Free tickets for mates and dates of Kates

Kiss Me, Kate runs from February 6th-9th in York

The Joseph Rowntree Theatre Company in York is offering a free ticket to anyone called Kate who would like to bring a mate or a date to its upcoming fundraising production of – you guessed it – Kiss Me, Kate.

This includes all variations of the name, so even Caitlins, Kats and Cates can get a free ticket for their bestie, boyfriend, girlfriend or granny if they buy a full-price ticket for themselves.

"Just out of interest, we checked how many Kates were already on the Joseph Rowntree Theatre supporter database,"

said producer-director Kayleigh Oliver.

"Amazingly, there were 55 Kates, 45 Katies, 30 Katherines, 3 Kats, 74 Catherines and 2 Cates. Who knew there were so many?"

To claim your extra free ticket, simply call 01904 501935 or pop in to the box office between 10am and 2pm on Monday to Saturday (and evenings if there is a performance on) and buy a full-price ticket quoting the code IAMKATE.

Whether you bring a mate or a date is up to you – just don’t take too long to decide because the offer runs out on December 23rd.

The classic Cole Porter musical comedy Kiss Me, Kate, which runs from February 6th-9th, is being staged to raise money for building improvements at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre.

It’s the second fundraising production from the in-house company, which made its debut in February this year with a high-kicking, goose-stepping version of The Producers, which netted £4,500 for the 83-year-old theatre.

Picture -  Roselyn Shallcross, who plays the dual role of Lilli/Kate in the JRTC production, and Jim Paterson, as Fred/Petruchio, can’t agree if he’s destined to be her date or just a mate.