Lazarus Theatre’s year-long residency at the Greenwich Theatre continues with Golding’s 20th Century epic: Lord of the Flies.

AWARD WINNING
LAZARUS THEATRE COMPANY
 
  • William Goldings’ 20th Century epic Lord of the Flies announced as show 2 in Lazarus Theatre Company’s year-long residency at the Greenwich Theatre.
 
Lord of the Flies
William Golding, Adapted for the stage by Nigel Williams
In association with the Greenwich Theatre
13th – 24th March 2018
The Greenwich Theatre
Directed by Ricky Dukes
 
“What are we? Humans? Animals? Or savages?”
 
William Golding’s explosive 20th century classic hits the stage in an all new ensemble production. Eleven children, one island… an incredible adventure turns into a fight for survival.
 
Lord of the Flies is the second production in our year-long residency at the Greenwich Theatre which begins in January 2018 with the return of our ★★★★★ production of Marlowe’s Edward II.
 
Artistic Director’s Note
“Goldings’ novel is one of the greatest examinations of our society, a truly modern classic, to stage a brand-new ensemble production of Lord of the Flies as part of our year-long residency at the Greenwich Theatre is a real honour.
Ricky Dukes, Artistic Director
 
Listings
Dates 13th – 24th March 2018, Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm
Wednesday and Saturday matinee at 2.30pm.
Venue The Greenwich Theatre
Tickets £25.00, £15.00, £10. Concessions are £15 on top price seats.
PRESS NIGHT Thursday 15th March 2017 at 7.30pm
 
Social Media:
Twitter @Lazarustheatre #Golding #LordoftheFlies / Facebook LazarusTheatreCompany
★★★★★ “This remains a visionary company who have once again brought us a stunning and thoughtful adaptation. Not to be missed.”
View from the Gods on Tamburaline

Cast announced for The Claim | UK Tour | November 2017 – January 2018

Cast announced for The Claim
UK Tour: 22nd November 2017 – 31st January 2018
Shoreditch Town Hall, London: 16th – 26th January 2018
Press night: Wednesday 17th January 2018, 7.45pm

Ncuti Gatwa (Romeo and Juliet, Home Theatre; Shakespeare in Love, Duke of York Theatre; 946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips, Globe Theatre), Yusra Warsama (The Huntsman: Winter’s War, Universal Pictures; Sonnet Sunday, The Globe; Our Girl, BBC1) and Nick Blakeley (Theresa Vs Boris, BBC2; Twelfth Night, Orange Tree Theatre; Goodbye Christopher Robin (Fox Searchlight) will bring the world premiere of The Claim to life.

The Claim is a comically absurd and quietly shattering journey to the heart of our tolerant and fair society. Written by Tim Cowbury (Made in China) and directed by Mark Maughan (Michael Grandage Company), The Claim explores one of the most pressingly global issues facing society today: migration and the prejudice that surrounds it. Accompanied by wraparound activities designed with organisations like UNESCO, The Claim is the only contemporary work to both satirise and humanise everyone around the Home Office interview table.

Serge stands before us. He has a performance to give. But why is he here? What is he claiming has happened to him? And what has Willy Wonka got to do with it?

The Claim gently invites you into the most British of interviews, then morphs into a dizzying onslaught of bureaucracy and prejudice. The play simultaneously abstracts and faithfully charts the journey of a single asylum claim. A bold, imaginative response to the stories of those seeking refuge in the UK, The Claim asks what happens when your life is at stake and all you have to save it
are your words.

Cowbury comments, We live in a time that’s more fractiously globalised than ever before, where the language of place and identity is unprecedentedly loaded and paradoxical. Few situations embody this moment as absurdly and tellingly as the substantive interview at the heart of every asylum claim in the UK. The interview room is a cauldron of words, in which refugees are asked to define themselves via a translator in a way that satisfies the UK’s criteria. Behind the barrage of questions asked of refugees are deeper questions we need to ask of the ourselves: who we are, what we stand for, what histories we may or may not have moved on from.

