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Second Sons presents:

Grand Opera House York.  Reviewed by Michelle Richardson

The hit musical based on the music of The Kinks, Sunny Afternoon, music and lyrics written by Ray Davies, now playing at the Grand Opera House, York, running until Saturday 25th February.

Before I went I’d obviously heard of the Kinks and several of their songs, but I had no idea of their story, this show has made we want to find out. Playing to a packed audience, this musical tells the story of four raw and scruffy working class boys, brothers Ray and Dave Davies, Mick Avory and Pete Quaife, forming a band. From their beginnings in Muswell Hill to eventually conquering America. It is told through Ray Davies’ lyrics throughout the evening.

It is the classic story of a group making it into the big time but struggling under the pressure of touring, writing and recording. We see the infighting within the group, especially the brothers, with Dave’s descent into sex, drugs and rock’n’roll and his penchant for wearing women’s clothes. We are even treated to him swinging from a chandelier in a dress. After effectively getting kicked out of America by the unions, we see it all seemingly go pear shape, with squabbling, homesickness and resentment.

The hard working cast were faultless in their performances, both as actors and musicians. The choreography flowing seamlessly whilst singing and playing their instruments.

Both Ryan O’Donnell and Mark Newnham as Ray and Dave were compelling to watch. O’Donnell gives a strong performance as Ray, with his great vocals and portraying his sensitive side as he becomes disillusioned. Newnham delivers an outlandish portrayal of the younger brother, with his wild partying, all the while playing a mean guitar. They were both the stars of the show for me, though the rest of the cast were great.

The audience are dragged to their feet, though not much force was needed, as the band triumphantly returns to America and plays Madison Square Gardens and are treated to great performances of, amongst others, You Really Got Me and Waterloo Sunset. What a way to go out.

What an absolutely brilliant, amazing show! There was so much energy and at times the music felt like it could blow the roof off.

Get your tickets whilst you can, you will not be disappointed!

Ye Olde Rose & Crown Theatre 7 – 26 February.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

The world premiere of My Land’s Shore attempts to bring the story of Dic Penderyn to an audience wider than the Welsh and trade unionists. It is a tale of injustice worth telling, with lessons about social injustice and class division still relevant today; but, in this form, sadly, I don’t think many will take notice. I come from stereotypical Welsh Labour stock, so really wanted to love this show, but was left underwhelmed.

Dic Penderyn was hanged after the Merthyr Rising of 1831. Protesting the lowered wages and unemployment among the workers as their masters lived lives of luxury, the Rising was put down by troops, and leaders Penderyn and Lewis Lewis were sentenced to death as a warning to future rebels.

Robert Gould’s book unfortunately gets bogged down in fitting the story into a traditional musical theatre arc, with clunky dialogue and exposition in between drinking songs, hidden secrets and red flag waving anthems. It’s been described as the Welsh Les Miz, and that’s is the show’s HUGE problem. The wooden set, all planks and doors to represent the pit and the miner’s hovels resembles the barricades, there’s even a dogged lawman determined to bring the men to justice, whatever the cost, who has a moment of doubt and conscience over the death of a young boy.

Christopher J. Orton’s music is rich and full of lovely themes, but begins to sound very familiar as the story progresses. The standout songs are Air for a wise Celtic fool (hauntingly sung by both Raymond Walsh and Aidan Banyard) and My land’s shore. The trial is also fantastic, if you block out the ridiculous voice over track. Why they didn’t stick to the idea of the masters and judge looking down on the workers from their scaffolds is a mystery. There is also, in my opinion, slightly too much blasting out one line and whispering the next in lots of the songs. I’m all for a bit of light and shade, but this is high noon in the Sahara and total eclipse in Siberia. It gets a little tedious and detracts from the emotion of the number.

The cast do well with what they’re given – Aidan Banyard and Rebecca Gilliland make a fine couple, and Taite-Elliot Drew is phenomenal as Sheriff Javert (sorry, Jenkins) in what is unbelievably his professional debut. Fine voices all round, and their march behind the red flag of revolution sends shivers down your spine.

There are some very entertaining sequences and the intent and passion of the writers and director Brendan Matthew is clear, but My Land’s Shore makes it seem as if the riots were suppressed very quickly, rather than showing the rioters take over the town and repel repeated attempts over the week to overthrow them as the insurrection spread amongst the valleys. In the show, it seems like a little localised spat, with an overreaction by the authorities – perhaps less focus on the women and more on the actual uprising would have created a show that Penderyn and his comrades deserve.

