WEST END PREMIERE FOR DISNEY’S ALADDIN CONFIRMED FOR JUNE 2016

a4e6088eae643111_orgWEST END PREMIERE FOR DISNEY’S ALADDIN
CONFIRMED FOR JUNE 2016

Disney announced today that the Tony® Award-winning new musical Aladdin will hold its West End premiere on Thursday 9 June 2016 at the Prince Edward Theatre, with previews from Friday 27 May.

Disney Theatrical Productions under the direction of Thomas Schumacher presents Aladdin, the new musical, music by Alan Menken, lyrrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, Canada, starring: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), James Monroe Iglehart (Genie), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Brian Gonzales (Babkak), Brandon O'Neill (Kassim), Jonathan Schwartz (Omar), Clifton Davis (Sultan), Don Darryl Rivera (Iago), Merwin Foard (standby Jafar/Sultan), Michael James Scott (standby Genie/Babkak) and Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

To sign up for exclusive access to the priority booking period, which will open on Friday 23 October 2015, please visit www.aladdinthemusical.co.uk. Tickets will go on sale to the general public on Monday 23 November 2015. Tickets for the initial booking period are available for performances up to and including 1 October 2016.

Trevor Dion Nicholas Disney's AladdinBroadway cast member Trevor Dion Nicholas will make his London stage debut as Genie. Full casting will be announced in due course.

In 1992, Howard Ashman, Alan Menken and Tim Rice’s reimagining of the Aladdin tale became the biggest movie of the year around the globe.  Now 23 years later, Casey Nicholaw’s production lifts a whole new audience and sends them home on air,” said Thomas Schumacher President and Producer, Disney Theatrical Productions. “We are thrilled to fly Aladdin’s carpet to London where the show has found its ideal home in Cameron Mackintosh’s stunning Prince Edward Theatre.

Disney Theatrical Productions under the direction of Thomas Schumacher presents Aladdin, the new musical, music by Alan Menken, lyrrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, Canada, starring: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), James Monroe Iglehart (Genie), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Brian Gonzales (Babkak), Brandon O'Neill (Kassim), Jonathan Schwartz (Omar), Clifton Davis (Sultan), Don Darryl Rivera (Iago), Merwin Foard (standby Jafar/Sultan), Michael James Scott (standby Genie/Babkak) and Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

From Disney Theatrical Productions, the producer of The Lion King, Aladdin features the much-loved songs from the 1992 animated film as well as new music written by Tony, Olivier and eight-time Academy Award® winner Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Newsies, Little Shop Of Horrors). With lyrics from Olivier Award and two-time Oscar® winner Howard Ashman (Beauty and the Beast,The Little Mermaid), three-time Tony and Olivier Award, three-time Oscar winner Tim Rice (Evita,Aida), and four-time Tony Award nominee Chad Beguelin (The Wedding Singer), and a book by Beguelin, Aladdin is directed and choreographed by Tony and Olivier Award winner Casey Nicholaw(The Book of Mormon).

Disney Theatrical Productions under the direction of Thomas Schumacher presents Aladdin, the new musical, music by Alan Menken, lyrrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, Canada, starring: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), James Monroe Iglehart (Genie), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Brian Gonzales (Babkak), Brandon O'Neill (Kassim), Jonathan Schwartz (Omar), Clifton Davis (Sultan), Don Darryl Rivera (Iago), Merwin Foard (standby Jafar/Sultan), Michael James Scott (standby Genie/Babkak) and Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

The production team also includes illusion designer Jim Steinmeyer, hair designer Josh Marquetteand makeup designer Milagros Medina-Cerdeira. The music team is headed by music supervisor and music director Michael Kosarin, who also created the vocal and incidental music arrangements, joined by orchestrator Danny Troob and dance music arranger Glen Kelly.

