21 September 2015

Cake bakers needed!

Get involved with a Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds production like never before – by baking a cake!

We need five cakes, one for each performance of Miss Nightingale - TTthe MmMusical so if you’d like to help us in our very own bake off then get in touch.

The production is set in London during 1942 at the height of food rationing during the Second World War and the leading lady is presented with a luxury fruit cake as a birthday surprise.

Tobias Oliver, Director of Marketing and Communications at Mr Bugg Presents Ltd said: “ It’s a rather unique way of being involved in a production.

“We need five traditional British fruit cakes, one for each performance and we’d love locals to rise to the challenge.

“ During World War Two rationing food was highly prized and a fruit cake was the height of luxury, almost worth its weight in gold.

“We need skilfully baked cakes that have that authentic hand-made look and smell, the opposite of the mass produced made in a factory ones that are sadly all to common nowadays.”

The show runs from 30 September to 3 October and brings the on-stage glamour and off-stage affairs of war-torn London thrillingly to life. It is a Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds co-production and is directed by Karen Simpson hot on the heels of her success with ‘A Labour of Love’.

Anyone who would like to help out and bake a cake should contact Nicki Dixon, Press and Communications Officer, at the Theatre Royal on r 01284 829947, stating which performance you can bake a cake for.

There are performances each night from 30 September to 3 October plus a Saturday matinee.

Here’s a typical World War 2 fruitcake but you may have your own recipe

WORLD WAR II FRUITCAKE
1 1/2 cups. raisins
1 1/2 c. sugar
5 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 cup. chopped nuts
1 1/2 c. cut-up dates
2 cups. boiling water
3 cups. siftedself raising flour
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1-2 cups. mixed candied fruit
Heat oven to 325 degrees. Place in saucepan raisins, dates, sugar, water and butter. Simmer gently for 20 minutes. Cool. Sift together and stir in dry ingredients. Mix in nuts and candied fruit.
Pour into 2 well-greased and floured loaf pans (8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches). Bake for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours. Remove from oven. Cool 10 minutes in pans, then remove from pans to cool on racks.

For press enquiries please contact Nicki Dixon, Press and Communications Officer via or 01284 829947.

Notes to Editors:

The Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds is the UK’s last surviving working Regency playhouse.

Under the care of the National Trust, it is a Grade I listed building which underwent a £5.3million restoration in 2005 to return it to its original 1819 layout and design.

The Theatre Royal is owned by the Greene King brewery, leased by the Brewery to the National Trust which in turn leased the Theatre to Bury St Edmunds Theatre Management Ltd to run it as a working theatre.