CHRISTMAS IN LEICESTER SQUARE 2019: FULL PROGRAMME ANNOUNCED
· 8 Nov 2019 – 5 Jan 2020
· Legendary Olivier-winning variety La Clique returns to the West End to headline the Leicester Square Spiegeltent
· Top Live Entertainment from Jess Robinson, Spice Gals, Puppini Sisters, Phoenix Arts Club and Tuck Shop
· Live family entertainment headlined by Captain Flinn and The Pirate Dinosaurs: The Magical Cutlass
· Further family fun in Journey through Jazz, Kids of the West End, Fun Kids Epic Roadshow, Showstoppers Kids Show and Shlomo’s Beatbox Adventure for Kids
Underbelly is proud to announce the full line-up for Christmas in Leicester Square 2019, the Christmas festival in the heart of the West End with a spectacular line-up of affordable live entertainment for all ages sitting within a scenic European-style Christmas Market complete with a fantastic storytelling Santa’s Grotto.
Headlining the brilliant programme of theatre, music and cabaret is legendary Olivier Award-winning variety show La Clique, returning to the West End for the first time in more than a decade with an all-star cast including cabaret sensation and MC Bernie Dieter, gentleman juggler Florian Brooks, the fire-breathing, sword-swallowing, side-show sensation Heather Holliday and aerialist Stephen Williams performing the iconic Bath Boy act. As well as an eight-week residency La Clique will be performing a one-off New Year’s Eve Spectacular with a post-show party letting partiers dance through the bells until 2am.
Headlining an outstanding family entertainment programme is Captain Flinn and The Pirate Dinosaurs: The Magical Cutlass – the highly anticipated sequel based on the award-winning book by Giles Andreae and Russell Ayto which sees the fearless Flinn and his loyal pals once again face off against the dastardly Mr T the T-Rex in a swashbuckling adventure combining classy theatrical production with top notch puppetry, produced by Les Petits the children’s theatre company from the team behind internationally acclaimed Les Enfants Terribles.
Further live entertainment comes in a fun-packed hour of comedy, music and vocal fireworks from ‘human jukebox’ Jess Robinson, the world’s premier drag tribute to the Spice Girls, Spice Gals, the exquisite vocal harmonies of The Puppini Sisters, Soho cabaret institution Phoenix Arts Club with a sizzling seasonal spectacle Lickable: The all senses ChristmasCabaret,and drag superstars Tuck Shop with festive special Tucking Around the Christmas Tree.
Shows for all ages include Journey Through Jazz – the ultimate interactive dance show and lesson from London favourite Swing Out creators SwingDanceUK, Kids of the West End an electrifying selection of performances from the best young performers in theatreland, hit interactive shenanigans in Fun Kids Epic Roadshow Adventure, the original improvised musical for all the family, Showstoppers Kids Show, and legendary master of his trade Shlomo with his acclaimed Beatbox Adventure for Kids, mixing theatre, storytelling and his incredible DIY musical stylings, all created solely by his own vocal chords.
All of this takes place within the incredibly atmospheric and innately festive Leicester Square Spiegeltent, set within a unique, scenic, bustling European Christmas Market set in the heart of London’s West End, with over 30 different stalls purveying the finest selection of yuletide food, drink and gifts.
Set within this winter kingdom is the magical Santa’s Grotto, a chance for children from far and wide to meet the big man himself, give him their personal Christmas list, receive a gift, and even hear him tell a festive story.
Christmas in Leicester Square directors Ed Bartlam and Charlie Wood said:
“Over the past three years the opening of Christmas in Leicester Square has grown to become the definitive sign in London’s West End that Santa Claus is coming to town. Last year we were delighted to break the record for footfall and this year we’re hoping we can capture the city’s festive imagination just as much with our programme of live entertainment for all ages, our European Christmas Market and, of course, our unique Santa’s Grotto.
“We couldn’t be happier to welcome La Clique to Underbelly’s Christmas in Leicester Square and the incomparable Leicester Square Spiegeltent 10 years after it exploded into London’s West End and set the cabaret world on fire.”
Cllr Iain Bott, Cabinet Member for Sports, Culture and Community, Westminster City Council said:
“With an eclectic mix of live performances, family shows and a magical Santa’s grotto, Christmas in Leicester Square is a highlight of the West End’s festive calendar. I am particularly looking forward to seeing this year’s Winter Windows scheme which will be showcasing the fantastic creativity of our City Lions and Westminster schoolchildren”
The Home of Halloween (5th October – 3rd November)
York attraction gears up for their most entertaining Halloween yet
Hannah Jade Robbins as Isabella Billington in The Curse of the Witch
This October, The York Dungeon will become the Home of Halloween, offering unique experiences across the year’s spookiest season.
Amazing live actors and 360 degree sets will fully immerse guests in the darkest parts of old York’s history. Along the way, guests will meet such notorious residents as Guy Fawkes and highwayman Dick Turpin. This Halloween, the attraction is ramping up the scares in their most recent show, The Curse of the Witch; an intense experience featuring infamous local witch Isabella Billington. The show has been dubbed “the scariest show in Dungeon history”.
“We’re upping the ante like never before. All of our incredible shows will push the “scary-fun” vibe of The Dungeons to new extremes, bringing to life York’s darkest history” said Performance Manager Rachael Garwood. “Honestly, it’s so exciting to showcase this unique part of York’s past and present the horrible stories in such a thrilling way.”
Throughout the month, the award-winning attraction opens its doors to an unsuspecting public for a frightfully fun season of macabre scenes from the past. In addition to the attraction tour, the Dungeon have partnered up with City River Cruises again for their famous Halloween Cruise on the Ouse. The family friendly experience allows guests to step aboard an old, abandoned ship on the city’s famous River Ouse. Hosted by the Black Jester, audiences will discover famous Yorkshire prophet Old Mother Shipton and the outrageous George “Georgie Porgie” Villiers – the 2nd Duke of Buckingham – shaped some horrible parts of history.
