Month: January 2018

Worklight Theatre presents
Monster
VAULT Festival, The Vaults, Leake Street, London SE1 7NN
Wednesday 24th – Sunday 28th January 2018
Press Night: Wednesday 24th January, 7:15pm

This is a story about a girl. And a boy. Some of it’s true. And some if it isn’t. And I’m not going to tell you which.

Following a highly successful run at Edinburgh Fringe 2017, Joe Sellman-Leava’s one man show Monster, a dark but humorous exploration of gender and masculinity, will be coming to London this January as part of VAULT Festival. With intimate storytelling at its heart, Monster looks at a young man’s struggle to make sense of love and anger.

With its examination of male attitudes towards women, and male role models celebrated in society, the play has gained new relevance since its Edinburgh debut in the wake of recent sexual assault allegations against a string of celebrities. Monster importantly sheds light on our perceptions of gender, violence and aggression

Experimenting with form, Joe Sellman-Leava’s performance includes a play within a play, and a narrative split across multiple characters and timelines converging at the play’s climax. Playing with the very premise of presentation and performance, the play features the words and personas of known figures including Mike Tyson and Patrick Stewart.

Brimming with earnest, intelligent energy and jumping between threads seamlessly, deftly reconstructing scenes, arguments and interviews with nothing but a pair of red steel chairs for a set (★★★★ The Stage).

Sellman-Leava has previously had phenomenal success with Labels, which has been touring nationally and internationally since 2015 and won a Scotsman Fringe First. Monster was critically acclaimed during its Edinburgh Festival Fringe premiere in 2017, and is touring the UK in Spring 2018.

MONGREL THUMB ANNOUNCE FULL CAST FOR THE WORLD PREMIÈRE OF STEPHANIE JACOB’S AGAIN AT TRAFALGAR STUDIOS

 

Mongrel Thumb present

The world première of

AGAIN

By Stephanie Jacob

Directed by Hannah Price; Design by Anthony Lamble; Sound Design by Seb Frost

Lighting Design by Sally Ferguson

 

Trafalgar Studio 2

6 February – 3 March 2018

Press performance: Friday 9 February, 7pm

 

Mongrel Thumb today announce the cast for the world première of Stephanie Jacob’s new comic drama, Again. Hannah Price directs Rosie Day (Izzy), Chris Larkin (Tom), Natasha Little (Louise) and Charles Reston(Adam). The production opens at Trafalgar Studios on 9 February, with previews from 6 February, and runs until 3 March.

A once close-knit family of four reunite after a long period of estrangement. This time, this time, it must go right.

Words never said. Words said that shouldn’t be. Contradicting memories. Family history builds like sedimentary rock, layer upon layer.

In this warm and touchingly comic new drama, Stephanie Jacob peels away the facades and literally re-sets the clock. As the four characters tussle for what they think they want, we are allowed to peer into the recesses of that unknowable unit which so shapes each of our lives: the family.

Moving, funny, infinitely relatable, Again is a brand new play with an ingenious theatrical twist.

Link to images – https://we.tl/2Wxz0mFOs1

Stephanie Jacob is a playwright and actor. She was previously a Writer-on-Attachment at the National Theatre. Her plays include The Quick (Tristan Bates Theatre) and A Night Visitor (BBC Radio 4) – for which she won the Writers’ Guild Best Radio Drama Award. Her forthcoming play The Strongbox will be premièring at VAULT 18 in 2018.  As an actor her credits include Burnt by the Sun, Her Naked Skin, The Philistines, Major Barbara, (National Theatre), Cyrano de Bergerac, The Winter’s Tale (RSC) and Sweeney Todd (The Watermill Theatre, Trafalgar Studios, Ambassadors Theatre).

Rosie Day plays Izzy. Her theatre credits include Spur of the Moment (Royal Court Theatre). Her television credits include Living the Dream, Prime Suspect 1973, Outlander, Cuffs, and Homefront and last year she was named a BAFTA Rising Star by InStyle. Her film credits include Butterfly Kisses, All Roads Lead to Rome, Seasoning House, Ironclad 2 and Sixteen. She is also set to appear in the forthcoming film Down a Dark Hall as well as television series Watership Down and Good Omens.

Chris Larkin plays Tom. His theatre credits include Stevie (Chichester Festival Theatre, Hampstead Theatre), Noises Off (Old Vic), Yes, Prime Minister (Apollo Theatre), The Whisky Taster (Bush Theatre), The Lady from Debuque (Haymarket Theatre), His Dark Materials (National Theatre), When We Are Married (Chichester Festival Theatre, Savoy Theatre) and A Taste of Honey (Theatre Clwyd). Television credits include Black Sails, Yes, Prime Minister, Shackleton and Roger Roger; and for film, Valkyrie, Heroes & Villians, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, Tea with Mussolini, Jane Eyre and Angels & Insects.

 

Natasha Little plays Louise. Her theatre credits include Longing (Hampstead Theatre), Voyage Round My Father (Donmar Warehouse), The Vagina Monologues (Arts Theatre), The Novice (Almeida Theatre) and The Alchemist (Birmingham Rep). Television credits include The Night Manager, Thirteen, DCI Banks, Wolf Hall, Breathless, Case Histories, Mistresses, Vanity Fair and This Life; and for film, Una, Welcome to the Punch, The Boys are Back, Mr Nobody and Another Life.

