RICKY TOMLINSON RETURNS TO THE STAGE IN NEW MUSICAL PLAY IRISH ANNIE’S
CATHERINE RICE AND ASA MURPHY ALSO STAR IN COMEDY CELEBRATING THE BEST OF IRISH CULTURE IN
ST HELENS, LIVERPOOL AND BLACKPOOL
Actor and comedian, Ricky Tomlinson is to return to the stage in a new musical comedy that celebrates the best of Irish culture.
Irish Annie’s will perform around the St Patricks Day celebrations at St Helens Theatre Royal on Monday 14th March and the Epstein Theatre Liverpool on Saturday 19th March. The play also heads to Blackpool’s Joe Longthorne Theatre on Friday 1st July.Tickets are on sale and selling fast!
Irish Annie’s is a celebration of Irish culture, from the music to the comedy, featuring the well-known live 6-piece band The Shenanigans. Meet landlady Annie and her regular madcap customers for a fun night out of comedy, music and mayhem, featuring original tracks written for the show by Asa Murphy, along with your all-time favourite Irish tunes including Galway Shawl, Tell Me Ma, Dirty Old Town, Whiskey In The Jar, Danny Boy and many more. The evening promises to have the audience laughing, singing, and dancing the night away.
Ricky Tomlinson will join the cast starring as Scouse Pete. Ricky is a much-loved actor and comedian living all his life in Liverpool, he is best known for his roles as Bobby Grant in Brookside, DCI Charlie Wise in Cracker and Jim Royle in The Royle Family, he also played the title character in the film Mike Bassett: England Manager. He is a very keen musician playing both the banjo and harmonica.
Ricky said “This show is a delight to be part of, with a wonderful cast of characters and beautiful original and classic Irish music. Come and enjoy the show, I guarantee you will have a ball”.
Irish Annie’s is co-produced by Bill Elms Productions (Judy & Liza, Jerry Springer The Opera, Swan Song, Something About Simon)and Asa Murphy Productions (Buddy Holly Lives, The Bobby Darin Story).
The show also stars Catherine Rice as Irish Annie, Asa Murphy as Seamus Murphy, Nathan Murphy as Porky the Postman, Sam Conlan as Noel Singen-Smithe and Pauline Donovan as Moira the Money Lender.
Producer Bill Elms commented:“Irish Annie’s is the perfect show to bring out around St Patricks Day, it’s a huge feel-good show filled with great comedy and live music, I am thrilled that we have such a fantastic cast including Ricky Tomlinson, Asa Murphy and Catherine Rice. The show premiered in Liverpool two years ago and went down a storm, now it’s even bigger and better than before, look out for more dates still to come.”
Asa Murphy has created and co-produced the show. Asa has been a successful entertainer for 18 years. He has performed all over the world singing Big Band Swing music and my own self-penned songs. He has fulfilled many of his dreams as a performer selling out London’s Ronnie Scott’s, topping the bill at the famous Liverpool Empire, and cruising and singing on the most beautiful liners in the world. Asa also has a very popular BBC Radio show and has been on the airwaves for 10 years. In 2019 he turned his talents to writing stage musicals and has so far had three hit shows, Buddy Holly Lives, Mack The Knife and Irish Annie’s along with two children’s shows.
Writer and performer Asa Murphy added:“This show is a celebration of everything that makes Irish culture and the people of Ireland so special. Laughter, music, and the ability to make people face life’s difficult obstacles through friendship. I am very proud that the show has been so well received with my family originating from Cork and Tralee and many still living in Ireland.”
It may be set in a small-town American diner but Waitress provides the ultimate cordon bleu delight, a veritable smörgȧsbord of a musical that pulls at all the emotions. From the minute the cast sang in harmony about the need to switch off mobile phones they had the packed Hull New Theatre ready for desserts, and what a feast we were served.
With music and lyrics by Sara Bareilles and the book by Jessie Nelson, Waitress is based upon the film written by Adrienne Shelley. This is not a sugar-coated light musical but one which will stretch your emotions and leave you at one moment horrified and in the next laughing out loud. Waitress is essentially a celebration of life and of the human ability to make the best of things and to rise above whatever life throws at us. The story revolves around Joe’s Diner and the waitresses who work there, Jenna (Chelsea Halfpenny), Becky (Sandra Marvin) and Dawn (Evelyn Hoskins). Jenna bakes all the pies for the Diner and this allows her to escape her life a little as she is not happy with her husband. No-one in Waitress has an easy time but their friendships sustain them, as is so often the case in life.
Chelsea Halfpenny is stunning as Jenna, her musical range is outstanding and the range of emotions she brings to her character is breath-taking. Her performance of “She Used To Be Mine” was utterly heart rending and the audience were totally engrossed as she sang, and I am sure I am not the only one who had goosebumps by the end of the song. There were periods when she was utterly silent and still on the stage and nobody moved a muscle in the audience either as we were too gripped by this story. Her fear of Earl (Tamlyn Henderson) was palpable as was the depths of joy and despair she felt with Dr. Pomatter (Matt Jay-Willis). The relationship with her friends Becky and Dawn were wonderfully believable.
