Month: December 2019

The Other Palace – until 28 December 2020

Reviewed by Claire Roderick

5*****

The Barricade Boys are back in London with their Christmas Cabaret – a fun-filled festive show that you just can’t help but love. With an onstage Christmas tree and the image of a roaring fire as a backdrop, Val Doonican would feel proud of these boys. Fully suited and booted like a slick 50s group, the audience is treated to familiar Christmas favourites like Let It Snow and Oh Holy Night alongside some of the Barricade Boys’ most popular songs and medleys. The inclusion of Motown, Blues Brothers and a ridiculously impressive rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody (it really shouldn’t work with just a piano and 4 voices, but when they’re this talented it’s sublime) alongside Les Mis classics gives the show a wonderful eclectic rhythm and sweeps you along on a wave of festive bliss.

Simon Schofield, Dougie Carter, Lee Honey-Jones and George Tebbutt are wonderful individually, but together their voices are magnificent. They all know how to work an audience, and their onstage chemistry is uplifting and infectious. The mickey taking between them throughout is refreshing, and any (tiny) mistakes are pounced upon mercilessly. Watching over them like a teacher trying not to laugh at his rowdy class is musical director and amazing pianist Noam Galperin.

A number of guest stars will appear on various dates, but none was scheduled to appear on the evening I attended. Instead Hunter from Gladiators was dragged up to join in with the fantastic Les Mis version of The 12 Days of Christmas. Cue lots of ribbing about having a human barricade (he’s HUGE!) as the boys went full-on panto dashing around to sing their verses in the correct order.

This is a gem of a show – festive fun and heavenly music mixed for a perfect Christmas cocktail.

GUEST STARS

11 Dec – Zoe Rainey

13 Dec – Oliver Ormson

14 Dec (evening) – Emma Kingston

16 Dec – Camilla Kerslake

18 Dec – Neil McDermott

19 Dec (matinee) – Joel Montague

20 Dec – Amy Lennox

23 Dec – Alice Fearn

27 Dec – Nadim Naaman

28 Dec (matinee) – Kieran Brown

Date TBC – Oliver Savile

Upstairs at the Gatehouse, Highgate, London – until 26 January 2020

Reviewed by Antonia Hebbert

4****

Take a big, glitzy Broadway and West End musical and fit it into what is basically a largeish room above a pub. Shrink the huge cast to 13, and put the audience down two sides so that those big dance numbers happen in a narrow space and have to face both ways. Perverse? Yes, but it works – thanks to inventive choreography, mesmerising dancing and great ensemble singing.

The story is pretty slight – small-town hopeful Peggy Shaw joins the chorus line in a new musical, but has a lucky break (literally – the leading lady cracks her ankle) and gets to play the lead role. The attraction of 42nd Street is the dancing, and a string of catchy 1930s songs by Harry Warren and Al Dubin – the kind you know without knowing you know them (‘We’re in the Money’, ‘Lullaby of Broadway’, ‘Forty Second Street’, etc). Satisfyingly, the show starts with a curtain rising to show tap-dancing feet – just like the Broadway/West End version.

The choreography is by Simon Adkins, who worked on the West End 42nd Street. It’s very ingenious in this narrow space, and requires the dancers to be razor sharp and quick. Unlike in a West End theatre, you’re no more than a few metres away, and what you lose in sheer force of numbers, you gain in seeing the detail and feeling the energy. It’s a good show for male and female dancers, and the costumes (Emily Bestow) are a lot of fun, with many sequins and nods to the 1930s.

Tamsin Dowsett is majestically awful (in a good way) as Dorothy Brock, the somewhat past-it leading lady who can’t dance. Dowsett has a showstopping voice that was literally a hard act to follow for Kate-Anne Fenton as Peggy Sawyer. Fenton is perfect as the sweet, wide-eyed talented newcomer, but doesn’t have the voice to come across convincingly as a replacement for Dowsett. Never mind – the plot isn’t really the point of all this. Just sit back and enjoy that irresistible, spirit-lifting music, the rapid costume changes and one great dance routine after another. Rory Shafford’s Billy Lawlor has a big personality, and belts out the high notes with conviction. Charlie Burt makes a sparkly Maggie Jones, and Helen Rose, Samantha Noel and Jessica Wright are endlessly bright and fun as chorus girls. Musical director and band leader is John Reddel, and the director is John Plews.

tiata fahodzi and Wrested Veil in association with
Leeds Playhouse, Soho Theatre and Tara Finney Productions
seeds embarks on UK Tour
Friday 21st February – Saturday 11th April 2020

Shortlisted for the Alfred Fagon Award, seeds embarks on a UK tour in 2020. Sensitively written by Mel Pennant, it tells the story of two mothers united in sorrow, unable to escape the tragedy and violence of knife crime. Together, they try to face the hardship of protecting their sons – one in life, and one in death.

