Hotbuckle Productions present:
The Return of The Native
Popular Shropshire based Hotbuckle Productions are bringing their latest adaptation of Thomas Hardy’s classic to Smallhythe this Summer.
“To be loved to madness--such was her great desire. Love was to her the one cordial which could drive away the eating loneliness of her days. And she seemed to long for the abstraction called passionate love more than for any particular lover.”
Hotbuckle Theatre returns with its unmistakable blend of wit, invention, and emotional clarity in a bold new staging of Thomas Hardy’s The Return of the Native. With their trademark physicality and rich storytelling, Hotbuckle breathe fresh life into Hardy’s windswept world of passion, rivalry, and fate. Expect a production that captures both the sweeping drama of Egdon Heath and the intimate, human struggles at the heart of the novel.
This new adaptation promises all the hallmarks audiences love about Hotbuckle: a tight-knit ensemble shifting seamlessly between characters, atmospheric live music, and a visual style that turns minimal staging into vivid, imaginative landscapes. Hardy’s timeless themes—desire, belonging, and the consequences of our choices—are brought into sharp focus through Hotbuckle’s playful yet deeply felt theatrical language.
Whether you’re a long-time admirer of Hardy or discovering his work for the first time, this production offers a gripping, accessible, and beautifully crafted night at the theatre. Hotbuckle’s The Return of the Native is storytelling at its most immediate and alive, inviting audiences to lose themselves in a world where love and destiny collide. A compelling, heartfelt journey awaits.