Disney Theatrical Productions under the direction of Thomas Schumacher presents Aladdin, the new musical, music by Alan Menken, lyrrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, Canada, starring: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), James Monroe Iglehart (Genie), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Brian Gonzales (Babkak), Brandon O'Neill (Kassim), Jonathan Schwartz (Omar), Clifton Davis (Sultan), Don Darryl Rivera (Iago), Merwin Foard (standby Jafar/Sultan), Michael James Scott (standby Genie/Babkak) and Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

Aladdin is designed by six-time Tony-winning scenic designer Bob Crowley, three-time Tony-winning lighting designer Natasha Katz, two-time Tony-winning costume designer Gregg Barnesand sound designer Ken Travis.

Now in its second record-breaking year on Broadway at the New Amsterdam Theatre, where it has been seen by more than one million people, Aladdin opened at Tokyo’s Dentsu Shiki Theatre Umi in May 2015, will have its European premiere in December 2015 at the Stage

Disney Theatrical Productions under the direction of Thomas Schumacher presents Aladdin, the new musical, music by Alan Menken, lyrrics by Howard Ashman and Tim Rice, book and additional lyrics by Chad Beguelin at the Ed Mirvish Theatre in Toronto, Canada, starring: Adam Jacobs (Aladdin), James Monroe Iglehart (Genie), Courtney Reed (Jasmine), Brian Gonzales (Babkak), Brandon O'Neill (Kassim), Jonathan Schwartz (Omar), Clifton Davis (Sultan), Don Darryl Rivera (Iago), Merwin Foard (standby Jafar/Sultan), Michael James Scott (standby Genie/Babkak) and Jonathan Freeman (Jafar) directed and choreographed by Casey Nicholaw

Theatre Neue Flora, Hamburg, and will open in Sydney, Australia in 2016.

Previous Disney stage productions in London have included Shakespeare in Love and the Olivier-winning productions of Beauty and the Beast, Mary Poppins as well as The Lion King, which will soon enter its 17th triumphant year in the West End.

 

ALADDIN
Prince Edward Theatre
28 Old Compton Street
London W1D 4HS

Box Office number: 0844 482 5151
www.aladdinthemusical.co.uk

ALADDIN will play Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm with matinee performances on Thursday and Saturday at 2.30pm.

Facebook: Aladdin London
Twitter: @AladdinLondon
#AladdinLondon

Rainbow Class by Vivienne Acheampong added to RADAR programme

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Rainbow Class by Vivienne Acheampong added to RADAR programme

  • Runs 25-26 November

radar2015-artworkandtitlenostrap (Custom).jpg (1)The Bush Theatre’s 2015 RADAR festival of contemporary new writing will now include Vivienne Acheampong’s new show Rainbow Class – a one woman comedy based on the experiences of a primary school teacher.

The previously announced show The Ground Is On Fire will no longer form part of RADAR, due to illness.

RADAR is a festival presenting the Bush’s annual snapshot of the very best of contemporary new writing, from London to the rest of the UK and beyond. Embracing a wide range of voices, styles and experiences, the aim of RADAR is to champion a new generation of artists, to present them to a wider audience, to offer a testing ground for new work, and to begin and nurture long-term relationships between the Bush and emerging artists.

Each night of the festival, two shows will be presented in a double bill under one ticket. As in previous years, RADAR CONNECT will run alongside the festival – a series of free practical workshops for postgraduate students, led by a cohort of professionals working in the industry.

RADAR 2015 will see the Bush embrace new artists such as Racheal Ofori and Ben Duke, as well as welcoming returning writers and companies such as Steve Waters, Nassim Soleimanpour and Antler.

Vivienne Acheampong was a semi-finalist in the Funny Women Awards and recently appeared in the critically acclaimed West End production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time.