On Michael Thomas’ birthday, his cake sits in his mother’s living room, its candles burning undisturbed. Jackie wants to clear her conscience, while Evelyn’s got a big speech to deliver on the 15th anniversary of Michael’s fatal stabbing. Are some things better left unsaid?

In our divided Britain, crimes fuelled by racism still happen; according to figures released in October 2019, knife crime offences in England and Wales have reached a record high. Hate crimes have more than doubled over a seven-year period with a spike following the EU referendum; racial hate crimes make up more than three-quarters of offences.

Directed by Anastasia Osei-Kuffour (Typical, Soho Theatre), seeds looks to tell the, often unexplored, stories of those who fight to keep their children safe from the world in which they grow up. This compelling piece is about motherhood, loss, the lengths that a parent may go to protect their child and what is left after tragedy hits. It brings insidious issues of race and gang mentality to the fore provoking dialogue in the hope they aren’t allowed to fester and infect a new generation.

Osei-Kuffour comments, Finding, developing and directing ground-breaking new plays is my passion. I’m interested in how new writing can respond to current events and resonate with audiences, the way they explore the human story behind injustices in the hope of bringing about change, or at least starting a dialogue to kickstart action. I want to bring the people the world doesn’t see or care about to the centre of a story where they can be engaged with. I feel that seeds by Mel Pennant is a play very much in line with the work I want to create.

seeds is generously supported by Arts Council England, The Foyle Foundation and The Carne Trust.

Leeds Playhouse’s New Season

Spring/Summer 2020

Feature by Dawn Smallwood

The Spring/Summer 2020 season follows the first full one at the newly refurbished Playhouse after its successful return in September. As expected the Playhouse has an exciting and varied full season across the refurbished Quarry and Courtyard Theatres and also the new Bramall Rock Void studio.

The season starts with David Greig’s Dr Korczak’s Example (25th Jan to 15th Feb), which is going to be held at the Bramall Rock Void studio. The play is set around the Polish Educator and Children’s author whose influences brought the creation of the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. The first production in the Courtyard Theatre is a joint production with imitating the dog, Night of the Living DeadTM – Remix (24th Jan to 5th Feb).

Leeds Playhouse takes pride in supporting accessibility and inclusivity for one and all. They will lead delivering Annual Ramps on the Moon production of Bryony Lavery’s Oliver Twist (25th Feb to 21st Mar). Under the direction of Amy Leach this new production will be performed by D/deaf, disabled and non-disabled actors. This show can be creatively enjoyed with BSL, captioning and audio description and will premier first in Leeds before embarking on a National Tour.

Some of the forthcoming highlights are Frances Poet’s Maggie May (31 Mar to 18 Apr), originally commissioned over a year as part of the Playhouse’s Every Third Minute, and explores positive works about people living with dementia. Alongside Maggie May there is Monsoon Wedding (22 Jun to 11 Jul), based on the multi award winning film, and adapted on the stage as a musical. Directed by Sabrina Dhawan and Arpita Mukherjee, Monsoon Wedding gives an insight in the India Culture.

Brad Birch’s Missing People (12th to 21st Mar), a collaboration between the Playhouse and Kani Public Arts Center in Japan and will be world premiered in Japan first before coming to Leeds. This production will be performed in both Japanese and English and is jointly directed by Mark Rosenblatt and Nobuhiro Nishikawa.

The Playhouse is working in partnership with Tiata Fahodzi and bringing Seeds (21st to 29th Feb) which tells the story of two mothers united in grief. Activism is featured in Tess Seddon’s Say Yes to Tess (26th Mar to 4th Apr), a musical set to Harry Blake’s songs.

