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FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR BRAND-NEW ONLINE COMEDY THE THREE MUSKETEERS 

Arden and Moore today announce the full cast for The Three Musketeers – attempted by FoolHardy written by Sydney Stevenson and directed by Joseph O’Malley. Joining the previously announced Robert Lindsay (Narrator) are Dianne Pilkington (Sarah Noble), David Bedella (Josh Hemingway), Matthew Curnier (Greg Matthews), Antony Eden (David Du Lesley), Sarah Kameela Impey (Jamie Aston) and Lydea Perkins (Maisie Stephens). The production runs online 15 – 20 June.

The classic tale of The Three Musketeers is brought to you by the inconceivable, unimaginable and fantastical FoolHardy Theatre… a company with questionable theatrical training, no experience and no taste. What could possibly go wrong?

Audio and animation are brought together in this swashbuckling adventure. Expect sword fights, deception and a right royal romance as audiences are taken back to the regal splendour of 17th century France in this exciting, madcap comedy.

The Three Musketeers is partnering with venues, who will sell tickets across the UK, to help support them financially through these difficult times. Partner venues include: Theatre Royal Winchester; Epsom Playhouse; Lighthouse, Poole; Concordia Theatre, Hinckley; Mull Theatre; The Forum Theatre, Northallerton; The Savoy Theatre, Monmouth; The Beggar’s Theatre, Millom; Blue Orange Theatre, Birmingham; Hertford Theatre; The Quarry Theatre, Bedford; Stamford Arts Centre; The Holroyd, Shropshire; The Lighthouse Theatre, Kettering; Helmsley Arts Centre, York; and, Waterside, Manchester.

The additional creative team includes composer and sound designer Richard Wetherall and animator Barbara Owczarek.

Robert Lindsay plays Narrator. His theatre credits include In Praise of Love (Theatre Royal Bath), Prism (Hampstead Theatre/UK tour), Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Richard III (Savoy Theatre), The Lion in Winter, Cyrano De Bergerac (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Onassis (Derby Playhouse/Novello Theatre), Aristo (Chichester Festival Theatre), The Entertainer (The Old Vic), Power (National Theatre), Oliver! (London Palladium), Becket (Theatre Royal Haymarket – winner of Variety Club Best Theatre Actor, Olivier Award nomination for Best Actor), Me and My Girl  (Adelphi Theatre – winner of Olivier Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Musical, winner of Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical), Philoctetes (Royal Exchange Theatre – winner of Manchester Evening News Theatre Award for Best Actor), Beaux Strategem, Leaping Ginger (Royal Exchange Theatre), and Trelawny of the ‘Wells’ (The Old Vic). His television credits include Bounty Hunters, Galavant, Atlantis, Spy, My Family – BAFTA Nomination for Best Comedy Performance, Oliver Twist, Jake’s Progress – BAFTA Nomination for Best Actor, Nightingales, G.B.H. – BAFTA Award for Best Actor and RTS Award Winner for Best Actor, Confessional, Give Us a Break and Get Some In!; and for film, Maleficent: Mistress of Evil, Grace of Monaco, Wimbledon, Divorcing Jack, Remember Me?, Fierce Creatures, Strike It Rich, Bert Rigby You’re A Fool, Adventures of a Taxi Driver, Three for All and That’ll Be the Day.

Dianne Pilkington plays Sarah Noble. Her theatre credits include Frankenstein (Garrick Theatre), Whisper House (The Other Palace), Mamma Mia! (Novello Theatre), Master Class (Vaudeville Theatre), She Loves Me (Chichester Festival Theatre), The 39 Steps (Criterion Theatre), Wicked (Apollo Victoria Theatre), Cats, Beauty and the Beast (UK tour), The Far Pavilions (Shaftesbury Theatre), Tonight’s the Night, Taboo, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Victoria Palace), The Beautiful Game (Cambridge Theatre), Sweeney Todd (Bridewell Theatre), Tess of the d’Urbervilles (Savoy Theatre) and Les Misérables (Palace Theatre). Her film credits include Les Misérables.

David Bedella plays Josh Hemingway. His theatre credits include &Juliet (Shaftesbury Theatre – Olivier Award for Best Supporting Actor), Nell Gwynn (Chicago Shakespeare Theatre), Sweeney Todd (Twickenham Theatre), In the Heights (King’s Cross Theatre – Best Supporting Actor Olivier Award), Torch Song Trilogy, Road Show (Menier Chocolate Factory), Jerry Springer The Opera (Cambridge – Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical), The Producers (UK tour) and The Rocky Horror Show (Playhouse Theatre). His television credits include Deep State, By Any Means, Blessed, and as series regular Carlos Fashola in Holby City. His film credits include Batman Begins and Alexander.

Matthew Curnier plays Greg Matthews. His theatre credits include Betrayal (Derby Theatre), Cat in the Hat, Old MacDonald, Carrie’s War, Sweet Revenge, Amy’s View, Out of Order, Personals (UK tours), My Brother’s Country (The Lowry), Death at Dawn (Linskill Theatre), Lovers’ Vow (Chawton House/UK tour), I Found Her in a Beth of Blood (Theatre503), Follies (Yvonne Arnaud Theatre), Rent (Electric Theatre), Treats (Soho Theatre) and Undiscovered Country (Charing Cross Theatre).