Jermyn Street Theatre 13 February – 11 March.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

The Beau Brummell of this play is a far cry from the image of the young dandy immortalised nearby in Jermyn Street. Bankrupt, insane and dependent on the charity of nuns, Brummell is living in a madhouse in Calais with valet Austin. Austin ushers in noble visitors for imaginary conversations with Brummell, full of repeated stories of his triumphs and theories. On the day the (real) king is visiting Calais, Brummell waits in deluded expectation for a personal visit and reunion after the very public end of their friendship years before.

The men’s relationship is like a Wildean Steptoe and Son, with Austin’s frantic calculations on his fingers of profit from a variety of potential money making schemes making you expect the man to start eating pickled onions in the tin bath. The ritual of dressing Brummell is given a holy treatment, as befitting his fixation with style, even in the soiled clothes he has left. Arms flung out in Messianic pose, with Austin shuffling around him on his knees, these scenes are funny and poignant.

Ron Hutchinson’s wordy and witty script is full of magical verbal interplay between the two characters, but not much happens, which may not be everybody’s cup of tea. There is more action and tension in the second act, when Austin’s true plans for the king are revealed, but the verbal sparring continues to great effect. The king’s arrival in Calais is treated with sly humour – Austin’s revolutionary fervour crumbling into dust in the face of English pomp and pageantry.

Seán Brosnan is perfect as Brummell, pompous and judgemental, pronouncing his words of wisdom about style and society like a preacher, but never allowing the audience to forget the underlying fear and madness with finely nuanced pauses and expressions. Richard Latham is full of contradictions as Austin, simmering resentment, tender care and self-preservation all swirling around in a complex and subtle performance.

A beautifully crafted play with wonderful sympathetic performances. Well worth a look.

Park Theatre 14 February – 18 March.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

Wow. Just wow.

Action To The Word’s production of A Clockwork Orange is a brilliant piece of theatre. A Clockwork Orange is one of those marmite novels/films that splits opinion, but director Alexandra Spencer-Jones has created a bold, raw and vital production that turns the ultra-violence into testosterone fuelled ballet.

Teenage Alexander DeLarge and his droogs terrorise society until Alex is finally arrested for murder. After two years in prison, he volunteers for a controversial new treatment that cures violence and criminality, and could see him released in two weeks. Broken society, disaffected youth, increasing violence and how the authorities deal with them are as relevant today as when Burgess wrote his novel, and this production takes a sideways view at frightening issues with humour and stylised violence that is stomach churning but fascinating, accompanied by a thumping soundtrack.

Performed in the round on a mostly bare stage, with black, white and orange accents being the only colours in the production, the acting style is almost Shakespearean – but this is Shakespeare on steroids, with a touch of Brecht thrown in (although that might just be the vests and braces). Jonno Davies is incredible as Alex – sizzling with animalistic energy and utterly credible as Alex veers between hedonism, viciousness, rage, compliance and fear, all fuelled by almost Messianic narcissism. His final monologue is perfection – seemingly reasonable and apologetic about his youthful misdemeanours, but ending with almost demonic laughter – reminding the audience of the unreliability of this horribly charming character. An unmissable and award-worthy performance. The all-male ensemble of 8 are fantastic, with Damien Hasson as Deltoid and the Prison Chaplain bringing the sole voices of reason in the play to life with a deft touch and Sebastian Charles’ lodger full of quiet menace.

This is a powerful and pulsating production that deserves a wider audience. It might even make you attempt to read the book.

Theatre MAD’s 2016 World Aids Day Theatre Bucket Collection nears £100,000

Book of Mormon, Aladdin, RSC & their Audiences are 2016’s Bucket Champions!

12/01/17 — TheatreMAD Make A Difference Trust today announced that it’s 2016 World AIDS Day bucket collection at West End theatres raised a record £93,359.29. The stars of this year’s collection were The Book of Mormonwhich raised a staggering £21,323.00 Disney’s Aladdin followed with £10,276.00 The Royal Shakespeare Company raised £7,201.00 Disney’s The Lion King were next with £5,896.00 and Les Miserables completed the top five with £5,814.00

Melanie Tranter, chair of the Make A Difference Trust said, “Thanks to the incredible generosity of the theatre going public and the hard work of the wonderful theatre community we had a record year.”