LISTINGS

RADAR 2015

11 – 26 November 2015

Bush Theatre, London

All shows presented in double bills, starting at 7.30pm

Wed 11 Nov

Misty by Arinze Kene

Dirty Little Secrets aka The Blues Show by Jumoké Fashola

Thu 12 Nov

No More Worries by Simon Mole

Misty by Arinze Kene

Fri 13 Nov

This Is How We Die by Christopher Brett Bailey

No More Worries by Simon Mole

Sat 14 Nov

This Is How We Die by Christopher Brett Bailey

No More Worries by Simon Mole

Mon 16 Nov

Portrait by Racheal Ofori/Fuel

Labels by Worklight Theatre

Tue 17 Nov

Portrait by Racheal Ofori/Fuel

If I Were Me by Antler

Wed 18 Nov

Portrait by Racheal Ofori/Fuel

If I Were Me by Antler

Thu 19 Nov

Blank by Nassim Soleimanpour

If I Were Me by Antler

Fri 20 Nov

Blank by Nassim Soleimanpour

Paradise Lost by Ben Duke/Lost Dog

Sat 21 Nov

Blank by Nassim Soleimanpour

Paradise Lost by Ben Duke/Lost Dog

Mon 23 Nov

In A Vulnerable Place by Steve Waters

Solo by Curious Directive

Tue 24 Nov

Pheasant Plucker by Lily Bevan

In A Vulnerable Place by Steve Waters

Wed 25 Nov

Rainbow Class by Vivienne Acheampong

In A Vulnerable Place by Steve Waters

Thu 26 Nov

Rainbow Class by Vivienne Acheampong

Pheasant Plucker by Lily Bevan

BOX OFFICE

Bush Theatre

7 Uxbridge Road, London, W12 8LJ

Box Office: 020 8743 5050 / bushtheatre.co.uk

Early bird tickets £10

Standard tickets £15

RADAR Off Script £4 per debate and discounts available for multiple bookings

 

ENGLISH NATIONAL BALLET’S NUTCRACKER RETURNS TO LONDON COLISEUM THIS CHRISTMAS

English National Ballet’s
Nutcracker


870e29e48d625628_orgEnglish National Ballet’s acclaimed production of Nutcracker returns to the London Coliseum this Christmas from Wednesday 16 December 2015 – Sunday 10 January 2016. Following a hugely successful run in 2014 when over 70,000 audience members made it part of their holiday celebrations, this version by Wayne Eagling marks English National Ballet’s 12th full length production of Nutcracker since first being performed in 1950, its founding year.

On a sparkling Christmas Eve in a frost-dusted Edwardian London, Clara and her enchanted Nutcracker doll discover a magical world, where she battles with the Mouse King and meets a handsome stranger. As the air grows colder, Clara and her valiant Nutcracker take a hot air balloon ride across London to the glistening Land of Snow where her adventure really begins.

In a world of Edwardian elegance, Nutcracker brings to life the popular Tchaikovsky score featuring the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and Waltz of the Flowers.

This year, Nutcracker sees debuts from Cesar Corrales, Isaac Hernandez, and guest artist Osiel Gouneo in the role of the Nephew, and Emilio Pavan, and Jinhao Zhang in the role of Nutcracker.

Further Principal casting sees Alina Cojocaru, Tamara Rojo, Shiroi Kase, Laurretta Summerscales, and Erina Takahashi in the role of Clara, and Yonah Acosta, Junor Souza, Max Westwell, and James Forbat in the role of the Nephew.

Based on concept by Toer van Schayk and Wayne Eagling, Nutcracker has choreography by Wayne Eagling and music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, performed live by the English National Ballet Philharmonic, with design by Peter Farmer and lighting by David Richardson.

 

LISTINGS INFORMATION

Where                    London Coliseum, St. Martin’s Lane, Charing Cross, London WC2N 4ES
Dates                     Wednesday 16 December 2015 – Sunday 10 January 2016
Ticket Prices           £14 – £79
Performances         Evening performances at 7.30pm
Matinee performances at 2.30pm

Christmas Eve at 1pm
Boxing Day at 5pm

Full performance schedule and casting, please visit the website for more details:
Website                  www.ballet.org.uk/nutcracker
Box office               020 7845 9300

 

FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME PANTOMIME.

download (3)York Theatre Royal is pleased to announce the full cast line-up for this extraordinary year’s pantomime, Dick Whittington (and his meerkat). Writer, director and UK’s longest-serving dame Berwick Kaler will be re-joined in his 37th outing by his dysfunctional panto family; the hilarious Martin Barrass, the delightful Suzy Cooper and the villainous David Leonard.