Partnership collaboration continues between the Playhouse and Opera North with bringing A Little Night Music which is set to Stephen Sondheim’s music and lyrics and based on Hugh Wheeler’s book. This production will feature Opera North’s orchestra and its choir. The Leeds Playhouse and Nottingham Playhouse will be presenting Pam Gems’ Piaf (27th May to 13th Jun), directed by Adam Penford, will star Jenna Russell who will play Edith Piaf.

Leeds Playhouse always welcomes visiting productions including Kneehigh’s Ubu! A Singalong Satire (4th to 5th Feb); Isobel McArthur’s Pride and Prejudice (*sort of) (25th to 29th Feb); Phoenix Dance Theatre’s Black Waters (12th to 15th Feb), a production that is receiving its world premiere and explores hope and freed amid the fusion of contemporary and Indian Kathak dances; Gecko and Mind The Gap’s A Little Space; the ever popular Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Returns (31 Mar to 4th Apr) making its return visit; Northern Broadside’s Quality Street (21st to 25th Apr), a typical northern story about romance, deception and reinvention; Red Ladder Theatre’s Smile Club (5th to 7th Mar) and The Not So Ugly Sisters (in collaboration and a community tour is planned). There is the UK Premiere of Amsterdam (5th to 9th May) which is about a heavily pregnant violinist living in the city who had to face her past by a missive in 1944.

There are also more visiting productions which are in the line up; Jamal Gerald’s Idol (22nd to 23rd May), The Glee Club (19th to 23rd May), Sh!t Theatre Drink Rum with Expats (4th to 6th Jun), Dan Bye and Boff Walley’s These Hills Are Ours (26th to 27th Jun) and H.G. Wells’s science fiction novel and Orson Welles’ classic radio play, The Wars of the Worlds. Additionally, That Damned Woman will be performed (24th to 28th Mar).

Furnace is reputedly known for supporting and developing new productions and also up and coming artists. The following production that has benefited from the celebration of new work is A Girl in School Uniform (Walks Into A Bar) (12th to 14th Mar). Freedom Project (12th to 13th June), supported by Theatre of Sanctuary (a creative platform for asylum seekers and refugees) will present the project which will explore what freedom means to young accompanied refugees and asylum seekers in both Leeds and London. The successful Leeds Playhouse Youth Programme will be presenting Be the Example, Be the Voice (16th to 21st Mar) following their last successful production, Influences. Their new production will explore solidarity with regards to standing up for one’s beliefs.

There will also be some children’s theatre which includes Raymond Briggs’ The Bear (18th to 22nd Feb), In the Night Garden…Live (15th to 16th Apr) and Mike Kenny and Tutti Fruitti’s Sweet Dreams (16th May), Holes (7th to 11th Apr) and Carol Ann Duffy’s The Lost Happy Endings (27th to 28th Mar).

The Leeds Playhouse inclusively invites everyone to its theatre and experience as always another exciting and diverse season of productions which will appeal to many and no doubt address what matters here and everywhere.

Richmond Theatre – until 5 January 2020

Reviewed by Carly Burlinge

5*****

Snow White (Mia Starbuck) is madly in love with her handsome Prince Harry of Hampton (James Darch). Whilst Muddles (Jon Clegg) also shines a torch for the beautiful Princess, will he ever gain the courage to tell her how he feels or will he enlist the help from his mother Nurse Nancy (Jason Sutton). Can the seven friendly magnificent dwarfs (Luke Higgins, Jabari Braham, Conleth Kane, Callum Bell, Mark Laverty, Connor Marron and Robert Wilkes) protect Snow White from all evil and keep her safe?

Meanwhile Queen Lucretia (Jo Brand) is not impressed that she no longer holds the number 1 spot for the fairest of the land. Will she triumph to  banish Snow White or will true love conquer it all.

This magical production has lots to offer and has been brought to life with amazing comedy throughout with plenty of audience participation including lots to shout about with the very humorous Jo Brand as Queen Lucretia (“I’m the fairest in the land” “Oh no your not”, “Oh Yes I am“). Not to mention her amazing costumes with feathers and jewels and spectacular head pieces.

Jon Clegg who plays Muddles and Jason Sutton as Nurse Nancy offer  brilliant humour  with great jokes plenty of gags and had the audience almost immediately interacting and laughing out loud along with their bright fabulous and shiny costumes.