Dr. Pomatter is played to perfection by Matt Jay-Willis, he has a stunning voice and the performance with Jenna of “You Matter To Me” was another breath-taking performance.
Sandra Marvin was superb as Becky, sassy and naughty but with her own hardships and sorrows. She has a fabulous voice, shown to its full advantage in “I Didn’t Plan It”. Evelyn Hoskins is suitably kooky as Dawn, seeking to find an on-line date and bringing much laughter to the performance.
Tamlyn Henderson oozed aggression and violence towards Jenna with minimal movement, at one point there was an audible gasp of horror from the audience. His desire that Jenna should promise not to love the baby more than him was frighteningly real.
Michael Starke as Joe, George Crawford as Ogie and Christopher D. Hunt as Cal, also played their parts to perfection.
Mention must go to the ensemble, who slickly and smoothly changed scenery, provided a variety of characters and the most sublime harmonies. This is a fast-moving performance, wonderfully choreographed, with an astounding number of props which were often flying around the stage. The orchestra led by musical director Ellen Campbell were on stage at all times and were excellent.
I was told that Waitress was a show I should not miss and I found this to be oh so true, I was totally blown away by the whole thing, sheer perfection from start to finish
Jeffrey Seller and Cameron Mackintosh, producers of the West End production of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s HAMILTON, are delighted to announce an extension to booking with tickets now on sale until 10 July 2022 at the Victoria Palace Theatre.
Karl Queensborough plays the title role of Alexander Hamilton with Jay Perry currently as Aaron Burr, Ava Brennan as Angelica Schuyler, Sharon Rose as Eliza Hamilton, Trevor Dion Nicholas as George Washington, Waylon Jacobs as Marquis De Lafayette/Thomas Jefferson, Emile Ruddock as Hercules Mulligan/James Madison, Khalid Daley as John Laurens/Phillip Hamilton, Emilie Louise Israel as Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds and Harry Hepple as King George. At certain performances the role of Alexander Hamilton is played by Nuno Queimado. Simon-Anthony Rhoden, who currently plays the role of Aaron Burr, has unfortunately sustained an injury and will return to the role at a date to be announced.
The cast also comprises Jade Albertsen, Curtis Angus, Matthew Caputo, Filippo Coffano, Ashley Daniels, Kelly Downing, Lydia Fraser, Jordan Frazier, Manaia Glassey-Ohlson, Jake Halsey-Jones, Olivia Kate Holding, Peter Houston, DeAngelo Jones, Phoebe Liberty Jones, Nicolais-Andre Kerry, Travis Kerry, Ella Kora, Natasha Leaver, Aaron Lee Lambert, Sinead Long, Louis Mackrodt,Lindsey Tierney and Brandon Williams.
Karl Queensborough’sprevious theatre credits include White Teeth at the Kiln Theatre, Sylvia and The Girl From the North Country at The Old Vic, The Little Matchgirl for Shakespeare’s Globe/Bristol Old Vic/UK Tour, Aladdin,Cinderella, Dick Whittington and Jack and the Beanstalk for the Lyric Hammersmith, A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Filter, The Machine Stops for Theatre Royal York/Pilot Theatre, A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes for the Tricycle Theatre, Only the Brave for Soho Theatre/Wales Millennium Centre/Bird Song, Morning for the Lyric Hammersmith/Traverse Theatre, Dayglo and Mind The Gap for Y Touring, and Ignition Out of Reach for Frantic Assembly.
Simon-Anthony Rhoden’stheatre credits include The Color Purple for Leicester Curve, Kinky Boots at the Adelphi Theatre for which he won the Broadway World UK Award for Best Long-Running West End Show Performer, If I Should Stay for Soho Theatre and Parade at the Edinburgh Fringe. His screen credits include Feel Good, Let It Snow and Blue.
Jay Perry’s theatre credits include Kiss Me, Kate at The Watermill Theatre, Berry Gordy in the final London cast of Motown: The Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and Whistle Down The Wind both at the Aldwych Theatre, Hairspray at the Gordon Craig Theatre, Save The Last Dance For Me on UK tour, She Stoops to Conquer for London Contemporary and Sword and The Dope for the King’s Head. On television his credits include I Dream, Top of the Pops and Blue Peter. On film his credits include Seeing Double. Perry was a member of the pop band SClub Juniors.
Ava Brennan’s theatre credits include Tina – The Tina Turner Musical at the Aldwych, A Christmas Carol for The Old Vic, the West End and UK tour productions of The Lion King, The Count of Monte Cristo and Hairspray in St Gallen Switzerland and the German tour of Aida. Her film credits include Hellboy, Rocketman, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again and Beauty and the Beast.
Sharon Rose’s previous theatre credits include Beautiful: The Carole King Musical at the Aldwych Theatre, Motown The Musical at the Shaftesbury Theatre and Caroline or Change at the Hampstead Theatre.
Trevor Dion Nicholas originated the role of Genie in the West End production of Disney’s Aladdin at the Prince Edward Theatre. He also played the role at the New Amsterdam Theatre on Broadway and the U.S Tour. His other theatre credits include The Wiz, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Ragtime, The Little Mermaid, The Wizard of Oz, Into the Woods, Little Shop of Horrors, Rent, The Exonerated and This is the Life All for the ETA Hoffman Theatre, Germany.