As solitary ‘guest’ Serge is subjected to the quiet violence of questions from two nameless ‘hosts’, The Claim mines the asylum system to expose more deep-seated problems and surreptitious prejudices in the UK. Cowbury’s excitingly intense and fast-paced dialogue uses word-play to create a gently absurd metaphor for an unjust system that disguises itself as an instrument of justice.

Using much first hand research into the refugee experience in the UK, the creative team have spent two years researching and developing the show by spending time at immigration courts, working closely with asylum seekers and refugees and working with representatives from migrant organisations. Key organisations the team have worked with include: Freedom From Torture,
GRAMNet, Counterpoints Arts, Right to Remain, Ice and Fire and Queen Mary Legal Advice Centre.

A comprehensive programme of wraparound activities will provide audiences and participants with safe spaces for learning, reflection and dialogue. Activities include: a specially commissioned series of testimonies written by refugees in collaboration with Freedom From Torture, one-off legal surgeries for those soon to face the Home Office interview, post-show discussions, Q&As and much
more.

The Claim seeks to not just raise awareness, but to ask bigger questions of the UK’s relationship with asylum seekers.

Box Office Tickets are available from individual theatre box offices.
See https://www.theclaimshow.co.uk/.
Twitter #theclaimshow

Performance Dates
22nd – 23rd Nov The Crucible Theatre, Sheffield – 7.45pm
www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk

28th Nov – 2nd Dec The Bike Shed, Exeter – 7.30pm
www.bikeshed.co.uk

10th – 13th Jan Royal Exchange Theatre, Mancheser – 7.30pm
www.royalexchange.co.uk

16th – 26th Jan Shoreditch Town Hall, London – 7.45pm
www.shoreditchtownhall.com

29th Jan Gulbenkian, Kent – 7pm
www.thegulbenkian.co.uk

31st Jan Platform Theatre, Glasgow – 7pm
www.platform-online.co.uk

EDUCATION, EDUCATION, EDUCATION COMES TO SHOREDITCH TOWN HALL

A Wardrobe Ensemble, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, and Shoreditch Town Hall co-production

education
education
education

  • FOLLOWING SELL-OUT EDINBURGH SUCCESS THE WARDROBE ENSEMBLE’S EDUCATION, EDUCATION, EDUCATION WILL TRANSFER TO SHOREDITCH TOWN HALL FROM 17 – 21 APRIL 2018

THE PRODUCTION WAS THE WINNER OF BOTH THE SCOTSMAN FRINGE FIRST AWARD AND THE STAGE EDINBURGH AWARD
Award-winning theatre company The Wardrobe Ensemble has announced today that their smash-hit Edinburgh Festival production Education, Education, Education will come to Shoreditch Town Hall from 17-21 April 2018. Recipient of The Scotsman Fringe First Award and The Stage Edinburgh Award the production played through August to both sold out audiences and widespread acclaim at the Pleasance Dome and is currently on a UK tour.

Following their exploration of sex, relationships and intimacy in 1972: The Future of Sex, The Wardrobe Ensemble dissects education and responsibility at the dawn of Blair’s Britain in 1997 in Education, Education, Education. Recent winners of The Kevin Spacey Foundation Artists of Choice for theatre, The Wardrobe Ensemble use irreverent humour and inventive theatricality to confront issues that are most pertinent to the twenty-first century experience.

It’s May 1997. Tony Blair has won the election and Katrina and the Waves have won Eurovision. Channel 5 is a month old. No one knows who Harry Potter is.

At the local secondary school it’s a different story. Miss Belltop-Doyle can’t control her year 9s, Mr Pashley has been put in charge of a confiscated tamagotchi and Miss Turner is hoping that this muck up day goes more smoothly than the last. Things can only get better.