The money raised will allow the Trust to continue working with our partners in the United Kingdom and Sub Saharan-Africa to provide education awareness, care and support for those living with or affected by HIV and AIDS.

DUE TO OVERWHELMING PUBLIC DEMAND
EXTRA PERFORMANCE ADDED TO
LONDON’S WEST END SMASH HIT MUSICAL

Situations presents

CHICHESTER FESTIVAL THEATRE ANNOUNCES FESTIVAL 2017 SEASON

Daniel Evans and Rachel Tackley announce Chichester Festival Theatre’s 2017 season – the first under their leadership as Artistic Director and Executive Director.

 Chichester’s Festival 2017 embraces classic and contemporary plays and musicals, with headline actors including Sharon D. Clarke, Omid Djalili, Marcia Gay Harden, Ian McKellen, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Brian J. Smith and Richard Wilson

 New plays by Deborah Bruce, James Graham and Edna O’Brien

 Directors are Lisa Blair, Daniel Evans, Richard Eyre, Jeremy Herrin, Jonathan Kent, Michael Longhurst, Blanche McIntyre, Jonathan Munby and Dale Rooks

 10,000 tickets available at £10, and 10,000 PROLOGUE tickets for 16 – 25 year olds at £5

 Major revivals:

 Richard Wilson leads the cast in Alan Bennett’s FORTY YEARS ON, directed by Daniel Evans

 Academy and Tony Award-winner Marcia Gay Harden makes her UK theatre debut with Brian J. Smith in Tennessee Williams’ SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH, directed by Jonathan Kent

 Jonathan Munby directs KING LEAR with an ensemble cast including Ian McKellen

 Githa Sowerby’s THE STEPMOTHER is directed by Richard Eyre

 Alan Ayckbourn’s trilogy THE NORMAN CONQUESTS is directed by Blanche McIntyre

 Two musicals:  Michael Longhurst directs Sharon D. Clarke in the first new UK production of

Tony Kushner & Jeanine Tesori’s CAROLINE, OR CHANGE

 Daniel Evans directs FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, with Omid Djalili and TracyAnn Oberman

 Three new plays:

 QUIZ by James Graham, directed by Daniel Evans

 THE HOUSE THEY GREW UP IN by Deborah Bruce, directed by Jeremy Herrin in a co-production with Headlong

 THE COUNTRY GIRLS by Edna O’Brien, directed by Lisa Blair

 Chichester Festival Youth Theatre presents Philip Pullman’s GRIMM TALES at Cass Sculpture Foundation, and a new adaptation of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST in the Festival Theatre for Christmas, both directed by Dale Rooks

Festival 2017 marks the beginning of a new era at Chichester Festival Theatre under the leadership of Artistic Director Daniel Evans and Executive Director Rachel Tackley.

Their first season, which stretches from April to November, sees directors Lisa Blair, Michael Longhurst and Blanche McIntyre making their Chichester debuts, while welcoming back Richard Eyre, Jeremy Herrin, Jonathan Kent, Jonathan Munby and Dale Rooks. Among the leading actors announced so far are Sharon D. Clarke, Omid Djalili, Marcia Gay Harden, Ian McKellen, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Brian J. Smith and Richard Wilson.

Daniel Evans and Rachel Tackley said: ‘We are thrilled to introduce our first season at the helm of Chichester Festival Theatre. It’s been a joy to put together a variety of work created by some of the most exciting artists in the country.

‘We’re delighted to welcome those who are new to Chichester, such as Marcia Gay Harden, Sharon D. Clarke, Omid Djalili and Edna O’Brien, and the many who are making return visits – among them Ian McKellen, Richard Wilson, Jonathan Kent and Richard Eyre. ‘It’s a particular pleasure that some of the UK’s most talented young designers and creative artists will be working on this year’s productions, and we’re also offering new opportunities for six assistant directors at the start of their careers.

‘There will be over 10,000 tickets available at £10 in the Festival Theatre, and the price of tickets for 16 to 25 year olds has been reduced to £5. For the first time there will be a Relaxed Performance of our summer musical, Fiddler on the Roof; there’ll be free entertainment for everyone in Oaklands Park and a Fun Palace weekend in October. We hope that everyone will find something to enjoy.’