Antony Eden plays David Du Lesley. His theatre credits include Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Palace Theatre), A Brief history of Women (Stephen Joseph Theatre/59E59, New York), Ten Times Table (The Mill at Sonning), A Passionate Woman (Cheltenham Everyman theatre/UK tour), Taking Steps (Stephen Joseph Theatre), Relatively Speaking (Theatre Royal Bath/UK tour), The Woman in Black (Fortune Theatre/UK and international tour), Three Kings (St James Theatre), Bedroom Farce (Oldham Coliseum/Harrogate Theatre Royal), Yes, Prime Minister (international tour), Springs Eternal (Orange Tree Theatre), Carrie’s War (Novel Theatre), Cider With Rosie, The Merchant of Venice (Theatre Royal, Bury St Edmunds), A Voyage Round My Father (New Vic Theatre), Hangover Square (Finborough Theatre), Something Wicked This Way Comes (National Theatre of Scotland), and The Glass Menagerie, Trumpets and Raspberries and Vanity Fair (Royal Lyceum Theatre).

Sarah Kameela Impey plays Jamie Aston. Her theatre credits include Much Ado About Nothing (Northern Broadsides), 306: Dusk (National Theatre Scotland/Perth Theatre), Pinocchio (National Theatre), First Encounters, The Curiosity, Arabian Nights (UK tour), Women of Hope (Richmix Theatre), World Enough and Time (Park Theatre), Cinderella: A Fairytale (Tobacco Factory Theatres) and Finding Noor (Citizens Theatre); and for film, Halcyon Heights.

Lydea Perkins plays Maisie Stephens. Her theatre credits include Private Lives (The Mill at Sonning), Sense and Sensibility (Theatre by the Lake/York Theatre Royal), Bold Girls, Rails (Theatre by the Lake), The Long Road South (King’s Head Theatre), She Stoops to Conquer, The Hypochondriac (Theatre Royal Bath), Harvey (Birmingham Rep/Theatre Royal Haymarket), The Sound of Silence (Theatre503) and Pal Street Boys (Greenwich Theatre).

Sydney Stevenson is a writer, actor and director. Her writing credits for theatre include Next Door – An Awkward Love Story (Tabard Theatre/Irish Repertory Theatre), Men and Women (The Old Red Lion Theatre – winner of the Voices from Home competition by Broken Silence Theatre), and Bubonic which was long-listed for the Papatango New Writing Prize. As an actor, her theatre credits include The Men from the Ministry (White Bear Theatre), Relatively Speaking (The Mill at Sonning), and Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin (Welywn Garden City); and for television, Resting, Me and Mrs Jones and My Family.

Joseph O’Malley is an actor, director and writer. His directing credits include A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Scoot Theatre) Ben Hur, The 39 Steps, The Hound of the Baskervilles, One Minute (Barn Theatre, Cirencester), A Christmas Carol (Riverside Arts Centre), Ugly Duckling and Other Stories (UK tour), Seeds of Change (Lion and Unicorn), and Significant Other (The Vaults). As an actor his credits include, One Man Two Guvnors (National Theatre), The Life of Galileo (RSC), Watership Down (Watermill Theatre), Billy (Union Theatre) and Princess Caraboo (Finborough Theatre).  

THE THREE MUSKETEERS – ATTEMPTED BY FOOLHARDY

LISTINGS

ONLINE

15 – 20 June 2021

Box Office:www.musketeersonline.com

Tickets: £12.50 / £15

An imitating the dog and Leeds Playhouse co-production

DRACULA: THE UNTOLD STORY

Written and directed by Andrew Quick and Pete Brooks

Projection and Video Designs by Simon Wainwright

Design by Laura Hopkins

Lighting Design by Andrew Crofts

Original music composed by James Hamilton.

• imitating the dog and Leeds Playhouse team up after their critically acclaimed unique shot-for-shot stage recreation of George A. Romero’s classic 1968 zombie movie – Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix.
• A radical new adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula as told from the perspective of the novel’s heroine Mina Harker.
• Production to be staged as a graphic novel fusing digital technology with live performance.
• Touring from 25 September till 13 November.

From imitating the dog and Leeds Playhouse, the creators of last year’s critically acclaimed unique shot-for-shot stage recreation of George A. Romero’s classic 1968 zombie movie – Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix comes a radical new adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic gothic horror novel. Dracula: The Untold Story will bring audiences this enduring tale from the perspective of Mina Harker, the novel’s heroine.

Written and directed by imitating the dog’s co-artistic directors Andrew Quick and Pete Brooks, Dracula: The Untold Story will open at Leeds Playhouse from 25 Sept – 9 Oct ahead of a UK tour.

New Year’s Eve, 1965, London, England. Just before midnight, as revellers celebrate the beginning of another year, a young woman enters Marylebone Police Station and confesses to a brutal murder.

She claims to be Mina Harker, the last living survivor of the intrepid group that brought about Count Dracula’s destruction some 70 years before. But Mina Harker has not been seen since 1901. And if she were alive, she would be ninety years old.

Unfolding on stage as a live graphic novel and using the latest digital technologies imitating the dog are known for, Dracula: The Untold Story is a chilling new version of the classic gothic vampire tale that you thought you knew so well.

Andrew Quick, Co-Director and Artistic Director of imitating the dog said:

 “It’s extremely exciting to be working on this new adaptation of Dracula. We are doing something quite different with the story, coming at it afresh. We have great respect for Bram Stoker’s original storyline, and we do revisit it a lot in our production. But I think this version is relevant to our times and we cannot wait to be in front of audiences again. It’s been too long.” 

The production’s creative team will feature design by Laura Hopkins (Black Watch and Peter Pan, National Theatre of Scotland, The Divide, Edinburgh International Festival and The Old Vic), projection and video design by Simon Wainwright (Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix, imitating the dog and The Kid Stays in the Picture, Royal Court), lighting by Andrew Crofts (Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix,  imitating the dog and Trash Cuisine, Belarus Free Theatre and The Young Vic) and original music composed by James Hamilton. The production’scasting will be announced in the coming weeks.

imitating the dog have been making ground-breaking work for theatres and other spaces for 23 years. Their work, which fuses live performance with digital technology, has been seen by hundreds of thousands of people in venues, outdoor festivals, and events across the world. Past productions have included Hotel Methuselah, A Farewell to Arms, Heart of Darkness, Night of The Living Dead™ – Remix and most recently Dr Blood’s Old Travelling Show. Last year the company produced Airlock, a live action graphic novel as part of the BBC, The Space and Arts Council England’s Culture in Quarantine programme.

