Month: September 2019

National Theatre On-Sale: October 2019 – March 2020

Just announced:

– Emma Rice adapts and directs Emily Brontë’s iconic masterpiece WUTHERING HEIGHTS, in a new co-production with Wise Children in association with York Theatre Royal. Opening in the Lyttelton Theatre in autumn 2020 before touring across the UK

– Lucy Briers, Crystal Condie and Kevin Hely join the cast of Francesca Martinez’s debut play ALL OF US, directed by Ian Rickson

– Ben Daniels joins Nancy Carroll in Moira Buffini’s timely new play MANOR, directed by Fiona Buffini

On sale:

– Sarah Niles joins Natalie Simpson and Racheal Ofori in THREE SISTERS, Inua Ellams’ adaptation of Chekhov’s classic play, relocated to 1960s Nigeria and directed by Nadia Fall  

– Hugo Weaving joins Lesley Manville in Tony Kushner’s new adaptation of Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s masterpiece THE VISIT or THE OLD LADY COMES TO CALL

– Further casting announced for Lucy Kirkwood’s new play THE WELKIN, directed by James Macdonald, with a cast including Maxine Peake, Cecilia Noble and Ria Zmitrowicz

– Ex Machina’s epic THE SEVEN STREAMS OF THE RIVER OTA, directed by Robert Lepage, returns to the NT as part of a world tour

– Clint Dyer becomes the first Black British artist to have acted, written and directed at the NT with DEATH OF ENGLAND, written by Roy Williams and Dyer, and performed by Rafe Spall

– Ciarán Hinds and Judith Roddy reprise their roles with Fra Fee joining the cast of Brian Friel’s TRANSLATIONS, directed by Ian Rickson

– Further performances on sale for MY BRILLIANT FRIEND, adapted by April De Angelis from Elena Ferrante’s bestselling Neapolitan Novels

Just announced:

Emma Rice adapts and directs Emily Brontë’s iconic masterpiece WUTHERING HEIGHTS, in a new co-production with Wise Children in association with York Theatre Royal. With her trademark musical and visual style, Emma Rice brings new life to the classic story in this elemental new stage adaptation. The production will open in the Lyttelton Theatre in autumn 2020 before touring across the UK, venues to be announced.

—

MANOR, a timely new play by Moira Buffini, will open in April in the Lyttelton with Ben Daniels (House of Cards) joining Nancy Carroll in the cast. Amy Forrest (Small Island) and Edward Judge (The Play That Goes Wrong) will also join the cast, directed by Fiona Buffini.

Diana Stuckley and her daughter are struggling to keep the roof on their run-down manor house. As a violent storm sweeps the coast, neighbours and strangers begin to appear, seeking shelter from the floods. Among them are the leaders of a far right organisation. Stranded together, this explosive mix of people must survive the weather and each other. This darkly comic drama reunites the writer and director behind Dinner.

Set and costume design by Lez Brotherston and lighting design by Paule Constable, composition and sound design by Jon Nicholls, fight direction by Kate Waters and video design by Andrzej Goulding.

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In the Dorfman in March, Francesca Martinez’s debut play ALL OF US is directed by Ian Rickson, with Lucy Briers, Crystal Condie and Kevin Hely joining the cast.

Exploring life and love during a time of austerity, Martinez herself plays the lead role of Jess in this powerful, timely and characterful comedy drama. Jess has a job she loves, friends and a sense of humour. She needs one, because when the government come calling, the life she has built – she has had cerebral palsy since birth – comes under threat. Set and costume design will be by Georgia Lowe, lighting design by Anna Watson, composition by Stephen Warbeck and sound design by Gregory Clarke.

On sale to the public from 11 October:

Olivier Theatre

THE VISIT or THE OLD LADY COMES TO CALL

based on the play by Friedrich Dürrenmatt

adapted by Tony Kushner

Previews from 31 January, with press night 13 February, on sale until 4 April with further performances to be announced

In the town of Slurry, New York, post-war recession has bitten. Claire Zachanassian, improbably beautiful and impenetrably terrifying, returns to her hometown as the world’s richest woman. The locals hope her arrival signals a change in their fortunes, but they soon realise that prosperity will only come at a terrible price.

Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s visionary revenge play is transported into mid-20^th century America by Tony Kushner (Angels in America). Jeremy Herrin (People, Places and Things, This House) directs Lesley Manville (The Phantom Thread, Long Day’s Journey into Night) as the ruthless heiress and Hugo Weaving (The Matrix) as her former love. Jason Barnett, Sam Cox, Richard Durden, Sara Kestelman, Joseph Mydell, Tony Turner, Douglas Walker and Nicholas Woodeson also join the cast.

Set design by Vicki Mortimer and costume design by Moritz Junge. The lighting design is by NT Associate Paule Constable, composition by Paul Englishby, sound design by Paul Arditti and movement direction by Polly Bennett. 

The Visit is presented in association with David Binder Productions. Original English language translation by Maurice Valency. Stage rights by Diogenes Verlag AG Zürich. The New American Work Programme is supported by The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Lawton W Fitt & James I McLaren Foundation and Kathleen J Yoh.

Lyttelton Theatre 

THE WELKIN

a new play by Lucy Kirkwood

Previews from 15 January, press night 22 January, on sale until 28 March with further performances to be announced

Rural Suffolk, 1759.  As the country waits for Halley’s comet, Sally Poppy is sentenced to hang for a heinous murder. When she claims to be pregnant, a jury of 12 matrons are taken from their housework to decide whether she’s telling the truth, or simply trying to escape the noose. With only midwife Lizzy Luke prepared to defend the girl, and a mob baying for blood outside, the matrons wrestle with their new authority, and the devil in their midst.

Lucy Kirkwood (Mosquitoes, Chimerica) returns to the National Theatre with her new play, directed by James Macdonald. Maxine Peake (Black Mirror, Funny Cow) plays Lizzy, and Ria Zmitrowicz (The Doctor), Sally. Cast also includes Nadia Albina, Natasha Cottriall, Aysha Kala, Wendy Kweh, Cecilia Noble, Philip McGinley, Dawn Sievewright and Brigid Zengeni.

Set and costume design by Bunny Christie, lighting design by Lee Curran, sound design by Carolyn Downing and fight direction by Rachel Bown-Williams and Ruth Cooper-Brown of Rc-Annie Ltd.

This play is a recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New Plays Award. Production supported by the Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater.

THE SEVEN STREAMS OF THE RIVER OTA

by Ex Machina / Robert Lepage

From 6 March to 22 March

First staged at the National Theatre in 1996, Robert Lepage’s masterpiece returns to London for just nine performances. Presented as part of a world tour, this new staging marks 75 years since the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima. Tracing survivors and their descendants across five decades, this giant theatrical journey through time and space explores the way in which a few kilograms of uranium falling on Japan changed the course of human history.

The text is by members of the Ex Machina company including Éric Bernier, Gérard Bibeau, Normand Bissonnette, Rebecca Blankenship, Marie Brassard, Anne-Marie Cadieux, Normand Daneau, Richard Fréchette, Marie Gignac, Patrick Goyette, Robert Lepage, Macha Limonchik and Ghislaine Vincent.

Cast are Rebecca Blankenship, Lorraine Côté, Christian Essiambre, Richard Fréchette, Tetsuya Kudaka, Myriam Leblanc, Umihiko Miya, Audrée Southière, Philippe Thibault-Denis and Donna Yamamoto.

Director and designer Robert Lepage, creative director Steve Blanchet, dramaturg Gérard Bibeau, music and sound design by Michel F. Côté, original set design by Carl Fillion, set designer for the adaptation Ariane Sauvé, lighting design by Sonoyo Nishikawa, images designer Keven Dubois, costumes designer Virginie Leclerc and properties designer Claudia Gendreau.

A co-production with Chekhov International Theatre Festival, Moscow, the National Theatre, London, and Le Diamant, Québec.

Dorfman Theatre

DEATH OF ENGLAND 

a new play by Clint Dyer and Roy Williams

Previews from 31 January, press night 6 February, playing until 7 March

After the death of his dad, Michael is powerless and angry. In a state of heartbreak, he confronts the difficult truths about his father’s legacy and the country that shaped him. At the funeral, unannounced and unprepared, Michael decides it is time to speak.