Mia Starbuck who plays Snow White and James Darch as Prince Harry of Hampton offered some great acting with some very catchy songs which had the audience dancing in their chairs and wanting to join in. Then there were the brilliant seven dwarfs played by Luke Higgins, Jabari Braham, Conleth Kane, Callum Bell, Mark Laverty, Connor Marron and Robert Wilkes who were full of enthusiasm , cracking great jokes full of smiles and keeping the audience amused throughout.

This was truly a splendid production packed with fabulous acting and costumes, fantastic scenery an amazing magic mirror and much more. Brilliant for children with lots of adult humour thrown in making this a perfect watch for all. I was entertained throughout and would highly recommend this show to anyone who fancies a great night at the theatre with a lot of laughs thrown in.

Sheffield Crucible – until 18 January 2020

Reviewed by Lottie Davis-Browne

5*****

Forget Christmas Day and all the fun and festivities surrounding it – for me the highlight to the end of the calendar year is always Sheffield Crucibles’ Christmas/New Year production. I’ve attended every annual Christmas production for the last few years when I first relocated to Sheffield, and have yet to see one that didn’t blow my socks off.

This years offering – the much loved, Tony Award winning 1950 Broadway musical “Guys and Dolls”, with music and lyrics by Frank Loesser, didn’t just blow my socks off, it completely blew me away! From the moment I entered the Crucible auditorium and set eyes on the magnificent stage set up. From the various doors and window frames that set the scenes of Mindy’s cafe, the Save a Soul Mission headquarters and the Havana restaurant; to the smaller details of the grand New York tall buildings which housed the live band – complete with each band member being in costumes from the 1920s and 1930s gangsters and gamblers era this story is set in. From vintage style Christmas cards strung across the window, to the retro wallpaper, door wreath and lit Christmas tree, the high raised band were as fascinating and mesmerising to look at as the rest of the cast.

Just when I thought this set design couldn’t be anymore breath taking, my eyes were then drawn to the 360 degree rotating stage, complete with retro New York traffic lights and the huge manhole covers to the underground (which you get to see in action later on in the story!).

The story is based around three-small time gamblers – Nicely Nicely Johnson, Benny Southstreet and Rusty Charlie, and Nicely and Benny’s employer Nathan Detroit – who runs an illegal floating crap game. (A dice game in which players make wagers on the outcome of the roll, or series of rolls, of a pair of dice).

With eagle-eyed, no nonsense Lt. Brannigan, a local Policeman on their tails – the only safe place to hold the game is at the “Biltmore Garage” – however it comes with a hefty charge of $1,000 – demanded in advance by garage owner Joey Biltmore. In order to raise this money, Nathan hopes to win a $1,000 bet against Sky Masterson, a gambler willing to bet on virtually anything. Nathan proposes a bet he believes he cannot lose: Sky must take a woman of Nathan’s choice to dinner in Havana, Cuba. Sky agrees, and Nathan chooses pious and beautiful Sergeant Sarah Brown, leader of the Save a Soul mission band. It’s not an easy bet to win, but Sky is determined to gain Sarah’s trust and whisk her away to Cuba.

Meanwhile, Nathan goes to watch his fiancé of fourteen years – Miss Adelaide, perform her nightclub act (“A Bushel and a Peck“). After her show, she asks him, as she has many times before, to go down to city hall and get a marriage license. She also tells Nathan that she has been sending her mother letters for twelve years claiming that they have been married with five children. She is distraught to find out that Nathan is still running the crap game. She consults a medical book, which tells her that her chronic cold is a psychosomatic reaction to her frustration with Nathan’s failure to marry her.

It’s impossible to single out a favourite cast member – each one having something special and unique about them. Having seen Natalie Casey’s older sister Anna in so many productions (including several for Sheffield Theatre Productions), I was unbelievably excited to finally get to see Natalie perform on stage (most people over a certain age – myself included – will remember Natalie from television shows “Hollyoaks”and “Two Pints of Lager”), and I certainly wasn’t left disappointed. Capturing the comical and classic show girl side of Miss Adelaide perfectly, Natalie often only had to say a one word line or pull a facial expression to have the entire audience in fits of laughter. Goofy but loveable, with a somewhat annoying voice – it’s hard not to be smitten by Miss Adelaides charm. Vocally Casey was also sensational – with the comical big numbers including “Bushel and Peck”, the sneezy “Adelaide’s Lament”, and my favourite “Take Back Your Mink” – again having the audience in stitches with the joyful to angry switch between verses.