Education, Education, Education follows bright but disruptive student Emily Greenslade through the day, as she takes justice into her own hands with far-reaching consequences.

Education, Education, Education is The Wardrobe Ensemble’s love letter to the schools of the 90s and asks big questions about a country in special measures, exploring what we are taught and why, and where responsibility lies.

The cast of Education, Education, Education will include: Greg Shewring (Paul McIntyre), Ben Vardy (Tim Pashley), Kerry Lovell (Louise Turner), Jesse Meadows (Susan Belltop-Doyle), Emily Greenslade (Emily Greenslade), James Newton (Tobias) and Tom England (Hugh Mills). Education, Education, Education has been devised by The Wardrobe Ensemble and directed by Jesse Jones and Helena Middleton.

Earlier this month The Wardrobe Ensemble also announced that it will now work in collaboration with international touring theatre company Complicité as part of their Complicité Associates programme. Work as part of this relationship will be presented in 2019.

Education, Education, Education is a co-production between The Wardrobe Ensemble, Royal & Derngate, Northampton, and Shoreditch Town Hall, supported by Kevin Spacey Foundation and Arts Council England. The production was rehearsed and developed at Royal & Derngate.

LISTINGS

A Wardrobe Ensemble, Royal & Derngate and Shoreditch Town Hall co-production:

Education, Education, Education
17 – 21 April 2018, 7.30pm
Press Night: 18 April 2018
Box Office: 020 7739 6176 / www.shoreditchtownhall.com

 

MAIDENHEAD”S PANTOMIME ‘ALADDIN’ ANNOUNCES ‘RELAXED PERFORMANCE’ ON THURSDAY 14TH DECEMBER

ALADDIN

AT THE PEARCE SUITE THEATRE, MAIDENHEAD

ANNOUNCES ‘RELAXED PERFORMANCE’

ON THURSDAY 14TH DECEMBER

 

Maidenhead’s family pantomime, ALADDIN, will host a ‘relaxed performance’ on Thursday 14th December at 10.30am. The show, which runs at the Pearce Suite Theatre, Magnet Leisure Centre, Maidenhead, from 9th – 31st December 2017, stars television favourites Nisha Anil (CBeebies) and Sandra Martin (C4 Gogglebox).

 

Relaxed performances are open to everyone, but the environment has been specifically adapted for families with children with an Autistic Spectrum Condition, individuals with sensory and communication disorders, those with learning disabilities and anyone who would benefit from a more relaxed environment.

This performance of ALADDIN will be adapted in a variety of ways in order to reduce anxiety, to ensure a safe and enjoyable live theatre experience and to make it as accessible as possible to all. There is a relaxed attitude to noise, the lights in the auditorium remain on low throughout the show, sudden loud noises are softened and audience members are free to leave and re-enter the auditorium at any point. There will be staff on hand to assist with seating and access around the theatre.

Berkshire actress and presenter Nisha Anil (CBeebies), who plays Princess Jasmine, said: “I’m a great supporter of relaxed performances and I can’t wait for our own special performance of ALADDIN. Whilst we’ll be adapting the show to be more ‘relaxed’, there will definitely still be bucket-loads of comedy, fun, songs, glitz, glamour and excitement!”

The Pearce Suite Theatre at the Magnet Leisure Centre will be converted into a 400-seat theatre space for the whole of December, offering wonderful family entertainment that all ages can enjoy together.

ALADDIN runs from Saturday 9th – Sunday 31st December 2017 (times vary, check website). Tickets, priced at £15.50 (children/senior citizens), £16.50 (adults), £59.50 (family ticket – 2 children, 2 adults) are on sale from www.themaidenheadpanto.com.  Tickets for Schools and Clubs (min. 10 people), are £9 per head for the relaxed performance (£10.50 for other performances). Every 11th ticket is free, and there is a free interval ice cream for every child in the group booking.  Call the groups hotline: 01494 917519 by 10th November for these special groups rates.