Rafe Spall (Hedda Gabler, Black Mirror) performs this fearless one-person play which asks explosive and enduring questions about identity, race and class in Britain.

It is written for him by Roy Williams (Sucker Punch, Sing Yer Heart Out for the Lads) and Clint Dyer (The Happy Tragedy of Being Woke), who will become the first Black British artist to have performed, written and directed at the National Theatre.

Directed by Clint Dyer, set and costume design is by Sadeysa Greenaway-Bailey and ULTZ, with lighting design by Jackie Shemesh, sound design by Pete Malkin and movement by Lucy Cullingford. 

Productions currently on sale:

Olivier Theatre

PETER GYNT

by David Hare

after Henrik Ibsen

a co-production with Edinburgh International Festival

Last chance to see – playing until 8 October

Ibsen’s classic is reinvented as a riotous adventure for the 21st century.

Peter Gynt is searching for something: himself. Travelling from the mountains of Scotland to the pool-sides of Florida, he’ll meet talking hyenas, two-headed trolls and even an Egyptian Sphinx. But his ultimate transformation may not be all that he hoped for.

Playing the rebellious antihero, James McArdle (Angels in America) is reunited with David Hare and Jonathan Kent, the partnership behind the triumphant Young Chekhov at Chichester Festival Theatre and the National Theatre.

The cast also includes Philip Cairns, Tamsin Carroll, Jonathan Coy, Anya Chalotra, Caroline Deyga, Tia Dutt, Lauren Ellis-Steele, Ezra Faroque Khan, Oliver Ford Davies, Andrew Fraser, Guy Henry, Dani Heron, Ryan Hunter, Isabelle Joss, Rehanna MacDonald, Lorne MacFadyen, Marc Mackinnon, Adam McNamara, Martin Quinn, Ann Louise Ross, Nabil Shaban and Jatinder Singh Randhawa, Sonnyboy Skelton and Hannah Visocchi.

Directed by Jonathan Kent, set and costume design by Richard Hudson, lighting design by Mark Henderson, composition by Paul Englishby, music direction by Kevin Amos, sound design by Christopher Shutt, movement direction by Polly Bennett, video design by Dick Straker, illusions by Chris Fisher and fight direction by Paul Benzing.

TRANSLATIONS

by Brian Friel

Previews from 15 October, press night 21 October, playing until 18 December

Following a sold-out run in 2018, Ian Rickson’s exquisite production returns.

Owen, the prodigal son, returns to rural Donegal from Dublin. With him are two British army officers. Their ambition is to create a map of the area, replacing the Gaelic names with English. It is an administrative act with radical consequences.

Brian Friel’s modern classic is a powerful account of nationhood, which sees the turbulent relationship between England and Ireland play out in one quiet community.

Ciarán Hinds reprises his critically acclaimed role of patriarch and school master, Hugh, whose livelihood and culture are at risk. He will be re-joined by Dermot Crowley, Seamus O’Hara, Judith Roddy and Rufus Wright. Further casting includes Jack Bardoe, Gareth Clarke, Adam Collier, Liadán Dunlea, Fra Fee, Paul Lloyd, Michael-David McKernan, Sarah Madigan, Julian Moore-Cook and Amy Molloy.

Set and costume designer is Rae Smith, lighting designer is Neil Austin, composition by Stephen Warbeck, sound designer is Ian Dickinson and movement is by Anna Morrissey.

MY BRILLIANT FRIEND 

Parts One and Two

based on Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan Novels

adapted by April De Angelis

a co-production with Rose Theatre Kingston

Previews from 12 November, press day 26 November, playing until 22 February

When the most important person in her life goes missing without a trace, Lenù Greco, now a celebrated author, begins to recall a relationship of more than 60 years.

First meeting on the dangerous streets of post-war Naples, friends Lila and Lenù experience turbulent social and political change, from the rise of the Camorra to the sexual revolution and the transformation of their neighbourhood, city and nation. Even as life repeatedly tries to pull them in separate directions, they remain inextricably bound to one another. 

Based on the celebrated novels by Elena Ferrante – published in over 50 countries – My Brilliant Friend is an epic story of love, violence, ambition and self-destruction.

Following a sold-out run at Rose Theatre Kingston, the acclaimed two-part adaptation by April De Angelis (Jumpy) is reworked for the Olivier stage by Melly Still (Coram Boy).

Niamh Cusack and Catherine McCormack reprise their roles as Lenù and Lila alongside returning cast members Justin Avoth, Adam Burton, Martin Hyder, Ira Mandela Siobhan, Victoria Moseley, Emily Mytton, Jonah Russell, Badria Timimi, Emily Wachter and Toby Wharton. Cast also includes Amiera Darwish, Trevor Fox, Danielle Henry, Kezrena James, David Judge, Wela Mbusi, Al Nedjari, Mary Jo Randle, Colin Ryan, John Sandeman, Ben Turner and Elizabeth Mary (Em) Williams.

Directed by Melly Still, with set and costume design by Soutra Gilmour, composition by Jim Fortune, lighting design by Malcolm Rippeth, sound design by Jon Nicholls, movement direction by Sarah Dowling, video design by Tal Yarden, fight direction by John Sandeman and puppetry design and direction by Toby Olié.

Lyttelton Theatre

HANSARD

a new play by Simon Woods

Limited ticket availability – playing until 25 November

It’s a summer’s morning in 1988 and Tory politician Robin Hesketh has returned home to the idyllic Cotswold house he shares with his wife of 30 years, Diana. But all is not as blissful as it seems. Diana has a stinking hangover, a fox is destroying the garden, and secrets are being dug up all over the place. As the day draws on, what starts as gentle ribbing and the familiar rhythms of marital scrapping quickly turns to blood-sport. 

With Alex Jennings as Robin and Lindsay Duncan as his wife, Diana, Simon Godwin directs Simon Woods’ witty and devastating portrait of the governing class.

Set and costume design by Hildegard Bechtler, lighting by Jackie Shemesh, composition by Michael Bruce, sound design by Christopher Shutt and movement direction by Shelley Maxwell.

Production supported by Marcia Grand in loving memory of Richard Grand, Leila Maw Straus and Shawn M. Donnelley & Christopher M. Kelly. This play is a recipient of an Edgerton Foundation New Plays Award. 

‘MASTER HAROLD’… AND THE BOYS 

by Athol Fugard

Previews from 21 September, press night on 1 October, playing until 17 December

St George’s Park Tea Room, Port Elizabeth, 1950. On a long rainy afternoon, employees Sam and Willie practise their steps for the finals of the ballroom dancing championship. 

Hally arrives from school to hide out in his parents’ tea room. These two men have been unlikely best friends to Hally his whole life. But it is apartheid era South Africa: he’s Master Harold, and they are the boys.  

Tony Award-winning playwright Athol Fugard’s semi-autobiographical and blistering masterwork explores the nature of friendship, and the ways people are capable of hurting even those they love.

Roy Alexander Weise (Nine Night) directs Lucian Msamati (Amadeus) and Hammed Animashaun (Barber Shop Chronicles) as Sam and Willie; and Anson Boon as Hally.

Set and costume designer is Rajha Shakiry, lighting designer is Paule Constable, movement director and choreographer is Shelley Maxwell and sound designer is Giles Thomas. 

Production generously supported by Monica Gerard-Sharp and the ‘Master Harold’…and the boys Production Syndicate.

THREE SISTERS

a new play by Inua Ellams

after Chekhov 

a co-production with Fuel

Previews from 3 December, press night on 10 December, playing until 19 February

Chekhov’s iconic characters are relocated to Nigeria in this bold new adaptation.  

Owerri, 1967, on the brink of the Biafran Civil War. Lolo, Nne Chukwu and Udo are grieving the loss of their father. Months before, two ruthless military coups plunged the country into chaos. Fuelled by foreign intervention, the conflict encroaches on their provincial village and the sisters long to return to their former home, Lagos.

Following his smash-hit Barber Shop Chronicles, Inua Ellams returns to the National Theatre with this heartbreaking retelling, directed by Nadia Fall (Home, Dara).