Waylon Jacobs makes his return to London production of Hamilton. His previous theatre credits include Treason for the Cadogan Hall, The Last Five Years for the Minack Theatre, Peter Pan for the Barn Theatre, YANK! at the Charing Cross Theatre, Chicago at the Phoenix Theatre, Memphis at the Shaftesbury Theatre, We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre and on tour, Rent at the Tabard Theatre, Ragtime and A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Children of Eden at the Prince of Wales Theatre and The Lion King at the Lyceum Theatre.
Emile Ruddock’s previous theatre credits include Me and My Girl at the Chichester Festival Theatre, Five Guys Named Moe at the Marble Arch Theatre, Crazy for You at the Watermill Theatre, Kiss Me Kate on UK Tour and The Scottsboro Boys at the Young Vic and at the Garrick Theatre.
Khalid Daley is making his West End debut. His theatre credits include Dick Whittington and War Horse for the National Theatre, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical on UK and Ireland tour, Hamlet on UK tour for Changeling Theatre, Careen – The True History of Bonnie and Clyde at Birmingham Rep, Godspell at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and Lord of the Flies for New Adventures and Birmingham Hippodrome. His television credits include Doctors and 4 O’Clock Club: Hollywood.
Emilie Louise Israel is making her West End debut in Hamilton. Her previous theatre credits include Nala in The Lion King and Jungle Festival for Disneyland Paris, The Womanin the US Tour of Gobsmacked! and the UK Tour of The Magic of Motown.
Harry Hepple’s theatre credits include Romantics Anonymous at Bristol Old Vic, A Taste of Honey, Follies and Burnt by the Sun for the National Theatre, The Lightening Child and Macbeth for Shakespeare’s Globe, Privates on Parade at the Noël Coward Theatre, A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Pippin at the Menier Chocolate Factory, Hot Mess at the Arcola Theatre, 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at the Donmar Warehouse, Been So Long for the Young Vic and Alaska for the Royal Court. His film credits include Peterloo and Stan and Ollie. On television his credits include Moving On, Boy Meet Girl, Hustle, Misfits and InspectorGeorge Gently.
Nuno Queimado’sprevious theatre credits include Jesus Christ Superstar at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, Mother Courage and her Children and Side Show for Southwark Playhouse, From Here To Eternity at the Shaftesbury Theatre, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown at the Playhouse Theatre, The World’s Greatest Show for the Royal Opera House, God’s Garden UK tour, and The Little Match Girl at Sadlers wells. He also appeared in the ITV drama Cold Feet.
HAMILTON has book, music and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, is directed by Thomas Kail, with choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire and is based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton. HAMILTON features scenic design by David Korins, costume design by Paul Tazewell, lighting design by Howell Binkley, sound design by Nevin Steinberg and hair and wig design by Charles G. LaPointe.
The Olivier, Tony and Grammy award-winning production opened at the newly re-built and restored Victoria Palace Theatre in London in December 2017 and continued to play there until the start of lockdown in March 2020. The production resumed performances in August 2021.HAMILTON is produced in London by Jeffrey Seller, Sander Jacobs, Jill Furman, The Public Theater and Cameron Mackintosh.
Today RADA’s Council announces that Niamh Dowling will become the new Principal of RADA.
Niamh Dowling is currently Head of Postgraduate School of Performance, Design and Technical Arts at Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance in London, prior to which she was Head of School of Theatre at Manchester Metropolitan University. Her extensive career as a teacher has been international, including partnerships with arthaus.berlin, National Theater Institute at the Eugene O’Neill Centre in Connecticut, with Song of the Goat in Wroclaw, Poland, as well as extensive work with the British Council. Following her training in Wales, London, Paris and New York, she has, over many years, developed a unique approach to working with a range of performers, technicians, designers, directors, writers and managers for which she has been selected as one of the practitioners on the online Routledge Performance Archive.
Niamh Dowling said: “I am so delighted to be joining RADA as Principal. RADA’s reputation as a world leader in the field of actor, technical, design and performer training is outstanding. It has been a difficult couple of years for the sector and the industry and we are all learning at such a fast pace. With talented students and alumni, and experienced, knowledgeable and dedicated staff, RADA is perfectly positioned for conversations and collaborations in the UK and internationally about training that is relevant and representative of 21st-century Britain and beyond. I am looking forward to those conversations and leading RADA as this next phase unfolds.”
Marcus Ryder, Chair of RADA Council, said: “This is an important moment in RADA’s history, and arguably a seminal moment for conservatoires in the UK. Niamh Dowling was appointed following a long and rigorous selection process by RADA Council involving staff and the student body. I am confident that Niamh is a brilliant appointment to meet the current challenges and help shape the future of the teaching of the dramatic arts at RADA, nationally and internationally. I look forward to working with Niamh and giving her the support she needs to ensure RADA strengthens its position as a world leading drama school producing the best technical and acting talent.”
