Oh Spencer Jones! A joy to watch and a show that is not only right up my street but is moving in to my house and living in the spare room.
The perfect antidote for a lousy day at the office. What better than 50 minutes of utterly silly sod silliness? The show is a feast of household object characters, creepy puppets, masks, props and of course the things we all leave behind. Spencer himself, a sweet and genuine ‘dickhead’ who seems to just effortlessly make the audience fall in love with him whilst introducing us to his crazy ‘home’ and very odd looking ‘family’ has a style of communication with the audience that is so special. Yes, we know he is ridiculous and it looks at times like he is ad-libbing but it is clear that this show is beautifully crafted with love and care. We were treated to a few tracks on the loop machine that were not only bloody funny but incredibly clever and really catchy songs and using sound bytes from his children and the audience were little moments of gold.
In and amongst the crackers stuff, there were touching moments of sincerity and I felt a stillness in the room when he pondered what of all of us will be remembered? What would we leave behind?
You may be an acquired taste but for me, Spencer Jones, more please! You embrace the silly with such style and (although may be an obvious thing to say) something utterly endearing and warm is that you appeared to be genuinely chuffed when you made us laugh. If your objective is to bring joy and laughter then job done. You simply make me happy!
MONSOON WEDDING A NEW MUSICAL BY MIRA NAIR A Leeds Playhouse production in association with the Roundhouse
A NEW MUSICAL THEATRE ADAPTATION OF THE HIT FILM MONSOON WEDDING WILL PLAY AT LEEDS PLAYHOUSE AND LONDON’S ROUNDHOUSE IN SUMMER 2020
DIRECTED BY THE FILM’S DIRECTOR MIRA NAIR, THE NEW MUSICAL FEATURES A BOOK BY SABRINA DHAWAN AND ARPITA MUKHERJEE AND LYRICS BY MASI ASARE AND SUSAN BIRKENHEAD WITH MUSIC BY VISHAL BHARDWAJ
Nearly 20 years after the multi award-winning Monsoon Wedding broke all moulds by becoming one of the most successful international films of all time and introducing a worldwide audience to Indian culture through the joy of the rom-com, the beautiful story of finding love against the odds returns as a brand-new musical.
In Delhi, preparations are under way for a lavish, nonstop, four-day celebration to mark the arranged marriage of Aditi and Hemant. Aditi is the only daughter of an upper middle-class family in India. She is about to meet her groom, an Indian-American from New Jersey. It should be the perfect wedding, but the bride is having an affair, her father is in financial trouble, and as members of the family descend from around the world, dark family secrets surface.
At its heart Monsoon Wedding is an anthem to modern India. In the way that the film introduced the world of a globalizing India, the musical is a celebration of the exuberant chaos of contemporary India and its vibrant diaspora. The musical explores the ever-increasing difference and discrepancy in India between the rich and the poor, the old and the new, the traditional and the modern, the east and the west.
The brand-new musical will open at Leeds Playhouse on 17th June and play there until 11th July. Following that it will transfer to London’s Roundhouse to play a strictly limited season from 17th July to 29th August.
The creative team will also include: Movement Director Scott Graham (Frantic Assembly, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time), and Casting Director Karishma Balani. Full casting will be announced in due course.
Tickets for Leeds Playhouse are on sale today at leedsplayhouse.org.uk and you can sign up at MonsoonWeddingmusical.co.uk to be given priority opportunity to book for the Roundhouse season on Wednesday 18th December ahead of general on sale on Thursday 19th December .
LISTINGS
Monsoon Wedding
Leeds Playhouse
First performance: Monday 22nd June 2020 Local Leeds Press Night: Tuesday 30th June 2020 Final performance: Saturday 11th July 2020 Performance schedule: Monday – Saturday evenings with Thursday/Saturday matinees
OPENING AT MANCHESTER OPERA HOUSE ON 10 SEPTEMBER 2020
AHEAD OF A UK TOUR
TICKETS ON SALE MONDAY 9 DECEMBER
The producers of the award-winning Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical, featuring Jim Steinman and Meatloaf’s greatest hits, are delighted to announce the musical will be returning to tour the UK, following an Australian tour, with performances beginning at Manchester Opera House from 10 – 26 September 2020. The other tour dates include The Alexandra Birmingham from 29 September – 10 October, New Wimbledon Theatre from 13 – 24 October, New Theatre Oxford from 27 October – 7 November, Glasgow King’s Theatre from 10 – 21 November and Liverpool Empire from 8 December – 2 January 2021. Further tour dates and casting to be announced.
Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical wowed critics and public alike when it played limited seasons at Manchester Opera House, London Coliseum and London’s Dominion Theatre from 2017 – 2019. The musical also ran successfully in Canada, Germany and at New York’s City Centre last summer.
Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical won the Radio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical at the Evening Standard Awards and was nominated for 8 WhatsOnStage Awards, including Best New Musical.
Bat Out Of Hell became one of the best-selling albums in history, selling over 50 million copies worldwide. 16 years later, Steinman scored again with Bat Out Of Hell II: Back Into Hell, which contained the massive hit I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That).
For the stage musical, the legendary and award-winning Jim Steinman has incorporated iconic songs from the Bat Out Of Hell albums, including You Took The Words Right Out Of My Mouth, Bat Out Of Hell, I Would Do Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That) and Two Out Of Three Ain’t Bad, as well as two previously unreleased songs, What Part of My Body Hurts the Most and Not Allowed to Love.
In Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical, the electrifying rock songs of Mr Steinman propel an epic story of rebellious youth and passion as Strat, the immortal leader of The Lost, has fallen in love with Raven, the beautiful daughter of the tyrannical ruler Falco.
The UK tour of Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical has book, music and lyrics by Jim Steinman, direction by Jay Scheib, with musical supervision and additional arrangements by Michael Reed, set and costume design by Jon Bausor, original costume designs by Meentje Nielsen, video design by Finn Ross, lighting design by Patrick Woodroffe, sound design by Gareth Owen, orchestration by Steve Sidwell and casting by Anne Vosser.
The UK tour of Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical is produced by David Sonenberg, Michael Cohl & Tony Smith, with executive producer Julian Stoneman.
& JULIET LEADS THE MUSICAL CATEGORIES WITH 13 NOMINATIONS,
EVITA FOLLOWS WITH 8 NOMINATIONS, AND MAME WITH 7 NOMINATIONS
PRESENT LAUGHTER LEADS THE STRAIGHT PLAY AWARDS WITH 8 NOMINATIONS
Tyrone Huntley today announced the nominations for the 20th annual WhatsOnStage Awards via WhatsOnStage’s social channels, the only major theatre prize-giving decided entirely by the theatregoers themselves. The announcement of the nominations marks the opening of the final voting stage (until 27 January), with winners announced at the annual Awards Concert held on 1 March 2020 at the Prince of Wales Theatre.
WhatsOnStage’s Chief Operating Officer Sita McIntosh said today, “As we enter our 20th year, we’re thrilled to announce the nominations for the WhatsOnStage Awards. 2019 has proved a strong year for musicals with & Juliet dominating the field with 13 nominations – more than either Hamilton or Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in previous years. There’s also been a strong showing for work outside the capital with venues including Hope Mill Theatre, Curve Leicester and Sheffield Theatres receiving multiple nominations. This is the particular joy of the WhatsOnStage Awards, that work from across the breadth of the UK is represented and championed.”
Leading this year is the new musical & Juliet – currently running at the Shaftesbury Theatre, with 13 nominations across acting and creative categories including nominations for leading actors Miriam-Teak Lee and Oliver Tompsett who play Juliet and Shakespeare respectively, supporting actor nominations for Jordan Luke Gage, Cassidy Janson and Melanie La Barrie, Best New Musical, Best Choreography, Best Costume Design, Best Graphic Design, Best Lighting Design, Best Set Design, Best Sound Design and Best Video Design. In the musical categories, Evita follows with 8 nominations and Mame with 7 nominations, ahead of Waitress with 6 nominations, and Come from Away and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat with 5 nominations each.
For Best Actress in a Musical Miriam-Teak Lee faces competition from Tracie Bennett for Mame, Katharine McPhee and Lucie Jones – both for Waitress, and Zizi Strallen for Mary Poppins; and in the Best Actor in a Musical category Oliver Tompsett is nominated alongside David Hunter for Waitress, Charlie Stemp for Mary Poppins, Sam Tutty for Dear Evan Hansen, and Jac Yarrow for Joseph.