The three sisters will be played by Sarah Niles, Natalie Simpson and Racheal Ofori. Cast includes Ronke Adekoluejo, Jonathan Ajayi, Jude Akuwudike, Tobi Bamtefa, Peter Bankolé, Anni Domingo, Lola May, Jerome Ngonadi, Ken Nwosu, Joseph Ogeleka, Nasa Ohalete, Offue Okegbe, Chloe Okora, Sule Rimi and Diana Yekinni.

With set and costume design by Katrina Lindsay, lighting design by Peter Mumford, movement direction by Polly Bennett, composition by Femi Tomowo, sound design by Donato Wharton and music direction and vocal arrangements by Michael Henry.

Three Sisters is a co-production with Fuel, originally commissioned by Metta Theatre. 

Hundreds of £15 tickets will be available for every performance. 

Production supported by Leila Maw Straus, Cockayne – Grants for the Arts and The London Community Foundation and the Laura Pels International Foundation for Theater.

Dorfman Theatre

FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY 

a new play by Alexander Zeldin

Currently in previews, press night 17 September, playing until 12 October

In a run-down community hall on the edge of town, a woman has been cooking lunch for those in need. A choir is starting up, run by a volunteer who’s looking for a new beginning. A mother is seeking help in her fight to keep her young daughter from being taken into care. An older man sits silently in the corner, the first to arrive, the last to leave. Outside the rain is failing.

Alexander Zeldin’s new play promises to be another uncompromising theatrical experience that goes to the heart of our uncertain times

Full cast includes Nathan Armarkwei-Laryea, Nick Holder, Dayo Koleosho, Susan Lynch, Cecilia Noble, Corey Peterson, Bobby Stallwood, Hind Swareldahab and Alan Williams.

Directed by Alexander Zeldin, the set and costume designer is Natasha Jenkins, the lighting designer is Marc Williams, the movement director is Marcin Rudy, the sound designer is Josh Anio Grigg and the rehearsal music director is Laurie Blundell.

Production supported by The Polonsky Foundation.

THE ANTIPODES

by Annie Baker

Previews from 21 October, press night 30 October, playing until 23 November

Following acclaimed runs of The Flick and John, Pulitzer Prize-winner Annie Baker returns to the National Theatre with her latest extraordinary work, THE ANTIPODES.

Their phones switched off, a group of people sit around a table telling, categorising and theorising stories. This is a world that is both familiar and fantastical. Their real purpose is never quite clear, but they continue on, searching for the monstrous. Part satire, part sacred rite, The Antipodes asks what value stories have for a world in crisis.

Full cast includes Fisayo Akinade, Matt Bardock, Arthur Darvill, Imogen Doel, Hadley Fraser, Conleth Hill, Stuart McQuarrie, Sinéad Matthews and Bill Milner.

Directed by Annie Baker and Chloe Lamford, with set and costume design by Chloe Lamford, lighting design by Natasha Chivers, sound design by Tom Gibbons, movement direction by Sasha Milavic Davies and illusion design by Steve Cuiffo.  

New American Work Programme is supported by The Harold & Mimi Steinberg Charitable Trust, Lawton W Fitt & James | McLaren Foundation and Kathleen J Yoh.  

THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE

based on the novel by Neil Gaiman

adapted by Joel Horwood

Previews from 3 December, with a press night on 11 December, playing until 25 January 

Returning to his childhood home, Alex finds himself standing beside the duck pond of the old Sussex farmhouse where he used to play. He’s transported to his 13th birthday, spring half-term, when his dad was struggling to make ends meet and his friend Lettie claimed it wasn’t a pond, but an ocean…

This adventure will excite and thrill those brave enough to face its hidden depths. Bestselling author Neil Gaiman is the creator of epic American Gods, Coraline, Stardust and the Sandman series.

Directed by Katy Rudd, the cast includes Jade Croot, Fred Davis, Owain Gwynn, Pippa Nixon, Justin Salinger, Jeffrey Sangalang, Marli Siu and Jess Williams alongside the previously announced Josie Walker and Samuel Blenkin.

The set designer is Fly Davis, with costume and puppet design by Samuel Wyer, movement direction by Steven Hoggett, composition by Jherek Bischoff, lighting design by Paule Constable, sound design by Ian Dickinson, puppetry direction by Finn Caldwell and magic and illusions by Jamie Harrison.

Suitable for ages 12+, with half-price tickets available for under-18s.

National Theatre on tour 

Following its acclaimed run at the Roundhouse this summer, BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES continues a UK tour visiting Birmingham Repertory Theatre (26 – 28 September), Oxford Playhouse (9 – 12 October), Eden Court, Inverness (16 – 19 October), Edinburgh Lyceum (23 October – 9 November), Nuffield Southampton Theatres (13 – 16 November), before returning to Leeds Playhouse (20 – 23 November). Barber Shop Chronicles is a Fuel, National Theatre and Leeds Playhouse co-production. Co-commissioned by Fuel and the National Theatre. Development funded by Arts Council England with the support of Fuel, National Theatre, Leeds Playhouse, The Binks Trust, British Council ZA, Òran Mór and A Play, a Pie and a Pint. The tour has received National Lottery funding through Arts Council England’s Project Grants programme and Creative Scotland’s Open Funding programme.

Having visited 12 countries around the world, playing to 8 million people over the past 12 years, including a recent sold-out return to the National Theatre, the NT’s acclaimed production WAR HORSE, based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo, adapted by Nick Stafford, and presented in association with the award-winning Handspring Puppet Company is now on a UK and international tour. War Horse will return to London for a strictly limited run at an exciting new venue, Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, located steps away from Wembley Stadium from 18 October to 23 November. War Horse will also tour to The Curve, Leicester (18 September – 12 October), La Seine Musicale, Paris (29 November – 29 December), Regent Theatre, Melbourne, Australia (10 January – 9 February 2020), Lyric Theatre, Sydney (15 February – 15 March 2020), Crown Theatre, Perth (24 March – 12 April 2020), with further international dates to be announced. War Horse is directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris, designed by Rae Smith, with puppet direction, design and fabrication by Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler for Handspring Puppet Company, lighting by Paule Constable, and movement and horse choreography by Toby Sedgwick, with video design by Leo Warner and Mark Grimmer for 59 Productions, songmaker John Tams, music by Adrian Sutton and sound by Christopher Shutt. Katie Henry is the UK & International Tour Director and Craig Leo is the Associate Puppetry Director. Charlotte Peters is the Associate Director and Matthew Forbes is the Associate Puppetry Director. They are joined by Resident Director, Charlie Kenber and Resident Puppetry Director, Gareth Aled. War Horse is produced on tour by the National Theatre. For more information, visit warhorseonstage.com. War Horse at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre is supported by American Express, the National Theatre’s preferred Card Partner.  

Bijan Sheibani’s production of A TASTE OF HONEY, Shelagh Delaney’s remarkable taboo-breaking 1950s play, which was first produced in the Lyttelton Theatre in 2014, is now on a UK tour. Designed by Hildegard Bechtler, A Taste of Honey is reimagined in an exciting new production featuring a live on-stage band. Jodie Prenger (Oliver!, One Man, Two Guvnors, Abigail’s Party UK tour) plays Helen, and Gemma Dobson plays Jo, alongside Liam Bessell, Katy Clayton, Claire Eden, Durone Stokes, Stuart Thompson, Tom Varey and Marcel White. Written by Shelagh Delaney when she was 19, A Taste of Honey offers an explosive celebration of the vulnerabilities and strengths of the female spirit in a deprived and restless world. An exhilarating depiction of working-class life in post-war Salford, A Taste of Honey opens there at The Lowry tonight, playing until 21 September, with a press night on Friday 20 September. The tour will also visit the Kings Theatre, Edinburgh (24 – 28 September); the Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury (1 – 5 October); Richmond Theatre (7 – 12 October); Grand Opera House, Belfast (15 – 19 October); Leicester Curve (22 – 26 October); Theatre Royal, Bath (28 October – 2 November); Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton (5 – 9 November); and the Norwich Theatre Royal (12 – 16 November). The lighting designer is Paul Anderson, the movement director is Aline David, and the composer and musical arranger is Benjamin Kwasi Burrell. The sound designer is Ian Dickinson for Autograph, and Company Voice Work is by Joel Trill. A Taste of Honey is produced on tour by the National Theatre. National Theatre UK Touring is supported by The Thompson Family Charitable Trust, The Royal National Theatre Foundation, and Jacqueline and Richard Worswick.

