If you are near where we are, do come and see us!