Follow all the latest news about ALADDIN, visit www.themaidenheadpanto.com and follow [@MaidenheadPanto]@Maidenheadpanto on Twitter and @TheMaidenheadpanto on Facebook.

Casting announced for The Jungle

Casting announced for 
The Jungle  

by Joe Murphy and Joe Robertson

Main House 

Thursday 7 December 2017 – Saturday 6 January 2018
Press Night Friday 15 December
 
A co-production between Young Vic and the National Theatre with Good Chance Theatre, commissioned by the Na-tional Theatre.

Direction Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin 

Design by Miriam Buether

Full cast: Raphael Acloque, Mohammad Amiri, Trevor Fox, Michael Gould, Ammar Haj Ahmad, Ansu Kabia, Alex Lawther, Jo McInnes, John Pfumojena, Rachel Redford, Rachid Sabitri, Mohamed Sarrar, Ben Turner and Nahel Tzegai.

This is a truly global cast which includes actors from Afghanistan, Algeria, Eritrea, Iran, Sudan, Syria, the UK and Zimbabwe, including many from refugee backgrounds, some of whom came through the Calais ‘Jungle’.

Europe’s largest unofficial refugee camp, at its peak the Calais ‘Jungle’ was a temporary home to more than 10,000 people, many desperate to find a way to enter the UK.

The Jungle tells stories of loss, fear, community and hope, of the camp’s creation and of its destruction – and of the many intense, moving and sometimes hilarious encounters between the refugees from many different countries and the volunteers who arrived from the UK.

Joe Robertson and Joe Murphy are the joint-artistic directors of the Evening Standard Special Award-winning Good Chance Theatre which was originally based in the ‘Jungle’ in Calais and then in the north of Paris next to the refugee welcome centre for the first half of 2017.

10% of tickets for The Jungle will be offered to refugees.

Nicole Charles is the Jerwood Assistant Director on The Jungle. The role is supported through the Jerwood Assistant Directors Program at the Young Vic.

Design by Miriam Buether with costumes by Catherine Kodicek, light by Jon Clark, sound by Paul Arditti and video by Tristan Shepherd.

Tickets can be purchased by calling the Young Vic Box Office on: 020 7922 2922

Listings

The Jungle 
7 December 2017 – 6 January 2018
Main House, Young Vic, 66 The Cut, Waterloo, London, SE1 8LZ
Press Night: Friday 15 December 2017, 7:00pm
Performances: Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm (except 25 & 26 December, 1 January) | Matinees on Wednesday and Saturdays at 2.30pm (except 9, 16 December and 3 January)
Access Performances
Safe Space performance: Wednesday 3 January at 2.30pm
Captioned Performance: Thursday 4 January at 7.30pm
Audio Described Performance: Friday 5 January at 7.30pm
Tickets: Previews 7 – 14 December 2017 £20, £10 | 18 December 2017 – 6 January 2018 £38, £29, £20, £10.
Concessions available.
Box Office: www.youngvic.org | 020 7922 2922

Salford’s Matthew Ganley stars in Around The World in 80 Days at The Lowry

Returning home for Christmas: Salford’s Matthew Ganley stars in ‘Around The World in 80 Days’ at The Lowry

Around The World In 80 Days
Tue 5 Dec – Sunday 7 Jan

Manchester born Matthew Ganley will spend Christmas at home in Salfordafter spending the year touring the UK in the stage adaption Around The World In 80 Days Tue 5 Dec – Sunday 7 Jan.

The New Vic Theatre’s celebrated production of Jules Verne’s Around The World In 80 Days adapted by Laura Eason and directed by Theresa Heskins comes to The Lowry for a six week Christmas season.

Matthew Ganley plays alongside an ensemble cast of 8 who between them play over 125 characters in an imaginative and physically inventive high-spirited escapade including six trains, five boats, four fights, three dances, two circus acts and an elephant!

