TWO Georgian theatres have worked together to provide audiences with a taste of a 19th Century night out.

The unusual evening of entertainment opened at the Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond, North Yorkshire, last night and is repeated tonight.

The show then tours community venues and village halls in Suffolk with the Theatre Royal, in Bury St Edmunds.

The two theatres co-produced the entertainment, which includes the mid-19th Century farce, Box and Cox, which tells the story of two strangers who share a bedsit unwittingly, as one works during the day and the other at night.

The Richmond venue, which opened in 1788, was chosen for the first night because the Suffolk theatre, built in 1819, is closed for renovation.

Sharon Stowe, artistic co-ordinator with the Bury St Edmunds theatre, said: "The two theatres have similar histories. Like Richmond, ours was used as storage and re-opened in the 1960s. We are now undergoing restoration, much like Richmond's theatre did four years ago.

"The Richmond theatre is smaller than ours, but it has a lovely, friendly feeling."

The 40-minute farce was not long enough to provide a whole evening's entertainment, so director Pip Minnithorpe researched the period and has added another short play, songs and monologues to the programme.

The Richmond theatre plans to take its production of Grimaldi, performed last winter, to Suffolk later this year.

There are still tickets for this evening's performance, ranging from £4.50 to £15, from the box office on 01748-825252.