On Broadway

HADESTOWN, the acclaimed new musical by Anaïs Mitchell, developed with and directed by Rachel Chavkin, is now playing on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre, and was recently awarded 8 Tony Awards, including Best New Musical. A US tour, visiting over 30 towns and cities in its first year, including Denver; Houston; Los Angeles; Minneapolis; New Orleans; Philadelphia; Tempe; and Washington, DC, with more to be announced, will begin in autumn 2020. For more information, visit hadestown.com

Following sold-out runs at the National Theatre, the Park Avenue Armory, and in the West End, the NT and Neal Street Productions’ THE LEHMAN TRILOGY will return to New York when it transfers to Broadway for a strictly limited engagement in spring 2020. The Lehman Trilogy previews at the Nederlander Theatre from 7 March, with an opening night on 26 March 2020. The story of a family and a company that changed the world, told in three parts on a single evening, The Lehman Trilogy is by Stefano Massini, adapted by Ben Power and directed by Sam Mendes. Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley and Ben Miles will reprise their acclaimed roles on Broadway as the Lehman brothers, and a cast of characters including their sons and grandsons. The Lehman Trilogy is produced on Broadway by the National Theatre, Neal Street Productions and Scott Rudin/Barry Diller/David Geffen, with set design by Es Devlin, costume design by Katrina Lindsay, video design by Luke Halls, and lighting design by Jon Clark. The Composer and Sound Designer is Nick Powell, the Co-Sound Designer is Dominic Bilkey, with music direction by Candida Caldicot, and movement by Polly Bennett. The Associate Director is Zoé Ford Burnett. The Wall Street Journal is the media sponsor.

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME SCHOOLS’ TOUR

Following the success of last year’s schools tour, where over 13,000 young people saw the production, the specially staged 90-minute production of THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME will visit another 60 secondary schools across the UK in Autumn 2019.  The tour of Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel, adapted by Olivier-award-winning playwright Simon Stephens will visit schools in the National Theatre’s six Theatre Nation areas, supported by our partner theatres: Outer East London (with Queen’s Theatre Hornchurch), Wakefield (with Wakefield Theatre Royal), Doncaster (with CAST), Sunderland (with Sunderland Culture and Sunderland Empire), Wolverhampton (with The Grand), and Greater Manchester (with The Lowry). The tour will visit new schools in these areas as well as returning to schools we have previously engaged with as we continue to build relationships with them and introduce theatre to different age groups.

The production is directed by Olivier and Tony Award-winner Marianne Elliott, designed by Olivier and Tony Award-winner Bunny Christie and Tony Award-winning lighting designer Paule Constable. Movement is by Scott Graham and Olivier Award-winning Steven Hoggett for Frantic Assembly, music by Adrian Sutton (who also composed music for War Horse) and sound by Ian Dickinson for Autograph. The Associate Director is Anna Marsland. 

The full cast includes Cayvan Coates, Lily Knight, Marcia Lecky, Nicola McRoy, Evan Milton, Chris Nayak, Nick Pearse and Nadia Williams.

The National Theatre’s Partner for Learning is Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Secondary Schools Touring is supported by: The Mohn Westlake Foundation, The Garfield Weston Foundation, Delta Air Lines, The Ingram Trust, Archie Sherman Charitable Trust, Alex Beard & Emma Vernetti, Behrens Foundation, Lennox Hannay Charitable Trust, Priya Heal, Mulberry Trust, The Robert Gavron Charitable Trust, Carol Sellars and Susie and Stelio Stefanou.

National Theatre Live 

National Theatre Live is celebrating 10 years of broadcasting the best of British theatre. Over 10 years, there have been over 80 theatre productions that have been shown in 3500 venues worldwide, reaching an overall audience of nearly 9 million people. NT Live currently screens to 2500 venues across 65 countries.

One Man, Two Guvnors by Richard Bean, featuring an award-winning performance by James Corden as Francis Henshall, will return to UK and international venues on 27 September for a special 10^th birthday screening.

The Bridge Theatre production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream will be in cinemas 17 October. Nicholas Hytner directs Gwendoline Christie, Oliver Chris, David Moorst and Hammed Animashaun.

The debut play from Simon Woods, Hansard, will be broadcast live from the National’s Lyttelton Theatre on 7 November. Lindsay Duncan and Alex Jennings return to the NT to play married couple Robin and Diana, a married couple reckoning with a fundamental difference they cannot resolve. Directed by NT Associate Simon Godwin.

The Old Vic Production of Present Laughter by Noël Coward will be in cinemas from 28 November. Matthew Warchus directs Andrew Scott in this giddy and surprisingly modern reflection on fame, narcissism and loneliness. 

NT Live UK is sponsored by Sky Arts.        

Bristol Hippodrome – until 23 November 2019

Reviewed by Lucy Hitchcock

5*****

The well known and loved Disney classic has hit Bristol for an extended stay that will delight and excite you, sparking every emotion within you to the surface.

The Lion King is a visually stunning feast that will transport you to the plains of Africa through incredible scenery, costumes and music. Julie Taymor, the shows director, costume designer, mask and puppet co-design and responsible for the additional lyrics to the show has created a masterpiece. Combined with the talents of Richard Hurst, Jean-Luc Guizonne, Thandazile Soni as Scar, Mufasa and Rafiki respectively, this is an incredible piece.

The show began with the classic ‘Circle of Life’, where the stage was adorned with Elephants, Rhinos, Giraffe and every other quintessential African animal you could dream of. The puppetry in this show is phenomenal. Jack Galloway, Antje Gern and Sophie Jones along with Taymor have created such exquisite puppets that amaze and leave the audience wondering ‘how on earth did they do that?!’ Each member of the cast, main and ensemble, are all equally as talented as they effortlessly manoeuvre these puppets across the stage. Two that stood out to me were Steve Beirnaet as Timon, the lovable meerkat and Matthew Forbes as Zazu, Mufasa’s hornbilled sidekick. These two completely submerged themselves in the roles, leaving us unsure as to whether to watch the puppet or enjoy the facial expressions of the actor.

Vocally, this is extraordinary. Thandazile Soni as Rafiki commands the stage from a single note at the beginning of the show and takes us on this journey. She embodies Rafiki perfectly, with humour and amazingly soaring vocals, she is an amazing part in this astounding show. ‘He Lves in You’ saw the vocal talent of Soni coupled with the incredible lighting of Alistair Grant and the commanding puppetry from the cast, this was one of the most poignant scenes in the show.

This show is an immersive experience, with incredible talent and passion; you could see how hard the cast were working. The cast is incredibly talented and if you wish to see an expertly operated production that is extremely smooth and flawless, you need look no further. Disney’s The Lion King will see you cry, laugh and smile whilst experiencing the full Circle of Life.

Playing at The Bristol Hippodrome until Saturday 23^rd November. If you don’t catch it in Bristol it will be at Cardiff Wales Millennium Centre from 9th July to the 29th August 2020

Northern Broadsides presents
QUALITY STREET
By J. M. Barrie
Director Laurie Sansom
Designer Jessica Worrall
Sound Designer / Composer Nick Sagar
Casting Director Sarah Hughes CDG
Puppet Maker Beka Hughes

• NEW ARTISTIC DIRECTOR LAURIE SANSOM ANNOUNCES HIS FIRST PRODUCTION FOR NORTHERN BROADSIDES
   
• A RARE REVIVAL OF J. M. BARRIE’S QUALITY STREET, OPENING IN HALIFAX, THE TOWN WHERE THE CHOCOLATES NAMED AFTER THE PLAY ARE MADE, AND ON A NATIONAL TOUR
   
• WORKERS FROM THE QUALITY STREET™ FACTORY WILL GIVE THE SHOW A PLAYFUL TWIST WITH THEIR OWN STORIES OF HAPLESS ROMANCE AND GROWING OLD DISGRACEFULLY
   
• THE PRODUCTION MARKS THE START OF A NEW PRODUCING MODEL FOR THE COMPANY’S MID-SCALE TOURS FEATURING ‘CREATION SQUADS’ FROM THE LOCAL COMMUNITY
   
• FULL TOUR DATES AND BOOKING INFORMATION AT WWW.NORTHERN-BROADSIDES.CO.UK

New Artistic Director, Laurie Sansom, today announced his first production for Northern Broadsides will be a revival of J.M. Barrie’s rarely performed farce Quality Street. The production will open in February 2020 in Halifax, the home of Quality Street™ the UK’s most popular brand of chocolates. Barrie’s play was so popular in its day that it gave the chocolates their name.