Returning to Sheffield Theatres, Alex Young (Standing at the Sky’s Edge, Showboat and Anything Goes) – as Save a Soul Mission band member Sarah Brown – an idealistic but sheltered missionary, Alex captures the sweet, kind and somewhat vulnerable side to Sarah with ease. Going from a plain and simple missionary to coming out of her shell and falling in love for the first time, Alex and Kaddif Kirwan as long term gambler Sky Masterson – are a perfect pairing.

Another huge standout in this production is the wonderful choreography (Matt Flint), a favourite highlight for me being the male ensembles group dance during an instrumental of “Luck Be a Lady”. I also did a little happy dance inside and shed a tear of joy and acceptance, when another stand out performer – Garry Robson (Arvide Abernathy) first entered the stage. As a wheelchair user myself – I often feel frustrated that we often overlooked in the world of work – especially in jobs where we are face-to-face with the general public – and whilst it was the warmth in the character he played that was the first thing I noticed – once I had realised Robson was a full time wheelchair user – it made me love his character even more so – how he was able to engage effortlessly into choreography of the role, to the point where the wheelchair became unnoticeable and irrelevant – for me personally the joy of seeing a fellow wheelie being recognised for their ability rather than their disability – was a pivotal moment in theatre history for me personally.

Each year I always think Sheffield Theatres can’t excel the previous Christmas production, but once again I was proved wrong. Grab the hottest ticket in town now before it’s too late!

Leeds City Varieties Music Hall – until 12 January 2020

Reviewed by Sally Richmond

5*****

Unfiltered joyous laughter could be heard all across Leeds last night as Red Riding Hood, the famous Rock n Roll pantomime (written by Peter Rowe and directed by Rob Salmon), was performed at the wonderful Leeds City Varieties music hall; where one always receives the warmest of welcomes.

The multi-talented cast gave hilarious and highly entertaining performances from the second they skipped on the stage – to the moment they danced off and of course –  the audience was left shouting for more!

The Rock n Roll panto is legendary in Leeds and it’s obvious why – where else can you see the Dame on a sax and Fairies hitting the drums?  Innuendo filled, this show is one for the adults too and spontaneous belly laughs came from every seat. 

Following a traditional pantomime format, Red Riding Hood didn’t fail to deliver in giving the audience all the elements one wants and expects.  Our heroine (Lucy Keirl) dressed in red, falls in love but only to be duped by an unscrupulous wolf.  Along the way she meets some comedic characters and much chaos and confusion ensues. By the end, all ends well and families are united, good conquerors evil and leaves that fuzzy warm feeling inside. 

The show stealing moments were given by the Dame (Simon Nock) who was: tasteless, crass, crude and rude.  Perfect! This character really engaged the audience and created a huge amount of laughter just through his physical appearance alone! All this aside, the flawlessly performed musical numbers (directed by Dan de Cruz) were worth the cost of the ticket so you really are getting good value for money here; a panto and a rock concert in one!

If you want some Christmas cheer or to start the New Year smiling, then go and see this pantomime because you really will experience those feel good vibes from start to finish.

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR THE FIRST UK TOUR OF

JEREMY DYSON AND ANDY NYMAN’S

WORLDWIDE CULT PRODUCTION

Ghost Stories begins a 16 venue tour at

The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, 8^th January 2020.

Casting is today announced for Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman’s supernatural spectacular, Ghost Stories,which beginsits first ever UK tour atThe Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham on 8^th January 2020 . After exhilarating audiences across the globe with record breaking, sell-out productions and a smash hit film, the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s production of Ghost Stories has this year played yet another successful run at its original Hammersmith home and at is currently playing at the Ambassadors Theatre in London’s West End, until Saturday 4^th January.

Joshua Higgott plays Professor Goodman, Paul Hawkyard appears as Tony Matthews, Gus Gordon performs the role of Simon Rifkind and Richard Sutton reprises his role as Mike Priddle (Lyric Hammersmith Theatre and the West End’s Ambassador Theatre).

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.