FESTIVAL 2017 PRODUCTIONS – APRIL TO NOVEMBER 2017

FORTY YEARS ON by Alan Bennett

Directed by Daniel Evans 21 April – 20 May,

Festival Theatre Press night: Wednesday 26 April

1968. A public school on the South Downs. The Headmaster is retiring and today is his last day. His final task is to appear in the school play. The problem is: he’s yet to read the script. It soon becomes clear that ‘Speak for England, Arthur’ is not quite the celebration of school tradition the headmaster might have expected.

A glorious comedy, Alan Bennett’s first play is a hilarious and at times unnerving enquiry into Englishness, nostalgia and identity. Written at a time of tumultuous social change it explores, with great satirical verve, the impact of the past on the present.

Alan Bennett is one of our most cherished writers, internationally famous for classics such as Talking Heads,The Madness of George III, The History Boys and The Lady in the Van.

Daniel Evans, Chichester’s new Artistic Director, opens Festival 2017 directing a cast which will include over 50 local young people. For the last seven years he was Artistic Director of Sheffield Theatres, which was named Regional Theatre of the Year for the third time in The Stage 2017 Awards.

The company will be led by Richard Wilson as the Headmaster. Having directed FRACKED! for Festival 2016, the much-loved star of TV’s One Foot in the Grave appears as an actor at Chichester for the first time; his recent stage work includes Krapp’s Last Tape (Sheffield Theatres).

Forty Years On will be designed by Lez Brotherston, with musical direction and arrangements by Tom Brady, lighting by Mark Henderson, sound by Emma Laxton, video by Nina Dunn and movement by Naomi Said.

CAROLINE, OR CHANGE

Book and lyrics by Tony Kushner

Music by Jeanine Tesori

Directed by Michael Longhurst

6 May – 3 June, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Thursday 11 May

1963. Lake Charles, Louisiana. Caroline Thibodeaux is an African American maid earning thirty dollars a week working for the Jewish Gellman family. She is thirty-nine, a single parent and the mother of four children.

Eight-year-old Noah Gellman visits Caroline in the basement as she works, washing and ironing. But when the boy begins leaving loose change in his laundry, his stepmother Rose devises a deterrent with revealing and far-reaching consequences.

This Olivier Award-winning musical mixes blues, soul, Motown, classical music and Jewish folk songs to create a beautiful, uplifting and deeply moving portrait of America at a time of momentous social upheaval spurred by the civil rights movement. The Broadway production was re-staged at the National Theatre in 2006; this will be the first new UK production.

Author of the ground-breaking Angels in America (which is revived at the National Theatre this spring), Tony Kushner’s book and lyrics were partly inspired by his own boyhood. The score is by Jeanine Tesori, whose musical Fun Home won the 2015 Tony Award for Best Original Score.

Michael Longhurst’s acclaimed 2016 revival of Amadeus at the National Theatre will return there next year. His previous productions include Nick Payne’s plays Constellations (London and New York) and If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet (Broadway), and Simon Stephens’ Carmen Disruption (Almeida).

Sharon D. Clarke makes her Chichester debut in the title role. Equally renowned as a singer and actor, her Olivier Award-winning stage and screen work encompasses Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom and The Amen Corner at the National Theatre, Ghost the Musical and We Will Rock You in the West End, and Holby City on TV.

Caroline, Or Change will be designed by Fly Davis, with choreography by Ann Yee, musical direction by Nigel Lilley, lighting by Jack Knowles and sound by Paul Arditti.

SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH

by Tennessee Williams

Directed by Jonathan Kent

2 – 24 June, Festival Theatre

Press night: Friday 9 June

1956, a hotel on the Gulf of Mexico. Alexandra del Lago, a fading Hollywood legend, has fled the ridicule that greeted the premiere of her come-back movie. Desperate for anonymity and forgetfulness, she is holed up in a small seaside town on the Gulf of Mexico.

With her is Chance Wayne – a young hustler, trying to lend his wasted, disreputable life some meaning and now returning home to reclaim his childhood love from her ruthless father, the corrupt politician ‘Boss’ Finley.

In perhaps his most searing and personal of plays, Tennessee Williams examines failed ambition, lost youth and love, and the corruption and bigotry that lurks beneath the American Dream. As the present-day United States faces uncertainty and momentous change, Sweet Bird of Youth is a portrayal of the degradation of American values and the corrosive lure of celebrity.