Around The World In 80 Days reunites original cast members Andrew Pollard (Phileas Fogg), Michael Hugo (Passepartout), Pushpinder Chani (Mr Naidu), Kirsten Foster (Mrs Aouda) and Dennis Herdman (Inspector Fix). They are joined by Matthew Ganley (Colonel Proctor), Nyron Levy (Captain Speedy) and Joey Parsad (Miss Singh).

Matthew Ganley said, “I grew up in Manchester and studied Performing Arts at the University of Salford. I’ve performed in all three spaces at The Lowry and in the underground backstage areas in a promenade show. I grew up learning my craft on the Manchester Fringe scene where I started my own theatre company Happystorm Theatre with my fiancee.”

The mysterious and fabulously wealthy Phileas Fogg wagers his life’s fortune that he can circumnavigate the globe in just 80 days. Join Fogg and his loyal valet, Passepartout, as they voyage from the misty alleys of Victorian London to the exotic subcontinent and the Wild West in a race against the clock.

Theresa Heskins’ production of Around The World In 80 Days first premiered at the New Vic Theatre in 2013 followed by a successful season at the Royal Exchange Theatre, Manchester in 2014. Nominated for both the UK Theatre Awards ‘Best Show for Children and Young People’ and the Manchester Theatre Awards ‘Best Production’, this is the production’s first national tour.

Around The World In 80 Days is directed by Theresa Heskins and designed by Lis Evans, with movement direction by Beverley Edmunds, music composed by James Atherton, lighting designed by Alexandra Stafford and sound designed by James Earls-Davis. Kenny Wax Family Entertainment and Simon Friend present The New Vic Theatre Production in association with the Royal Exchange Theatre Manchester.

Listings Information 
Around The World in 80 Days
Date: Tue 5 Dec 2017 – Sun 7 Jan 2018
Time: Tue – Sat 7pm. Tue & Sat 2.30pm (exc 5th/26th Dec). Sun 5.30pm (except 24th 2.30pm).
Tickets: £22 – £31. Concessions £2 off (Selected performances)
Website

Access Listings
Audio Described: Tue 12 Dec, 2.30pm
Relaxed Performance: Tue 19 Dec, 2.30pm
Captioned Performance: Fri 22 Dec, 7pm
British Sign Language: Tue 4 Jan, 7pm

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

Sonia Friedman Productions in association with
Rupert Gavin, Tulchin Bartner Productions, 1001 Nights Productions, Scott M. Delman present

THE BIRTHDAY PARTY

By Harold Pinter
Directed by Ian Rickson

 

Peter Wight and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor will join Toby Jones, Stephen Mangan, Zoë Wanamaker and Pearl Mackie in a major revival of Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party.

Sonia Friedman Productions is thrilled to announce full casting for Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party. Peter Wight and Tom Vaughan-Lawlor will join previously announced Toby Jones, Stephen Mangan, Zoë Wanamaker and Pearl Mackie for this major revival directed by Ian Rickson. The production will run at the Harold Pinter Theatre, 60 years since the play’s debut, from 9th January to 14th April 2018 with an Opening Night on Thursday 18th January 2018. Tickets are now on sale.

Stanley Webber (Toby Jones) is the only lodger at Meg (Zoë Wanamaker) and Petey Boles’ (Peter Wight) sleepy seaside boarding house. The unsettling arrival of enigmatic strangers Goldberg (Stephen Mangan) and McCann (Tom Vaughan-Lawlor) disrupts the humdrum lives of the inhabitants and their friend Lulu (Pearl Mackie), and mundanity soon becomes menace when a seemingly innocent birthday party turns into a disturbing nightmare. Truth and alliances hastily shift in Pinter’s brilliantly mysterious dark-comic masterpiece about the absurd terrors of the everyday.