Charles Reston plays Adam. His theatre credits include Escape the Scaffold (Theatre503, The Other Room), The Dead Monkey (Park Theatre), Anjin: The Shogun and The English Samurai (Sadler’s Wells, Tokyo Aoyama Theatre). Television credits include Jesus Decoded, Channel 4 Comedy Lab and Consenting Adults. Film credits include Burn Burn Burn, Captain Webb and The White Countess.

 

Hannah Price directs. She is Co-Artistic Director and Founder of Theatre Uncut, the winner of two Fringe First awards, a Heralds Angel award and the Spirit of the Fringe Award. She was Resident Assistant Director at the Donmar Warehouse in 2012-2013. Her credits include Permanence (Tarragon Theatre, Toronto), Escape the Scaffold (Theatre503, The Other Room), Run the Beast Down (Marlowe Theatre,Finborough Theatre), Rainbow Class (Bush Theatre, Assembly Rooms), TEST (Scala Theatre, Basel),  The Dead Monkey (Park Theatre), Boa (Trafalgar Studios), Cello/Fragile (Yard Theatre), Call to Prayer (Southwark Playhouse), Bud Take the Wheel, I Feel a Song Coming On (Shaw Theatre and Edinburgh Festival), That Moment (King‘s Head Theatre, UK tour), In a Very Real Sense (Soho Theatre), Portmanteau (Arcola Theatre, The Bike Shed Theatre) and Loving Ophelia (Pleasance London). For Theatre Uncut her credits include Refugee (Teater Grob, Copenhagen), In Opposition (Paines Plough Roundabout), Knowledge is Power: Knowledge is Change (Traverse Theatre, UK tour), Referendum Plays (Traverse Theatre), TU Istanbul: Power and Protest (Dot Tiyatro, Istanbul International Theatre Festival, Traverse Theatre), TU 2013: The Rise of the Right (Young Vic) and The Cuts Plays (Southwark Playhouse, Soho Theatre, Latitude Festival, Traverse Theatre).

 

ABOUT MONGREL THUMB

Founded by Charles Reston and Gillian Reston in 2014, Mongrel Thumb is a London based professional theatre company formed out of a love for all things unpredictable, for bringing together seemingly disparate elements to create something challenging, exciting and unique; a one-off. By placing equal importance on emerging artists as established, we aim to mount cutting edge, contemporary productions which will challenge and inspire audiences whilst providing exciting opportunities for the best in up and coming talent.

The company’s first production was the UK première of Eldorado by Marius Von Mayenburg at Arcola Theatre. This was followed by the world première of Weird Weather by Matt Cunningham at the VAULT Festival in March 2015. In June 2015 Mongrel Thumb staged the critically acclaimed London revival of Nick Darke’s bleakly comic masterpiece The Dead Monkey at Park Theatre.

In March 2017 Mongrel Thumb launched their most ambitious venture to date, the world première of Titas Halder’s Escape the Scaffold, a co-production with Theatre503 and The Other Room.

Website: www.mongrelthumb.com

Twitter: @MongrelThumb

Facebook: /mongrelthumb

 

Again Listings

Trafalgar Studios

14 Whitehall, Westminster, London SW1A 2DY

Trafalgar Studio 2

6 February – 3 March 2018

Press performance: Friday 9 February, 7pm

Performance times

Evenings: 7:45pm

Matinees: 3pm, Thursdays and Saturdays

Box Office: 0844 871 7632* / http://www.atgtickets.com/venues/trafalgar-studios/

 

*Calls cost up to 7p per minute, plus your phone company’s access charge.

FULL CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR

THE WORLD PREMIÈRE OF CHICKEN SOUP. AND

REGIONAL PREMIÈRE OF PETER MORGAN’S FROST/NIXON AT SHEFFIELD THEATRES

 

Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres Robert Hastie today announces full casting for the world première of Chicken Soup. by Ray Castleton and Kieran Knowles – the latter of whom returns to Sheffield Theatres after the success of Operation Crucible; and the regional première of Peter Morgan’s smash hit play Frost/Nixon.

Judy Flynn (Josephine), Jo Hartley (Helen), Remmie Milner (Katie), Samantha Power (Christine) and Simone Saunders (Jennifer) make up the company for Bryony Shanahan’s world première production of Chicken Soup. and Simon Bubb (John Birt), Ben Dilloway (Jack Brennan), Steven Elder (Bob Zelnick), Vidal Sancho (Manolo), Celina Sinden (Caroline Cushing), Kate Spencer (Evonne Goolagong), Dan Starkey (Swifty Lazar) and David Sturzaker (Jim Reston) join the previously announced Jonathan Hyde (Richard Nixon) and Daniel Rigby (David Frost) for Kate Hewitt’s regional première production of Peter Morgan’s Frost/Nixon.

 

STUDIO

A Sheffield Theatres Production

World Première

CHICKEN SOUP.

By Ray Castleton and Kieran Knowles

8 February – 3 March

Press night: 14 February at 7.45pm

Director: Bryony Shanahan; Designer: Sophia Simensky; Lighting Designer: Prema Mehta

Sound Designer & composer: Alexandra Faye Braithwaite; Casting Director: Christopher Worrall

‘Well, no point moping round is there?’