Phoebe Throssel lives on Quality Street, the bustling hub of a quaint northern town where she runs a school for unruly children.

Ten years since a tearful goodbye, an old flame returns from fighting Napoleon. But the look of disappointment on Captain Valentine’s face when he greets a more mature, less glamorous Phoebe, spurs our determined heroine to action.

She becomes the wild and sparkling Miss Livy, a younger alter-ego who soon entraps the clueless Captain. As their romance is rekindled, can she juggle both personas? Or will her deception scandalise the town and wreck any future with the man she loves?

This show marks the beginning of a new producing model for Broadsides, with each production being co-created with “creation squads” formed from the local community. For this production, the actors will collaborate with workers from the Quality Street™ factory, developing contemporary tales of hapless love and a live commentary that will frame the action of Barrie’s regency rom-com. As well as providing a modern lens through which to view Barrie’s story, Broadsides also aims to build long-lasting relationships between the employees and their local theatre company.

Northern Broadsides has a long-standing commitment to make bold, radical storytelling that is accessible to all. For the past 27 years, the company has created popular and witty productions in the ‘Northern voice’, and under its new Artistic Director it is reimagining what the ‘Northern voice’ means in today’s world. Sansom was previously the Artistic Director of the National Theatre of Scotland, directing The James Plays trilogy in an unprecedented collaboration with the Edinburgh International Festival and the National Theatre of Great Britain and touring round the world.  Previously he was Artistic Director at Royal & Derngate, Northampton, winning the inaugural Stage Regional Theatre of the Year in 2010, TMA Best Director, and producing a trilogy of new adaptations of classic plays as part of London 2012’s Cultural Olympiad.

The company’s home, Halifax, has recently been billed ‘The Shoreditch of the North’ and is booming with live events, film, food and drink festivals, independent shops and theatre, and has entered the public consciousness through the huge success of Sally Wainwright’s Gentleman Jack and Happy Valley. Two years ago, the extraordinary Piece Hall opened for business, a regency piazza returned to its former glory and now hosting major recording artists and other major events. The region is becoming a must-visit heritage destination and Northern Broadsides is playing a key role in this cultural renaissance.

Christmas 2019 will also see the company celebrating the festive season with a programme of folk songs and stories drawn from the Broadside Ballads published from the 1600s. Local folk singer Alice Jones will star in the fundraiser at The Viaduct Theatre, Dean Clough, alongside musicians who have been recently granted asylum in Halifax.

Quality Street will tour to Salford, Lancaster, Bury St Edmunds, Liverpool, Newcastle upon Tyne, Guildford, Derby, Leeds, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Scarborough, Harrogate, Huddersfield, Hull and York. Tickets are on sale now from www.northern-broadsides.co.uk 

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR LONDON PREMIERE OF

TONY AWARD-WINNING MUSICAL

D E A R   E V A N   H A N S E N

WEST END PRODUCTION OPENS AT

THE NOËL COWARD THEATRE AUTUMN 2019

SAM TUTTY TO MAKE HIS WEST END DEBUT

AS EVAN HANSEN

Today, 13 September 2019, Producer Stacey Mindich is delighted to announce the full West End cast for the London premiere of Dear Evan Hansen, which begins performances with an all British cast, including several West End debuts, at the Noël Coward Theatre on 29 October 2019, with opening night on 19 November 2019.

Making their West End debuts are Sam Tutty as Evan Hansen, Lucy Anderson as Zoe Murphy, Doug Colling as Connor Murphy and Marcus Harman who will play Evan Hansen at certain performances.  They are joined by Rebecca McKinnis as Heidi Hansen, Lauren Ward as Cynthia Murphy, Rupert Young as Larry Murphy, Jack Loxton as Jared Kleinman, Nicole Raquel Dennis as Alana Beck as well as Tricia Adele-Turner, David Breeds, Haydn Cox, Natalie Kassanga, Hannah Lindsey, Mark Peachey, Courtney Stapleton, Alex Thomas-Smith and James Winter. 

“It’s been a dream of ours to bring Dear Evan Hansen across the pond, and I’m just thrilled that we’ve found the perfect cast to fulfill this dream and introduce this original musical – and it’s very real and very universal themes – to London,”  Stacey Mindich said. “In fact, the entire casting process was a joy for the creative team and me, as we met so many amazingly talented actors who were already familiar with the show and its score.” 

The winner of six Tony^® awards including Best Musical, as well as the 2018 Grammy award for Best Musical Theatre Album, Dear Evan Hansenis directed byfour-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif, features a book by Tony award-winner Steven Levenson and a score by the Tony, Grammy and Academy Award-winning composers of The Greatest Showman and La La Land, Benj Pasek & Justin Paul. 

A letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told, a life he never dreamed he could have. Evan Hansen is about to get the one thing he’s always wanted: a chance to finally fit in.  Both deeply personal and profoundly contemporary, Dear Evan Hansen is a new musical about life and the way we live it. 

Reuniting the original Broadway creative team for this West End production, Dear Evan Hansen is produced by Stacey Mindich and features choreography by Danny Mefford, scenic design by David Korins, projection design by Peter Nigrini, costume design by Emily Rebholz, lighting design by Japhy Weideman, sound design by Nevin Steinberg and hair design by David Brian Brown.  Music supervision, orchestrations and additional arrangements are by Alex Lacamoire.  Ben Cohn is the Associate Music Supervisor.  Vocal arrangements and additional arrangements are by Justin Paul.  Casting by Jill Green Casting. Sash Bischoff, Adam Quinn and Danny Sharron are the Associate Directors. Judith Schoenfeld is the Production Supervisor. US General Management 101 Productions, Ltd; UK General Management – Ambassador Theatre Group. Adam Speers is the UK Executive Producer.

Dear Evan Hansen has won the Drama League Award for Outstanding Musical Production and for the off-Broadway production, two Obie Awards, a Drama Desk Award, two Outer Critics Circle Awards and two Helen Hayes Awards.  The Grammy Award-winning Original Broadway Cast Recording of Dear Evan Hansen produced by Atlantic Records, was released in February 2017, making an extraordinary debut on the Billboard 200 and entering the chart at #8 – the highest charting debut position for an original cast album since 1961. The album went on to win the 2018 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album and recently became only the third cast recording this decade to go gold.  A deluxe version of the cast recording, including six bonus tracks and a pop cover from Katy Perry of ‘Waving Through a Window’ is available digitally.

Dear Evan Hansen opened on Broadway at the Music Box Theatre to great critical acclaim on 4 December 2016 where it has broken all box office records and is now in its third year of standing-room-only audiences.  A record-breaking US national tour launched in October 2018 and is currently touring North America.

BIOGRAPHIES

Sam Tutty (Evan Hansen),who studied at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts, recently made his professional stage debut in Once on This Island at the Southwark Playhouse.

Lucy Anderson (Zoe Murphy) graduated from Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts this summer and is making her professional West End debut in Dear Evan Hansen.

Rebecca McKinnis’(Heidi Hansen)theatre credits includeMargaret in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at the Apollo Theatre, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown at the Playhouse Theatre, A Small Family Business for the National Theatre, We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre, Mamma Mia! at the Novello Theatre and the Les Misérables 25^th Anniversary Tour and O2 Concert.  Her television and film credits include The Sound of Music Live and Beauty and the Beast.