PETER WIGHT’S theatre credits includeHamlet (Almeida/West End); The Red LionIvanovSleep With MeMurmuring JudgesThe Resistible Rise of Arturo UiBlack SnowWaiting for Godot (National Theatre); The Seagull (Royal Court/Broadway); Trelawny of The Wells (Donmar Warehouse); Otherwise EngagedChekhov’s Women (West End); The Spanish TragedyMuch Ado About NothingBarbariansA Clockwork OrangeHamlet (RSC); In The Republic of HappinessIn BasildonFace to the WallNot A Game for Boys (Royal Court); The Caretaker (Globe Theatre Warsaw); Edward IIMouth to Mouth (Royal Exchange, Manchester); Dearly BelovedGrace (Hampstead Theatre); A State of AffairsOthelloCommediaProgress (Lyric Hammersmith); Julius Caesar (Riverside Studios); A Passion in Six DaysA Midsummer Night’s DreamThe Nest (Sheffield Crucible); King LearThe Three Sisters (Birmingham Rep); Hard To Get (Traverse Edinburgh).

His television work includes: Vanity Fair, Brief Encounters, I Want My Wife BackOur ZooThe MimicThe ParadiseHit and MissPublic EnemiesTitanicMoneyMonday MondayBoy Meets Girl10 Days to WarParty AnimalsEastendersPersuasionFantabulosa!Early DoorsRoom at the TopThe Security Men, and Uncle Adolf.  Film includes: The Program, Mr Turner, King of Soho, Brakes, Only You, Kon-Tiki, Hard Boiled Sweets, Clone, Atonement, Hot Fuzz, Lassie, Babel, Pride and Prejudice, The Statement, Lucky Break, Shiner and with Mike Leigh, Another Year, Mr Turner, Vera Drake, Naked, Secrets & Lies and Meantime.

TOM VAUGHAN-LAWLOR trained at RADA. His theatre credits include:  The Plough and the StarsJuno and the Paycock, Translation (National Theatre); Howie the Rookie (Barbican London/BAM NY); Our Few and Evil DaysThe Rivals, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, Three SistersSaved, The School for ScandalThe Playboy of the Western World (Abbey Theatre); 55 Days (Hampstead Theatre); All My Sons (West End); Molly Sweeney (Curve Leicester); Philadelphia, Here I Come! (Gaiety Theatre, Dublin); The Lady from the Sea (Birmingham Rep); Henry V (Royal Exchange Manchester); The Field (Tricycle Theatre) and The Lime Tree Bower (Young Vic).

His television work has included:  The Secret Agent, Trial of the Century, Charlie, Love / Hate, and Peaky Blinders. Film includes: Avengers: Infinity War, The Cured, MazeDaphneThe InfiltratorThe Secret ScriptureBecoming Jane, and A Tiger’s Tale.

He has won multiple awards, including: Irish Times Best Actor Award for Howie the Rookie; Irish Times Best Actor Award for The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui; Ian Charleson commendation forHenry V and the Irish Film and Television Best Actor Award for Love / Hate.

The production will be designed by the Quay Brothers, with lighting by Hugh Vanstone, sound by Simon Baker, music by Stephen Warbeck and casting by Amy Ball.

LISTINGS

Sonia Friedman Productions in association with Rupert Gavin, Tulchin Bartner Productions, 1001 Nights Productions, Scott M. Delman present
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
BY HAROLD PINTER
Directed by Ian Rickson
Design – Quay Brothers
Lighting – Hugh Vanstone
Sound – Simon Baker
Music – Stephen Warbeck
Casting – Amy Ball

Harold Pinter Theatre
Panton Street, SW1Y4DN

First performance: Tuesday 9th January 2018
Final performance: Saturday 14th April 2018
Opening Night: Thursday 18th January 2018

Performance schedule: Monday – Saturday 7.30pm, Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm.