Leeds Playhouse is one of the UK’s leading producing theatres; a cultural hub, a place where people gather to tell and share stories and to engage in world class theatre. It makes work which is pioneering and relevant, seeking out the best companies and artists to create inspirational theatre in the heart of Yorkshire.

Dracula: The Untold Story willpremiere at Leeds Playhouse from 25 September till 9 Oct. It will then tour to Liverpool Playhouse, Dukes Lancaster, Watford Palace Theatre, Mercury Theatre Colchester and finally The Lowry, Salford Quays. 

For further information on the tour visit www.imitatingthedog.co.uk

SMALL THINGS THEATRE ANNOUNCE NEW DATES FOR

WORLD PREMIÈRE OF CORDELIA O’NEILL’S NEW PLAY –

ANYTHING IS POSSIBLE IF YOU THINK ABOUT IT HARD ENOUGH

Small Things Theatre today announce new dates for the world première of Anything Is Possible If You Think About It Hard Enough written by Cordelia O’Neill and directed by Kate Budgen, now opening at Southwark Playhouse on 24 September, with previews from 22 September, and running until 9 October.

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, today said, “We feel incredibly lucky to be able to bring Anything Is Possible If You Think About It Hard Enough, back to life. We have missed the theatre and all the magic it brings. Thank you to Southwark for their continuous support and providing a platform for this vital story. We so look forward to September. Get us in that rehearsal room!”

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 concluding 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. Kate trained at Birkbeck College and on the NT Studio Directors course. She has worked as Assistant and Associate Director for the Gate Theatre, Almeida Theatre, 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 was Associate Director on Girl From The North Country for Toronto and the West End in 2019. Directing credits include GUT (Guildhall School of Music and Drama), The Importance of Being Earnest (Watermill Theatre), No Place for a Woman (Theatre 503), Strong Arm (Underbelly/Old Vic New Voices), The Hairy Ape (Southwark Playhouse), Rigor Mortis (Papatango Theatre Company/Finborough Theatre), 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).

Twitter: @smallthingstc

Facebook: @smallthingstheatre

Instagram: @smallthingstheatre

www.smallthingstheatre.com

#AnythingIsPossiblePlay

Anything Is Possible If You Think About It Hard Enough

Listings

Southwark Playhouse

77-85 Newington Causeway, London, SE1 6BD

Nearest Tube:Borough/Elephant and Castle

22 September – 9 October

Box Office: 020 7407 0234

https://www.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk/show-homepage/anything-is-possible-if-you-think-about-it-hard-enough/

Ticket Prices:

Previews: £14

Concessions: £18

Full price: £22

GREENWICH+DOCKLANDS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL TO OPEN WITH

DAN ACHER’S WE ARE WATCHING

AN EPIC WORK OF ART AND ACTIVISM ON CLIMATE CHANGE

Greenwich+Docklands International Festival (GDIF) has today announced that this year’s 26^th edition will open with Swiss artist Dan Acher’s timely intervention on the climate crisis, We Are Watching, from 27 – 30 August in Greenwich. The Festival then runs until 11 September, with the highlights and full programme to be announced shortly. All programming will be once again planned whilst closely monitoring government guidelines around live events.

Dan Acher’s We Are Watching is a striking image of a giant eye, comprising of thousands of digital portraits, contributed by people from over 191 countries across the globe, flown on a monumental flag. The 10-storey high flag is designed to send a clear message to world leaders with the power to affect decisions about climate change: that the eyes of the world are upon them. We Are Watching will fly over Greenwich from 27 – 30 August, ahead of the planned COP26 later this year in Glasgow.

Having previously flown over the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, and the UN Conference on Climate Change in Madrid, We Are Watching was due to continue the journey through Paris and New York. One of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was that many events like this were cancelled; another was the reduction in climate emissions thanks to a global economy on hold. As the world begins to open up and recover, the appearance of We Are Watching at GDIF’s opening weekend will serve as a reminder that climate change is still firmly on the agenda.

Dan Acher said today, ‘We Are Watching brings the eyes of the world to key climate events. It’s a collective message of hope, fear and love and a resounding call for global action.’

Bradley Hemmings, Artistic Director of GDIF, said, ‘GDIF is keen to play its part in promoting environmental responsibility and responding to the climate emergency. Dan Acher’s We Are Watching will offer a spectacular opportunity for Londoners to reflect on and engage in the forthcoming COP26 Conference on Climate Change in Glasgow. Flying this extraordinary artwork as the opening event of this year’s festival, close to the line of zero degrees longitude (the symbolic centre of time and space) will further reinforce the resonance of this act of art and activism’.

The flag’s image of a giant eye is made up of thousands of portraits, uploaded by people across the world, straight from their phones. This form of agency is ongoing, with anyone able to add their face and voice to the We Are Watching website and get involved in the project. GDIF will be building several strands of local engagement around the Greenwich flying, including hosting an online exhibition of portraits contributed to the Greenwich event, alongside a ceremonial moment taking place on 27 August as the flag is raised.

Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich Danny Thorpe said, ‘After the most difficult year that many of us have ever experienced, I cannot adequately explain just how excited we are for summer here in Royal Greenwich, and in particular the return of GDIF to our streets, parks and open spaces. Every year the team at Greenwich+Docklands International Festival utterly thrill and enthral us with the most visually stunning outdoor experiences and entertainment, and this year will be even more spectacular, bringing our communities, residents and businesses back together again.