The York Dungeon is also sponsoring the famous Great York Ghost Search, in association with VisitYork. There are many ghosts hidden around the city. Find them, and you could win some amazing prizes, including Merlin Magic Passes!
The Home of Halloween runs 5th October – 3rd November. Halloween Cruise on the Ouse runs 26th-31st October at 18:00 and 20:00. To book, please visit https://www.citycruisesyork.com/evening/halloween-cruise/. The Great York Ghost Search runs 11th October – 1st November. More information can be found at www.visityork.org
Based on the film by MICHAEL POWELL and EMERIC PRESSBURGER
and the HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN fairytale
Music by BERNARD HERRMANN
TOUR OPENS ON MONDAY 18 NOVEMBER IN PLYMOUTH
CHRISTMAS SEASON AT SADLER’S WELLS FROM 3 DECEMBER
TOUR CONTINUES UNTIL JUNE 2020
New Adventures is delighted to announce the full cast for the return of Matthew Bourne’s double Olivier award-winning, smash hit production of “THE RED SHOES”.
The tour opens on Monday 18 November at Theatre Royal Plymouth and runs until Saturday 23 November, ahead of a seven-week Christmas season at Sadler’s Wells, London, from Tuesday 3 December to Sunday 19 January 2020. The tour continues until June 2020. Full listings below. www.new-adventures.net
Matthew Bourne said today: “I’m proud that for nearly 20 years, New Adventures has built an unprecedented audience for dance throughout the UK, and for this national tour of “The Red Shoes” we will play over 200 performances across 21 leading regional large-scale theatres, more than any other UK dance company. We have an audience who are fiercely loyal, questioning and open-minded, as has been shown on the current tour of our radical reinterpretation of “Romeo and Juliet”. As ever, I am grateful for their trust and enthusiastic support.
I’m thrilled that for the first revival of our 2016 hit, “The Red Shoes”, most of the original leading cast will be returning including Ashley Shaw in her multi award-winning performance as Victoria Page. Along with several New Adventures rising stars, who will be performing in the production for the first time, I’m particularly excited to be re-united with my original Swan, the wonderful Adam Cooper, who joins us for the first time in twenty years.”
The full cast is:
BORIS LERMONTOV – Adam Cooper (until 19January 2020), Glenn Graham, Reece Causton (from February 2020), Ben Brown (from February 2020) and Andrew Monaghan (from March 2020)
VICTORIA PAGE – Ashley Shaw and Cordelia Braithwaites
JULIAN CRASTER – Dominic North, Stephen Murray (until end of February 2020), Harrison Dowzell (until end of February 2020) and Andrew Monaghan (from 17 February 2020)
IRINA BORONSKAJA – Michela Meazza (until 8 February 2020), Sophia Hurdley and Katie Webb (from 17 February 2020)
IVAN BOLESLAWSKY – Liam Mower and Jackson Fisch
GRISCHA LJUBOV – Glenn Graham, Liam Mower and Danny Reubens
They are joined by Steph Billers, João Carolino, Cameron Flynn, Christina Rebecca Gibbs, Rose Goddard, Bryony Harrison, Daisy May Kemp, Kate Lyons, Matt Petty, Catrin Thomas, Jem Trim and Joshua White.
A sell-out before its world premiere season opened in 2016, Matthew Bourne’s triumphant adaptation of the legendary film returns in 2019, having won two Olivier Awards and dazzled audiences across the UK and the USA.
“THE RED SHOES” is a tale of obsession, possession and one girl’s dream to be the greatest dancer in the world. Victoria Page lives to dance but her ambitions become a battleground between the two men who inspire her passion.
Set to the achingly romantic music of golden-age Hollywood composer Bernard Herrmann, “THE RED SHOES” is orchestrated by Terry Davies and played by the New Adventures Orchestra, with cinematic designs by Lez Brotherston, lighting by Paule Constable, sound by Paul Groothuis and projection design from Duncan McLean.
An intoxicating drama where life imitates art with fateful consequences; “THE RED SHOES” will dazzle your senses and break your heart.
“THE RED SHOES” is supported using public funds by Arts Council England.
ON-SALE: WEDNESDAY 25 SEPTEMBER AT 12 NOON FROM UPSTARTCROWTHECOMEDY.COM
A NEW COMEDY BY BEN ELTON
GIELGUD THEATRE PREVIEWS FROM: FRIDAY 7 FEBRUARY ON-SALE: WEDNESDAY 25 SEPTEMBER AT 12 NOON
David Mitchell is to make his West End debut next year in Ben Elton’s stage adaptation of the critically acclaimed BBC TV sitcom, Upstart Crow. This all-new comedy – written especially for the stage – will see Mitchell once more don the bald wig and bardish coddling pouch in his iconic characterisation of Will Shakespeare. Tickets go on sale at 12noon TODAY from UpstartCrowTheComedy.com
Opening at the Gielgud Theatre on 7 February, Gemma Whelan (Game of Thrones and Gentleman Jack) will co-star as the sweet and fragrant Kate. They will be joined on stage by a troupe of players for this 11 week season, directed by Olivier award-winner Sean Foley (The Ladykillers, Jeeves and Wooster and The Miser).
David Mitchell says: “I’m delighted to have the opportunity to bring history’s most famous balding dramatist to the West End via the amazing comic imagination of Ben Elton. Theatre goers can look forward to a comedy steeped in authentic Shakespearean ambience in every way apart from the smell.”