UK Theatre launches biggest ever 2-for-1 ticket offer for National Lottery players through Love Your Local Theatre campaign
Over 100 theatres nationwide have signed up for the new campaign, for which The National Lottery is providing up to £2 million to subsidise over 150,000tickets
Throughout March, National Lottery players can get 2-for-1 theatre tickets for performances of shows including Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Blood Brothers, Bedknobs and Broomsticks, Jersey Boys, Abigail’s Party, Magic Goes Wrong and Peppa Pig
Supported by TV presenter, Girls Aloud singer and star of the stage Kimberley Walsh, the campaign encourages the public to support local theatres as they recover from the pandemic
Today (Tuesday 1 February), UK Theatre is launching Love Your Local Theatre,a new campaign encouraging the public to support their local theatres as they begin to recover from the impact of Covid. Over 100 theatres UK-wide have come together to join in on the effort and offer the biggest ever 2-for-1 ticket offer to National Lottery players who attend a show during the month of March.
The campaign, run by leading theatre membership body UK Theatre and made possible by the support of The National Lottery, is providing up to £2 million to subsidise an estimated 150,000 tickets nationwide. National Lottery players are being offered the chance to buy one ticket and get another free for participating shows as a thank you for the £30 million they raise every week for Good Causes, including support for the performing arts and theatres during the pandemic.
From classic musicals and beloved plays to family shows, comedy, dance and more, Love Your Local Theatrehas brought together local theatres from Southend to Scarborough, Cornwall to Cardiff and Newcastle to Norwich, to give players the chance to experience the magic of live entertainment for less this spring, whilst giving back to their local entertainment communities.
In addition to the strong support from theatres across the UK, Love Your Local Theatre is also being supported by TV presenter, singer and Girls Aloud star, Kimberley Walsh, who has enjoyed performing at theatres and entertainment venues around the UK, many of which have received funding from The National Lottery.
Stephanie Sirr, President of UK Theatre, said: “We are delighted to be working with The National Lottery on Love Your Local Theatre, the first time UK Theatre members across the country have united for a ticket promotion of this scale. We should be hugely proud in this country to have such an extensive, vibrant and diverse range of regional theatres, all of which play a vital role in the theatre landscape of the UK and beyond. After such a turbulent two years, we want to shout about the fact that theatres are open and ready to reward audiences for their patience and loyalty – please visit your local theatre and help them continue to make brilliant creative work!”
Kimberley Walsh, TV presenter, Girls Aloud singer and star of the stage, said: “We are so privileged to have so many incredible theatres and entertainment venues across the UK. I have been lucky enough to perform in many of them. Without our local theatres, the face of UK entertainment would look very different and it’s amazing The National Lottery is providing £2 million to support them. The entertainment industry was particularly impacted by the pandemic, and that’s why the Love Your Local Theatre campaign is so important in supporting their recovery.”
Sir Matthew Bourne, Choreographer and Artistic Director of New Adventures, said: “My dance-theatre company New Adventures prides itself on being truly national, and touring is built into the fabric of what we do. As we continue on our current UK tour of Nutcracker!, visiting theatres across the country, I am reminded of how vitally important it is that we celebrate and protect our much-loved regional venues, especially during this crucial time for the theatre industry as it begins a long recovery from the ravages of the pandemic. I support the Love Your Local Theatre campaign, and hope it helps bring as many people as possible back to their local theatres for the thrill of live performance.”
Arts Minister Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, said: “I’m delighted that The National Lottery is offering 2 for 1 tickets so that people can support their local theatre while enjoying an afternoon or evening out. As well as being great fun, a trip to the theatre can have an inspirational impact on people’s lives – which is why we want everyone, no matter where they are from, to have better access to the arts. The Government has supported theatres throughout the pandemic, with more than £280 million in grants and loans from our Culture Recovery Fund, and initiatives such as ‘Love your Local Theatre’ can only help encourage audiences to get out and enjoy some brilliant productions.”
Nigel Railton, CEO of National Lottery operator Camelot, added: “The UK’s entertainment industry is world-class thanks to the huge variety of venues and projects across the four nations. National Lottery players raise £30 million a week to help fund Good Causes, many of which lie in the entertainment industry. The National Lottery is proud to have teamed up with UK Theatre to launch the Love Your Local Theatrecampaign, giving local theatres the support they need to get on the road to recovery following the pandemic, whilst saying thank you to National Lottery players who have helped support many theatres during the last two years.”
The Love Your Local Theatre promotion is available to anyone who is a National Lottery player and possesses a National Lottery ticket. From 1 February, players can purchase tickets at available performances taking place during the month of March. Keep checking the website for more venues being added each day.
THE INTERNATIONAL SMASH HIT MUSICAL SIX ANNOUNCES NEW CAST FOR THE UK TOUR
The multi award-winning musical phenomenon SIX, written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, today announces a new cast for the UK tour. The current company will play their final performance on Sunday 6 March with the new company taking over from Tuesday 8 March at the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre in Guildford. The new touring Queens will be played by Chlöe Hart (Catherine of Aragon), Jennifer Caldwell (Anne Boleyn), Casey Al-Shaqsy (Jane Seymour), Aiesha Pease (Anna of Cleves), Jaina Brock-Patel (Katherine Howard) and Alana M Robinson (Catherine Parr). Grace Melville, Leesa Tulley and Natalie Pilkington (Dance Captain) will be joining the cast as Alternates, with Super Swing Harriet Caplan-Dean. The cast are backed by the show’s all-female band, The Ladies in Waiting.
