Barbie and Wonka films light up big outdoor screen while Julius Caesar and Romeo and Juliet lead alfresco theatre shows at Derby park

Markeaton Park will host a double bill of Shakespeare, an interactive performance for families and showings of two blockbuster films.

Held in Markeaton Park Craft Village, the season launches on June 22 and 23 with Pop-up Theatre: Red Fairy Storybook which is a puppet show presented by AVP Theatre. The family-friendly show retells some famous fairy and folktales including Jack and the Beanstalk, The Frog Prince and The Princess and the Pea. The puppets will star in a meet and greet at the end of the show. Performances are at 11.30am and 1pm. Tickets are £5 or £4 for concessions. Children under 12 months old do not need a ticket.

Next up will be outdoor theatre favourites, Derby-based Oddsocks Productions, with their touring adaptation of William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. It’s Rome in 44BC. Egotistical Emperor Julius Caesar is sweating (and it’s not just the heatwave). His liberal Senators are a stabbing pain in the backside. Rome is in chaos, trust in the government is weak and the emperor’s fate is written in the stars. The peasants are revolting as the most famous political coup in literature is given the Oddsocks treatment. Expect the tearing of togas, the swishing of Roman swords, some preposterous puppetry and the biggest battle scene five actors have ever created. The show runs from June 27 to 29. Tickets are £18 or £16 for concessions.

Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company will bring their modern presentation of Shakespeare’s tragic masterpiece, Romeo and Juliet, to the stage from Wednesday 24 until Saturday 27 July at 7:30pm. Gang warfare rages on the Verona council estate between the tenants of Capulet Heights and Montague Tower. Romeo loves Rosaline, but she’s having none of it. Juliet’s Dad is throwing a party and you’re all invited. Lovers’ stars are about to get crossed, fates twisted and hearts broken. Tickets are £15.

These mesmerising theatre shows will be followed by two of the biggest films to hit the big screen in the past 12 months.

On Friday, August 2, Markeaton Park Outdoor Cinema Season brings you Wonka (PG). Armed with nothing but a hatful of dreams, young chocolatier Willy Wonka (Timothée Chalamet) manages to change the world, one delectable bite at a time. With dreams of opening a shop in a city renowned for its chocolate, a young and poor Willy Wonka discovers that the industry is run by a cartel of greedy chocolatiers. The show starts at 9pm and tickets are £16.

Then take a trip to Barbie Land with the Golden Globe-winning Barbie (12A) on Saturday, August 3. Barbie (Margot Robbie) and Ken (Ryan Gosling) are having the time of their lives in the colourful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans. When her home world is in peril, Barbie returns with the knowledge that what makes her different also makes her stronger. The show starts at 9pm and tickets are £16.

Tickets for the Outdoor Theatre and Cinema Season are now available from the Sales and Information Centre at 01332 255800 or online at derbylive.co.uk.