It is 1605 and England’s greatest playwright is in trouble. King James has been on the throne for two years and Will Shakespeare has produced just two plays, both of which being generally considered to resemble the large semi-flightless birds recently discovered pecking corn and going ‘gobble gobble’ in the New World. Measure for Measure was incomprehensible bollingbrokes by any measure and All’s Well That End’s Welldidn’t even end well. Will must lift his game or risk his head. Those who work at the pleasure of the King live in constant fear of his favour. No one has forgotten what happened to Henry VIII’s marriage guidance councillor.
Will desperately needs to come up with a brilliant new plot but he is finding it impossible to focus on finding one. He’s too distracted by family troubles. He’s considering dividing all his lands and property between his jealous, squabbling daughters and, to add to the confusion, two shipwrecked, Moorish, cross-dressing, identical twins have just arrived, separately and unaware of each other, at his door. How the futtock can a Bard be expected to find a plot for a play with all that is going on in the house?
To make matters worse Will’s friend and housekeeper Kate, horrified at the exploitation of showbiz animals for entertainment, has recently ‘liberated’ the Globe Theatre’s prize dancing bear. Kate intends to keep the poor distressed animal in the scullery until she can reintroduce her into the wild, but Mrs Whiskers (who was born to dance) has other plans. You can take the dancing bear out of the theatre, but you can’t take the theatre out of the dancing bear.
The list of nominees has been revealed for this year’s UK Theatre Awards, the only nationwide awards to honour and celebrate outstanding achievements in theatre throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Best New Play nominees are Laura Wade’s The Watsons, Ulster American by David Ireland and Life Of Pi, adapted by Lolita Chakrabarti from Yann Martel’s novel
Best Musical Production nominees are Curve and Birmingham Hippodrome co-production The Color Purple, Sheffield Theatres’ Standing At The Sky’s Edge and the Royal Exchange Theatre’s West Side Story
Four Nominations for Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre, and four for the Sheffield Theatres production of Life Of Pi
Mix of established performers (Mark Gatiss, Jenna Russell, Rebecca Trehearn) and rising talent (Kudzai Sitima, Emmanuel Kojo, Hiran Abeysekera) nominated in acting categories
Atri Banerjee for Hobson’s Choice, Katie Posner for My Mother Said I Never Should and Max Webster for Life Of Pi nominated for Best Director
The winners will be announced on Sunday 27 October, during a ceremony at London’s Guildhall.
Julian Bird, Chief Executive of UK Theatre, said:
‘The UK’s performing arts scene has never been more multifaceted, and this year’s nominations reflect an unprecedented variety of creative voices, bringing to life a broad spectrum of stories on stages around the country. It is fantastic to see so much new and rising talent among the nominees, and we look forward to bringing the industry together in celebration at the UK Theatre Awards.’
This year’s nominations are split into new ‘On Stage’ and ‘Off Stage’ categories, as part of a refresh of the Awards to reflect the contemporary priorities of the UK’s theatre industry. As part of this, UK Theatre members now have more involvement in the nomination process, can put forward shows and individuals for nomination and can submit an application for an Off Stage award.
Nominations for the UK’s Most Welcoming Theatre were announced last month as the New Vic (Newcastle-under-Lyme), Storyhouse (Chester) and the Young Vic (London). The winner, decided this year by a panel of judges, will be announced at the ceremony.
The full list of nominations is below, and available on the UK Theatre website.
The recipient of this year’s Outstanding Contribution to British Theatre Award will be announced soon.
The UK Theatre Awards are sponsored by Harbottle & Lewis, Integro Entertainment & Sport, John Good, SeatGeek, Theatre Tokens and White Light.
Full list of nominations for the UK Theatre Awards 2019
StoryHouse Live, Chester – until Saturday 28 September 2019
Reviewed by Julie Noller
5*****
Cabaret never fails to entertain, I’ve enjoyed performances but I can truly state that I loved this one. Having explained to my young friend who accompanied me that its full of debauchery, to which the reply was whats that…. Just wait and see.
I wasn’t wrong nor disappointed. But don’t be misled that it’s just nudity (yes there’s naked bodies running about the stage) or that it’s art. Cabaret also never fails to teach us a valuable lesson. I could watch many different versions, seeing actors old and young treading the boards and with each show learn something new. Indeed it is said that if we fail to learn from history then we’re likely to repeat it.
There are parallels between life in 1930s Germany and life here and now. Cabaret itself is based on a film, which is based on a book, which is based on a story, you get the picture and bear that in mind when watching for some parts become incredibly dark and foreboding. If you struggle to catch your breath or even find yourself shedding a tear, then forgive yourself. We could talk about politics, we could discuss what we appear to see on stage. It could in fact be personal it’s feasible that the memories up on stage are within living history. But it would just be my opinion on events gone by. I think we agree that they should never be repeated.
What is Cabaret? It’s a love story or perhaps 2 love stories, it’s about blind faith in humanity, it’s about finding your confidence and believing in yourself, deceiving yourself and those who think you hold them dear, learning to hide yourself, trusting the wrong people. In a nutshell it’s about life’s lessons that are long and hard and the ever changing world in which we live in.
Set in Berlin in the 1930’s a decade that saw the rise of fascism throughout Germany, yet to begin with was rife with a couldn’t care less attitude; what was money if not to be spent and what was life if not to be enjoyed. The KitKat Club is all this and more, a motto of anything goes, sex, male and/or female plus drugs and alcohol. The musical lyrics of Kander and Ebb never fail to hit home, rouse you, lift you and yet move you. Leaving you feeling chilled inside whilst you smile.
