THE award-winning outdoor theatre company Illyria, is set to perform new adaptations of Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein later this month against the magical backdrop of Corfe Castle.

In Ali Baba and the 40 Thieves, young Ali Baba stumbles across an enchanted cave containing untold amounts of gold and jewels. But when the Robber King comes looking for the missing treasure supported by an army of 40 angry thieves, will Ali Baba and his family survive?

In Frankenstein, brilliant young student Viktor Frankenstein discovers how to endow dead organic matter with life itself.

It is one thing to stitch together an anatomically complete organism, but quite another when it becomes a living, breathing creature that shows intelligence, feels torment – and demands answers of its creator.

Now in its 28th year, Illyria has delighted audiences the length and breadth of the UK, and in the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France, the United States and Canada performing some of the most well-loved productions on offer.

Ali Baba takes place on Tuesday, August 27 and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein is on Friday, August 30.

The curtain lifts at 7pm on both evenings and the castle will be open from 6.15pm, so don’t forget to bring a picnic.

Tickets are £18 for adults, £9 for children or £45 for a family of two adults and two children.

Booking is essential — please visit.nationaltrust.org.uk/corfe-castle or call 0344 249 1895.

n For more information and ideas for some seasonal days out, visit website nationaltrust.org.uk