Captioned Performance – Tuesday 27 February, 7.30pm

Audio Described – Tuesday 6th March, 7.30pm

TheBirthdayParty.London 
Twitter: @BdayPartyLDN
Facebook: @BdayPartyLDN
Instagram: @BdayPartyLDN
#TheBirthdayParty

BOX OFFICE: 0844 871 7622 Calls cost 7p per minute, plus your phone company’s access charge
Groups Bookings: 020 7206 1174 Calls cost 7p per minute, plus your phone company’s access charge
Access Bookings: 0800 912 6971 Calls cost 7p per minute, plus your phone company’s access charge
Customer Service: 0844 871 7627

Reduced price tickets for Preview performances
Over 20,000 tickets at 30 or under
Tickets from just £15/ £10 in Previews
Premium tickets are available

Croydon’s professional pantomime JACK AND THE BEANSTALK announces ‘relaxed performance’ on Thursday 14th December 2017

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK

AT THE WADDON THEATRE, WADDON LEISURE CENTRE, CROYDON 

ANNOUNCES ‘RELAXED PERFORMANCE’ ON THURSDAY 14TH DECEMBER

  

Croydon’s family pantomime, JACK AND THE BEANSTALK, will host a ‘relaxed performance’ on Thursday 14th December at 2.00pm. The show, which runs at the Waddon Theatre at Waddon Leisure Centre from 7th – 31st December 2017, stars television favourites Jonny Awsum and Paisley Billings.

 

Relaxed performances are open to everyone, but the environment has been specifically adapted for families with children with an Autistic Spectrum Condition, individuals with sensory and communication disorders, those with learning disabilities and anyone who would benefit from a more relaxed environment.

This performance of JACK AND THE BEANSTALK will be adapted in a variety of ways in order to reduce anxiety, to ensure a safe and enjoyable live theatre experience and to make it as accessible as possible to all. There is a relaxed attitude to noise, the lights in the auditorium remain on low throughout the show, sudden loud noises are softened and audience members are free to leave and re-enter the auditorium at any point. There will be staff on hand to assist with seating and access around the theatre.

Croydon’s very own comedian Jonny Awsum (Britain’s Got Talent live semi-finalist), who plays Jack’s hapless and unlucky-in-love brother, Billy Trott, said: “I am very much looking forward to welcoming our audience to the relaxed performance. Whilst we’ll be adapting the show to be more ‘relaxed’, there will definitely still be bucket-loads of comedy, fun, songs, glitz and glamour…and no doubt a fair bit of gunge and mess where my character Billy is involved!”

The Waddon Theatre at Waddon Leisure Centre will be converted into a 400-seat theatre space throughout December, offering wonderful family entertainment that all ages can enjoy together.  The theatre has a brand new seating plan which ensures every seat in the house has the best view possible.

JACK AND THE BEANSTALK runs from Thursday 7th – Sunday 31st December 2017 (times vary, check website). Tickets, priced at £16.50 (children/senior citizens), £18.50 (adults), £66.50 (family ticket – 2 children, 2 adults) are on sale from www.thecroydonpanto.com.

Tickets for Schools and Clubs (min. 10 people), are £12 per head, and every 11th ticket is free. There is a free interval ice cream for every child in the group booking.  Call the groups hotline: 01494 917519 by 10th November for this special groups rate.

For all the latest news about JACK AND THE BEANSTALK visit www.thecroydonpanto.com  and follow @TheCroydonPanto on Twitter and @CroydonPanto on Facebook

Romantics Anonymous Review

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse 20 October – 6 January.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

5*****

Emma Rice’s final season at the Globe opens in glorious style with Romantics Anonymous. I must admit, I was thinking 4 stars before I even saw the show – 3 of my favourite things: a musical, chocolate, the box of delights that is the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse – what’s not to love?

Based on the 2010 film Les Émotifs Anonymes, the musical tells the story of Angélique, a chronically shy but gifted chocolatier, and Jean-René, the timid owner of a chocolate factory, whose father has ingrained in him the danger of taking even the slightest risk. The only obstacles between their love are their own insecurities and phobias, a fact recognised by most of the characters on stage who act as eternally frustrated narrators to the stop-start courtship.