Best Supporting Actress in a Musical sees the stars of Waitress face off again with nominations for both Laura Baldwin and Marisha Wallace; who in turn are up against Cassidy Janson and Melanie La Barrie, both for & Juliet, and Rachel Tucker from Come From Away; and Best Supporting Actor nominees are & Juliet’s Romeo Jordan Luke Gage, Joe Sugg from Waitress, Jack Loxton from Dear Evan Hansen, Oscar Conlon-Morrey for Only Fools and Horses The Musical, and Joseph’s Jason Donovan.
Best New Musical will see a closely fought battle between & Juliet, Waitress, Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away and Only Fools and Horses; Best Musical Revival nominees are Mary Poppins, Evita, Josephand the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Mame, and 9 to 5 The Musical.
In the straight play categories, Best New Play is a contest between The Doctor, The Son, My Beautiful Laundrette, Life of Pi and Appropriate; and Best Play Revival nominees are Betrayal, Death of a Salesman, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Lungs and Present Laughter. The latter of these leads the play categories with 8 nominations; including Best Actor in a Play for Andrew Scott, Best Supporting Actress in a Play nominations for Sophie Thompson and Indira Varma and Best Direction for Matthew Warchus.
In a heavily nominated year for The Old Vic, Warchus receives a double nomination in the Best Direction category – for Lungs, as well as Present Laughter. His rivals are Marianne Elliott and Miranda Cromwell for Death of a Salesman, Robert Icke for The Doctor and Jamie Lloyd for Evita.
Andrew Scott faces Tom Hiddleston for Betrayal, Matt Smith for Lungs, Wendell Pierce for Death of a Salesman, and Laurie Kynaston for The Son for the Best Actor in a Play Award – both Scott and Kynaston were recently honoured for their respective roles at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards. For Best Actress in a Play, the nominations are Claire Foy for Lungs, Zawe Ashton for Betrayal, Hayley Atwell for Rosmersholm, Sharon D. Clarke for Death of a Salesman, and Juliet Stevenson for The Doctor.
For Best Supporting Actor in a Play, nominated are Alexander Vlahos for Peter Pan, Charlie Cox for Betrayal, Hareet Deol for My Beautiful Laundrette, Hammed Animashaun for A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Giles Terera for Rosmersholm; and for Best Supporting Actress in a Play, Thompson and Varma are up against Ria Zmitrowicz for The Doctor, Monica Dolan for All About Eve, and Isabella Pappas for Appropriate.
Best Off-West End production nominees are The View UpStairs (Soho Theatre), Falsettos (The Other Palace), High Fidelity (The Turbine Theatre), Preludes and Fiver – both at Southwark Playhouse; and the Best Regional Production are Mame (Hope Mill Theatre), Life of Pi (Sheffield Theatres), West Side Story (Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester), My Beautiful Laundrette (Curve, Leicester, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Leeds Playhouse co-production), and The Color Purple (Curve, Leicester and Birmingham Hippodrome co-production).
LAMBERT JACKSON PRODUCTIONS ANNOUNCE THIRD SEASON OF
MONDAY FAVOURITES AT THE OTHER PALACE
Due to the phenomenal success of the first two seasons of Sunday Favourites at The Other Palace, Lambert JacksonProductions today announce the line-up of their third season of intimate West End concerts. The line-up includes Divina de Campo (finalist of RuPaul’sDrag Race UK) on Monday 2nd March, Jordan Luke Gage (& Juliet, Bat Out of Hell) on 16th March, John Owen Jones (Les Miserables, The Phantom of the Opera) on 30th March, and Maiya Quansah-Breed (Six) on 20th April.
Monday Favourites is designed to bring musical theatre lovers closer to their favourite stars of the West End. With just over 300 seats, the main theatre of The Other Palace is a beautifully intimate concert space where every seat feels close to the stage and everyone has the perfect view to see these superstars perform an acoustic show of their favourite songs. Meet and greet options are available.
Jamie Lambert and Eliza Jackson today said “We have had such an amazing reaction to our first two season of Sunday Favourites at The Other Palace we just had to create another season. The line-up we have for this season is made up of some of the most talented and inspiring performers in the industry today, they are so diverse and interesting – from the finalist of the first season of RuPaul’s Drag Race Divina de Campo; to the legend that is John Owen-Jones; with the fresh, new energy of Jordan Luke Gage (currently in & Juliet as Romeo) and Maiya Quansah-Breed (currently in Six as Catherine Parr) we really do think this could be our best season yet.”