Director Rufus Norris has done a superb job bringing a multi talented cast together. They live and breathe their characters. John Partridge is outstanding as Emcee our host, at times comical at times rather mad. There’s an almost Charlie Chaplin (The Dictator) quality about him that has you looking on in bemused confusion. I do have to say though round of applause for John Partridges naked body confidence. Kara Lily Hayworth fresh from playing Cilla Black again doesn’t disappoint as Sally Bowles there’s an arrogance yet vulnerability about her. Perhaps nowadays she would be diagnosed with a personality disorder. Her singing is once again superb. Charles Haggerty as American Cliff Bradshaw, begins as a timid shrew yet grows on stage to a brilliant dominance. Crystal clear voice that shines through the clouds that are obviously building.
It was a doomed love affair that might just have made it, Sally fun loving and attention seeker. Life is grand whilst everyone loves her but vulnerable she leans on Cliff more as he finds his confidence in life. Sad to see the self destruct button pushed on a relationship that could’ve been as Cliff becomes realistic in foretelling the future and Sally buries her head like an ostrich; she isn’t the only one for there’s Herr Schultz the lovable James Paterson who denies anyone could wish harm to a fellow German his equally doomed love affair that should’ve been with Fraulein Schneider the dependable Anita Harris is in one small scene the sign of things to come and oh so sad. Nick Tizzard as future star of the Third Reich Ernst Ludwig, highlights everything that even by today’s standards is what is wrong with society. Hatred and jealousy being aimed at the more fortunate or those who differ in their sexual preferences. Culminating in the inevitable Cabaret closes with Ernst Ludwigs Nazis in control not only of Berlin and Germany, the cream of Berlins Kitkat Club are no longer adored. They are firstly shunned and kicked into the gutter before the final moment that even though you know it is coming still has you inhaling or in some cases sobbing. Naked and battered Emcee and company and forced to huddle within what we can only guess is a concentration camp and we watch on whilst rain pours down or is it a gas chamber. Imagination is a powerful tool but ever so scary mixed with real life.
The cast, who began rehearsals this week, features Femi Akinfolarin as Peter, Omari Bernardas Maugrim, Laura Elphinstone as the White Witch/Mrs Macready, Shalisa James-Davis as Susan, Wil Johnson as Aslan/Professor Kirk, Keziah Joseph as Lucy, John Leader as Edmund, Stuart Neal as Mr Tumnus, Dean Nolan as Mr Beaver and Beverly Rudd as Mrs Beaver. They are joined by Emily Benjamin, Amber Cayasso, Sebastian Charles,Andro Copperthwaite, Nicky Cross, David Emmings, Nathan Louis Fernand, Linford Johnson, Mitch Leow, Mei Mac, James McHugh, Helen Parke, Tinovimbanashe Sibanda and Millicent Wong and musicians James Gow, Tim Dalling, Harry Miller and Pat Moran.
Based on the novel by C. S. Lewis and directed by Sally Cookson, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe will have its first performance on 9 November 2019 with opening night on 18 November running until 2 February 2020.Full details of the performance schedule, including Sunday matinees, are available on the Bridge website.
Step through the wardrobe this Winter into the magical kingdom of Narnia for the most mystical of adventures in a faraway land. Join Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter as they wave goodbye to wartime Britain and say hello to a talking Faun, an unforgettable Lion and the coldest, cruellest White Witch.
This critically acclaimed production reunites director Sally Cookson with designer Rae Smith, writer in the room Adam Peck, movement director Dan Canham, lighting designer Bruno Poet, sound designer Ian Dickinson and music by Benji Bower all of whomoriginally brought the show to life in 2017 breaking box office records at Leeds Playhouse.
Written by C. S. Lewis,The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe was the first book published in The Chronicles of Narnia in 1950 and went on to become one of the most popular children’s books of all time; still regularly topping reader votes on the best books nearly 70 years later, including last month being voted the UK’s favourite book. The Chronicles of Narnia – The Magician’s Nephew, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Horse and His Boy, Prince Caspian, The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, The Silver Chair and The Last Battle – are classics of children’s literature, having enchanted generations of young readers, with over 100 million copies sold worldwide in over 70 countries and 59 different languages. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and The Chronicles of Narnia are published by HarperCollins Children’s Books.
Laura Elphinstone (White Witch/Mrs Macready)was last at the Bridge in Young Marx. Her other theatre credits include My Country and Jane Eyre for the National Theatre. Her television credits include Vera, Game of Thrones, Chernobyl and Line of Duty.
Wil Johnson’s (Aslan/Professor Kirk) more recent theatre credits include Sweat at the Donmar Warehouse and in the West End, UK tour of Glengarry Glen Ross, Leave Taking at the Bush Theatre, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead at the Old Vic, King Lear at The Royal Exchange and A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes at the Tricycle Theatre. His film and television credits include Carnival Row, Outlander,The Five,Waking The Dead, Adulthood, Vera, Lewis, Clocking Off, Cracker and Waterloo Road.
Keziah Joseph’s(Lucy) theatre credits include Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear at the National Theatre, Sweeney Todd at the Liverpool Everyman,The Paper Man at Soho Theatre, Dick Whittington at the Lyric Hammersmith, As You LikeIt at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, and The Jungle Book at Chichester Festival Theatre andonUK Tour.
John Leader’s (Edmund) theatre credits include Henry IV Parts I and II for Shakespeare’s Globe, A Monster Calls for the Old Vic, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe for West Yorkshire Playhouse, Peter Pan and War Horse for the National Theatre, Running Wild for Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and Romeo and Juliet for the Orange Tree.
Femi Akinfolarin (Peter)is currently playing the role of Brother in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat at the London Palladium. His other theatre credits include Man of La Mancha at the London Colliseum and Doctor Doolittle on UK tour.
Shalisa James-Davis’ (Susan) theatre credits includeOur Country’s Good and Notre Dame for the National Theatre and Romeo & Juliet for The Globe. Her film credits include Mary Queen of Scots, Bay of Silence. Her television credits include Silent Witness, Next of Kin and Vera.