Joshua Higgott plays Professor Goodman. Theatre credits includes: Robert Ike’s Hamlet (Almeida and Harold Pinter); 1984 (Headlong and Playhouse); The Oresteia (Almeida and Trafalgar Studios); Shakespeare in Love (Noël Coward) and Birdsong (UK Tour). Film includes: Bohemian Rhapsody, The Snowman, Darkest Hour and The Mummy. Television includes: The Witcher and McMafia.

Paul Hawkyard plays Tony Matthews. Theatre credits includes: War Horse (National Theatre); Wonderful Town (Royal Exchange/Kenny Wax Ltd); Birdsong (The Comedy Theatre); Oliver! The Musical (Theatre Clywdd & London Palladium); Mamma Mia (Prince of Wales Theatre); Peter Pan (The Royal Festival Hall); South Pacific (National Theatre); Les Misérables (Palace Theatre); Jesus Christ Superstar (The Lyceum Theatre); Miss Saigon (Theatre Royal, Drury Lane); A Midsummer Night’s Dream, As You Like It and Lady Be Good (Regents Park Open Air Theatre); The Railway Children (King’s Cross Theatre); A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Macbeth (Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre). Film includes: NT Live War Horse, If I Had You and Everybody Loves Sunshine.
Television includes: Doctors, The Coroner, Holby City, Sirens, The Bill, The Last Detective, Casualty, Where The Heart Is, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps, Mike Bassett England Manager, Coronation Street, EastEnders, Band of Gold, Maisie Raine, London’s Burning, Residents, Scoop, MI High, In Two Minds, Playdays and Justin’s House.

Gus Gordon plays Simon Rifkind. Gus trained at The Brit School of Performing Arts and Technology & Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts. Theatre whilst training includes: The History Boys, Saved and Measure for Measure.
Short films include: Hound (72 Hour National Film Challenge) and Through the Static.
Television includes: Cursed and Jingle Jangle (Netflix). Ghost Stories will be Gus’ professional stage debut.

Richard Sutton plays Mike Priddle. Theatre includes: Ghost Stories (Lyric Hammersmith Theatre, Ambassadors Theatre); The Cow Play (Brighton Theatre Festival); Transmissions (Birmingham Rep Theatre); Tall Phoenix (Coventry Belgrade Theatre); Confusions (Canal Café Theatre); Romeo and Juliet (Jamaican tour); Albert Make Us Laugh (Birmingham Library Theatre); The Libertine (Birmingham Library Theatre) and Charley’s Aunt (Stoke Repertory Theatre).Television includes: The Crown, Line of Duty, The Terror, Gigglebiz, Sherlock, Humans, Boomers, Silent Witness, Jekyll and Hyde, Dunkirk, Doctors, Mr Selfridge, Our Girl, The Missing, Hollyoaks, The Tunnel, One Night, Titanic, EastEnders, Miranda, Come Fly With Me, Hustle, Beautiful People, Sugar Rush, The Bill, Dalziel and Pascoe, Derailed, Courtroom, Making Waves, Nuzzle and Scratch, Holby City and ChuckleVision.

Following Birmingham, the tour then continues to Bath,Theatre Royal; Nottingham, Theatre Royal; Woking, New Victoria Theatre;  Aylesbury, Waterside Theatre; Brighton, Theatre Royal; The Lowry, Salford; Cardiff, New Theatre; The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury; York, Grand Opera House; Richmond Theatre; Liverpool Playhouse; Glasgow Theatre Royal; King’s Theatre, Edinburgh, Nuffield Southampton Theatres City and the Sheffield Lyceum. 

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.

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.

Follow Us

Website: www.ghoststorieslive.co.uk

Facebook: @ghoststories

Twitter: @ghoststoriesUK

Instagram: @ghoststoriesLDN

JIM CARTER IN CONVERSATION WITH HELEN MIRREN

KILN CINEMA

16 FEBRUARY AT 5PM

Continuing his series of In Conversation events for Kiln Theatre, Jim Carter will sit down with one of the world’s most celebrated actors Helen Mirren in a special one-off fundraising event on 16 February 2020, where she will discuss her career from stage to screen.

Helen Mirren is one of the best known and most respected actresses with an international career that spans stage, screen and television and has won many awards for her powerful and versatile performances, including the Academy Award in 2007 for her performance in The Queen.  In 2014 she was honoured with the BAFTA Fellowship for her outstanding career in film, and in 2018 was given with the Chaplin Gala career achievement recognition from The Film Society at Lincoln Center, New York. She became a Dame of the British Empire in 2003.