The opening show will also be a moment for us to reflect on our ambitious plans to tackle the climate crisis here in Greenwich. Our 2019 emissions across the borough were the equivalent of 3 million round car trips from Greenwich Park to Edinburgh, or to consider it in a different way, roughly the equivalent annual emissions of Gibraltar. We are going to need all of our residents, partners and communities to work collaboratively together for real action and We Are Watching will also provide a moment of reflection as we all look towards COP26.’

Following GDIF, We Are Watching will be touring to other locations across the UK as part of Global Streets, managed by FESTIVAL.ORG and funded by Arts Council England.

Attendance at the event will be free, but tickets may be required. Following a safe, successful, live festival in 2020, the team behind GDIF is incorporating health and safety measures into all aspects of planning for the 2021 festival. The full programme and ticketing details will be announced in June.

CAMBRIDGE ARTS THEATRE’S
RE-OPENING SUMMER 2021 SEASON

Cambridge Arts Theatre is thrilled to be reopening its doors and bringing live performance to Cambridgeshire once again after the Theatre’s longest period of closure since the second World War.

A renowned actor of stage and screen is treading the boards in what will be a glittering highlight in the Arts Theatre’s re-opening season. Ralph Fiennes (The English Patient, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Harry Potter series) stars and directs a brand-new stage adaptation of T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets (28 Jun – 10 Jul).

The West End is on your doorstep with a host of smash-hit comedies and musicals this Summer. Fresh from London’s Fortune Theatre, Susan Hill’s spine-chilling gothic ghost story The Woman in Black (18-16 Jun) comes to life in the most terrifying live theatre experience of all time; Willy Russell’s legendary musical Blood Brothers (3-7 Aug) tells the captivating and moving tale of twins separated at birth, in a smash-hit production that has surpassed 10,000 performances in the West End and Mischief Theatre, the team behind the side-splitting West End hit comedy The Play That Goes Wrong return with two laugh-out-loud comedies. Magic Goes Wrong (10-21 Aug) features dare-devil stunts and jaw-dropping feats in Mischief’s biggest comedy catastrophe to date and Groan Ups (18-23 Oct) takes you on a journey from an unruly class of six-year-olds, anarchic high school teenagers to the challenges of adulthood.

The next generation of theatregoers will be thrilled with three fantastic children’s shows for the whole family to enjoy. Join an adventurous young girl and her seafaring father as they reimagine the story of Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s much-loved picture book The Snail and the Whale (28 Jul – 1 Aug) in a show for children aged 4+; prepare for the horrible history of Britain with the nasty bits left in with Barmy Britain (24-28 Aug), the perfect summer holiday treat for ages 5+ and best-selling author David Walliams’ Gangsta Granny (27-30 Oct) hits Cambridge throughout October half-term, perfect for children aged 5+.

Last but by no means least, a plethora of world-class dramas will warmly welcome you back to the Theatre with outstanding performances and unrivalled entertainment. David Mamet’s controversial drama Oleanna (8-12 Jun) reveals the ultimate example of the power dynamic between student and professor, causing uproar and heated debate amongst audiences; Michael Frayn’s multi award-winning Copenhagen (12-17 Jul) is a dazzling exploration of two brilliant minds in 1941 Nazi occupied Copenhagen; Oliver Ford Davies (Game of Thrones) and Stephen Boxer (The Crown) star in the coruscating new political drama A Splinter of Ice (20-24 Jul), exploring an unlikely friendship in 1987 Moscow; television stars Julian Clary and Matthew Kelly join forces in Ronald Harwood’s affectionate and hilarious portrait of backstage life in The Dresser (12-16 Oct) and esteemed actors Patricia Hodge and Nigel Havers star in Noël Coward’s gloriously entertaining comedy-drama Private Lives (22-17 Nov).

Cambridge Arts Theatre
June – November 2021

Tuesday 8 – Saturday 12 June
Oleanna
by David Mamet

Thursday 17 – Saturday 26 June
The Woman in Black
by Susan Hill

Monday 28 June – Saturday 10 July
Ralph Fiennes stars in
Four Quartets
by T.S. Eliot

Monday 12 – Saturday 17 July
Copenhagen
by Michael Frayn

Tuesday 20 – Saturday 24 July
Oliver Ford Davies and Stephen Boxer star in
A Splinter of Ice
by Ben Brown

Wednesday 28 July – Sunday 1 August
The Snail and the Whale

Tuesday 3 – Saturday 7 August
Blood Brothers
by Willy Russell

Tuesday 10 – Saturday 21 August
Magic Goes Wrong

Tuesday 24 – Saturday 28 August
Horrible Histories: Barmy Britain

Tuesday 12 – Saturday 16 October
Julian Clary and Matthew Kelly star in
The Dresser
by Ronald Harwood

Monday 18 – Saturday 23 October
Groan Ups

Wednesday 27 – Saturday 30 October
Gangsta Granny
by David Walliams

Monday 22 – Saturday 27 November (ON SALE SOON)
Patricia Hodge and Nigel Havers star in
Private Lives
by Noël Coward

GREG GERMANN, JASSA AHLUWALIA AND SOPHIE MELVILLE

STAR IN THE TRANSATLANTIC PRODUCTION OF

LUCINDA COXON’S HERDING CATS

NEW ACCESS INITIATIVES ALSO ANNOUNCED

New York-based, Olivier-winning, and Tony-nominated OHenry Productions and Stellar, in association with Soho Theatre, today announce the full cast for the transatlantic production of Herding Cats by Lucinda Coxon, combining live in-person and streamed theatre. Anthony Banks directs Jassa Ahluwalia (Unforgotten, Peaky Blinders) as Michael, Greg Germann (Grey’s Anatomy, Friends From College and Ally McBeal) as Saddo, and Sophie Melville as Justine (Pops, Iphigenia in Splott). The show has now added extra performances, and will run from 19 – 22 May 2021 – with press performance on 20 May, Herding Cats is a Stellar Original production.