1984. Five days after Orgreave.

Three women keep a struggling mining community standing, running a soup kitchen near the pit heads of Rotherham.

2016. The day of the Brexit vote.

The breadline is no further away and the soup kitchen is now a food bank, as the country faces a huge decision.

A witty, poignant new play from local writers Ray Castleton and Kieran Knowles (Operation Crucible), Chicken Soup celebrates the friendships that survive the hardest of times.

Sheffield Theatres will partner with local foodbanks to collect items for distribution during the run of Chicken Soup.

Judy Flynn returns to Sheffield Theatres where she previously appeared in Roger Haines production of When We Are Married (Crucible Theatre). Her other theatre credits include East is East (Northern Stage and Nottingham Playhouse), Emil and the Detectives (National Theatre), A Day in the Death of Joe Egg (Library Theatre Manchester) and Shang-a-lang (Chichester Festival Theatre). Her television credits include The Brittas Empire, No Angels, The House of Eliott and First of the Summer Wine.

Jo Hartley makes her stage debut in Chicken Soup. Her television credits include Bliss, Vera, Not Safe for Work, This is England ’90, Cut, Mimic, Law & Order, Little Bastards, Coming Up, This is England ’88, The Jury, Stolen and This is England ’86. Her film credits include Slaughterhouse Rulez, David Brent: Life on the Road, Access All Areas, Eddie the Eagle, Prevenge, Ill Manors, Speak No Evil, Inbred, Laid Off, Crying With Laughter, Soul Boy, The Young Victoria, This is England and Dead Man’s Shoes.

 

Remmie Milner’s recent theatre credits include Terror (Lyric Hammersmith and Brisbane Arts Festival), The Winter’s Tale, To Kill A Mockingbird, Chip Shop The Musical (Octagon Theatre), Plastic Figurines (Box of Tricks national tour), The Pier (Oxford Playhouse), Melody Loses Her Mojo (Liverpool Playhouse). Her recent television credits include Electric Dreams, Save Me and Trollied.

Samantha Power’s theatre credits include Beryl, Me As a Penguin, Coming Around Again, Accrington Pals (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Zack (Manchester Royal Exchange), Little Britain Live (UK and Australian tours) and Flint Street Nativity (Liverpool Playhouse). Her television credits include Ackley Bridge, Shameless, The Mimic, Wolfblood, Ordinary Lies, Little Britain, Come Fly With Me, A Prince Among Men and Coronation Street. Her film credits include Mischief Night and The Lowdown.

Simone Saunders’s theatre credits include Darkness Darkness (Nottingham Playhouse), Jane Eyre (Bristol Old Vic and National Theatre), American Trade, Morte D’Arthur, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, The Grain Store, The Winter’s Tale, Julius Caesar (Royal Shakespeare Company), Carnival (Talawa Theatre Company) and The Red Ladies (National Theatre). Her television credits include The Royals.

Kieran Knowles was nominated for Most Promising New Playwright for his first play, Operation Crucible. He is a graduate of Loughborough University, LAMDA and the Royal Court Young Writer’s Programme. As an actor his work includes Toast (UK tour and New York), Operation Crucible (Finborough Theatre and UK tour), The Bear, The Owl and The Angel (New Wimbledon Studio), The Winter’s Tale, The Taming of the Shrew (Royal Shakespeare Company), The Witches’ Promise(Birmingham Rep), Waiting For Lefty (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Darkness (Lakeside Theatre, Colchester and Edinburgh) and The Exclusion Zone (Southwark Playhouse).

Director Bryony Shanahan is Co-Artistic Director of Snuff Box Theatre. She returns to Sheffield Theatres where she previously directed Operation Crucible. Her other directing credits include Boys Will Be Boys (National Theatre), Bitch Boxer (Soho Theatre, UK tour and Adelaide Fringe Festival), Quiet Violence (Camden Roundhouse), Macbeth (East 15 Acting School), Chapel Street (national tour), You and Me (Greenwich Theatre and national tour), The Altitude Brothers (national tour), Doctor Faustus (St Mary Magdelene Church, Paddington) and Babies (Southwark Playhouse). In 2014, she won a BBC Performing Arts Award to work at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester, where she assisted on Sarah Frankcom’s Hamlet with Maxine Peake, as well as developing new Snuff Box piece Weald. She returned to the Royal Exchange Theatre in 2015 as Associate Director on The Skriker as part of the Manchester International Theatre Festival.

Shanahan was also awarded the 2016 Young Vic Genesis Future Directors Award.

 

CRUCIBLE

A Sheffield Theatres Production

Regional Première

FROST/NIXON

By Peter Morgan

21 February – 17 March

Press night: 26 February at 7pm

Director: Kate Hewitt; Designer: Ben Stones; Lighting Designer: Charles Balfour

Composer and Sound Designer: George Dennis; Video Designer: Andrzej Goulding

Movement Director: Lizzi Gee; Casting Directors: Juliet Horsley CDG and Sam Stevenson CDG

‘To leave office before my term is completed is abhorrent to every instinct in my body. I have never been a quitter.’

In 1974 Richard Nixon became the only US President in history to resign from office, immersed in one of the biggest scandals in American political history: Watergate.