All proceeds from the evening are in aid of Kiln Theatre. This support will help to create innovative productions, to make theatre available to the local community and to connect everyone, whatever their background, through the power of performance.

The priority on-sale for Kiln Card holders is 13 December at 11am; with general on-sale on 16 December at 11am. Kiln Cards are available from £40 per year.

Tickets are £125 and £95 and can be purchased via www.kilntheatre.com and 020 7328 1000.

www.KilnTheatre.com

Twitter: @KilnTheatre / @KilnCinema

Blackeyed Theatre in association with South Hill Park
2020 dates announced for international tour of
Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Brontë
Adapted by Nick Lane
International tour September 2019 – June 2020

Six months of 2020 touring dates have been announced for Blackeyed Theatre’s epic international tour of Nick Lane’s thrilling new adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s masterpiece Jane Eyre. This spectacular world premiere is touring until June 2020, and will make its way across the UK, including a return home to the Yorkshire moors, as well as The Netherlands and China.

A whirlwind of a production that tells the story of Charlotte Brontë’s classic novel with beautiful, intimate flair (★★★★ The Skinny)

Heading to Yorkshire, where Charlotte Brontë was born and her famous heroine struggles for freedom, this Gothic masterpiece of tempestuous passions and dark secrets follows Jane Eyre from her orphaned childhood to her life at Thornfield Hall with the mysterious and brooding Mr Rochester. But her newfound happiness is threatened by hidden pasts in the gloomy, forbidding Thornfield Hall and a terrible secret forces her to make a heart-wrenching choice.

Blackeyed Theatre captivatingly brings to life an unforgettable portrayal of Jane’s quest for equality in a patriarchal society. In spite of terrible hardships, Brontë’s heroine perseveres in order to define her own life and happiness, rather than it being defined for her by others. A woman in a man’s world striving to succeed independently, Charlotte Brontë originally published under a male pseudonym. Her and Jane’s search for equality and freedom still hit home today.

The cast features Kelsey Short as Jane Eyre (Class, Spur of the Moment; F*cking Life Mate, JamesArts Productions; Broken, The White Bear), Ben Warwick as Mr Rochester (Pentecost; The Oedipus Plays, National Theatre; The Deep Blue Sea, Watford Palace; Les Liaisons Dangereuses and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, York Theatre Royal; Hamlet, English Touring Theatre), Camilla Simson as Mrs Fairfax (The Merchant of Venice, The Globe, Rome; Thin Toes, Pleasance; Lady Windermere’s Fan, Bill Kenwright national tour; Shakers, Liverpool Playhouse), Eleanor Toms as Blanche Ingram (The Secret Garden, The Minack Theatre; Astley’s Astounding Adventures, New Vic; Blue Stockings, Cockpit Theatre), Oliver Hamilton as St John Rivers (Maggie May, Liverpool Everyman; Crossroads, The Actors Church; A Christmas Carol, Windsor Castle).

In their trademark style, Blackeyed Theatre’s interpretation of Jane Eyre will feature an ensemble cast of actor-musicians. The performance includes live music written specially for the production by award-winning composer George Jennings.

Director and Producer Adrian McDougall says, Bringing Jane Eyre to the stage with such a wonderful group of artists and to see it thrive has been a sheer joy, to say nothing of the incredible reaction from audiences young and old. In 2020 we’ll be bringing Brontë’s masterpiece to many more UK theatres, including first-time visits to Crewe Lyceum and Theatre Royal Bath, and sharing it with audiences across The Netherlands and China. At a time when we feel so divided, it’s comforting to see how much we have in common when it comes to our love of Brontë and, more broadly, literature and theatre.

Writer Nick Lane comments, Plays based on books have to be their own thing, no matter the manner in which their stories are related to an audience, and I think this production looks – and perhaps more importantly feels – both strongly connected to the source material and also is its own thing. I’m still pinching myself that I was given the chance to adapt such an incredible, iconic novel as Jane Eyre and I’m looking forward to seeing how the show has grown. I’ve been reading all the lovely reviews for the cast and for the production and I’m certain they’ll continue

Jane Eyre is produced by Blackeyed Theatre in association with South Hill Park in Bracknell and supported by Arts Council England.