Directed by Anthony Banks, reunited with Coxon following their collaboration on the world première production, the staging is a hybrid of in-person and livestream theatre that marks a first-of-its-kind international collaboration. With Germann performing live in Los Angeles, his character will be transmitted via video-link into the Soho Theatre where Ahluwalia and Melville are performing in-person, creating a unique live experience for the audience. Simultaneously, audiences across the globe can access the production as a live-streamed cinematic theatrical experience that will combine the performances of both the American and British actors in real-time. The production is accessible online to audiences across the globe via Stellar and in person, with social distancing in line with current UK government guidelines, at Soho Theatre.

Also announced today, is a $10 Lottery which patrons can enter once for a performance of their choice via: www.herdingcatsplay.com/lottery; and a partnership with Broadway For All and Mousetrap Theatre Projects as part of the Broadway Plus One campaign, which provides students in the US and the UK with subsidized $2 tickets to make theatre accessible for all. Ticket buyers can participate in the “Buy One, Give One” (BOGO) program by adding BOGO tickets to their cart during checkout on the Stellar website. For information on how to make a larger, tax deductible donation to the program, visit www.herdingcatsplay.com/bp1

Herding Cats is a chillingly funny play about a generation negotiating intimacy and independence in the 21st century. Meeting the demands of modern life is as impossible as herding cats for Justine, Michael and Saddo. To deal with work, Justine talks – a little too much – to her roommate Michael who earns a living by chatting with strangers like Saddo. But all three will soon find that in a cold, disconnected world, words may not be enough.

Jassa Ahluwalia plays Michael. For theatre, his work includes Skin a Cat (The Bunker, Vaults Festival), Wipers (Curve, Watford Palace Theatre, Belgrade Theatre), and Piranha Heights (The Old Red Lion Theatre). For television, his work includes Unforgotten (as series regular Adam Stuart), Peaky Blinders, Some Girls (as series regular Rocky), Ripper Street, The Whale, Legends and The Bible; for video game, Planet of the Apes: Last Frontier; and for film, Slaughterhouse Rulez, Dragonheart: The Sorcerer’s Curse and The Rezort.

Greg Germann plays Saddo. He became a member of Circle Repertory Company and Ensemble Studio Theatre, with appearance both Off-Broadway and on Broadway in Stephen Sondheim’s musical Assassins, The Person I Was opposite Holly Hunter, and David Mamet’s War Games. He also starred in Speed the Plow at the Geffen Playhouse with Alicia Silverstone and Jon Tenney.  Most recently he was seen in the origination of Steve Martin’s Meteor Shower at The Old Globe with Jenna Fischer. His television credits include five seasons on Ally McBeal as series regular Richard Fish; as Greg Norbert in House of Lies opposite Don Cheadle and Kristen Bell; as Hades in Once Upon a Time; alongside Keegan-Michael Key, Fred Savage, and Cobie Smulders, as part of the ensemble cast in the Netflix comedy Friends From College; and recently in CBS limited series $1. He is currently playing series regular Dr Tom Koracick in the ABC hit Grey’s Anatomy. For film, his credits include Get Hard with Will Ferrell and Kevin Hart; the Will Ferrell and Sacha Baron-Cohen comedy, Talladega Nights; the Sundance hit Friends with Money, alongside Jennifer Aniston, Catherine Keener, and Joan Cusack; opposite Chris Rock in the Farrelly Brothers’ Down to Earth; Sweet November with Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron; and in the short film Culture which earned an Academy Award nomination.

Sophie Melville plays Justine. Her theatre credits include Living Newspaper (Royal Court Theatre), Pops (Roxy Assembly – The Stage Award for Outstanding Performance, Young Vic), Wolfie (Theatre503), Blue (Chapter Theatre), Close Quarters (Sheffield Theatres), No One Will Tell Me How to Start a Revolution (Hampstead Theatre), The Divide, Pagans (The Old Vic), Low Level Panic (Orange Tree Theatre), 2066 (Almeida Theatre), Blackbird (The Other Room Theatre – Wales Theatre Awards Best Female Performance), Insignificance, Under Milk Wood (Theatr Clwyd), Iphigenia in Splott  (National Theatre/Theater 59E59 NYC/The Sherman Theatre/Edinburgh Fringe Festival and international tour – The Stage Award for Acting Excellence, Wales Theatre Award for Best Female Performance, Evening Standard Award nomination for Best Actress, Drama Desk Award nomination for Outstanding Solo Performance), Romeo and Juliet (The Sherman Theatre), The Shape of Things; ‘Tis a Pity She’s a Whore; See How They Run (Theatre by the Lake) and Romeo and Juliet (The Sam Wanamaker Festival). For television, her work includes The Pact, Bang series 2, Call the Midwife, The Left Behind, The Missing 2.

Lucinda Coxon’s theatre writing credits include Alys, Always; Herding Cats, Happy Now, The Eternal Not, Nostalgia, The Shoemaker’s Wife, Vesuvius, Wishbones, Three Graces, The Ice Palace and Waiting at the Water’s Edge. Her screenwriting credits include the multiple award-winning The Danish Girl starring Eddie Redmayne and Alicia Vikander, The Crimson Petal and the White starring Romola Garai for BBC, Wild Target starring Emily Blunt, The Heart of Me starring Paul Bettany and Helena Bonham-Carter and The Little Stranger starring Domnhall Gleeson and Ruth Wilson.