For David Frost, international socialite and well-known chat show host, an access all areas interview with a fallen President is the career-defining opportunity of a lifetime.

Nixon seeks absolution, Frost is pushing for confession. Both want to control the story, only one can emerge the victor.

A captivating dramatization of the post-Watergate TV interviews, Kate Hewitt directs this landmark play in the first British production since its award-winning 2006 debut. The play was later adapted into a major feature film.

Simon Bubb’s recent theatre credits include Burning Bridges (Theatre503), Far From the Madding Crowd (Watermill Theatre), Much Ado About Nothing (Shakespeare’s Globe), People (National Theatre and UK tour) and Noises Off (UK tour); and his recent television credits include Born to Kill.

Ben Dilloway’s recent theatre credits include Pride and Prejudice (Regent’s Park Theatre), The Iliad (Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh), Chicken (Paines Plough and HighTide), Of Mice and Men (Birmingham Rep), The Silver Tassie (National Theatre) and If You Don’t Let Us Dream, We Won’t Let You Sleep (Royal Court Theatre); and his recent television credits include New Blood.

Steven Elder’s recent theatre credits include Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare’s Globe), 1984 (Headlong), Yours for the Asking, Mottled Lines (Orange Tree), Sour Lips (Oval House Theatre) and All My Sons (Apollo Theatre). His recent television credits include Apple Tree Yard, Endeavour and Our Girl.

 

Jonathan Hyde returns to Sheffield Theatres where he previously appeared in the title role of Robert Hastie’s inaugural production as Artistic Director, Julius Caesar (Crucible Theatre).  His theatre credits include Travels With My Aunt (Menier Chocolate Factory), The King’s Speech (UK tour and Wyndham’s), Rattigan’s Nijinsky (Chichester Festival Theatre), King Lear, The Seagull(international tour), Jumpers, Sleep With Me (National Theatre), Antigone (The Old Vic), The Rehearsal, Scenes from an Execution (Almeida Theatre), Julius Caesar, The Alchemist, ‘Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Royal Shakespeare Company) and Macbeth (Lyceum Theatre). His recent television work includes The Strain, Trollhunters, Tokyo Trial, Isaan Newton: The Last Magician, Spooks; and for film, Breathe, Thea, Crimson Peak, The Mummy and Titanic.

Daniel Rigby’s recent theatre credits include Twelfth Night (National Theatre), Breaking the Code(Manchester Royal Exchange), Holes (Arcola Theatre and Edinburgh Festival), One Man, Two Guvnors (National Theatre and Broadway) and Ninagawa’s Hamlet (Barbican). His television work includes Plebs, Gap Year, Sick Note, Flowers, Jericho, Big School Cardinal Burns, Eric and Ernie(BAFTA Television Award for Best Actor) and The Street; and for film, Flyboys.

 

Vidal Sancho’s recent theatre credits include The American Wife (Park Theatre), La Traviata (Royal Opera House), Litus (Cervantes Theatre) and Vitellini (Old Red Lion).

Celina Sinden makes her professional stage debut in Frost/Nixon. Her recent television credits include Reign.

Kate Spencer returns to Sheffield Theatres following her performances in A Long Morning Quiet and Rift (Crucible Theatre). Her recent theatre credits include Alice in Wonderland (Octagon Theatre), Rapid Response (Derby Theatre), The Hunting of the Snark (Sherman Theatre and Hong Kong’s Academy of Performing Arts), The Macbeth Curse (Prime Theatre and The Octagon Theatre) and Abstains (20:20Vision).

Dan Starkey’s recent theatre credits include The 39 Steps, The Fitzrovia Radio Hour (UK tours) and Muswell Hill (Orange Tree Theatre). For television his credits include Doctor Who, The Sarah Jane Adventures, Wizards vs Aliens, Inside No. 9 and Class Dismissed.

 

David Sturzaker’s recent theatre credits include Nell Gywnn (Apollo Theatre), Richard II, The Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare’s Globe), Eternal Love, Anne Boleyn (Shakespeare’s Globe and English Touring Theatre), The White Devil (Royal Shakespeare Company) and The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui (Chichester Festival Theatre and Duchess Theatre) and his television credits include Doctors.

Peter Morgan’s other work for theatre includes The Audience. His television work includes The Crown, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies, The Jury, The Special Relationship, Longford, Colditz, Henry VIII and The Deal; and for film, Rush, 360, Hereafter, State of Play, The Damned United, The Other Boleyn Girl, The Last King of Scotland and The Queen.

Kate Hewitt directs. She was the inaugural recipient of RTST Director Award Scheme and her production of Tribes opened last year at Sheffield Theatres. Her other theatre work includes Kiki’s Delivery Service, Tomcat (Southwark Playhouse), Romeo and Juliet (NYT at Ambassador’s Theatre), Portrait (Edinburgh Festival, UK Tour and Bush Theatre’s RADAR Festival), and in 2014 she won the JMK Director’s Award for her production Far Away (Young Vic). As associate director, her work includes Charlie and The Chocolate Factory (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), Medea (Headlong and UK tour), Electra (Gate Theatre and Latitude Festival 2011), and One Love: The Bob Marley Musical(Birmingham Rep).