Also taking to the stage are the brilliant Brummie AJ Powell, Pocklington’s own Harry Hughes and Vincent Gray, who was last seen treading the boards at York Theatre Royal in 2012’s Robin Hood and his Merry Mam! Danielle Mullan, Lauren Newton, Jake Lindsay, Charleigh Webb and Jack Lansbury complete the cast.

York Theatre Royal Panto Family credit Anthony RoblingThis year’s pantomime will be a once-in-a-lifetime experience as it moves home for one year only to The Signal Box Theatre at the National Railway Museum. The 1,000 seat purpose-built auditorium has been York Theatre Royal’s temporary home during its £4.1million redevelopment and played host to sell-out performances of The Railway Children this summer. The audience is seated at either side of a platform (known as ‘traverse’) and with only 10 rows of seats the fans will be closer to the action than ever before.

Berwick Kaler said of this exciting new challenge:

Artistic Director Damian Cruden has gone to great lengths to try and get rid of me but his latest effort is quite ingenious. However the laugh is on him because I have found a substitute theatre just a couple of hundred yards away from my beloved Theatre Royal – the one thousand seat Signal Box Theatre at the National Railway Museum. So while Cruden is looking for his ancestors below ground, me and ‘me babbies and bairns’ will be enjoying Dick Whittington (and his meerkat) which promises to be a hilarious and unique experience.

Designer Mark Walters is on board to design the set and costumes for this one-off production, with Richard G Jones returning to design the lighting. Music will be directed by Elliot Styche and the whole affair will be choreographed by Grace Harrington. Providing directorial support to Berwick Kaler is York Theatre Royal’s Artistic Director Damian Cruden.

Tickets are on sale now for Dick Whittington (and his meerkat) priced at £12 to £32.50 (£1 transaction fee per booking) from York Theatre Royal Box Office on 01904 623568, in person or online at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

 

Darlington Civic Theatre – The Importance of Being Earnest

Civic-Theatre-Hi-Res-Logo-1-117x300TAKE A WALK ON THE WILDE SIDE

After playing to packed houses in the West End and followed by a short five week tour, Oscar Wilde’s much loved and witty masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest comes to Darlington Civic Theatre from Tuesday 3 to Saturday 7 November.

A whole host of household names are set to star in Oscar Wilde’s comedy masterpiece at Darlington Civic Theatre next month.

Rosalind Ayres (Titanic, Outnumbered, New Tricks), Nigel Havers (Chariots of Fire, Downton Abbey, Coronation Street), Martin Jarvis (Endeavour, Just William, Titanic), Christine Kavanagh (Man and Superman, Vera, Manchild), and Siân Phillips (Marlene, The Age of Innocence, Cabaret) will reunite as The Bunbury Company of Players, an extremely experienced cast of serious comedic actors, to reprise their roles from the West End.

Dubbed by Wilde ‘a trivial comedy for serious people’, the production delivers an entirely faithful, but completely unique, setting to one of the greatest theatrical comedies.

The Importance of Being Earnest elegantly lampoons the hypocrisies of Victorian society and opens as two bachelors, the dependable John Worthing, J.P. and upper class playboy Algernon Moncrieff, feel compelled to create different identities in order to pursue two eligible ladies, Cecily Cardew and Gwendolyn Fairfax. The hilarious misadventures which result from their subterfuge and their brushes with the redoubtable Lady Bracknell and the uptight Miss Prism result in a plot that twists and fizzles with some of the finest dialogue to be found in theatre.