Lauren Ward’s (Cynthia Murphy) previous theatre credits include Caroline or Change for Chichester Festival Theatre, Hampstead Theatre, The Playhouse (West End), Matilda, The Winter’s Tale and Pericles for the Royal Shakespeare Company, The Sound of Music at the London Palladium, Philadelphia Story at The Old Vic and A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Camelot for Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.  Her New York credits include 1776 for The Roundabout, Follies at the Belasco Theatre, The Heiress and Carousel at Lincoln Centre, and the Original Production of Violet at Playwrights Horizons.  On television her credits include Law and Order SVU, Kiss Me First and The Last Day of the Lehman Brothers. 

Doug Colling (Connor Murphy), who studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, is making his professional stage debut in Dear Evan Hansen.

Rupert Young’s (Larry Murphy) previous theatre credits include Plenty at Chichester Festival Theatre, Twelfth Night at the Young Vic, While the Sun Shines at Theatre Royal Bath, High Society at The Old Vic, Never So Good and Afterlife at the National Theatre and Cymbeline and Twelfth Night at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.  His film credits include The Secret Garden and Writers Retreat and his television credits include Good Karma Hospital, The White Queen, Shameless, Merlin and Hotel Babylon.

Jack Loxton (Jared Kleinman) starred in the role of Christopher in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Albert Narracott in War Horse, both for the National Theatre and in the West End. He was last on stage in A Room with a View at the Theatre Royal Bath.  His television credits include Vanity Fair and The Coroner.  On film he has been seen in The Sense of an Ending.

Nicole Raquel Dennis’ (Alana Beck) theatre credits include Waitress at the Adelphi Theatre, Dreamgirls at the Savoy Theatre and Book of Mormon at the Prince of Wales Theatre.  She was also a contestant on The Voice 2019, mentored by Jennifer Hudson.

Marcus Harman’s (Alternate Evan Hansen) theatre credits include Sunday in the Park with George and Parade for the National Youth Music Theatre at The Other Palace.  Dear Evan Hansen marks Harman’s professional stage debut.

Tricia Adele-Turner’s (Ensemble) theatre credits include Benidorm Live, Dusty and Jackie The Musical all on tour, Legally Blonde the Musical at the Savoy Theatre, We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre, Blood Brothers at the Phoenix Theatre and They’re Playing our Song at the Menier Chocolate Factory.

David Breeds’(Ensemble)theatre credits includethe original cast of Gary Barlow and Tim Firth’s The Girls at the Leeds Grand Theatre and The Lowry. A recipient of a Lionel Bart Foundation Scholarship, Breeds was also finalist for the Stephen Sondheim Student Performer of The Year Award.

Haydn Cox (Ensemble) willmake his West End debut having recently returned from the World of Musicals, GFD Promotions’ tour of the USA.  He is Composer and Lyricist for Amnesiac – a feature film musical currently in pre-production.  His singles include ‘Just Let Me Know’, ‘Reflections’ and ‘Prove Me Wrong’.  His audience request-driven live piano/vocal shows include Contemporary Keys and Haydn Tonight.

Natalie Kassanga (Ensemble)played Diana Ross in Motown The Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre.  Previously she was an original cast member of Cameron Mackintosh’s Oliver! at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane and she made her West End debut as Young Nala in The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre.

Hannah Lindsey’s (Ensemble) theatre credits include The House on Cold Hill UK tour, Ratpack Live in Las Vegas UK tour and Jesus The Rock Opera at the Dominion Theatre. She frequently performs as the lead female vocalist in Definitive Ratpack as well as with singer/songwriter Sam Bradley.  

Mark Peachey’s (Ensemble) theatre credits include Macbeth and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre, Blenheim, Moll Flanders for Mercury Theatre Colchester, A Streetcar Named Desire and Richard III for Leicester Curve Theatre, The Gruffalo at the Duchess Theatre, We’re Going on a Bear Hunt at The Lowry and Legally Blonde, Mamma Mia!, Mr Stink, The Lion King and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang all on tour.

Courtney Stapleton (Ensemble)was most recently in Six at the Arts Theatre playing the alternate Jane Seymour and Catherine Parr.  She made her stage debut in Mamma Mia! at the Novello Theatre and was previously seen in Bat Out of Hell at the Dominion Theatre and on tour internationally, Les Misérables at the Queen’s Theatre and with Kerry Ellis Live at the London Palladium.

Alex Thomas-Smith (Ensemble)was most recently on stage in Bat Out of Hell at the Dominion Theatre. His previous credits include Motown the Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Sweet Charity at the Royal Exchange Theatre and Bugsy Malone at the Lyric Hammersmith. His screen credits include the CBBC/Kindle Entertainment web series Dixi where he appeared as series regular, Bubs.

LISTINGS

James Winter’s(Ensemble)theatre credits include Jersey Boys in the West End and on Tour, Les Misérables at the Queen’s Theatre and Shrek The Musical original UK tour.

Theatre                                Noël Coward Theatre, St Martin’s Lane, London WC2N 4AU

Dates                                   from 29 October 2019

Opening Night                      19 November 2019 at 7pm

Box Office                            0844 482 5151

Performances                       Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm, Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm

Tickets                                 from £12.50, £2.50 booking fee applies

SOCIAL MEDIA

Facebook                              facebook.com/DEHWestEnd/

Twitter                                 twitter.com/DEHWestEnd

Instagram                            www.instagram.com/DEHWestEnd

Youtube                    www.youtube.com/dearevanhansenmusical

Tumblr                                 dearevanhansenofficial.tumblr.com/

WEBSITE

Website                                www.dearevanhansen.com/london/

Professor Goodman will visit the Ambassadors Theatre in the West End to confirm the supernatural is PURELY a trick of the mind…or is it?

LIMITED WEST END SEASON RUNS FROM

THURSDAY 3^RD OCTOBER – SATURDAY 4^th JANUARY 2020

WARNING

Please be advised that Ghost Stories contains moments of extreme shock and tension. The show is unsuitable for anyone under the age of 15. We strongly advise those of a nervous disposition to think very seriously before attending.

There’s something dark lurking in the theatre. Enter a nightmarish world, full of thrilling twists and turns, where all your deepest fears and most disturbing thoughts are imagined live on stage. A fully sensory and electrifying encounter, Ghost Stories is the ultimate twisted love-letter to horror, a supernatural edge-of-your-seat theatrical experience like no other.

After exhilarating audiences across the globe with record breaking, sell-out productions and a smash hit film, Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson’s worldwide cult phenomenon Ghost Stories returns to the West End this autumn, following a smash-hit extended run at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre. More spine-tingling and terrifying than ever, the Olivier Award-nominated show’s strictly limited transfer opens at The Ambassadors Theatre on Thursday 3rd October 2019, where it runs until Saturday 4^th January 2020.

Casting to be announced.

Andy Nyman is an award-winning actor, director and writer who has earned acclaim from both critics and audiences for his work in theatre, film and television. On stage Andy is currently playing the iconic role of Tevye in Trevor Nunn’s revival of Fiddler on the Roof. It is playing at the Playhouse Theatre until November 2nd. Andy was also seen in Martin McDonagh’s Hangmen (Wyndham’s Theatre), Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins (Menier Chocolate Factory) and Abigail’s Party (also Wyndham’s Theatre). Other theatre work includes the original production of Ghost Stories (Lyric/Duke of York’s Theatre) which has recently been made into a major motion picture, also written, starred and directed by Andy & Jeremy Dyson. Other film credits include The Commuter, Death at a Funeral and Kick-Ass 2. Hisupcoming films include playing opposite The Rock & Emily Blunt in Disney’s Jungle Cruise plus starring opposite Renee Zellweger in Judy. TV he is best known for Peaky Blinders, Campus & Dead Set, and has recently appeared in BBC 1’s Wanderlust.

Jeremy Dyson is a screenwriter, stage-writer and author, best known as a member of comedy group The League of Gentlemen. With Andy Nyman he co-wrote and co-directed the stage and film versions of Ghost Stories. In addition he co-created and co-wrote the BAFTA-nominated comedy-drama series Funland and co-created, co-wrote and directed the Rose d’Or-winning all-female comedy show Psychobitches.  His second collection of stories, ‘The Cranes that Build the Cranes‘ won the Edge Hill Award for short fiction.

Ambassador Theatre Group Productions, Smith and Brant Theatricals and the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre present the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s production of Ghost Stories.