Sheffield Theatres Listings

Crucible Lyceum Studio 55 Norfolk Street, Sheffield, S1 1DA                              

Box Office 0114 249 6000 – Mon – Sat 10.00am to 8.00pm

On non-performance days the Box Office closes at 6.00pm.

www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

 

Sheffield Theatres:

CHICKEN SOUP.

8 February – 3 March

Press night: 14 February

 

FROST/NIXON

21 February – 17 March

Press night: 26 February

 

THE YORK REALIST

27 March – 7 April

Press night: 28 March

OUR COUNTRY’S GOOD

Sat 12 – Sat 19 May

 

ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO’S NEST

7 June – 23 June

Press night: 12 June

 

LOVE AND INFORMATION

By Caryl Churchill

28 June – 14 July

Press night: 2 July

 

SONGS FROM THE SEVEN HILLS

18 July – 21 July

Press night: 18 July

 

West End:

EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE

Apollo Theatre

6 November 2017 – 21 April 2018

A NEW PRODUCTION OF CHITTY CHITTY BANG BANG COMES TO DARLINGTON HIPPODROME FROM 24 OCTOBER TO 3 NOVEMBER, 2018

TICKETS ON SALE SOON

A local community theatre company are to present a new production of one of the world’s favourite musicals, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. Darlington Operatic Society (DarlingtonOS) is to present the show at Darlington Hippodrome from Wed 24 October to Saturday 3 November 2018 to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the release of the film version of the classic musical.

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang has music and lyrics by Richard M Sherman and Robert B Sherman, who were also responsible for Mary Poppins, The Slipper and the Rose, The Aristocats and The Jungle Book. The Sherman Brothers have won two Academy Awards with a further nine nominations, two Grammy Awards and they have received 21 gold and platinum albums.

This new production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang will be directed by Joanne Hand who will also create the choreography, with musical direction by Steven Hood.

Joanne said, “Directing such an iconic show is a great opportunity, a thrilling challenge for any director. Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is a brilliant adventure story, filled with classic songs and scenes that hold so many memories for so many people. I cannot wait to bring the show to Darlington audiences.”

The new production will have sensational sets and stunning special effects and, of course, the memorable score by the Sherman Brothers, which includes such standards as Truly Scrumptious, Toot Sweets, Hushabye Mountain, Me Old Bamboo and the Oscar-nominated title song Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.

Julian Cound, Chairman of DarlingtonOS said “We are honoured to be bringing Chitty Chitty Bang Bang to Darlington Hippodrome and into the lives of thousands of theatregoers. We are one of a select number of theatre companies across the UK to be offered this rare opportunity. Our production will enthral lovers of the iconic and beloved film and introduce Chitty to new audiences yet to discover her in the metal so to speak. This is going to be a truly scrumptious production and once again we are delighted to present another theatre first here in Darlington.”

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang runs at Darlington Hippodrome from Wednesday 24 October to Saturday 3 November, 2018.

Tickets for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang will go on sale soon but tickets for the companies current show – Priscilla Queen of the Desert, which runs at Darlington Hippodrome from April 18 to 28 are on sale now, visit www.darlingtonos.org.uk or call the ticket hotline 01325 244659.

ELVIS LIVES!

NORTH AMERICA’S GREATEST –

STEVE MICHAELS IS THE KING

 

BILL KENWRIGHT PRESENTS INTERNATIONALLY RENOWNED ELVIS PERFORMER IN MUSICAL  

“THIS IS ELVIS – BURBANK AND VEGAS“

THE ’68 SPECIAL AND HILTON LAS VEGAS

 

To celebrate 50 years since Elvis Presley’s televised Special aired on NBC Television, which later came to be known as his ’68 Comeback Special; Bill Kenwright presents THIS IS ELVIS – BURBANK AND VEGAS. THIS IS ELVIS follows the true story of a very pivotal period in Elvis’ life and career, charting his journey back to stardom and his return to success as a stage performer.

 

The show opens at Theatre Royal Windsor on 24^th January before embarking on a nationwide tour.

In the coveted role of Elvis is international award-winning tribute artist and actor STEVE MICHAELS (formerly known as Stephen Michael Kabakos). His passion for Elvis sparked at a very young age, and has continued to be the drive behind his extraordinary success.

 

His masterful performance and remarkable renditions of the King have garnered him worldwide attention. Steve has played alongside some of Elvis Presley’s iconic band mates including the legendary drummer DJ Fontana and bassist Jerry Scheff. In addition, he has shared the stage with the extraordinary Jordanaires and the soulful voices of the Sweet Inspirations. Steve’s exquisite styling and ability to successfully capture an authentic portrayal of Elvis Presley has endeared him to audiences everywhere across Canada, United States, India, Thailand, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Philippines and Australia.

 

It’s 1968 – the major musical event of the year is the first live TV special for Elvis Presley in what would come to be known as ‘The ’68 Comeback Special’. 

 

Drawing phenomenal ratings – almost half of the viewing audience – this event re-establishes Elvis as the major entertainment star of the decade, and twelve months later Elvis stars at the International Hotel  in Vegas, performing live for the first time in seven years, and securing his place in history as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll!