Nigel Havers said: “This production is very close to my heart and we had a ball doing it in the West End last summer. I’m thrilled we get to do it all again and hope audiences in Darlington will laugh and enjoy watching our twist on Oscar’s brilliant play as much as we enjoy performing it.”

The Importance of Being Earnest is as Darlington Civic Theatre from Tuesday 3 to Saturday 7 November. Tickets* are £20.10 to £29.50.

*All ticket prices include a £1 restoration levy.

To book contact the Box Office on 01325 486 555 or visit www.darlingtoncivic.co.uk

Classic Ghost Stories Review

Civic Theatre, Darlington – 14 October 2015

The double bill of two one act plays arrives in Darlington to send chills in to the souls of the audience .

The Waiting Room by Robert Aickman tells of George Pendlebury, a middle aged man who misses his train connection and ends up staying the night in the stations Waiting Room.  Set in the 1950’s it goes back and forth from the current time to the war.  It was beautifully staged and it was well lit, making the waiting room so normal it was the anticipation that made it eerie.  It was well acted, Jack Shepherd constructed a totally believable character and anchored the play.  But it whilst it was good it wasn’t scary enough.

This piece is not the main event. It is equalled by The Signalman of Charles Dickens. This dovetails fabulously with the first story, set in a railway signal box this time.  It dwells on the supernatural, on illusion and on superstition.

The Signalman’ (originally a short story by Charles Dickens) has been brilliantly adapted to the stage, and it’s a taut suspenseful tale, that unfolds with certain precision, by degrees, and Jack Shepherd conveys a sense of dread and foreboding in his role of signalman: his predicament is akin to the tightening of a screw: it’s a very moving performance.  You feel from the outset that the signalman is a tortured soul. Shepherd captures the mental decline of this character superbly and his confidante’s (Richard Walsh) steadfast logic only exaggerates his fragile state of mind. Each of the stellar cast puts in a top performance. The play abounds in knowing looks as the actors fulfil their roles in these old-fashioned tales.  Walsh provides the anchor and helps to illuminate the finely balanced relationship between the two main characters, that moves from haunting self-doubt to real terror, almost effortlessly. The set is wonderful, there’s a real sense of a person incarcerated in a signal box at the bottom of a huge chasm, and the special effects are haunting indeed.

Special mention must go to the team who changed the sets over in the extended 30 minute interval.  The sets, in both shows, were impressive and it is all beautiful staged

Michael Lunney, Director and co-founder of Middle Ground Theatre Company, has done a great job with Classic Ghosts: it was a great evening of live theatre, and the feedback from the theatre audience at the end of the performance, confirms that it delivered scares a plenty.

In Darlington until Saturday 17 October and on tour around the UK

 

 

West End musicals line-up for BBC Children in Need 2015

cin2015-300x186The West End traditionally likes to get involved with the BBC Children in Need appeal show, and is well represented this year with performances by some of the biggest musicals of 2015.

Broadcast live on BBC One on Friday 13th November 2015, this year’s Children in Need has a glittering line-up that includes musical performances from the West End casts of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Kinky Boots and Bend It Like Beckham.

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical is based on the life and career of American singer/song-writer Carole King. It is the untold story of her journey from school girl to superstar; from her relationship with husband and song-writing partner Gerry Goffin, their close friendship and playful rivalry with fellow song-writing duo Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, to her remarkable rise to stardom. The Olivier Award-winning musical features a book by Douglas McGrath and is directed by Marc Bruni, and includes such classic hit songs as ‘So Far Away’, ‘It Might As Well Rain until September’, ‘Take Good Care of my Baby’, ‘Will You Love Me Tomorrow’, ‘Up on the Roof’, ‘Locomotion’, ‘One Fine Day’, ‘You’ve Got a Friend’, ‘(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman’ and ‘I Feel the Earth Move’. The West End production opened at the Aldwych Theatre on 24th February 2015 (previews from 10th February) and currently stars Katie Brayburn in the title role opposite Alan Morrissey as Gerry Goffin, Lorna Want as Cynthia Weil, Ian McIntosh as Barry Mann.