I had the opportunity to watch the opening night of Peter Pan Goes Wrong which is the most recent offering from the Mischief Theatre Company who are the company responsible for the smash hit production of The Play That Goes Wrong. It is probably right to say that, very few play directors want the production they are involved in to go wrong every night. But, Henry Lewis the man behind Peter Pan Goes Wrong wants exactly that! The Mischief Theatre Company play the members of Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society who are putting on a production of JM Barrie’s pantomime favourite Peter Pan which as you can imagine doesn’t go quite to plan.
From the moment you walk into the theatre audience participation is encouraged with the cast mingling and engaging with the audience resulting in mishaps as the cast search for the stage managers missing hammer. It is safe to stay that everything which could go wrong will go wrong thick and fast, sometimes predictable such as broken sets, broken legs, falls/slips but at other times not – technical glitches, forgotten lines and the sudden collapse of the children’s bunk beds crushing Michael and John leaves the audience in stitches with loud screams of laughter.
The show starts with multiple mis-starts with Katy Daghorn appearing on stage with an exaggerated and enthusiastic portrayal of Wendy/Sandra, which is then followed by Ciaran Kellgren in his portrayal as Jonathan/Peter who flies on to the stage; chaotically, resulting in a broken set and nearly breaking his neck. As the production goes on, the injuries and mishaps pile up with all cast members taking centre stage. Phoebe Ellabani was outstanding with versatility playing four amusing roles with quick costume changes.
The show has a low cost, low budget feel; a one-way dog door, Tinkerbell’s fairy light skirt with an extension lead which electrocutes her, the wonky pirate ship and hand made feel of the set. At times I felt, the show was too chaotic and ‘too much’ with the deliberate errors wearing thin towards the end but the audience seemed to love it; I have never heard so much laughter during a theatre production. The finale was a perfect conclusion with the cast chaotically trapped in the revolving stage whilst everything falls apart around them which adds to the mayhem. It was great to see the stage crew come on stage at the end for bows as for things to go purposely wrong is a work of art.
If you want some light hearted comedy and laughter get your tickets for Peter Pan Goes Wrong which is on at The Lowry until the 7th December.
It’s billed as the Greatest Panto on Earth, but it’s a statement that fails to live up to expectations – like the porridge of the original tale, the King’s panto feels a little undercooked at times.
Don’t get me wrong, a lot of the panto sticks the landing perfectly, and the King’s knows what its audience wants. Jokes, digs at unsuspecting members of the audience, a villain to boo, sets to astound and effects to amaze. And there they do not disappoint.
As was well publicised last year, beloved national treasure Andy Gray was ‘no very well’, but he’s back now, and the show is all the better for it. He’s re-introduced with a Chicago- styled tribute (‘Roxy’, but retitled ‘Andy’) and once he’s on, you don’t want him to leave. Welcome back sir.
It’s no doubt that Allan Stewart as May McReekie, owner of McReekie’s circus, is glad to have him back as well, although while Stewart’s energy can’t be faulted, some jokes led by the Dame-in-Residence felt laboured and dragged on for too long. I don’t know how many years the Songs-as-Speech gag has been going on for, but it felt tired and overlong this year, and the running gag of shameless self-promotion for his own book well outstayed its welcome. And when a Limmy Show sketch is performed word for word, it felt like a hasty last-minute addition to cover a scene change rather than provide some fresh material.
Elsewhere there’s a fresh face in Jordan Young’s circus clown Joey, featuring in the King’s panto after being nicked from Aberdeen. Young looks set to be a favourite here in Edinburgh – sorry Aberdeen, he might be here to stay. He more than proves his entertainment value not only in a high-wire act but also at the top of Act 2 – where he recounts the entirety of Act 1 to a bewildered Goldilocks (Gillian Parkhouse) and an audience sitting in the palm of his hand.
Of course, it’s a circus, and we have the Great Juggling Alfio and the Beserk Riders to add the extra wow factor. Alfio keeps us mesmerised with his tricks, causing me to completely disregard Baron von Vinklebottom (Grant Stott)’s big number, as Alfio casually stole the scene from him. I think the song was about Hibs. It usually is.
Of course, at some points the show didn’t even pretend that ‘Goldilocks…’ even had a plot. I’m not sure Parkhouse’s performance was even necessary. When the title suggests four characters, and the poster features Not A Single One Of Them, a not uncommon phenomenon mentioned by Simon Sladen in an excellent article in the Stage last month about gender imbalance in panto, something has to change.