For more information, please see:

www.ghoststorieslive.co.uk

Birmingham Reparatory Theatre – until 21st September then Nationwide Tour

Reviewed by Joanne Hodge

5*****

Having read, and fallen in love with, Alice Seabold’s ‘The Lovely Bones’ when it was first published in 2002, I couldn’t wait to see it transferred to the stage, intrigued by how anyone could bring my vision of Susie’s Heaven and Earth to life. If I’d any concerns at all, I needn’t have worried.

Bryony Lavery’s adaptation is faultless. The story, set in the 1970’s, centres around the sexual assault and murder of 14 year old Susie, eldest child of Jack and Abigail Salmon, by their neighbour, Mr Harvey [a yet to be unmasked serial killer]. Though the plot sounds grim, it’s actually a heart-warming tale of a girl dealing with the emotion and trauma of adolescence, through watching her younger sister and brother – Lindsey and Buckley – continue to grow whilst she watches on, frozen in time. It also explores grief, as both the audience and Susie get to observe the lives of those left behind dealing with such an unexpected and unsolved loss.

Director Melly Still seems to have had the perfect cast to work with, and her utilisation of them playing multiple parts was, for the most, seamless. In any other scenario I’m sure seeing Susie’s love interest Ray [Samuel Gosrani], morph scene-to-scene into her beloved family dog Holiday would be considered bizarre, however, the fact that you are watching the story flit between both sides of The Veil makes this entirely plausible. We’ve all had those dreams where one room suddenly turns into another, or you’re talking to someone who then fades into someone else, no? Maybe just me!

Charlotte Beaumont’s Susie is a revelation. She is warm, funny, snarky, sarcastic, clever and witty – everything 14 year old me wanted to be, and she commanded the theatre, whether talking directly to the audience, or in quiet contemplation upstage. I was captivated. I felt like I myself went through every human possible emotion whilst watching her story unfold. I shed a tear when she was brutally gagged and raped, I laughed – and inwardly blushed – as she began to feel the first flushes of both love and lust, and sympathised with the frustration that she would never have the opportunity to fulfil such longing. More than anything, I was angry for her, that she was so profoundly aware of the proximity to her family of the man responsible for her untimely end, and feeling the undeniable fear that he may harm them, and that they may never know of his guilt.

Ana Ines Jaberes-Pita [Designer] and Matt Haskins [Lighting] creating a set that stretched the limits of the audiences belief – I heard several of them saying ~How can we see that?” “Are they walking across the stage or is it CGI?” and “How are those mirrors working? They are mirrors, aren’t they?” It created an electric atmosphere, and to-date, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a set like it.

As a fan of the book, the stage adaptation gave me more than I ever expected, but don’t think if you haven’t read it, it’s not worth seeing. It is a theatrical masterpiece, and, if you can’t make the play in Birmingham, make sure you catch it on the nationwide tour.

York Theatre Royal – until Sat 14 September 2019

Reviewed by Michelle Richardson

5*****

Emma Rice’s Wise Children and York Theatre Royal have co-produced this production of Malory Towers in association with the Bristol Old Vic, which is touring until early October.                                             

I grew up reading Enid Blyton, most noticeably The Famous Five, but did dabble in The Secret Seven, but that was about it. I have never read Malory Towers, or known anything about the series of books. Nevertheless, I was looking forward to seeing this piece on stage.

This show combines tales from the book series, retelling the stories of seven children, during their first term, of Malory Towers boarding school, on the Cornish coast. This is a tale of friendship, bullying and post war trauma. For this production we only ever get to see the physical portrayal of the children, as the only adult, the schools head Miss Grayling, is shown as a silhouetted videoed cartoon character voiced by Shelia Hancock. That is too simple of an explanation of how it appeared on the stage, because it was so very effective. 

First set in a modern school, outside the Heads office, a traumatic experience takes us back in time, post war, to Paddington train station, where the girls are all off to Malory Towers. We meet second year Alicia (Renee Lamb), the joker of the bunch, welcoming the newbies. Tempestuous Darrell (Izuka Hoyle) soon befriends the timid Mary Lou (Rose Shalloo), sticking up for her when spoilt Gwendoline (Rebecca Collingwood) tries to bully her into changing seats. Also joining the train are Irene Dupont (Mirabelle Gremaud) and serious, super organised Sally (Francesca Mills). You get to meet the last character, Bill (Vinnie Heaven), who arrives at the school riding Thunder, the horse.

With back flips, harp playing, courtesy of Germaud, and songs, the whole cast were equally superb, energetic, believable and with great voices, working so well together. It would be hard to pick out one, but for me Mills was outstanding as Sally. She had so much charisma up on that stage, bounding about all over, and her comic timing was magnificent.

The set, designed by Lez Brotherston, is split on two levels, with the lower depicting the dorms. It is used to its full potential by the actors leaping from one floor to another. The floor even lifts up to show a swimming pool and this is shown to a fantastic effect when incorporating Simon Baker’s excellent video work.  With the crayon, cartoon like drawings creating a laugh in the audience. His work later on during the thunder storm and Mary Lou’s rescue, was fabulous to watch. 

Malory Towers is a celebration of childhood, showing how mean girls can really be, but also showing how bonds are formed and those school friends become each others family. 

This is a great show for all, maybe for different reasons. For adults going back in time, even though it depicts the jolly hockey stick brigade that we only read about, or watched on our tv screens. For kids it is more the magic of the storytelling, and magic is what this show is. 

“MAMMA MIA!”

ANNOUNCES NEW BOOKING PERIOD

TO SATURDAY 19 SEPTEMBER 2020

AT LONDON’S NOVELLO THEATRE

ON SALE 10:00AM FRIDAY 13 SEPTEMBER 2019

The global smash hit musical MAMMA MIA! at London’s Novello Theatre is now extending its booking period from Monday 9 March 2020 to Saturday 19 September 2020.  MAMMA MIA! celebrated its 20^th anniversary in London’s West End at the Novello Theatre on Saturday 6 April 2019 and is now in its 21^st year.

The London cast of MAMMA MIA! stars Mazz Murray as Donna, Kirsty Hoiles as Tanya, Ricky Butt as Rosie, Richard Trinder as Sam, Neil Moors as Harry, Stephen Beckett as Bill, Lucy May Barker as Sophie,  Cameron Burt as Sky, Melissa Nettleford as Ali, Sophie Matthew as Lisa, Taylor Bradshaw as Eddie and Danny Nattrass as Pepper, with Caroline Deverill playing the role of Donna at certain performances.

Also in the cast are Natasha Agnew, Chloe Ames, Daniel Clift, Jonathan Cordin, Amelia-Rose Fielding, Shailan Gohil, Lauren Hampton, Callum Heinrich, Jennifer Hepburn, Frankie Jones, Grace Moorhouse, Jodie Nolan, Dan O’Brien, David O’Mahony, Rochelle Sherona, Megan Speirs, Garrett Tennant, Michael Tyler, Harrison Wilde and Simon Willmont.

Since premiering in London in 1999, the irresistible feelgood musical has captured the hearts of millions around the globe.  The sunny, funny tale of a mother, a daughter and three possible dads on a Greek island idyll, all unfolding to the magic of ABBA’s timeless pop masterpieces, has now been seen live on stage by 65 million people across the world, and turned into two record-breaking movies – MAMMA MIA! The Movie and MAMMA MIA! Here We Go Again.

To date, MAMMA MIA! has been seen in 50 productions in 16 different languages grossing more than $4 billion at the box office.  In 2011, it became the first Western musical ever to be staged in Mandarin in the People’s Republic of China.  MAMMA MIA! is also currently playing in a German-language tour in Germany, a Dutch-language production in Utrecht, a Korean-language production in Seoul and a Mandarin-language production in China.  The full scale production of MAMMA MIA! continues to perform on The Royal Caribbean Ship  ‘Allure of The Seas’.  Upcoming productions include a UK and International Tour and a Danish-language tour of Denmark.

MAMMA MIA! originally opened in London at the Prince Edward Theatre on 6 April 1999, before transferring to the Prince of Wales Theatre in 2004, and then to the Novello Theatre in 2012.  The London production of MAMMA MIA! has been seen by over 9 million people, played over 8,500 performances and has broken box office records in all three of its London homes. 