 

THIS IS ELVIS recreates all the drama leading up to the comeback as well as staging the monumental concert. It then proceeds with The King to his Vegas debut. Featuring Elvis’s greatest hits including… Trouble, Heartbreak Hotel, Blue Suede Shoes, Hound Dog, Love Me Tender, All Shook Up, Jailhouse Rock, One Night, It’s Now or Never, Are you Lonesome Tonight?, Can’t Help Falling in Love, In The Ghetto, Suspicious Minds, American Trilogy, Just Can’t Help Believing and many more…

 

This production celebrates 50 years since the TV phenomenon and is testament that his songs live on and the King still rules!

 

Elvis Presley is highly regarded as one of the most significant cultural icons of the 20th century, having starred in more than 30 films, performed record breaking shows and concerts and is the biggest selling artist of all time with over one billion records globally, it’s no wonder he was referred to as the King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.

 

Among his many awards and accolades Elvis was nominated for 14 Grammy’s and aged just 36 was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. Elvis Presley was an icon and heartthrob the world over, still enjoyed by millions today his legacy lives on. This musical relives the incredible comeback and resurgence in his popularity and the monumental Vegas concert that confirmed Elvis’ legendary title as The King.

 

The tour will visit Windsor, Blackpool, Edinburgh, Dartford, Aylesbury, Weston-Super-Mare, Wimbledon, Birmingham, Stoke, Malvern, Cardiff, Liverpool, Woking, Leeds, Manchester, Sunderland, Darlington, Brighton, Bristol and Torquay. Don’t miss your chance to catch this ‘brilliant’ musical before Elvis has left the building!

BILL KENWRIGHT AND LAURIE MANSFIELD PRESENT

THIS IS ELVIS

BURBANK AND VEGAS

DIRECTED BY                                   BOOK BY                             ORIGINAL STORY BY

                                BILL KENWRIGHT                         PHILIP NORMAN                   LAURIE MANSFIELD

 

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR & CHOREOGRAPHER           SET DESIGN BY         LIGHTING DESIGN BY          SOUND DESIGN BY

                                               CAROLE TODD                                 ANDY WALMSLEY             NICK RICHINGS                  DAN SAMSON

Australian hit Songs For Nobodies to have its European première at Wilton’s Music Hall in 2018

·       A critically acclaimed one-woman tour de force running 21 March – 7 April

·       Written by renowned award-winning playwright Joanna Murray-Smith and directed by Priscilla Queen of The Desert, the Musical’s Simon Phillips

·       Starring the uniquely talented Australian singer and actor performer Bernadette Robinson

Wilton’s Music Hall will host the European première of Songs For Nobodies (running 21 March – 7 April), a brand new play with songs featuring music from five iconic divas; Judy Garland, Pasty Cline, Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf and Maria Callas. Accompanied by live musicians, this funny and moving performance was written especially for Bernadette Robinson by Joanna Murray-Smith (Honour, Bombshells, The Female of the Species) and directed by Simon Phillips (Priscilla Queen of the Desert, the Musical).

This one-woman show is driven by the astonishing talents of singer and actress Bernadette Robinson, who takes audiences on a musical and emotional journey with five short stories following the word’s greatest divas and their extraordinary encounters with normal women – the “nobodies.”

Blurring the lines between superstardom and the everyday, Bernadette seamlessly brings each character to life as her remarkable control of tone, accent and vocal style perfectly inhabits each legendary singer.  From the smoky blues of Holiday to the thrilling soprano of Callas via Garland, Cline and Piaf,  Bernadette’s miraculous voice breathes new life into the five legendary performers and the five ordinary women whose lives were changed by their brush with fame.

Recounting intimate tale of their encounters is the heartbroken bathroom attendant who mends Garland’s hem the night she performed at Carnegie Hall, the backing singer who lives a dream with Cline the day she’s killed in a plane crash, the ambitious New York Times reporter assigned to interview Holiday, the Irish nanny who witnessed the fraying relationship between Callas and her shipping magnate and the English librarian who talks of how the ‘Little Sparrow’ rescued her father from a concentration camp during the war.

Director Simon Phillips commented: ‘Ever since I sat stunned at a Bernadette Robinson concert not believing my ears, I wanted to create a show for her, something that put her miraculous ability to reincarnate the great singing voices of the past into a rich theatrical context.  So I knocked on the obvious door.  Joanna Murray-Smith places the dramatic focus not on the stars themselves but the unknown women for whom these fragile singers were sources of strength.”

“Bernadette Robinson gives a virtuosic performance… Should not be missed” Sydney Morning Herald

“Beyond virtuosity to the sublime” The Australian

“A spellbinder” Barry Humphries

Listings Info

Dates: 21st March to 7th April

Times: 7:45pm, 6:30pm & 8:30pm Fridays, 3pm Saturday Matinee

Dates: £20 – £35 full price, £17.50 – £32.50 concessions

CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED PLAY RETURNS TO THE EPSTEIN THEATRE THIS MONTH

Later this month, Last Train to Auschwitz returns to The Epstein Theatre due to popular demand. The critically acclaimed play will run for three days from Tuesday 23 – Thursday 25 January 2018 – which will coincide with World Holocaust Week.

Last Train to Auschwitz, which has played at the Hanover Street venue in 2017 and 2015, tells the story of a group of women’s journey into hell. Their final destination is the notorious concentration camp Auschwitz.

The emotional narrative will be played out on stage by an incredible selection of Liverpool’s top acting talent including Brookside star Bernie Foley, who is best known for playing Margie Shadwick in the Channel 4 soap.