SIX follows the six wives of Henry VIII as they take to the mic to tell their own personal tales, remixing five hundred years of historical heartbreak into an 80-minute celebration of 21st century girl power.
Since its early days as a student production in a 100-seat room at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the show has fast become a global musical phenomenon. SIX currently has productions playing on Broadway at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre and at the Sydney Opera House prior to an Australian and New Zealand tour, with a major US tour coming soon. Meanwhile, back on home turf, the London production is now enjoying its third royal residence in the West End at the Vaudeville Theatre and the UK tour continues its nationwide sold-out reign, now booking through to 2023.
SIX was nominated for five Olivier Awards including Best New Musical. It won the BBC Radio 2 Audience Award for Best Musical at the Whatsonstage Awards and was invited to perform on the results show of ITV’s ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ and BBC’s ‘Children in Need Appeal Show’. Celebrating the global success of its songs with over 300 million streams and over 3 billion views on TikTok, the original studio album of SIX has officially turned Gold, marking over 100,000 sales in the UK and will be released on vinyl next month.
Written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, SIX is co-directed by Lucy Moss and Jamie Armitage, featuring choreography by Carrie-Anne Ingrouille. The design team includes Emma Bailey (Set Design), Gabriella Slade (Costume Design), Tim Deiling (Lighting Design) and Paul Gatehouse (Sound Design). The score features orchestrations by Tom Curran with music supervision and vocal arrangements by Joe Beighton. Musical Director Jennifer Deacon and UK Musical Supervisor Katy Richardson. Casting is by Pearson Casting. SIX is produced by Kenny Wax, Wendy & Andy Barnes and George Stiles.
Mikron Theatre Company announce productions for 50th anniversary tour
· Mikron Theatre to celebrate 50 years of touring 66 new plays by travelling 34,000 hours by river and over 545,000 by road to over 436,000 people
· Tour to feature the World Premiere of Lindsay Rodden’s new play Red Sky at Night and a revival of the company’s hugely successful 2015 production of Raising Agents
· This year the company will tour to over 140 venues by river and road
· Productions will tour from 7 April till 22 October 2022
50 years of Mikron Theatre
130 venues, four actors, two plays, one van, one narrowboat
Mikron Theatre, one of the country’s most versatile touring theatre companies, is delighted to announce that from April it will commence its celebrations of 50 years of touring on the river and by road with the premiere of Red Sky At Night, Lindsay Rodden’s new play about the nation’s obsession with the wild and wonderful world of weather, and a remount of the acclaimed Yorkshire theatre company’s hugely successful 2015 production of Maeve Larkin’s play about the Women’s Institute- Raising Agents.
Based in the village of Marsden, at the foot of the Yorkshire Pennines, the company are like no other. For starters, over the last 50 years they have toured 66 productions on board a vintage narrowboat and spent over 34,000 boating hours on the inland waterways. Secondly, they perform their shows in places that other theatre companies wouldn’t dream of; a play about growing-your-own on an allotment; a play about bees performed next to hives, a play about fish and chips to audiences in a fish and chip restaurant, as well as plays about hostelling performed in YHA Youth hostels and the RNLI, performed at several Lifeboat Stations around the UK. Over the last 50 years the company has performed 5200 times to over a staggering 436,000 people.
Mikron Theatre’s Artistic Director Marianne McNamara said:
“We are so blooming chuffed to have reached our golden jubilee year, half a century. There have been times that we did not think we would make it; funding challenges, boat stoppages and a pandemic have been hurdles along the way. The reason we are still here is because of the incredible support that we have received from our friends and supporters up and down the country. We are so grateful to them.”
Featuring music written by Mikron’s Marsden neighbours, the acclaimed folk duo O’Hooley and Tidow (Gentleman Jack, HBO/BBC), the 50th anniversary tour will start with Maeve Larkin’s Raising Agents which tells the story of Bunnington Women’s Institute, a down-at-heel WI with memberships dwindling and who can barely afford the hall, let alone a decent speaker. So, when a PR guru becomes a member, the women are glad of new blood.
Initially, the milk of WI kindness begins to sour when she re-brands them as the Bunnington Bunnies. They are hopping. With stakes higher than a five-tiered cake stand, a battle ensues for the very soul of Bunnington, perhaps the WI itself!
On the threshold of one century into the next, this tale of hobbyists and lobbyists asks how much we should know our past, or how much we should let go of it.
Playwright Maeve Larkin said:
“I am so thrilled that Mikron Theatre will be restaging Raising Agents for their 50th Anniversary tour. As with the WI’s old paradoxical motto ‘Grave and Gay’, it aims to transcend the sum of its parts by celebrating the timeless principles of community, activism and sisterhood.”
Touring alongside Raising Agents, the company will premiere Red Sky At Night, Lindsay Rodden’s (Here, Northern Stage and Curious Monkey co-production and The Story Giant, Everyman Theatre Liverpool) new play about the nation’s obsession with the wild and wonderful world of weather.
Through the chronicles of history, people have gazed up and marvelled at the mysteries of the weather. Generations have tried to master the elements and understand the magic of the skies.