Anthony Banks has directed world premieres of many new plays including The Girl On The Train (West End/National Tour), Nick Dear’s Hogarth’s Progress (Rose Kingston,; Ryan Craig’s Games For Lovers (Vaults), Kevin Elyot’s Twilight Song (Park Theatre), Jim Cartwright’s Raz (West End/UK tour), Lucinda Coxon’s Herding Cats (Hampstead Theatre/Theatre Royal Bath); James Graham’s Bassett (Bristol Old Vic), Dennis Kelly’s DNA (UK tour), Bryony Lavery’s Cesario and More Light, Lucinda Coxon’s The Eternal Not and Michael Lesslie’s Prince of Denmark (National Theatre), Snoo Wilson’s Pignight (Menier Chocolate Factory), Mark Ravenhill’s The Experiment (Soho Theatre/Berliner Ensemble). He has also directed some twentieth century classics including Daphne du Maurier’s My Cousin Rachel by Joseph O’Connor, Patrick Marber’s After Miss Julie (Theatre Royal Bath), Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train; Patrick Hamilton’s Gaslight and Dial M For Murder (UK tours) and Tennessee Williams’ The Hotel Plays. Banks was an associate director at the National Theatre 2004-2014 where he commissioned and developed a hundred new plays for NT Connections. 

The additional creative team includes Olivier-nominee lighting designer Howard Hudson (&Juliet – Olivier nomination, West End, In the Heights King’s Cross Theatre), costume designer Susan Kulkarni (Secret Cinema), video designer Andrzej Goulding (& Juliet, West End, Groundhog Day, Broadway), set designer Grace Smart (Susanna, Royal Opera House), and sound designers Ben and Max Ringham (Blindness, Donmar Warehouse, Cyrano de Bergerac, West End – Olivier nomination).

UK Casting, Stuart Burt (2021 CDG Award Winner), and US Casting, Taylor Williams (2021 Artios Award Winner).

Herding Cats is co-produced by Jeff Hollander, Executive Produced by Josh McTaggart with Kim Onah as Associate Producer.

URL: http://herdingcatsplay.com/

IG: @herdingcatsplay

TW: @herdingcatsplay

FB: https://www.facebook.com/herdingcatsplay

HERDING CATS

LISTINGS

Soho Theatre

21 Dean St, Soho, London W1D 3NE

For in-person and streaming tickets, go to www.herdingcatsplay.com

Tickets in person start from £10 GBP; and streaming starts from $29USD.

PERFORMANCE DATE AND TIMES – PLEASE NOTE NEW SCHEDULE:

Wednesday 19 May at 7.30pm GMT / 2.30pm ET

Thursday 20 May at 7.30pm GMT / 2.30pm ET – PRESS PERFORMANCE

Friday 21 May at 7.30pm GMT / 2.30pm ET

Friday 21 May at 11pm GMT / 6pm ET

Saturday 22 May at 7.30pm GMT / 2.30pm ET

Saturday 22 May at 11pm GMT / 6pm ET

SEE IT SAFELY -We have been granted the use of Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre’s See It Safely mark. The mark certifies that we are complying with the latest Government and industry COVID-19 guidelines, to ensure the safety of our staff and audiences. You can find out more here https://officiallondontheatre.com/see-it-safely/ about the measures we have been putting in place ready for your visit, and what you will need to know beforehand.

DAN LOONEY, ADAM PAULDEN,

JASON HAIGH-ELLERY AND RICHARD KLIN

FOR DLAP GROUP

ANNOUNCE DATES

FOR THE 2021 AND 2022 UK TOUR OF

THE AWARD-WINNING SMASH HIT MUSICAL

“ROCK OF AGES”

OPENING AT

THE ALEXANDRA, BIRMINGHAM

ON 19 AUGUST 2021

Following a sell-out tour in 2018/19, Dan Looney, Adam Paulden, Jason Haigh-Ellery and Richard Klin for DLAP Group are delighted to announce that the award-winning smash-hit musical “ROCK OF AGES” will return to tour the UK opening at The Alexandra, Birmingham on 19 August 2021. Tour schedule and on sale details below with further dates and star casting to be announced soon www.rockofagesmusical.co.uk.

“ROCK OF AGES” is the hilarious musical comedy lavished with over 25 classic rock anthems, including ‘Don’t Stop Believin’, ‘We Built This City’, ‘The Final Countdown’, ‘Wanted Dead or Alive’, ‘Here I Go Again’, ‘Can’t Fight this Feeling’ and ‘I Want To Know What Love Is’, played loud and proud by an awesome live band. Leave it all behind and lose yourself in a city and a time where the dreams are as big as the hair, and yes, they can come true!

Now a global smash with hit seasons on Broadway, London’s West End and Las Vegas and a star-studded Hollywood movie version this show promises you the best party night out around.

“ROCK OF AGES” has a book by Chris D’Arienzo and arrangements and orchestrations by Ethan Popp. It is directed and choreographed by Nick Winston (“Chess”, “Mame” and “Cats”) designed by Morgan Large (“The Woman in White”, “Joseph and the Technicolour Dreamcoat” and “Tell Me On A Sunday”) and has lighting design by Ben Cracknell (“Sunset Boulevard”, “Pantoland at the Palladium”, “Priscilla Queen of the Desert”). Sound design is by Ben Harrison (“Mame”, “Priscilla Queen of the Desert” and “Fame”) and musical supervision is by Barney Ashworth (“Sunny Afternoon”, “Grease” and “Mrs Henderson Presents”).