Bernie is no stranger to the stage having starred in several other Liverpool productions including Brick Up: The Wirral Strikes Back, as well as the 1996 TV film Hillsborough.

Joining her on the stage are Lesley Butter and Saul Murphey, both of Red Skies and Maggie Lynch of Sunset Boulevard and The King and I. Completing the stellar cast is Lucy Gittens (If The Shoe Fits), Katie Rose (Walking In The Rain) Karen Oliver and Hollie McGann.

Auschwitz, a place where dreams die first and nightmares become a reality. Every day is a fight for survival, but through all this, bonds of love and friendships are formed. No matter what colour or creed, from the movie star to the gypsy, they band together in their fight for survival despite their inhumane treatment by the prison guards. 

In a world they no longer know or recognise, some will live to tell their story, others will perish in the ever burning ovens of the gas chambers. The memory of those who perished will stay eternal in the pages of history and be passed down from generation to generation.

Last Train to Auschwitz will take audiences on a rollercoaster of emotions; a journey of love, hope, and friendship that can never be defeated when people unite, a journey that won’t be forgotten. 

Theatre manager, Rebekah Pichilingi, said: “Last Train To Auschwitz received an incredible reception on its previous visits to The Epstein Theatre and we are truly delighted to welcome it back for another run of shows this year. The cast is full of talented Liverpudlian actors and we can’t wait to welcome them back to the Epstein stage.”

 

SHOW LISTINGS:

 

Last Train To Auschwitz

Date: Tuesday 23 – Thursday 25 January

Time: 8pm

Tickets: Standard £17, Concessions £15

 

To book tickets please call 0844 888 4411* or go online at www.epsteinliverpool.co.uk * or in person at The Epstein Theatre Box Office from 2pm – 6pm Monday – Thursday and 12pm-6pm Friday – Saturday.

 

*Subject to booking fee. All prices include a £1 per ticket venue restoration levy

 

For more details check out www.epsteinliverpool.co.uk and join our mailing list. Follow us on Facebook www.facebook.com/EpsteinTheatre and twitter @EpsteinTheatre.

GIFFORDS CIRCUS

CELEBRATES THE 250^TH ANIVERSARY OF THE WONDER OF CIRCUS WITH 2018 TOUR

Giffords Circus celebrates the 250^th anniversary of circus with a UK premiere tour of their new show, My Beautiful Circus.  The show will open on Friday 4 May at Fennels Farm, Stroud with an official press night on Thursday 28 June at Chiswick House & Gardens, London.

In 1768 near Westminster Bridge, equestrian rider Philip Astley drew out a 42-foot circle and filled it with jugglers, acrobats, clowns, strong men and bareback horse riders. This spectacle was the world’s very first circus.

My Beautiful Circus will feature some of the classical acts such as: death-defying acrobatics, enchanting domestic animals and fan-favourite of Giffords Circus comedic genius, Tweedy the clown.  Circus-goers can enjoy dining at Giffords exclusive rustic restaurant, Circus Sauce that tours with them.  Circus Sauce serves a set 3-course menu that changes weekly, using seasonal produce from the surrounding area.

Founder, and producer Nell Gifford has said:

“We are so thrilled to be taking part of the celebration of the 250^th year of circus. Show director Cal McCrystal and I have been asking ourselves: What makes the circus so magnetic? What is conjured up by the word circus? Why do we want to run away with the circus? What would the most beautiful circus look like? I hope that next year’s show will answer all those questions and more.”

GIFFORDS CIRCUS – MY BEAUTIFUL CIRCUS 2018 TOUR DATES

www.giffordscircus.com

Box Office:  01242 691 181

Friday 4 May – Monday 14 May
Fennells Farm, Stroud

Thursday 17 May – Monday 21 May
Sudeley Castle, Winchcombe

Thursday 25 May – Monday 4 June
Daylesford Organic Farm, Kingham

Thursday 7 June – Monday 11 June
Blenheim Palace, Oxfordshire

Thursday 14 June – Monday 25 June
Oxford University Parks, Oxford

Thursday 28 June – Monday 9 July
Chiswick House & Gardens, London

Thursday 12 July – Monday 16 July
Windsor Great Park, Berkshire

Thursday 19 July – Monday 23 July
Stonor Park, Henley on Thames

Thursday 26 July – Monday 6 August
Barrington, Burford

Thursday 9 August – Monday 13 August
Village Green, Frampton on Severn

Thursday 16 August – Tuesday 28 August
Minchinhampton Common, Gloucestershire

Thursday 31 August – Monday 10 September
Marlborough Common, Wiltshire

Thursday 13 September – Monday 24 September
Stratton Meadows, Cirencester

Thursday 27 September- Sunday 30 September
Fennels Farm, Stroud

 

To purchase tickets across the tour please visit: 
www.giffordscircus.com

Sparks: debut play by Jessica Butcher at VAULT Festival 2018

Love, Loss and Life after your mother dies of Multiple Sclerosis

Sparks is a new play by writer-performer Jessica Butcher exploring grief, loss, worth, love and fantasy. It runs during VAULT Festival 2018 between Wednesday 21 and Sunday 25 February 2018. Butcher paints a witty and entertaining portrait of dating in the modern age: our romances, our shortcomings, and how desperately we will use any distraction to shy away from grief and loneliness. After the loss of her Mother to Multiple Sclerosis, Butcher decided to explore the impact of grief and how it works in our minds and consciousness. As a universal emotion, Sparks opens the door to grief and welcomes it in for a proper conversation. Acclaimed singer and songwriter Anoushka Lucas creates an original score for the play which she performs live on stage during the show. Sparks is directed by Jessica Edwards.