Produced by Judy Craymer, MAMMA MIA! The Movie became the highest grossing live action musical film of all time upon its release in 2008.  A second film, MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO AGAIN, opened in July 2018 and is the most successful live musical movie sequel of all time.

With music & lyrics by Benny Andersson & Björn Ulvaeus, MAMMA MIA! is written by Catherine Johnson, directed by Phyllida Lloyd and choreographed by Anthony Van Laast. The production is designed by Mark Thompson, with lighting design by Howard Harrison, sound design by Andrew Bruce & Bobby Aitken, and musical supervision, additional material & arrangements by Martin Koch.

MAMMA MIA! is produced by Judy Craymer, Richard East & Björn Ulvaeus for Littlestar in association with Universal.

LISTINGS INFORMATION

Novello Theatre

Aldwych

London WC2B 4LD

Ticket Prices: From £15.00

A £2.50 per ticket booking fee applies to tickets booked online and by phone.  No booking fee on tickets purchased in person at the Novello Theatre Box Office.

All prices include £1.25 restoration levy.

Early Bird Pricing – anyone booking four months or more in advance of the performance they are attending (Monday to Thursday performances only) will save £20 on Band A and Premium tickets, but only through Delfont Mackintosh Theatres, either online, in person at the theatre, or by calling the Novello Theatre Box Office.

A limited number of seats released daily for that day’s performance(s) at 10:00AM, in person at the Box Office.

Performance Times:

Monday – Saturday 7.45pm

Matinees – Thursday & Saturday 3.00pm*

*extra Tuesday matinees 22 October 2019, 18 February 2020, 4 & 18 August 2020

Christmas 2019/20 Performance Schedule

Monday 23 December               3.00pm and 7.45pm      

Tuesday 24 December              NO PERFORMANCE

Wednesday 25 December         NO PERFORMANCE

Thursday 26 December             7.45pm

Friday 27 December                 3.00pm and 7.45pm

Saturday 28 December             3.00pm and 7.45pm

Monday 30 December               3.00pm and 7.45pm

Tuesday 31 December              3.00pm and 7.45pm

Wednesday 1 January               7.45pm

Thursday 2 January                   3.00pm and 7.45pm

Friday 3 January                       7.45pm

Saturday 4 January                   3.00pm and 7.45pm

Currently booking to 19 September 2020

The performance lasts 2 hours and 35 minutes (including a 15-minute interval)

Box Office: 0844 482 5151

AWARD WINNING WEST END STAR

KERRY ELLIS

TO PERFORM

AT WEST END BARES

ALONGSIDE STARS OF THE STAGE

AT TROXY

ON SUNDAY 13 OCTOBER AT 8.30PM

The Make A Difference Trust is thrilled to announce that award-winning West End star, Kerry Ellis will be performing the finale of WEST END BARES: STRIPPED at the climax of the shows 10^th Birthday performance at Troxy on Sunday 13 October at 8.30pm.

Kerry Will be joined by a host of stars from the stage and screen including Amy Hart from ITV2’s Love Island 2019; Natalie McQueen who is currently starring as ‘Doralee Rhodes’ in “9 to 5 The Musical”; Michael Auger who is best known as a member of the Britain’s Got Talent winning group, Collabro; Emmanuel Kojo who has most recently been seen “Oklahoma!” at Chichester Festival Theatre and “Girl From The North Country” at the Noel Coward Theatre and Oliver Saville who is currently on stage in “Falsettos” at The Other Palace and is best known as ‘Fiyero’ in “Wicked” at the Apollo Victoria.

WEST END BARES: STRIPPED will be directed by David Grewcock and Will Lucas, with choreography from Jessica Ellen Knight (Saturday Night Fever, Evita, Cabaret), Sean Parkins (Dreamgirls, The Book Of Mormon, Wicked), Joanna Goodwin (Sunset Boulevard, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Barnum), Stuart Rogers (The Bodyguard, We Will Rock You, Mary Poppins), Racky Plews (American Idiot, Footloose, Knights of the Rose), Ashley Nottingham (Newsies, Spamalot, Thoroughly Modern Millie), Ella Nonini (Cats, Wicked, Mamma Mia) Adam Scott (Mamma Mia, That’s Entertainment), Chris Whittaker (I Wish My Life Were Like A Musical, Alice In Wonderland) and more to announced.

Special celebrity guests and performers for this year’s performance will be announced later this month. Previous celebrity supporters over the last ten years have included Graham Norton, John Barrowman, Eddie Izzard, Samantha Bond, Dame Judi Dench, Joe Lycett, Beverley Knight, Summer Strallen, Tom Allen, Bianca del Rio, Michelle Visage, Adam Garcia, Dianne Pilkington, Mark Gatiss, Ian Hallard, Celinde Schoenmaker and Oliver Savile.

WEST END BARES benefits the Make A Difference Trust, a UK based charity with a vision of a world free from HIV and AIDS.  Since its first scintillating show in 2010 WEST END BARES has raised over £300,000.  WEST END BARES is based on the original concept BROADWAY BARES by Tony Award winning Broadway and West End director and choreographer Jerry Mitchell.

Building on a legacy of over 30 years of fundraising by the theatre industry, The Make A Difference Trust raises funds for HIV and AIDS projects that build awareness and provide care, support and education in the United Kingdom and Sub-Saharan Africa. The Trust works with established partners to ensure projects have maximum impact and are sustainable. The Trust has distributed grants to support individuals experiencing hardship across the UK as well as grants to support projects with their UK and International partners, to relieve poverty, provide a safe environment and education for children and orphans affected by HIV and AIDS, and to secure the needs of the individual and the greater community as a whole For further information about the Make A Difference Trust please visit www.madtrust.org.uk

Tickets for WEST END BARES are on sale now and are priced at £25 – £80.

Tickets are available from www.troxy.co.uk/ or www.madtrust.org.uk. Booking fees apply.

VIP tickets are available directly from the MAD Trust by calling 020 7231 9719 and include access to the pre-show drinks reception, VIP entrance to the theatre with a drink on arrival, £10 of MAD money, the best seats in the House for the legendary Rotation and access to the Exclusive After Party. Booking fees apply.

Please note: All artists appear subject to availability.

Paradise Lodge transfers fresh from
Edinburgh Fringe to the Tabard Theatre
Tabard Theatre, Bath Road, Chiswick, W4 1LW
Friday 11th – Thursday 24th October 2019 (not Mondays or Sundays), 7:30pm

Transferring fresh from its acclaimed run at the Edinburgh Fringe, Paradise Lodge is the musical comedy based on writer Steve Cooper’s experience of caring for his mother-in-law as she lived with dementia. This show is a relatable and compassionate piece that creates an immediate connection with anyone who has had experience with dementia

Eric and Kylie, a dysfunctional ukulele musical duo called The Doodlebugs, embark on their first gig together at the Paradise Lodge Care Home. Told in a series of touching flashbacks and some comic songs from the wartime era, Paradise Lodge transports Vi, Ronnie and the audience back to a time when they had all their lives in front of them – to when they thought they would live forever

Trying to make sense of dementia and its impact on those affected, Paradise Lodge explores the nature of identity, reality and loss, with a bit of Beyoncé’s Single Ladies thrown in for good measure. A hilarious, heart-wrenching production, it will have audiences laughing, crying and singing their hearts out

During their time in Edinburgh, Paradise Lodge raised over £1,000 for Alzheimer Scotland and although the Doodlebugs may be a fictional duo, they came to life when they performed in local nursing homes

Steve comments, The reactions from audiences young and old has been really touching. People who were apprehensive that the show might be a difficult watch have said they took heart from learning that they weren’t alone. Health professionals have said it could be used to train carers. People with Alzheimer’s, dementia and their families have watched it together and each seems to find something that speaks to them. When people come back the next night and bring others with them it shows that they feel ownership of the play. For me, that’s the highest praise. Whether people have personal experience of the condition or not, they all end up singing!

Paradise Lodge is a compassionate, unflinching look at old age, while in the context of a musical comedy. Informed by real experience, it takes us to places we’d rather not go, and reminds us that they still contain kindness and humanity (★★★★ The Scotsman)

The sheer reality of it is relatable…. a delightful and poignant production (★★★★ London Theatre 1).