Stuart Neal (Mr Tumnus) credits include Leo Bloom in The Producers at The Royal Exchange Manchester, Billy Lawlor in 42nd Street at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, The Grinning Man for Bristol Old Vic, La Cage aux Folles and Pippin for the Menier Chocolate Factory, Piaf at the Donmar Warehouse, Evita at the Adelphi Theatre and The Winter’s Tale at the Garrick Theatre, Macbeth at the Manchester International Festival and Armory NYC. His film credits include Cinderella and Les Misérables.
Dean Nolan’s (Mr Beaver) theatre credits include Billionaire Boy for the Nuffield Southampton Theatre/Tour, Kneehigh’s Brief Encounter and Steptoe and Son both in the West End, Sweeney Todd, Fiddler on the Roof, The Conquest of the South Pole and Romeo and Juliet all for Liverpool Everyman, and Big Fish at the Other Palace Theatre. His screen credits include the upcoming ITV series Quiz created by Stephen Frears and James Graham, Flack for UKTV, Will for TNT and Rufus Norris’ London Road.
Beverly Rudd’s (Mrs Beaver) theatre credits include Kneehigh’s production DeadDogInASuitcase, TinDrum and Brief Encounter in the West End and on national and international Tour, Peter Pan, TheBeggarsOpera and IntoTheWoods for Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, TheTwits at the Curve Theatre, JamesAndTheGiantPeach for West Yorkshire Playhouse and MuchAdoAboutNothing for the Royal Exchange Theatre. Her television credits include Lisa as a series regular in Trollied for Sky as well as guest appearances in Shameless for Channel 4, Him & Her for BBC 3 and Coronation Street for ITV.
Omari Bernard’s (Maugrim) theatre credits include Porgy and Bess and Two Boy for English National Opera, The Bodyguard in the West End and on UK Tour, Fame on UK tour, Starlight Express in Germany and on International Tour, Tommy the Cat in Dick Whittington at the New Wimbledon Theatre.
Sally Cookson’s most recent productions were the Olivier award-winning A Monster Calls at the Old Vic and a revival Peter Pan at the Troubadour Theatre. She is an Associate Artist at Bristol Old Vic where her productions include Jane Eyre and Peter Pan which were also seen at the National Theatre and on tour, Sleeping Beauty, Treasure Island, The Boy Who Cried Wolf, Strange Case, Pericles, Pains of Youth and The Visit. Her work in the West End includes La Strada, Hetty Feather and Bearhunt. Her numerous collaborations with Travelling Light Theatre include Strictly Balti by Saikat Ahammed, The Ugly Duckling based on Hans Christian Andersen, Shadowplay, Cloudland based on the book by John Burningham, Lenny by Francis Monty, Bob the Man on the Moon based on the book by Simon Bartram.
Rae Smith received multiple design awards including the Olivier and Tony Awards for War Horse at the National Theatre and on tour internationally.Her recent theatre credits include The Night of the Iguana at the Noël Coward Theatre, Rosmersholm at the Duke of York’s Theatre, Girl From the North Country at the Old Vic, the Public Theater in New York and on Broadway, Translations at the National Theatre and Barbershop Chronicles at the National Theatre, the Roundhouse, Brooklyn Academy of Music and on UK tour, The Goat at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, This House at the Garrick Theatre and on UK tour, Nightfall at the Bridge Theatre and Rusalka at Glyndebourne. Other theatre credits include Wonder.Land and The Light Princess for the National Theatre and The Tempest and Prince of the Pagodas for Birmingham Royal Ballet. Smith is the recipient of The Rootstein Hopkins Fellowship which extends boundaries between the live performing arts and drawing.
Elliott & Harper Productions was founded in 2016 by Marianne Elliott, Chris Harper and Nick Sidi. Elliott & Harper’s London production of Company at the Gielgud Theatre won 4 Olivier Awards including Best Musical Revival as well as the Critics Circle Award for Best Musical. Company will transfer to Broadway, opening at The Bernard Jacobs Theatre in March 2020. Their other recent credits include the highly acclaimed co-production of Death of a Salesman at the Young Vic Theatre (directed by Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell) which will transfer to The Piccadilly Theatre in the West End in October 2019. Elliott & Harper co-produced the Broadway transfer of the National Theatre’s production of Angels in America (Olivier and Tony Awards for Best Revival of a Play) directed by Marianne Elliott. Other productions include Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle at the Wyndham’s Theatre directed by Marianne Elliott and The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at the Leeds Playhouse.
Catherine Schreiber is a two-time Tony and Olivier Award-winning Producer. Broadway Global Producer of the Year 2017. Upcoming Broadway productions: Lead Producer– Company, A Christmas Carol. Chicago: The King’s Speech. Currently: Lead Producer – The Play That Goes Wrong, Off Broadway. Recent London: Company, Dreamgirls, The Life. Lead Producer – The Scottsboro Boys. Current Producer: Made In Kent Documentary Film.
Leeds Playhouse was established almost 50 years ago. It’s a cultural hub, a place where people gather to tell and share stories and to engage in world class theatre. Following a major capital redevelopment, Leeds Playhouse reopens in October 2019, with a new city-facing entrance, improved access into and around the building and a new studio theatre.