Director Jonathan Kent returns to Chichester following his acclaimed productions of the Young Chekhov Trilogy, Gypsy, Sweeney Todd and Private Lives, all of which transferred to London.

Oscar and Tony Award-winning actor Marcia Gay Harden makes her UK theatre debut as Alexandra. Her films include Miller’s Crossing, Pollock, Mystic River and the Fifty Shades trilogy, while television includes Law and Order: SVU and Code Black. She made an acclaimed Broadway debut in Angels in America and won a Tony Award for God of Carnage.

Brian J. Smith, who plays Chance, is currently reprising his Tony-nominated Broadway role as the Gentleman Caller in Tennessee Williams’ The Glass Menagerie in the West End. His screen work includes Hate Crime, Stargate Universe and Netflix’s Sense8.

The production will be designed by Anthony Ward, with lighting by Mark Henderson, music by Debbie Wiseman, sound by Paul Groothuis and video by Andrzej Goulding.

THE COUNTRY GIRLS

by Edna O’Brien

Directed by Lisa Blair

9 June – 8 July, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Wednesday 14 June

The 1950s. Rural Ireland. Kate and Baba are best friends who long to escape their traditional families and convent school. When they finally rebel and make a break for it, their lives burst open.

As they forge new identities in Dublin, the childhood friends must discover if it is possible to grow up without growing apart.

Edna O’Brien’s novel The Country Girls was controversially banned in Ireland on publication in 1960. From her much-loved book, she has created a new free-flowing play which is a frank, lyrical and wrenching exploration of young women, the loss of innocence and the tenacity of love and hope.

Edna O’Brien’s novels also include The Lonely Girl, Girls in Their Married Bliss and The Little Red Chairs; non-fiction includes her memoir Country Girl.

Director Lisa Blair makes her debut at Chichester; her recent productions include Mike Bartlett’s Contractions at Sheffield Crucible and Faust X2 at the Watermill, Newbury.

The Country Girls will be designed by Richard Kent, with lighting by Lizzie Powell, music by Isobel Waller-Bridge and sound by Christopher Shutt.

FIDDLER ON THE ROOF

Based on the Sholem Aleichem Stories, By Special Permission of Arnold Perl

Book by Joseph Stein

Music by Jerry Bock

Lyrics by Sheldon Harnick

Produced on the New York Stage by Harold Prince

Original New York Stage Production Directed by and Choreographed by Jerome Robbins

Directed by Daniel Evans

10 July – 26 August, Festival Theatre

Press night: Tuesday 18 July

1905. A small village in Imperial Russia. Tevye, a poor dairyman, and his wife, Golde, are blessed with five witty and beautiful daughters. The matchmaker Yente, who believes any husband is better than no husband, is busy making sensible marriage plans for them all.

But Tevye’s bold daughters have their own ideas about who to marry. And as change and new ideas roll in from the big cities, dissolving the old ways of life, the sisters are not alone in their lust for something new.

This celebrated and much loved musical is packed with show-stopping songs including the hits If I Were A Rich Man, Tradition and Matchmaker. The original record-breaking Broadway production won nine Tony Awards including Best Musical. This brand new staging is directed by Daniel Evans, whose hit productions at Sheffield Theatres included Show Boat, My Fair Lady and Flowers for Mrs Harris. His outstanding creative team includes designer Lez Brotherston (Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, Sister Act) and choreographer Alistair David (Show Boat, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers).

Omid Djalili makes his Chichester debut playing Tevye. A multi award-winning comedian and actor, his stage credits include Oliver! in the West End and, on film, The Infidel, Shaun the Sheep and Casanova.

Tracy-Ann Oberman plays Golde; her stage credits include Boeing-Boeing and Stepping Out in the West End, while her extensive TV work includes New Tricks, EastEnders and Friday Night Dinner.

The musical supervisor and orchestrator will be David White, the co-orchestrator will be Andy Massey and the musical director, Tom Brady; with lighting by David Hersey and sound by Carolyn Downing.

There will be a Relaxed Performance of Fiddler on the Roof on 26 July at 2.30pm, especially suitable for individuals, groups and families with children on the autistic spectrum, sensory and communication disorders or anyone who would benefit from a more relaxed theatre environment.