Hayley’s sunny, beloved dad was the nation’s favourite weatherman. He could make a typhoon sound like a tickle. Hayley is now following in his footsteps, to join the ranks of the forecasting fraternity. Or at least, local shoestring teatime television.
When the pressure drops and dark clouds gather, Hayley is melting faster than a lonely snowflake. She has seen the future’s forecast, but will anyone listen?
Playwright Lindsay Rodden said:
“Through an incredible half-a-century, whatever the weather, Mikron have travelled the country, chronicling our histories, our struggles, our passions and our lives. I am over the moon to write just one of these stories, and say Happy Birthday Mikron, fighting fit and fifty years young!
Raising Agents will be touring nationally from 7 April and Red Sky At Night from 14 May with both shows ending on 22 October.
Producer Tanya Truman is pleased to announce that Little Sausage, a new musical, is coming to The Other Palace Studio in March 2022. Tickets for Little Sausage are on sale now!
After three years of development – and a few national lockdowns – creative team of this brand-new musical are thrilled to premiere the full hour-long version of Little Sausage in a work-in-progress showcase at The Other Palace Studio.
Directed by Annabelle Hollingdale(From Here, Spring Awakening), Little Sausage is a new verbatim musical about the nation’s most controversial sausage. It uses the real words of ‘real’ men to explore toxic masculinity, plant-based dating, and the game-changing Gregg’s vegan sausage roll.
Little Sausage is a new verbatim musical about the relationship between veganism and masculinity.
With music and lyrics by Joshua Fowley and book Deborah Vogt, Little Sausage follows a Yorkshire lad and how his relationship with friends and family changes during his journey from cheese addict to animal activist!
With words and lyrics comprised entirely of interviews with everyone from an Australian activist to a non-vegan who grew up in farming communities in Northern England, Little Sausage uses real words and folk-pop music to explore the myth that meat equals manliness.
Tickets are available now via The Other Palace website. Casting to be announced soon.
Following the cancellation of VAULT Festival, it is today announced that the world première production of Ella Dorman-Gajic’s Trade will open at Omnibus Theatre on 15 February to 19 February, as one of 11 productions rescheduled at the venue. Directed by Maddy Corner the cast is Tanya Cubric (Jana), Ojan Genc (Stefan/Nikola) and Eleanor Roberts (Katarina/Elena). Set in Serbia, Bosnia and the UK, Trade is a thought-provoking, unflinching new play exploring morality and power within the European sex-trafficking industry.
Trade was shortlisted for the 2020 Snoo Wilson Award and Slam Soaps New Writing Competition (out of 1,500 entries). It was developed at Drama Centre London and streamed online to an overwhelmingly positive response. All performances will also be captioned in English and Serbian.
10% of all ticket sales will go to Unseen, a leading UK charity fighting modern slavery.Today, over 20 million people are trafficked around the world. That number is higher than in all of history. 70% of those are female. This brave new play puts a brutal underground world centre stage.
A post-show discussion will take place on 19th February at 3.30pm. This will be with playwright Ella, Tanya and 2 people from the linked charity Unseen, Olivia Charlton and Eva Daly who are from the support services team, and work directly with survivors at Unseen.
‘I could tell you I had no choice. I could tell you I’m innocent. But I know that wouldn’t be completely true’
Jana is on the cusp of adulthood; she’s started dating her first boyfriend and is getting ready to leave war-torn Serbia, to provide for her family. However, when she wakes up in a basement in Bosnia, it becomes clear to Jana that life doesn’t always follow the plans we make for it.
Ella Dorman-Gajic is a playwright, poet and performer of Serbian and Austrian heritage. Her writing has been described as “impassioned” by The Guardian. She is a member of the Roundhouse Poetry Collective, alumna of Apples & Snakes Writing Room, New Writing South’s Young Writers and was Broken Silence Theatre’s first Writer in Residence. Her work has been staged at the Arcola Theatre, Camden People’s Theatre, The Old Red Lion and Edinburgh Festival Fringe. This is her debut full-length play.
Tanya Cubric plays Jana. For theatre her credits include XOX (Cambridge Junction), A Splintered Woman (Theatre503), Extra Terra (BAC/Monofest, Izmir), The Chemsex Monologues (Oscar Wilde Theatre, Berlin); and for television Bloods, We Hunt Together, Automat and The Tunnel.
Ojan Genc plays Stefan, Nikola, Man 1 & 2 and this will be his professional stage debut. His television credits include Angela Black, Hollyoaks and A Touch of Cloth.
Eleanor Roberts plays Katarina, Elena, Girl & Minna. For theatre her credits include The Lesser Bohemians (Zabludowicz Collection).
Maddy Corner is a director and theatre-maker from South London. Her work is inherently political, with a strong emphasis on female experience and telling underrepresented stories. Her theatre credits include SHE. (theSpace, edinburgh),and Mother [singular] (Director, Platform Southwark), Do You See Me? (Assistant Director to Kane Husbands), This Restless House (Assistant Director to Owen Horsely).
Serbian captions are translated by Zorica Agbaba.