Sonia Friedman Productions Gavin Kalin Productions, Rupert Gavin, Patrick Gracey/Scott M. Delman, 1001 Nights Productions, Tulchin Bartner Productions in association with Len Blavatnik, Eilene Davidson Productions, Louise & Brad Edgerton present
IAN RICKSON DIRECTS CONOR McPHERSON’S NEW ADAPTATION OF CHEKHOV’S UNCLE VANYA
TOBY JONES WILL STAR IN THE TITLE ROLE OF UNCLE VANYA ALONGSIDE RICHARD ARMITAGE AS ASTROV, WITH FULL CASTING TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON
UNCLE VANYA WILL RUN FOR 16 WEEKS AT THE HAROLD PINTER THEATRE WITH PREVIEWS FROM 14th JANUARY
TICKETS GO ON GENERAL SALE ON MONDAY 30TH SEPTEMBER AT 10AM
Sonia Friedman Productions today announced Conor McPherson’s (The Weir, Girl from the North Country) new adaptation of Anton Chekhov’s masterpiece Uncle Vanya directed by Ian Rickson (Jerusalem, The Seagull) which will run at the Harold Pinter Theatre from 14th January 2020 with Opening Night on Thursday 23rd January 2020. Tickets go on general sale from Monday 30th September with priority booking from Wednesday 25th September.
In the heat of summer, Sonya and her Uncle Vanya (Toby Jones) while away their days on a crumbling estate deep in the countryside, visited occasionally only by the local doctor Astrov (Richard Armitage).
However, when Sonya’s father suddenly returns with his beautiful new wife declaring that he intends to sell the house, the polite facades crumble and repressed feelings start to emerge with devastating consequences.
Olivier Award-winner Conor McPherson’s stunning new adaptation of the Anton Chekhov masterpiece, Uncle Vanya, is a portrayal of life at the turn of the 20th century, full of tumultuous frustration, dark humour and hidden passions. Critically acclaimed director Ian Rickson returns to Chekhov for the first time since his landmark production of The Seagull in 2007, reuniting with BAFTA and Olivier Award-winner Toby Jones (The Birthday Party) alongside Richard Armitage, who returns to the UK stage six years after his Olivier Award-nominated performance in The Crucible. Uncle Vanya is the eleventh collaboration between Ian Rickson and Sonia Friedman Productions, with previous productions including Rosmersholm, Jerusalem, The River, Betrayal and The Children’s Hour.
Uncle Vanya is designed by Rae Smith, with lighting by Bruno Poet, music by Stephen Warbeck, sound by Ian Dickinson and casting by Amy Ball CDG. Full casting will be announced soon.
British actor Toby Jones will play the title character of Uncle Vanya. He is known for his performances both in the theatre and on screen. Earlier this year he starred in Don’t Forget The Driver, a series he co-wrote with Tim Crouch for BBC Two. Toby has recently been cast in Louis Wain alongside Benedict Cumberbatch and Claire Foy and in The Sands of Venus. He has newly finished filming A Boy Called Christmas and The Last Thing He Wanted, written and directed by Oscar nominated Dee Rees.
This Autumn Toby will return to the Royal Court Theatre in Glass. Kill. Bluebeard. Imp; four plays written by Caryl Churchill and directed by James Macdonald. He will also voice the role of The Reverend Chasuble for the animated adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s The Canterville Ghost and can currently be seen in the Netflix prequel series The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance.
In 2018 Toby appeared in the revival of Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party. He went on to star on screen in French comedy film Naked Normandy for Philippe le Gay, Lionsgate’s World War One Drama Journey’s End and the blockbuster, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom.
Toby reprised his BAFTA-award winning role in the third and final season of the award-winning comedy series Detectorists. His other works include Infamous (Best British Actor, London Film Critics Circle Awards), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Oscar-nominated) and The Girl (BAFTA, Golden Globe and Emmy nominations). Toby also starred in Peter Strickland’s multi award-winning film Berberian Sound Studio. In 2014, Toby starred as the lead in the BBC Two BAFTA winning drama Marvellous, and in Matteo Garrone’s fantasy horror, Tale Of Tales.
Further screen credits include; The Snowman, Kaleidoscope and Michael Haneke’s Palme d’Or nominated film, Happy End. Atomic Blonde, Sherlock, Dad’s Army, The Secret Agent, The Witness For The Prosecution, Morgan, Wayward Pines, Capital, The ManWho Knew Infinity, The Hunger Games series, the Harry Potter series, Captain America: The First Avenger, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Leave to Remain, Andrew Kotting’s By Ourselves, My Week With Marilyn, The Adventures Of Tintin, Frost/Nixon, W and The Painted Veil.
Theatre credits include: Circle Mirror Transformation (Royal Court Theatre), The Painter (Arcola), Every Good Boy Deserves Favour (National Theatre), Parlour Song(Almeida Theatre), Dumb Waiter and Other Pinter Pieces (Oxford Playhouse), Measure for Measure (with Complicite) (National Theatre), The Play What I Wrote (winner: Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor) (West End/Broadway).
The role of Astrov will be played by Richard Armitage. Richard is a multi-award-winning stage and screen actor best known for his role of Thorin in Peter Jackson’s trilogy of The Hobbit and more recently as Daniel Miller in Epix Berlin Station, as well as Claude Becker in Oceans 8. Armitage also voices Trevor Belmont in the Netflix series Castlevania & Logan in Marvel’s Wolverine podcast. Richard recently shot independent The Lodge, directed by Severin Fiala & Veronika Franz which premiered at Sundance, and was just in Toronto where he was promoting independent feature My Zoe, written and directed by Julie Delpy. Armitage has just wrapped shooting the lead in serialized thriller The Stranger for Netflix/Red Productions. Written by Harlan Coben, based on Coben’s #1 New York Times best-selling novel of the same name. In theatre, Richard is well known for his critically acclaimed performance as John Proctor in The Crucible at the Old Vic Theatre. He was nominated for an Olivier Award for his performance. Richard’s leading role in the Off-Broadway play, Love Love Love directed by Michael Mayer also garnered critical acclaim.