THE HOUSE THEY GREW UP IN

A new play by Deborah Bruce

Directed by Jeremy Herrin

A co-production with Headlong

14 July – 5 August, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Friday 21 July

The present day. A residential street in South East London. The house where reclusive siblings Peppy and Daniel were born is now stuffed full of everything they have ever owned. This hoard, their eccentric appearance and rampant garden hedge, set them conspicuously apart from others on their road.

When young Ben visits from next door he is simply looking for friendship; but what happens next challenges everyone’s idea of neighbourliness.

The House They Grew Up In is a tender, dark and funny look at a co-dependent relationship between a brother and a sister, and how they cope when the world bursts in on them. It explores how, in an age of anxiety, we live alongside those different to us.

Deborah Bruce’s first play was Godchild (Hampstead 2013); her second, The Distance, premiered at the Orange Tree Theatre and was revived there and in Sheffield in 2015 and nominated for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize.

Artistic Director of Headlong Jeremy Herrin returns to Chichester where his recent work includes This House, South Downs and Another Country.

The production will be designed by Max Jones, with lighting by Natasha Chivers.

Chichester Festival Youth Theatre present

Philip Pullman’s GRIMM TALES for Young and Old

Adapted by Philip Wilson

Directed by Dale Rooks

4 – 19 August, Cass Sculpture Foundation

Press performances: Wednesday 9 August, 7.15pm & Thursday 17 August, 3pm

Once upon a time, in a land far away… In a fantastical fairy tale world, Little Red Riding Hood, Hansel and Gretel and Rapunzel follow their destinies alongside other, stranger folk: mythical creatures, proud princesses, wicked witches and bold princes.

This bewitching and eerie patchwork of tales is woven by an ensemble of quirky storytellers and a troupe of musicians. Follow them through the enchanted pathways and darker twists and turns of the beautifully landscaped Cass Sculpture Foundation – if you dare….

Author of His Dark Materials and The Firework-Maker’s Daughter, Philip Pullman’s retelling of the original stories by the Brothers Grimm appeals to adults as much as children, preserving their macabre simplicity and legendary fascination.

Directed by Dale Rooks, the renowned Chichester Festival Youth Theatre return to Cass Sculpture Foundation where they staged Running Wild in 2015, winning the UK Theatre Award for Best Show for Children and Young People.

The audience will follow the production on foot through a variety of locations, including some steep and uneven ground. Suitable for ages 8+.

Grimm Tales will be designed by Ryan Dawson Laight, with music by Eamonn O’Dwyer.

THE STEPMOTHER

by Githa Sowerby

Directed by Richard Eyre

11 August – 9 September, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Thursday 17 August

1924. A comfortable house in Surrey. When the orphaned Lois Relph accepts a marriage proposal from an older man, Eustace Gaydon, she believes she’s been rescued from an uncertain future. Establishing a successful business as a dress designer, Lois leaves her fortune in her husband’s hands.

But when one of her devoted step-daughters needs her help, Lois is forced to address what drew Eustace to her in the first place – and, at last, to face the dark truth at the heart of her marriage.

This gripping drama is a searing look at manipulation, money and matrimony. What price a woman’s autonomy within a man’s world?

Playwright Githa Sowerby’s most famous play, Rutherford and Son, is acknowledged as one of the most influential plays of the 20th century.

Richard Eyre returns to Chichester to direct this rediscovered gem; formerly Director of the National Theatre, his work at Chichester includes The Pajama Game and The Last Cigarette, while recent productions also include his award-winning revival of Ghosts (Almeida, West End & New York).

The production will be designed by Tim Hatley, with lighting by Peter Mumford and sound by John Leonard.

KING LEAR

by William Shakespeare

Directed by Jonathan Munby

22 September – 28 October, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Friday 29 September

Two ageing fathers – one a King, one his courtier – reject the children who truly love them. Their blindness unleashes a tornado of pitiless ambition and treachery – and their worlds crumble.

Tender, violent, moving and shocking, King Lear is considered by many to be the greatest tragedy ever written. This will be an explosive, charged and contemporary retelling of Shakespeare’s epic masterpiece in the intimate setting of the Minerva Theatre.

Jonathan Munby directs, following his acclaimed production of First Light for Festival 2016. His work for Shakespeare’s Globe includes All the Angels, The Merchant of Venice and Antony and Cleopatra; his recent work for the RSC includes Wendy & Peter Pan.

The ensemble of actors includes Ian McKellen in the title role, who last appeared at Chichester in The Syndicate in 2011. His recent stage work includes No Man’s Land in the West End and on Broadway.