Kinky Boots is the hit Broadway show by Harvey Fierstein (Book) and Cyndi Lauper (Music & Lyrics), based on the 2005 film of the same name. Inspired by a true-life events it tells the story of Charlie Price, who is struggling to live up to his father’s expectations and continue the family business of Price & Son. With the shoe factory’s future hanging in the balance, help arrives in the unlikely but spectacular form of Lola, a fabulous performer in need of some sturdy new stilettos. Directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell, Kinky Boots made its West End premiere at the Adelphi Theatre on 15th September 2015 (previews from 21st August) to great critical acclaim, with Killian Donnelly and Matt Henry leading the London company in the respective roles of Charlie and Lola.

Bend It Like Beckham: The Musical is the new British musical adapted from the hit film of the same name. It features a book by Paul Mayeda Berges and director of the original film Gurinder Chadha, who also directs the stage production, and includes original music by Howard Goodall and lyrics by Charles Hart. It tells the story of Jess, who is facing the most important decision of her life: live up to family expectations of university, career and marriage, or follow in the footsteps of her hero David Beckham. When the talented teenager is spotted playing football in Southall, a world of unexpected opportunities opens up before her. But as her sister’s traditional Indian wedding approaches, can she keep her family happy and still follow her dreams? The show made its world premiere at the Phoenix Theatre on 24th June 2015 (previews from 15th May) and stars Natalie Dew as Jess, alongside Lauren Samuels as Jules, Jamie Campbell-Bower as Joe, Sophie Louise-Dann as Paula and Jamal Andreas as Tony.

The Rocky Horror Show is also set to get involved with Children in Need, as The One Show hosts Matt Baker and Alex Jones take a jump to the left (and then a step to the right) to perform the starring roles in Richard O’Brien’s classic musical.

BBC Children in Need 2015 is once again hosted by Sir Terry Wogan, who will be joined throughout the night by an assortment of guest hosts that includes Tess Daly, Fearne Cotton, Rochelle Humes and Nick Grimshaw. Other highlights of the night’s programme will include Sir Bruce Forsyth’s return to Strictly Come Dancing, comedian and writer of I Can’t Sing! The X Factor Musical Harry Hill, a performance form the cast of EastEnders, and musical performances from such names as Ellie Goulding, Rod Stewart, Selena Gomez, and the UK TV premiere of the duet by Westlife’s’ Shane Filan and Girls Aloud’s Nadine Coyle, ‘I Could Be’.

BBC Children in Need has been an annual event stretching across 35 years, and has helped to raise millions of pounds for disadvantaged children and young people around the UK. Sir Terry Wogan, BBC Children in Need Life President, said:

It was my privilege to present the very first BBC Children in Need in 1980 and it remains a privilege and a pleasure to reflect the extraordinary generosity of the British public. For that’s what BBC Children in Need has truly become: the People’s Charity. Their pounds, shillings and pence, given so generously, have amounted to an extraordinary total so far of £790 million! You can imagine the difference that has made to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people across the UK. The past couple of years have produced record-breaking totals on the big night, and it’s fingers crossed for another magnificent response from the British public. Tess, Fearne, Nick, Rochelle and I are looking forward to a mind-blowing evening of great entertainment on behalf of a great charity.

BBC Children in Need 2015 will be broadcast live on BBC on Friday 13th November 2015, from 7.30pm onwards. A timetable of the night’s line-up will be announced nearer the time.

TONY ROBINSON’S WILD WEST IN 3D airs on DISCOVERY CHANNEL Sunday 8th November at 8pm

image001 (11)Tony Robinson’s Wild West in 3D will use exclusive, never-before-seen 3D stereoscopic photographs to expose the untold story of the ‘Wild West’ and reveal the truth behind the Hollywood legends.

The three, hour long episodes chart the relatively short, 50 year period that begins at the end of the American Civil War in 1865 when all the western territories in America were opened up to be civilised and exploited.