As Jordan Young’s inclusion proved this year, a little shake-up can be good for an institution like the King’s – so why not go further? Then you’d have a show that was just right.
ViSiBLE TODAY ANNOUNCES THE WORLD PREMIÈRE OF FIVE CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP
ViSiBLE presents
FIVE CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP
Devised by Mike Alfreds and Sonja Linden with the Company
Directed by Mike Alfreds; Set Design: Agnes Treplin
Southwark Playhouse
29 April – 23 May 2020
ViSiBLE today announces the world première of Five Characters in Search of a Good Night’s Sleep devised by Mike Alfreds and Sonja Linden with the Company, the latter who also directs. Inspired by the wealth of talent among Britain’s older actors, ViSiBLE is a theatre company dedicated to creating work that throws fresh perspectives on later life and living longer. The production opens at Southwark Playhouse on 29 April and runs until 23 May.
Humour alternates with pathos as the five, all in their 60s and 70s, gradually reveal the reasons for their sleeplessness. The journey through the night delves into their inner lives, and the pursuit of not only a good night’s sleep but of answers to much bigger existential questions.
Sonja Linden said today, “Sleep is something everybody does, it’s universal, yet more and more of us are finding sleep elusive, particularly some of our older population. As a company dedicated to telling stories about later life, we went on a journey of exploration, consulting with sleep experts but also tapping into our own experiences and imagination and crucially the creativity of our actors to dream up – Five Characters in Search of a Good Night’s Sleep.”
Mike Alfreds is an award-winning theatre director, adapter, translator, teacher and previous Artistic Director and founder of theatre companies Shared Experience and Method and Madness. His previous credits as a director include Year of Wonders, The Tin Ring (The Lowry), Cymbeline (Shakespeare’s Globe), The Wandering Jew,The Black Dahlia, The Cherry Orchard – Winner of Critics’ Circle Theatre Award(National Theatre), A Handful of Dust, Jude The Obscure (Lyric Hammersmith), La Ronde, The Miser, Arabian Nights (UK tour) and Bleak House (Royal Court Theatre). His credits as an author include Different Every Night: Freeing The Actor (2007) and Then What Happens? Storytelling and Adapting for the Theatre (2013).
Sonja Linden is a writer.Her credits include Roundelay, Who Do We Think We Are? (Southwark Playhouse), Welcome to Ramallah (Arcola Theatre/York Theatre Royal), Crocodile Seeking Refuge (Lyric Hammersmith/UK tour), I Have Before me a Remarkable Document Given to me By a Young Lady from Rwanda (Finborough Theatre/UK tour), On A Clear Day You Can See Dover (Wilton’s Music Hall/UK tour), Asylum Monologues, Palestine Monologues (UK tour), Asylum Dialogues (Tricycle Theatre/UK tour), The Strange Passenger (Battersea Arts Centre/UK tour), The Jewish Daughter (New End Theatre) and Call Me Judas (Finborough Theatre).
FIVE CHARACTERS IN SEARCH OF A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP Listings
SMALL THINGS THEATRE ANNOUNCE WORLD PREMIERE OF CORDELIA O’NEILL’S NEW PLAY –
ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT HARD ENOUGH
Director: Kate Budgen; Designer: Camilla Clarke; Lighting: Sally Ferguson; Sound: Beth Duke
Small Things Theatre today announce the world première of Anything Is Possible If You Think About It Hard Enough, a new play by Cordelia O’Neill at Southwark Playhouse. Director Kate Budgen’s production opens on 6 April, with previews from 1April, and runs until 25 April. The production renews the creative collaboration with O’Neill, Budgen and Small Things Theatre following No Place For A Woman (Theatre503).
Alex and Rupert aren’t a conventional match but a caffeinated meeting on the underground ignites a spark. Skip forward to them fighting over baby names, nursery colours and ways to save money. All the signs of a normal family in waiting.
Then Alex goes into labour, their baby is born still and their world implodes.
What follows is a window into how a couple find the strength to move forward, the will to stay together, and the determination to keep the memory of their child alive.
A play that takes us to the depth of grief to find hope, to the edge of insanity to find reason and finds humour in the most unexpected places.