Conor McPherson’s plays include Rum & Vodka, The Good Thief, This Lime Tree Bower, St Nicholas, The Weir (Olivier Award, directed by Ian Rickson), Dublin Carol, Port Authority, Shining City (Tony Award nomination), The Seafarer (Olivier, Tony and Evening Standard Award nominations), The Veil, The Night Alive (New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award), and most recently, the Olivier Award-winning musical, Girl from the North Country, with Bob Dylan.
Ian Rickson was the Artistic Director of the Royal Court from 1998 to 2006, where he directed The River (also Broadway) Jerusalem (also West End and Broadway), The Winterling, The Night Heron and Mojo (also Chicago), all by Jez Butterworth; Not Not Not Not Not Enough Oxygen and This is a Chair by Caryl Churchill; Dublin Carol and The Weir by Conor McPherson (also Dublin, Chicago, West End and Broadway); The Seagull by Anton Chekhov (also Broadway); Krapp’s Last Tape by Samuel Beckett; Alice Trilogy by Tom Murphy; The Sweetest Swing in Baseball and Boy Gets Girl by Rebecca Gilman; Fallout by Roy Williams; Mouth to Mouth by Kevin Elyot; The Lights by Howard Korder; Pale Horse and Some Voices by Joe Penhall; Ashes and Sand by Judy Upton and Killers by Adam Pernak.
In the West End, Rickson has directed Edward Albee’s The Goat or Who is Sylvia? (Theatre Royal Haymarket); Rosmersholm (The Duke of York’s Theatre); The Birthday Party, Old Times, Betrayal and The Children’s Hour (all at the Harold Pinter Theatre); and at the National Theatre, Translations by Brian Friel, Evening at the Talk House by Wallace Shawn, The Red Lion by Patrick Marber, The Hothouse by Harold Pinter and The Day I Stood Still by Kevin Elyot. Productions at the Old Vic include Electra by Sophocles. Productions at the Young Vic include The Nest, Now We Are Here and Hamlet. Productions at The Almeida Theatre include Against by Christopher Shinn and Parlour Song by Jez Butterworth.
Work on screen includes Fallout (Company Pictures for Channel 4) and Krapp’s Last Tape by Samuel Beckett (BBC4) and on radio In Therapy (BBC Radio 4). Rickson also works with PJ Harvey and Kate Tempest on their music and poetry shows.
SONIA FRIEDMAN PRODUCTIONS (SFP) is an international production company responsible for some of the most successful theatre productions in London and New York.
Since 1990, SFP has developed, initiated and produced over 170 new productions and together the company has won a staggering 55 Olivier Awards, 30 Tonys and 2 BAFTAs.
In 2019, Sonia Friedman OBE was awarded ‘Producer of the Year’ at the Stage Awards for a record breaking fourth time. In 2018, Friedman was also featured in TIME 100, a list of Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in the World. In 2017 she took the number one spot in ‘The Stage 100’, becoming the first number one in the history of the compilation not to own or operate West End theatres and the first solo woman for almost 20 years.
Current productions include: the UK premiere of The Book of Mormon, West End and UK & European tour, Harry Potterand the Cursed Child in London, New York and Melbourne, Mean Girls at the August Wilson Theatre, New York, Fiddler on the Roof at the Playhouse Theatre, London and The Inheritance, New York
Forthcoming productions include: Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in San Francisco, Hamburg & Toronto and the world premiere of Tom Stoppard’s new play Leopoldstadt at Wyndham’s Theatre, London and The Inheritance on Broadway
Previous theatre productions include: Rosmersholm, The Ferryman, The Inheritance, Summer and Smoke,Dreamgirls, The Jungle, All About Eve, Consent, The Birthday Party, Ink, Hamlet starring Andrew Scott, Our Ladies of Perpetual Succour, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, Travesties, The Glass Menagerie, Nice Fish, A Christmas Carol, Funny Girl, Farinelli and The King, Hamlet starring Benedict Cumberbatch, 1984, Sunny Afternoon, Bend It Like Beckham, The Nether, The River, Electra, King Charles III, Shakespeare in Love, Ghosts, Mojo, Chimerica, Merrily We Roll Along, Old Times, Twelfth Night and Richard III, A Chorus of Disapproval, The Sunshine Boys, Hay Fever, Absent Friends, Top Girls, Betrayal, Much Ado About Nothing, Clybourne Park, The Children’s Hour, A Flea in Her Ear, La Bête, All My Sons, Private Lives, Jerusalem, A Little Night Music, Legally Blonde, Othello, Arcadia, The Mountaintop, The Norman Conquests, A View From the Bridge, Dancing at Lughnasa, Maria Friedman: Re-Arranged, La Cage aux Folles, No Man’s Land, The Seagull, Under the Blue Sky, That Face, Dealer’s Choice, Hergés Adventures of Tintin, In Celebration, Boeing-Boeing, The Dumb Waiter, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Love Song, Faith Healer, Bent, Eh Joe, Donkeys’ Years, Otherwise Engaged, Celebration, Shoot the Crow, As You Like It, The Home Place, Whose Life Is It Anyway?, By the Bog of Cats, The Woman in White, Guantanamo: ‘Honor Bound to Defend Freedom’, Endgame, Jumpers, See You Next Tuesday, Hitchcock Blonde, Absolutely! {Perhaps}, Sexual Perversity in Chicago, Ragtime, Macbeth, What the Night Is For, Afterplay, Up for Grabs, A Day in the Death of Joe Egg, Noises Off, On an Average Day, A Servant to Two Masters, Port Authority, Spoonface Steinberg and Speed-The-Plow.
TV productions include BBC’s Wolf Hall (co-producer), The Dresser (Exec Producer) and King Lear with Anthony Hopkins (Exec Producer).
For full details of SFP’s theatre productions, please visit soniafriedman.com.
Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield – until 28 September 2019
Reviewed by Ian K Johnson
5*****
Cinderella a ballet by David Nixon OBE
This is one of the classic well loved ballets. Loved by all for many years.
This is the first revival of Cinderella by Northern Ballet since its world premier in 2013 and ended in 2014.
Cinderella played by Rachael Gillespie (as young Cinders) and Abigail Prudames (older Cinders) are both played so faultless and express many emotions from a gentle, vulnerable young girl to a confident one who manages to stand up to her stepmother.
The story opens on a scene to celebrate Cinderellas birthday. She is there with family, friends and Prince and Princess Mulakov and their handsome young son Prince Mikhail (Kevin Poeung) who gives her a gift of a bracelet.
Her beloved father (Mlindi Kulashe) has a special gift for his daughter, a beautiful shawl. Her father has a wife, step-mother to Cinderella (Mariana Rodrigues) along with two step-sisters Natasha & Sophie (Kyungka Kwak and Ayami Miyata).
Natasha and Sophie tease Cinderella by throwing the shawl to each other, it ends up in the river, the girls have been warned not to cross the bridge over the river so Cinderellas father goes and gets it for her, on his way back we hear a gun shot and tragedy strikes.
We are taken smoothly and effortlessly through the various scenes from the pleasent countryside into the kitchen of the house where the step-mother, her daughters and Cinderella now reside, here the stepmother treats Cinderella as a servant.
Time passes and we find Cinderella in the market and faced with various circus acts inc jugglers, stilt walker, acrobats, a magician and a dancing bear. She has a happy time here. Cinderella returns home and her stepsisters want to interact with her but her stepmother puts a stop to all frivolity and reminds Cinderella not to have anything to do with her stepsisters.
Cinderella escapes life in the kitchen and flees to a beautiful lake which looks like crystal. Here she sees villagers skating along with the Prince who like Cinderella has grown (Joseph Taylor plays the older Prince Mikhail). He sees Cinderella skating and is impressed at what he sees. The costumes of the skaters are so beautiful and look like shimmering snowflakes on the lake.
On returning home the family have all recieved invitations to a Winter Ball but her stepmother tears up the invitation meant for Cinderella and points out to her that she belongs downstairs.
All alone in the kitchen Cinderella hears a knock and finds the market square magician in the dark and cold. She invites him in and he insists that she will go to the ball. After turning her rags into a stunning gown fit for any princess he then conjures up a carriage to take her along with three beautiful huskies to pull her to the ball.
Act two and we are transported to the palace of Prince and Princess Mulakov, the guests are dressed in such beautiful costumes and the handsome dashing gentlemen are in burgundy tunic tops. Cinderella enters and is swept off her feet by Prince Mikhail.
Cinderella is spotted by her stepmother and is afraid she will be discredited by her so she flees the ball but leaves behind a glass slipper.
Prince Mikhail tries to find the girl whos foot fits and while at the stepmothers house it is pointed out that its the girl who has just served him, he is embarrassed and leaves in anger at being made a fool of.
This is where Cinderella gains her confidence and turns on her stepmother. She leaves and finds herself back at the side of the crystal lake, the magician is there too on his own. Cinderella is there to say goodbye when the prince arrives and after apologising for his behavious he eventually persuades her to stay.
From the outset it is obvious that this is no ordinary night in the Birling household, they are celebrating the engagement of their daughter but darker forces seem to be gathering outside their home and this night will not go as planned and will result in a shift of relationships. The arrival of the mysterious Inspector Goole (Liam Brennan) with his probing questions and his knowledge of the family throws a new light on the family members, exposing secrets and showing the consequences of their actions.
J. B. Priestley’s play is set in 1912, but Stephen Daldry’s production of “An Inspector Calls” for the National Theatre ensures that it is not a period piece but is relevant to us all, making us question our own actions and appreciate that our actions have consequences. This is a brooding and intense production and the scenery, lighting and music feed into the tension as secrets are revealed. I was initially surprised that there was no interval in the play, but having seen it this made perfect sense as it allowed the tension to build and gave us a “real time” experience, as each family member was questioned. At times it felt almost intimidating and yet the Inspector’s questioning was never threatening, he was always just seeking the truth.
An Inspector Calls requires an outstanding performance from the actor playing Inspector Goole, as he is the lynchpin of the play and Liam Brennan provides just that performance. He has the necessary mystery, mixed with professionalism and exasperation and the kind of questioning voice that would make you want to own up to your actions. His is the moral voice of society as he seeks the truth about the young woman who has committed suicide, his is a stunning performance.
Let’s be clear that the Birling family are not the nicest of people, with a sense of entitlement and little regard for others, or thought for what their actions can mean for others. Arthur Birling is played well by Jeffrey Harmer as a bluff factory owner, who sees his workers as commodities with no concern for their well-being. Christine Kavanagh is excellent as his wife Sybil Birling, it was easy to believe that she really had no concern for anyone else, and very easy to dislike her! Alasdair Buchan played the fiancé Gerald Croft with just the right touch of bluster as the truth came out. Chloe Orrock was excellent as the daughter Sheila Birling as she realised the extent of the damage her selfishness had caused, perhaps the only one of the family understanding the bigger picture. Ryan Saunders was convincing as the son Eric Birling, who had lost his way.
This is an English exam text, so inevitably the theatre was full of school groups, which is often a cause for concern, will they be noisy or inattentive? Well they were as hooked as the rest of the audience, at critical moments in the action it really felt that we were collectively holding our breath!
This is not an easy watch, but it is an important watch as the messages for society are more than relevant today. It is important for us to understand the effect our actions may have, that there may be a “domino effect” or that the pebble we drop in the ocean may cause a tidal wave elsewhere, and that we need to have concern for others.