LISTINGS
TRADE
Omnibus Theatre
1 Clapham Common North Side, London SW4 0QW
15 – 19 February 7pm and 2.30pm matinee on Saturday
Photo credit: Top row: Amanda Wilkin, Benedict Lombe, Chiara Atik, Daniella De Jesús, & Lauren Whitehead Bottom row: Kae Tempest, Sonya Kelly, Zora Howard, Joanna Murray-Smith, & Sarah Hanly
New York / London (January 31, 2022) – The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize today announces 10 Finalists for its prestigious playwriting award, the oldest and largest prize awarded to women+ playwrights – now in its 44th year . Chosen from a group of over 160 plays submitted from around the world, the 2022 Finalists are:
Chiara Atik (US) Poor Clare
Daniella De Jesús (US) Get Your Pink Hands Off Me Sucka and Give Me Back (FKA Columbus Play)
Sarah Hanly (Ireland) Purple Snowflakes and Titty Wanks
Zora Howard (US) BUST
Sonya Kelly (Ireland) The Last Return
Benedict Lombe (UK) Lava
Joanna Murray-Smith (AU) Berlin
Kae Tempest (UK) Paradise
Lauren Whitehead (US) The Play Which Raises the Question of
What Happened in/to Low Income Black Communities between 1974 and 2004 And Hints at Why Mass Incarceration is Perhaps a Man-Made Disease
And Highlights the Government’s General Lack of Empathy for Poor People of Color
And Dispels the Notion that Our Condition is Our Fault
And Helps Make Visible Why We Riot When We Mourn
And also Tells the Story of Anita Freeman
& her Kids
Amanda Wilkin (UK) Shedding a Skin
The Winner, to be announced in April, will be awarded a cash prize of $25,000, and will receive a signed print by renowned artist Willem de Kooning, created especially for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize. Each of the additional Finalists will receive an award of $5,000.
The Susan Smith Blackburn Prize is awarded annually to celebrate women+ who have written works of outstanding quality for the English-speaking theatre. Women+ includes women, transgender, and non-binary playwrights. Each year, artistic directors and prominent professionals in the theatre are invited to submit plays. Each script receives multiple readings by members of an international reading committee that selects the finalists. An international panel of six judges then selects the winning play.
Judges for the 2022 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize are: star of stage and screen, actor/writer /producer Adjoa Andoh (UK); noted playwright and associate artistic director of Center Theatre Group, Luis Alfaro (US); writer, director, and artistic director of the Unicorn Theatre, Justin Audibert (UK); winner of multiple Olivier and Tony Awards for lighting design, Paule Constable (UK);); stage, film and television star Saidah Arrika Ekulona (US); and Obie and Lilly award-winning director, actor and musician, Whitney White (US).
Leslie Swackhamer, Executive Director of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, said, “this has been a phenomenal year for new voices in playwriting. Two of our finalists are debut plays, and nine are first-time finalists for this Prize. All of the plays are highly theatrical and probe the burning issues of our times.”
Since the Prize’s founding in 1978, over 470 plays have been honored as Finalists. Many have gone on to receive other top honors, including Olivier, Lilly, Evening Standard and Tony Awards for Best Play. Eleven Susan Smith Blackburn Finalist playwrights have subsequently won the Pulitzer Prize in Drama. The Prize has also fostered an interchange of plays between the United States, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, and other English-speaking countries.
Past winners of the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize include Erika Dickerson-Despenza’s Cullud Wattah, Lynn Nottage‘s Sweat, LucyPrebble’sA Very Expensive Poison, Jackie Sibblies Drury‘s Fairview, Annie Baker‘s The Flick, Caryl Churchill’s Fen and Serious Money, Marsha Norman’s ‘night,Mother, Paula Vogel‘s How I Learned to Drive, Julia Cho’s The Language Archive, Katori Hall‘sHurt Village, Wendy Wasserstein‘s The Heidi Chronicles, Chloe Moss’s This Wide Night, Sarah Ruhl‘s The Clean House,Judith Thompson’s Palace of the End, Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti‘s Behzti (Dishonour), Jennifer Haley’s The Nether, Naomi Wallace’s One Flea Spare, and Moira Buffini‘s Silence.
ABOUT THE FINALIST PLAYS AND PLAYWRIGHTS
Chiara Atik (US) Poor Clare
Submitted by New York Theatre Workshop
Poor Clare tells the story of a rich girl in 1211 Italy, who happily spends her days concocting elaborate hairstyles and dutifully going to church. But everything changes when a lunatic named Francis starts ranting in the town square. Based on the true stories of Saint Clare and Saint Francis of Assisi, Poor Clare asks the question: why do some people have so much, and some have so little? And what are you willing to do about it? Poor Clare premiered at the Echo Theater in Los Angeles in the Fall of 2021.
Daniella De Jesús (US) Get Your Pink Hands Off Me Sucka and Give Me Back (FKA Columbus Play)
Submitted by Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company
Solandra, a modern Dominican-American student is alone in the throne room of Queen Isabel and King Ferdinand when their portraits come alive, poking and prodding and ready to party like it’s 1492. Meanwhile, on the island of “Hispaniola,” Higuamota and her family prepare for her cousin Nana’ni’s hair-cutting ceremony, when they spot a fleet of “spacecrafts” carrying pink-skinned ghosts headed towards them. As Higumota struggles to save her community from invasion, Solandra contends with her racial identity and attraction to white men in this dark comedic exploration of the insidiousness of colonization.Get Your PinkHands Off Me Sucka and Give Me Back (FKA Columbus Play)is the winner of the 2020Burman New Play Award.