King Lear will be designed by Paul Wills, with lighting by Oliver Fenwick, music and sound by Ben and Max Ringham, and movement by Lucy Cullingford

THE NORMAN CONQUESTS A trilogy of plays by Alan Ayckbourn

Directed by Blanche McIntyre

18 September – 28 October, Festival Theatre

Press performances: Tuesday 3 October at 11am, 3pm & 7pm

An English country house. A summer weekend. A family gathering. Norman would like to seduce Annie, though he’s married to her sister, Ruth. He’s also got his eye on Sarah, though she’s married to Reg – who is Annie and Ruth’s brother. Tom, from next door, isn’t married to anyone: though he too nurses secret hopes beneath his stoical surface.

With pungent wit and sparkling ingenuity, Alan Ayckbourn fashions the thwarted desires and bittersweet absurdity of family life into a comic masterpiece.

This classic trio of interconnecting plays, seen from hilariously differing perspectives, is performed by one ensemble of actors. Each play can be enjoyed as a single performance or seen as one event in any sequence, either over different days or on trilogy days.

Table Manners

Saturday. 6pm. The dining room. Where no-one is looking forward to Annie’s limp salad, or her mother’s lethal home-made dandelion, parsnip or carrot wine.

Living Together

Saturday. 6.30pm. The sitting room. With a wind-up gramophone, a pouffe, magazines, and a very, very inviting fur rug.

Round and Round the Garden

Saturday. 5.30pm. The garden. It’s not the only thing that’s looking wild and very, very tangled.

Alan Ayckbourn is Britain’s most prolific and popular contemporary playwright with over eighty plays to his name. Recent productions at Chichester include Way Upstream, Absurd Person Singular and Surprises.

Blanche McIntyre directs at Chichester for the first time; an Associate Director at Nuffield Theatre, her recent work includes Titus Andronicus and Two Noble Kinsmen (RSC), Anouilh’s Welcome Home Captain Fox! (Donmar Warehouse) and Stoppard’s Arcadia (ETT).

The Norman Conquests will be designed by Simon Higlett with lighting by Johanna Town, music by Olly Fox and sound by George Dennis.

QUIZ A new play by James Graham

Directed by Daniel Evans

3 November – 2 December, Minerva Theatre

Press night: Friday 10 November

Is Quiz:

A) The world premiere of a new play by acclaimed writer James Graham?

B) A provocative re-examination of the conviction of Charles Ingram, ‘the coughing Major’, for cheating, following his appearance on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?

C) A hilarious celebration of the great tradition of the British quiz show?

D) A razor-sharp analysis of the 21st century’s dangerous new attitude to truth and lies?

Answer: You decide.

James Graham’s This House transferred to the West End following sell-out runs during Festival 2016 and at the National Theatre. His work for theatre in the UK and US includes The Vote and Privacy for the Donmar Warehouse, Finding Neverland on Broadway, Coalition for Channel 4 and the screenplay X+Y.

Daniel Evans recently directed David Mamet’s American Buffalo in the West End; his productions at Sheffield Theatres included Lucy Prebble’s The Effect and David Hare’s Racing Demon.

Quiz will be designed by Robert Jones, with music and sound by Ben and Max Ringham, and video by Tim Reid.

Chichester Festival Youth Theatre present

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST A new adaptation from the original fairy tale

Directed by Dale Rooks

16 – 31 December, Festival Theatre

Press night: Tuesday 19 December

A cursed prince sits alone in an enchanted castle, destined to remain in monstrous form until he can learn to love and be loved in return. But who could ever love a Beast?

Offered a gift by her father, a kind and beautiful young girl asks only for a rose while her brothers and sisters demand jewels and fashionable clothes. But the fulfilment of Beauty’s simple wish puts her in the Beast’s power. He offers her luxury and riches in return for her hand; but can she bring herself to accept his proposals of marriage?

The award-winning Chichester Festival Youth Theatre present a brand new adaptation of the much loved classic in this year’s Christmas production. Prejudice, jealousy, compassion and love are woven through this magical story, studded with enchanting and deliciously scary characters.

Dale Rooks, whose work with CFYT includes Running Wild, A Christmas Carol and Peter Pan, directs a visually spectacular show featuring newly composed songs and wonderfully inventive designs, suitable for ages 7+.