In the first episode, The Last Stand, Tony looks at the clashes between the native Indian tribes and Americans, namely the famous ‘Last Stand’ of General Custer at Little Big Horn. Whilst this was the one and only battle the Sioux ever won against the Americans, it led to the total destruction of their people and culture, from which they never recovered.

Episode Two, Outlaws and Lawmen, examines the infamous western bandits, often glorified in Hollywood’s latter-day spaghetti westerns, including Butch Cassidy and Jesse James.

The last episode, How the West Was Won, focuses on the pioneers that capitalised on the opportunities of the West, one of which was the renowned Buffalo Bill, the world’s first global superstar.

Many of the early photographs of the American West were taken with 3D stereographic cameras – the images they captured have never been seen on TV before. This hoard of lost images is a real discovery. The 3D stereographic slides are unknown to academics and experts working in the field. This means that the series has genuinely exclusive and ground breaking content.

Tony is a huge fan of Western movies but wants to see if the films he grew up with relate to the reality of the Old West. Now Tony Robinson is using this unique archive to bring the Wild West back to life as he tells the true stories of the men and women who tamed the American wilderness. From Custer’s Last Stand and the Battle of Little Big Horn to the gunfight at the OK Corral and death of Jesse James, this is a history of the West unlike any other.

 

First Look: Rehearsal Images for ELF THE MUSICAL

download (26)New rehearsal images of the London premiere of ELF THE MUSICAL directed by Morgan Young and starring Ben Forster, Kimberley Walsh, Joe McGann and Jessica Martin.

The Cast in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee (7)ELF THE MUSICAL starts previews at the Dominion Theatre on 24 October and runs until 2 January 2016.

ELF THE MUSICAL has a book by The Cast in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Matt PorteousThomas Meehan and Bob Martin, music by Matthew Sklar and lyrics by Chad Beguelin.

Joe McGann in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee Jessica Martin, Jennie Dale and Joe McGann in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee Jennie Dale and Ben Forster in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee Ben Forster and Kimberley Walsh in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee

LISTINGS INFORMATION

24 October 2015 to 2 January 2016

Dominion Theatre

268-269 Tottenham Court Road

London W1T 7AQ

 

Performances: Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm*, Wednesdays and Saturdays at 2.30pm**

*7.00pm on Thursday 5 November, no evening performance Thursday 24, Friday 25, Saturday 26, Thursday 31 December & Friday 1 January

**extra 2.30pm matinees on Thursday 29 October, and, in December, on Monday 21st, Tuesday 22nd, Thursday 24th, Monday 28th, Tuesday 29th & Thursday 31st

See website for ticket prices: www.elfthemusical.co.uk / www.dominiontheatre.com

Box Office: 0845 200 7982

Running Time: 2 hours 25 minutes (including interval)

Tim Goodchild (Set and Costume Designer) and Jo Miles (Stage Manager) in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee Morgan Young (Director), Kimberley Walsh and Ben Forster in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Matt Porteous Helen Rymer (Associate Choreographer) and Morgan Young (Director) in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee Evan Ensign (Resident Director) and Jessica Martin in rehearsals for Elf The Musical. Credit Becky Lee

TakeOver Festival 2015 show announcements – the arts festival held in a railway museum


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TakeOver Festival 2015

Programme of events for York Theatre Royal’s annual festival curated by young people.

The official programme of shows for TakeOver 2015, an annual arts festival run in association with York Theatre Royal and running from Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November, has been announced.

1. John Hinton in character as Johnny AcecraftEvery year during TakeOver Festival, young people seize control of York Theatre Royal, taking charge of programming, preparing and producing a week of performances and activities. This year we’re having a TakeOver makeover: while York Theatre Royal is currently lodging at the National Railway Museum during its £4.1m refurbishment, the festival is following suit.