Sarah Hanly(Ireland) Purple Snowflakes and Titty Wanks
Submitted by the Royal Court Theatre
Saoirse Murphy moves from one chaotic world to another. From her Catholic school in County Wicklow to a new exciting life in London. She’s had a taste of freedom and she’s making the most of it; but underneath it all she’s struggling to manage big secrets, and there’s only one person she can talk to. Hanly’s debut play, Purple Snowflakes and Titty Wanks premiered at the Abbey Theatre, Dublin, in October 2021. The Sunday Times praised it as “a searingly frank account of female sexuality and shame”. The play in which the playwright also starred, is for a solo performer, and is co-produced by the Royal Court Theatre, London, and the Abbey Theatre, Dublin. It will open at the Royal Court Theatre in February 2022, again starring Hanly.
Zora Howard (US)BUST
Submitted by the Flea Theater and Ojai Playwrights Conference
Retta and Reggie are enjoying their usual evening on the porch not minding their own business when Poof! Mr. Woods, a longtime neighbor, disappears into thin air… Or does he explode? The story goes viral. Panic ensues. Why are these Black people going missing all willy-nilly? And when they go, are they gone for good?
Someone in this play should likely try to figure that out.
Sonya Kelly (Ireland) The Last Return
Submitted by The Druid Theatre
Once upon a dreary night, five desperate strangers wait in line for a last-minute ticket to the final performance of Oppenheimer’s sold-out smash hit, Return to Hindenburg, the hottest show in town. All they have to do is cross their fingers, be patient and wait their turn. But with more people waiting than tickets available, this is no time for patience, this is time for war. Who will triumph? Who will fail? And who will receive… The Last Return? A searing commentary on conflict, peace, and the pursuit of territory at any cost, The Last Return was developed by Druid Theatre. A full production has been postponed a number of times due to Covid restrictions, with plans to reschedule ongoing.
Benedict Lombe(UK) Lava
Submitted by Bush Theatre
When a woman receives an unexpected letter from the British Passport Office, she is forced to confront an old mystery: why does her South African passport not carry her first name? Playful and lyrical, moving from Mobutu’s Congo to post-Apartheid South Africa, Ireland and England. A one-woman play, Lava is a story about unraveling the patterns of chaos across history – questioning nationhood, narratives, and the process of naming the unnamable. Lava premiered at the Bush Theatre in Summer, 2021. The Arts Desk praised this “incendiary debut play…a full-bodied poem of red-hot protest, carefully modulated with humour to grip and persuade”.
Joanna Murray-Smith (AUS) Berlin
Nominated by Melbourne Theatre Company
An intense contemporary two-hander set in a Berlin loft. When a young Jewish foreigner and a captivating German waitress spend a night together, they discover that as they fall in love and lust, the ghosts of history must be confronted. Funny and volatile, the play explores the dangerous territory of whether a line can be drawn in the present regarding crimes of the past. Lauded as “vital, intimate and sexy” (The Sydney Morning Herald), Berlin premiered in the Spring of 2021 at the Melbourne Theatre Company.
Kae Tempest (UK) Paradise
Nominated by National Theatre
A dynamic reimagining of Sophocles’ Philoctetes, Paradiseis set on a ravaged island whose residents make their lives amidst the rubble of civil war, extreme weather events and un-recyclable refuse. A wounded solider, abandoned in this wreckage and left alone for a decade, is suddenly required to rejoin the fight. A young soldier is tasked with bringing the outcast home – if they don’t succeed, the war is lost. Featuring an all-female cast of 13, Paradise premiered at the National Theatre in 2021.There are currently planned productions in translation in Italy and France.
Lauren Whitehead (US)The Play Which Raises the Question of
What Happened in/to low Income Black Communities between 1974 and 2004
And Hints at Why Mass Incarceration is Perhaps a Man-Made Disease
And Highlights the Government’s General Lack of Empathy for Poor People of Color And Dispels the Notion that Our Condition is Our Fault
And Helps Make Visible Why We Riot When We Mourn
And also Tells the Story of Anita Freeman
& her Kids
Nominated by Sundance Institute Interdisciplinary Program (FKA Theater Program)
It’s just the story of a Black american mother tryin to keep her kids safe during the War on Drugs in the Midwest, USA. Anita tries everything to keep her family well fed and free but despite her efforts, she still loses everything, and the story ends in the most american way: with loss, destruction and unbridled rage.
Amanda Wilkin (UK) Shedding a Skin
Nominated by Soho Theatre
Shedding a Skin is a one-woman play about finding kindness in unexpected places. A play about connecting with what our elders can teach us – new skin honouring old skin. A play about joy, healing, and protest. And having a good belly laugh. Winner of the Verity Bargate Award, Shedding a Skin was performed by the playwright for its premiere at Soho Theatre, opening to 4* and 5* reviews in summer 2021. It is being revived in March 2022 and the playwright is currently developing the script for television.