Set design for Beauty and the Beast will be by Simon Higlett, with costumes by Ryan Dawson Laight, lighting by James Whiteside and sound by Gregory Clarke.

There will be a Relaxed Performance of Beauty and the Beast on 31 December at 11am.

FESTIVAL 2017 EVENTS

Talks, tours, performances and hands-on activities for all ages will offer additional insights into Festival 2017. Highlights include talks with Marcia Gay Harden, Alan Bennett and Edna O’Brien; debates and discussion on subjects including The State of Education and The Trump Effect; Inua Ellams’ An Evening with an Immigrant; a Late Night Cabaret and a Theatre Quiz.

Free musical events inspired by the productions will take place in Oaklands Park, including Music and Food for the Soul and A Fiddler on the Roof. In October, the Festival Theatre will take part in Fun Palaces, the nationwide celebration of arts and culture.

Events for 16 to 25 year olds include a conversation with Daniel Evans. CFT’s Learning, Education and Participation (LEAP) team lead an insight into careers in theatre with Creative Choices, and events for Living Well with Dementia. Workshops for families include Once Upon A Time and Shakespeare for Families.

BEYOND CHICHESTER

Earlier productions originated at Chichester are continuing their lives beyond West Sussex: Michael Morpurgo’s Running Wild, adapted by Samuel Adamson, is on tour with the Children’s Touring Partnership until June, while Half A Sixpence is currently booking at the Noël Coward Theatre until 2 September 2017. James Graham’s This House ends its limited run at the Garrick Theatre on 25 February, while Love’s Labour’s Lost and Much Ado About Nothing end their runs at the Theatre Royal Haymarket on 18 March.

BOOKING INFORMATION

Priority booking for Friends of Chichester Festival Theatre opens:

Saturday 25 February (online and booking forms only)

Wednesday 1 March (phone and in person)

Public booking opens:

Saturday 4 March (online only)

Tuesday 7 March (phone and in person)

(For Grimm Tales at Cass Sculpture Foundation, Friends’ priority booking opens Monday 3 April, public booking opens Thursday 6 April.)

cft.org.uk Box Office 01243 781312

Tickets from £10

Prologue:

£5 tickets for 16 – 25s 10,000 £5 tickets are available for 16 to 25 year-olds for all productions throughout Festival 2017; sign up for free at cft.org.uk/prologue. Members also have access to a range of exclusive events.

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Festival 2017 sponsors

Forty Years On is sponsored by Jackson-Stops & Staff, Oldham Seals Group and Wiley

Caroline, Or Change is sponsored by Genesis Town Planning and Lancing College

Sweet Bird of Youth is sponsored by Covers Timber & Builders Merchant and Harwoods Group

The Country Girls is sponsored by University of Chichester

Fiddler on the Roof is sponsored by Henry Adams, ITD Consultants, Reynolds Fine Furniture and Seaward Properties

The House They Grew Up In is sponsored by Bishops Printers Grimm Tales is sponsored by Kenwood and Mercer

The Stepmother is sponsored by Hentys Corporate

King Lear is sponsored by Domusea Developments

The Norman Conquests is sponsored by Conquest Bespoke Furniture and Irwin Mitchell Quiz is sponsored by De’Longhi

Beauty and the Beast is sponsored by Kenwood and Mercer

Festival 2017 press nights

Forty Years On, Festival Theatre Wednesday 26 April, 7.00pm

Caroline, Or Change, Minerva Theatre Thursday 11 May, 7.00pm

Sweet Bird of Youth, Festival Theatre Friday 9 June, 7.00pm

The Country Girls, Minerva Theatre Wednesday 14 June, 7.00pm

Fiddler on the Roof, Festival Theatre Tuesday 18 July, 7.00pm

The House They Grew Up In, Minerva Theatre Friday 21 July, 7.00pm

Grimm Tales (CFYT), Cass Sculpture Foundation Wednesday 9 August, 7.15pm/ Thursday 17 August, 3pm

The Stepmother, Minerva Theatre Thursday 17 August, 7.00pm

King Lear, Minerva Theatre Friday 29 September, 7.00pm

The Norman Conquests, Festival Theatre Tuesday 3 October,11.00am, 3.00pm, 7.00pm

Quiz, Minerva Theatre Friday 10 November, 7.00pm

Beauty and the Beast (CFYT), Festival Theatre Tuesday 19 December, 7.00pm