As you enter the playhouse, cast members dressed in caricature French outfits hand out chocolate ready for a moment of magic, but the magic isn’t fleeting, the spell this show casts over the audience is long-lasting. The groans from the audience as the pair of lovebirds muck it up each time show just how easy it is to be swept away by this enchanting story.

The playhouse isn’t lit by candles for this production, instead, Neon signs light up with a knowing look from the cast to show instant location changes. Michael Kooman and Christopher Dimond’s music is evocative of French cafés, with whimsical lyrics that perfectly match Emma Rice’s laugh out loud book. Etta Murfitt’s choreography is inspired, feeling at one with the lyrics, especially in the leadup to the bedroom scene.

Angélique talks about the bitterness of chocolate making it so wonderful, and it is the archness of the script and the bittersweet helpless self-knowledge of the lovelorn couple that give this musical that extra special something, steering well away from being too sweet and sickly. Jean-René listening to his motivational self-help tape (voiced by the fantastic Lauren Samuels) and Angélique’s encounters at the Les Émotifs Anonymes support group sessions are hysterical, with the latter peopled by a motley crew of misfits guaranteed to make you laugh without even opening their mouths.

Carly Bawden and Dominic Marsh are delightful as Angélique and Jean-René, with Bawden lighting up the stage as her demeanour visibly changes whenever she is creating chocolate. Marsh has the bumbling English/Frenchman act honed to perfection, with some fantastic physical comedy thrown in. Joanna Riding plays the mother figures in the story with her usual sublime style, and Gareth Snook brilliantly chews what little scenery there is in his multiple roles. Marc Antolin, Philip Cox, Joe Evans and Natasha Jayetileke complete the superb cast, at the top of their musical comedy game.

The final song is called Dancing on Air, and that is exactly how you will leave after seeing this enchanting new musical – you’ll want to come back for a second helping of this deliciously romantic confection.

November at the Majestic – Darlington

With November upon us we look forward to Christmas at the Majestic but we have a few shows to go before we launch our spectacular pantomime

To start with, we have the last show in our Macabre Majestic – Theatre of Horror season

Wednesday 1 November

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

A thrilling adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s dark psychological fantasy, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde immerses you in the myth and mystery of 19th century London’s fog-bound streets where love, betrayal and murder lurk at every chilling twist and turn. Gripping, stylish and thought-provoking, this is unmissable theatre. Go on…treat your dark side!

For age 11+

Show starts at 19.30

Tickets priced from £14.30

 

http://themajestictheatre.nutickets.com/30875

We then have two performances of a wonderful show for children

Thursday 16 November

The Hunting of the Snark

A riotous ragtag gang of bold adventurers including the Banker, the Boy, the Butcher, the Baker, the Bellman and the knitting Beaver set off on a quest to catch the mythical Snark… on the journey they encounter the Jub Jub bird, the sly Bandersnatch and the dastardly Boojum… Can a Snark be caught with soap?  Will the Beaver escape the hungry Butcher’s clutches? Will the Baker remember his name?  Does anyone know what a Snark actually looks like?

Side-splittingly funny, joyful, fast-paced and bursting with an award-winning soundtrack of witty and memorable songs, The Hunting of the Snark will delight, excite and entertain

Shows at 14.00 and 17.00

Tickets priced from £13.20

http://themajestictheatre.nutickets.com/21025

http://themajestictheatre.nutickets.com/36018

And don’t forget every Monday we have

Stage One

Darlington’s Monday Pre Drinks Party

Open from 18.00

– £1 shots

– £2 doubles

– £2.50 cocktails

– 2 for £5 on lagers

– 2 for £7 on ciders

Come along and enjoy the party

Contact the Majestic at

Majestic Theatre

Bondgate

Darlington

DL3 7JT

Tel: 01325 633255

http://themajestictheatre.nutickets.com