” But it took fifteen years of disconnected sparks to do the damage.
To stop her beautiful fantastical brain from connecting.”

Butcher plays Lila, our guide through the story as we follow her whirlwind romance – the first meet, dates, fucks, fights, breakups. We watch as it falls apart. We are the best friend and confidante, and she leads us through her exploits with great humour. But as we navigate through the multiple realities along the way – what really happened between her and X, what might have happened and a fantasy version – we discover her grieving heart and the uncertainty of how to move on

Jessica Butcher explains: “I wrote Sparks because I wanted to talk about grief and being a woman in this world, and how the patriarchy lives in us and has been inherited from generations of misogyny. I wanted to make someone who was confronting all the different sides of herself. She is kind, funny, weird, sexy, horrible and confused. I want to explore how our minds work with fantasy and cruel reality. I want to dive into Love. This play is for my Mum.”

Jessica Butcher is an actress who most recently performed in Offside (Edinburgh Festival 2017 and UK Tour) and is known for playing Lucy Fuller in Camilla Whitehill’s award-winning play Where Do Little Birds Go?Sparks is her debut play. Her second play, Boots will also premiere in London in March 2018.

Anoushka Lucas is a multi-instrumentalist singer and songwriter and has composed an original score forSparks that forms an intrinsic thread within the story. Her music has been championed by Jazz FM (Love Supreme winter 2013) and Radio 2 (Jamie Cullum show, BBC Introducing 2017). Composing for theatre includes: Klook’s Last Stand (Book by Che Walker, Park Theatre 2014 and NAMT, Oct 2017) and The Etienne Sisters (Book by Che Walker, Stratford East 2015). As an actor, Anoushka has performed in Jesus Christ Superstar (Mary Magdalene, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival), Murder on the Orient Express (Pianist, dir: Kenneth Branagh, 20^th Century Fox), Been So Long (dir: Tinge Krishnan, BFI/Film4/Greenacre).

Jessica Edwards is a freelance director and Artistic Director of Flipping the Bird. She has associate directed for the Almeida, the Jamie Lloyd Company, the Young Vic and in the West End. She is Director of drag-girl-super-group DENIM, who are associate artists of Soho Theatre. Recent directing includes: Denim: World Tour (Soho Theatre / Underbelly); Punts (Theatre503); Revolutions (Arcola / Old Vic Lab); The Gulf (Old Vic Lab); Torch(Latitude / Edinburgh Festival 2016); Haters Make You Famous (Almeida Theatre); Queering Marlowe (Jamie Lloyd Company / Duke of York’s Theatre); White Hot & Weak (Old Vic New Voices Festival); The Box (Latitude / Theatre Delicatessen); The Itinerant Music Hall (Lyric Hammersmith / Watford Palace / GDIF / Latitude); Jekyll & Hyde (Southwark Playhouse / Assembly Edinburgh).

Sparks by Jessica Butcher at VAULT Festival 2018

The Vaults, Leake Street, London SE1 7NN

Wednesday 21 February – Sunday 25 February at 19:45

Matinee on Sunday 25 February at 16:45

Tickets: £11.50

Box office: https://vaultfestival.com or 07598 676202

Social media: #SPARKSplay / #VAULT2018 / @VAULTFestival

GRAND OPERA HOUSE, YORK, CITY OF YORK COUNCIL, AND THE NATIONAL THEATRE PARTNER TO OFFER
AUDIENCES AGED 26 AND UNDER 
£5* TICKETS FOR HEDDA GABLER

 

Passionate about making theatre accessible to everyone, the Grand Opera House, York, City of York Council and the National Theatre have partnered to offer anyone aged 26 and under the chance to see HEDDA GABLER, an unmissable production of the ultimate Scandi-noir in a version boldly retold for the 21^st-Century, for just £5 per ticket.

Following a sell-out run at the National Theatre, Hedda Gabler, an essential play for our times, is now on a UK & Ireland tour and will arrive in York for one week from 20 February 2018.

Whether young audiences are new to theatre or love seeing the latest shows, £5 tickets for Hedda Gabler will be bookable online, in person and via phone. Inspiring young people by making the highest quality theatre accessible to them backs the council’s continued support for the delivery of excellent cultural and educational opportunities and outcomes for all young people in York.

From the makers of War Horse, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Jane Eyre, this modern version of Henrik Ibsen’s masterpiece is intense, gripping and at times chillingly funny, taking the audience on a journey from laughter to the edge of their seat.

Hedda and Tesman have just returned from their honeymoon and the relationship is already in trouble. Trapped but determined, Hedda tries to manipulate those around her, only to see her own world unravel.

An outstanding 5-star production is brought to bold new life by an award-winning creative team including director Ivo van Hove (Network with Bryan Cranston, A View From The Bridge) and writer Patrick Marber (Closer).