Cordelia O’Neill is a writer, actress and co-founder of Small Things Theatre. She trained at Oxford School of Drama. Her plays include the sell-out show The Stolen Inches (Edinburgh Festival Fringe, 2015), No Place For A Woman (Theatre503, 2018 – The play has been optioned by Cannibal Films and she is currently writing the screenplay), and The Vote about women’s suffrage with E17 Puppet Theatre Company (tour in Summer 2018 and concluded at HighTide’s Walthamstow Festival). She also co-authored The Apologists at The Vaults 2019, which will be returning to Omnibus Theatre in 2020.
Kate Budgen directs. She trained at Birkbeck College and on the NT Studio Directors course. She has been a Creative Associate at the Bush Theatre and has worked as Assistant and Associate Director for The Gate Theatre, The Almeida, The Opera Group, Pentabus Theatre, the Bush Theatre, Opera North and for the Michael Grandage Company. She is regularly a Connections Director for the National Theatre Connections Festival and is co-artistic director of new writing company EQ Theatre. She is currently the Associate Director on Girl From The North Country.
Selected directing credits include: GUT (Guildhall School of Music and Drama), The Importance of Being Earnest (Watermill Theatre), No Place for a Woman (Theatre503), Strong Arm (Underbelly/Old Vic New Voices), The Hairy Ape (Southwark Playhouse), Rigor Mortis (Papatango/Finborough), Crossed Keys (Eastern Angles), Bedbound (Lion and Unicorn), Stoopud Fucken Animals (Traverse Theatre), There is a War (Arts Ed), Punk Rock (Guildford School of Acting), and Anne Boleyn (RWCMD).
SMALL THINGS THEATRE brings detailed, entertaining and socially thought-provoking work to the stage. They produce new plays, provide a platform for new artists in theatre, music, comedy and poetry, and have curated work to raise money for Grenfell survivors and the UN Women’s gender equality campaign.
They have collaborated with the Pleasance, Theatre503, The Vaults and now Southwark Playhouse to produce new work from Cordelia O’Neill, Tom Vallen and Jess Butcher. They were also commissioned by UN Women and Vaults to curate a special performance of new work supporting HeForShe arts week, with a worldwide call out for short plays to accompany new work from writers Simon Stephens and Tamsin Oglesby on theme of gender equality. Alongside, they hosted a discussion with Robert Webb, leading politicians and charities about what actually helps redress the balance between genders.
Past productions include No Place For A Woman (Theatre503), A Gym Thing (Pleasance Theatre, Edinburgh and London), Leaves (Caravanserail Bookshop), and The Stolen Inches (Edinburgh Festival Fringe).
Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres, Robert Hastie, today announces the appointment of Chris Bush as Associate Artist – she begins her role with immediate effect. As part of her remit she will help mentor and support the inaugural artists at the company’s new creative hub, The Bank.
Chris Bush said today, “I’m absolutely thrilled to be joining the team at Sheffield Theatres as an Associate Artist. Sheffield will always be home, and the Crucible has long felt like my professional home too. This is where I watched my first shows as a child, and performed as part of the Sheffield Children’s Festival in my teens. It’s where I received my first full-scale commission, and where I’ve always felt most welcome. From first writing for the Sheffield People’s Theatre in 2013 to creating Standing at the Sky’s Edge earlier this year, I’m always incredibly proud to make work here, and I’m hugely excited about playing a greater role in the future of Sheffield Theatres.”
Robert Hastie commented “I’m delighted that Chris is joining our associate team. Chris’s writing is in the blood of Sheffield Theatres. Her work is equally at home in the Studio, where her ingenious two-hander Steel dissected contemporary politics, and the Crucible, where her book for Standing at the Sky’s Edge put a whole Sheffield community on stage. She’s mentored our local writers’ group, written scripts for our Learning team to use in schools and been a driving creative force in the work of Sheffield People’s Theatre. She’s a fantastic writer and a great asset to Sheffield Theatres, and I’m thrilled to get the chance to work with her even more closely as an Associate Artist.”
Chris Bush is a Sheffield born playwright, lyricist and theatre-maker. Her past work for Sheffield Theatres includes Standing at The Sky’s Edge (Best Musical Production at the UK Theatre Awards), Steel, What We Wished For, A Dream and The Sheffield Mysteries. Other work includes Pericles (National Theatre), The Assassination of Katie Hopkins (Theatr Clwyd), The Changing Room (NT Connections), Scenes From The End of The World (Yard Theatre/CSSD), Larksong (New Vic Theatre) and A Declaration From The People (National Theatre). In 2020 she will debut new work with Headlong, Paines Plough and the National Theatre.