ROCK OF AGES 2021 UK TOUR LISTINGS
www.rockofagesmusical.co.uk

THURSDAY 19 – SATURDAY 21 AUGUST 2021

THE ALEXANDRA, BIRMINGHAM – www.atgtickets.com/birmingham

TUESDAY 24 – SATURDAY 28 AUGUST  2021

SUNDERLAND EMPIRE – www.atgtickets.com/sunderland

TUESDAY 31 AUGUST – SATURDAY 4 SEPTEMBER 2021

GLASGOW KING’S THEATRE – www.atgtickets.com/glasgow

TUESDAY 14 – SATURDAY 18 SEPTEMBER 2021

LIVERPOOL EMPIRE THEATRE – www.atgtickets.com/liverpool

TUESDAY 21 – SATURDAY 25 SEPTEMBER 2021

NEW WIMBLEDON THEATRE – www.atgtickets.com/wimbledon

TUESDAY 28 SEPTEMBER – SATURDAY 2 OCTOBER 2021

MILTON KEYNES THEATRE – www.atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes

TUESDAY 5 OCTOBER – SATURDAY 9 OCTOBER 2021

MANCHESTER OPERA HOUSE – www.atgtickets.com/manchester

TUESDAY 19 – SATURDAY 23 OCTOBER 2021

EXETER NORTHCOTT THEATRE – www.exeternorthcott.co.uk

MONDAY 25 – SUNDAY 31 OCTOBER 2021

DARTFORD ORCHARD THEATRE – www.orchardtheatre.co.uk

TUESDAY 2 – SATURDAY 6 NOVEMBER 2021

STOKE ON TRENT REGENT THEATRE – www.atgtickets.com/stoke

MONDAY 8 – SATURDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2021

CHELTENHAM EVERYMAN THEATRE –  www.everymantheatre.org.uk

TUESDAY 16 – SATURDAY 20 NOVEMBER 2021

BECK THEATRE HAYES – www.becktheatre.org.uk

TUESDAY 23 – SATURDAY 27 NOVEMBER 2021

DARLINGTON HIPPODROME – www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk

TUESDAY 30 NOVEMBER – SATURDAY 4 DECEMBER 2021

GRIMSBY AUDITORIUM – www.grimsbyauditorium.org.uk

TUESDAY 18 – SATURDAY 22 JANUARY 2022

POOLE LIGHTHOUSE – www.lighthousepoole.co.uk

TUESDAY 25 – SATURDAY 29 JANUARY 2022

NEW VICTORIA THEATRE WOKING – www.atgtickets.com/woking

tTUESDAY 22 – SATURDAY 26 February 2022

LLANDUDNO  VENUE CYMRU – https://www.venuecymru.co.uk/rock-ages

TUESDAY 12 – SATURDAY 16 APRIL 2022

NEW BRIGHTON FLORAL PAVILION – www.floralpavilion.com

TUESDAY 19 – SATURDAY 23 APRIL 2022

HULL NEW THEATRE – www.hulltheatres.co.uk

TUESDAY 3 – SATURDAY 7 MAY 2022

HAWTH THEATRE CRAWLEY – www.parkwoodtheatres.co.uk/The-Hawth

TUESDAY 10 – SATURDAY 14 MAY 2022

EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE – www.atgtickets.com/edinburgh

TUESDAY 17 – SATURDAY 21 AUGUST 2022

CARDIFF NEW THEATRE – www.newtheatrecardiff.co.uk

TUESDAY 14 – SATURDAY 18 JUNE 2022

PORTSMOUTH KING’S THEATRE – www.kingsportsmouth.co.uk

THE LONG-AWAITED RETURN OF PEPPA PIG LIVE! 

PEPPA & FRIENDS RETURN TO THE STAGE FOR THE PERFECT DAY OUT FOR FAMILIES ACROSS THE UK & IRELAND 

THE LIVE SHOW, PACKED FULL OF SONGS, GAMES & LAUGHTER EMBARKS ON AN EXTENSIVE TOUR FROM 15 OCTOBER 2021 

WITH A STRICTLY LIMITED CHRISTMAS WEST END RUN AT THE THEATRE ROYAL HAYMARKET FROM 2 DECEMBER 2021 

Peppa Pig’s Best Day Ever!, the latest live show based on the much loved animated TV series from eOne, Hasbro’s global entertainment studio, will resume its extensive UK and Ireland tour from 15 October 2021, visiting over 80 venues, with further dates to be added shortly.  

Not only will Peppa and friends be jumping in muddy puddles across the UK and Ireland, but also making a big splash in the West End for a strictly limited Christmas season. The London season runs from 2 December 2021 – 2 January 2022, at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, for a limited 48 performances.  

Peppa Pig is excited to be going on a special day out with George, Mummy Pig and Daddy Pig – it’s going to be her best day ever! 

Get ready for a road-trip full of fun adventures. From castles to caves, dragons to dinosaurs and ice-creams to muddy puddles – there is something for all of the family and their friends to enjoy, including Miss Rabbit, Mr Bull, Suzy Sheep, Gerald Giraffe and more! 

Over the past 10 years, Peppa Pig Live have created 6 hugely successful productions, which have been enjoyed by over 1.5 million in the UK alone.  Peppa Pig Live has also toured throughout the US and Australia and played 8 consecutive West End Christmas seasons.  

The live stage adaptation of Peppa Pig is produced by leading children’s theatre team Fierylight, in partnership with licensor Hasbro. The production is directed and adapted for theatre by Richard Lewis, and features music from BAFTA award-winning composer Mani Svavarsson.  

Richard has previously directed and adapted multiple Peppa Pig live stage shows including Peppa Pig’s Adventure, Peppa Pig’s Party, Peppa Pig’s Treasure Hunt, Peppa Pig’s Big Splash and Peppa Pig’s Surprise. 

BIRMINGHAM HIPPODROME ANNOUNCES REOPENING PLANS

Following the success of hosting the UK premiere of Van Gogh Alive in October, the experience will reopen on Tues 25 May until Sun 11 Jul

The theatre will reopen for live performance on Tues 24 Aug with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black’s classic musical Tell Me on a Sunday, starring Jodie Prenger.

Van Gogh Alive at Birmingham Hippodrome. Photo credit:  Simon Hadley

Birmingham Hippodrome have today (Wed 28 April) announced a two phase plan for reopening. The venue will firstly open its doors to the public in May, welcoming back the enormously successful Van Gogh Alive, produced by Grande Experiences.

The world’s most visited immersive, multi-sensory experience made its UK premiere in October, welcoming 28,000 socially distanced visitors in one month to a transformed Hippodrome before closing prematurely due to November’s national lockdown.

Fiona Allan, Artistic Director and Chief Executive at Birmingham Hippodrome said: “Van Gogh Alive is incredibly important to us all at the Hippodrome as it was the only way we found to reopen the building during a year without any live performance. We were taken aback by the public response we had, both to the beauty and joy of this enriching cultural experience, and how safe our visitors felt with the timed entry and social distancing measures in place.  

“It is brilliant that we have found a way to reopen Van Gogh Alive for a limited run, 25 May to 11 July, as we know so many people were disappointed to miss out when we went back into lockdown last November.”

Van Gogh Alive uses state-of-the-art SENSORY4™ immersive gallery technology which projects a thrilling display of over 3,000 inspirational images. Set to an evocative classical score, visitors are surrounded by a vibrant symphony of light, colour, sound and fragrance that has been called an ‘unforgettable’ multi-sensory experience. The technology brings Van Gogh’s masterpieces to life and gives visitors the sensation of walking right into his paintings, a feeling that is simultaneously enchanting, entertaining and educational.

Bruce Peterson, Founder & CEO of Grande Experiences, added: “Van Gogh Alive was met with such a heart-warmingly positive response by audiences at Birmingham Hippodrome, it’s just brilliant that the doors can reopen once again. With the news that we are also opening Van Gogh Alive at Kensington Gardens in London this June, our UK tour is really gathering momentum and we can’t wait for UK audiences to be dazzled by this incredible experience in the coming months.”

The auditorium will then take six weeks to be transformed back into a theatre and will reopen with Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black’s classic musical Tell Me on a Sunday on Tuesday 24 August. Charting the romantic misadventures of an English girl in New York during the heady days of the 1980’s, Tell Me on Sunday will mark the first live production to take place at Birmingham Hippodrome since the original closure due to the pandemic on Monday 16 March 2020.

Fiona continued: “Tell Me on a Sunday will be the first time in almost 18 months that a live performance will be seen in our auditorium.  Words can’t describe how great it feels for us to be able to return to what we have long been known for – presenting the biggest and best touring productions for audiences across the region.

Fiona added: “We would like to take this opportunity to thank our audiences for all the support you have shown during our extended closure. Just knowing how many people were counting on us to find a way through the pandemic and make sure the Hippodrome could reopen again on the other side, kept me and the team determined and motivated through the last 13 months. We cannot wait to start welcoming you back!”

The iconic musical features Andrew Lloyd Webber’s wonderful score including the chart-topping Take That Look Off Your Face and title track Tell Me On A Sunday. This new production is directed by Paul Foster and stars Jodie Prenger stars as ‘Emma’, marking her return to the stage following her acclaimed performance in the National Theatre’s production of A Taste of Honey.

Producer Jamie Wilson said: “We are thrilled that we are able to revive the acclaimed Watermill Theatre production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Don Black’s Tell Me On A Sunday to be the reopening production for Birmingham Hippodrome. Tell Me On A Sunday, with its cast of just one actress, is probably the most naturally socially distanced musical in the world! We are delighted that Jodie Prenger is able to return to this role to reprise her incredible performance as “Emma”. This production is the perfect way for audiences to support their local theatre with this classic show.”

Seating for this production will be based on a socially-distanced model at this moment in time, subject to change depending on Government guidance closer to the performance date.

Birmingham Hippodrome’s Director of Marketing and Sales, Chilina Madon added: “The safety of our audiences, performers and staff remains our uttermost priority. It is very much our hope that all shows will be presented at full capacity, but we are using socially distanced plans as a precaution in the lead up to the eventual easing of restrictions to provide the best possible audience experience.

“We will be in touch with all ticket holders by email ahead of the production date with full details of our latest audience safety procedures and requirements in order to provide full peace of mind.”

THE ROYAL THEATRICAL FUND SUPPORTING

25 THEATRE WORKERS THROUGH

MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS COURSE

The Royal Theatrical Fund, an Acting for Others member charity, have funded 25 places for beneficiaries of the Fleabag Support Fund to attend an online Adult or Youth Mental Health Awareness Course with Applause for Thought. The RTF recognises the importance of mental health awareness in the industry particularly as theatre workers return to work, and this course will provide attendees with the tools to recognise someone experiencing a mental health issue or emotional distress in the workplace and provide appropriate support.

Robert Lindsay, President of The Royal Theatrical Fund today said, “As theatres begin to reopen following such a distressing and difficult year for so many across our industry, we recognise more than ever how important it is to prioritise the mental health of all theatre workers. By funding places on this wonderful course from Applause for Thought, we hope beneficiaries can learn the necessary tools to help look after their own mental wellbeing and create a more welcoming and safe industry for all.”

The course will take place on Tuesday 25th May 1pm-5pm, with qualified MHFA instructor Kate Baum. The course raises awareness of mental health, and covers:

• What mental health is and how to challenge the stigma.
• A basic knowledge of some common mental health issues.
• An introduction to looking after your own mental health and maintaining wellbeing.
• Building the confidence to support someone in distress or who may be experiencing a mental health issue.

Royal Theatrical Fund

The Royal Theatrical Fund provides support to all those that have worked professionally in the entertainment industry, the list is endless and includes onstage, backstage, front of house and includes commercial musical theatre dancers, comedians, cabaret artistes, directors, producers and many more. The Fund dispenses more than money; applicants’ needs vary and may not just be financial. Those living alone may welcome a friendly telephone call a chance to talk and perhaps to unburden their anxieties. A simple telephone call can help to relieve a sense of isolation in these unprecedented times. The Fund also assists with benefit and welfare advice.