The festival team have asked every act to devise a piece that responded to and enriched the unique performance spaces of the National Railway Museum. Performances have been programmed throughout the museum – inside carriages, on bridges, and throughout the museum’s cavernous halls.

Kate Hunter, Public Events Manager at the National Railway Museum, said:

We’re very excited to be hosting this year’s TakeOver Festival at the National Railway Museum as part of our ongoing partnership with York Theatre Royal. Our staff have really enjoyed helping to mentor such a talented and enthusiastic group of young people, who have organised a fantastic programme inspired by the National Railway Museum and the wonderful items in the National Collection. We can’t wait to see their hard work pay off in October half term!

Leeds-based group Interplay Theatre’s show A Journey With Maude will be performed in the saloons and compartments of the Tri-Composite Carriage, one of the museum’s most treasured carriages. Adapted from the cult 1970s dark comedy Harold and Maude, the intensely intimate show will see Maude taking an audience of six on a time-travelling adventure through her extraordinary life.

HookHitch Theatre will be performing two shows over the festival: The Gentleman for Nowhere is based on a collection of railway-themed short stories partly written by Dickens, and was specially conceived for performance in the Gresley Buffet Car in the unique atmosphere of the museum’s Warehouse. In HookHitch’s Phantasmagoria, has-been Victorian entertainer Charles Alderdice attempts to retell Lewis Carroll’s darkest work, but starts to lose his grip on reality in a swirl of delusion and desperation, drawing audiences into his greatest fears and desires.

TakeOver’s Artistic Director Lizzy Whynes, a 22-year-old theatre practitioner, has crafted two performance pieces for the festival, both of them free to watch: Coal in the Garden is a post-war story of two sisters from the countryside whose imaginations run wild as they persuade their friend, an evacuee from the city, to stay living with them; and the Pigeon Party is a five-minute flash mob that pops up throughout the day across the museum, in which a group of defiant pigeons evade Ernie, the security guard.

Lizzy says about TakeOver Festival:

It’s fantastic that TakeOver Festival, which gives young people such an amazing opportunity to kickstart an artistic career, is forming part of the collaboration between the National Railway Museum and the theatre. It’s a first for the National Railway Museum and a first for TakeOver – they’ve never hosted an arts festival, and we’ve never taken over a museum.

None of the work we’re producing would have been possible without the constant inspiration of the museum’s collection and support of its staff. The Pigeon Party only came about after a conversation we had with a security guard at the museum about how difficult pigeons were to shoo away. We wanted to make him, the pigeons, and everything else in this brilliant museum part of the TakeOver story.

Award-winning theatre maker John Hinton is taking audiences on a whistle-stop musical excursion around some of the museum’s unusual artefacts, called The Great Train Songery; the tuneful tour blends comedy, audience interaction and a lurking sense of the unexpected. Local performance poet Henry Raby is presenting Train-spotting (not the film), a short piece on the Footbridge of the Great Hall about losing oneself in a hobby – in this case, the engrossing pastime of trainspotting.

TakeOver is producing two evening events during the week, in which audiences can relax with a drink from the museum café and experience the halls in unusual quiet. On Monday an immersive, secret cinema-style screening of the classic 1940s comedy/horror film Ghost Train will be held, in which live performers re-enact scenes from the film and treat the audience to synchronised sights, tastes and smells. A scratch night of TakeOver Shorts will take place on Tuesday evening, in which companies will perform 20-minute draft versions of their productions: the winning event, as voted for by audiences, will be commissioned for the TakeOver 2016 programme.

Four theatre workshops for young people have been arranged at the museum during TakeOver week. All Aboard!, in which 5- to 11-year-olds get the chance to create theatrical snapshots of railway life, will run for 50 minutes most mornings. In Suitcase Stories (aimed at 8- to 12-year-olds and running for a morning) and Mind the Gap (for those aged 13 to 17, running for a full day), participants will work from the museum’s own collections to create a short play, which they can perform to family and friends at the end of the workshop. And Interplay Theatre have produced the accessible and interactive A Journey With Maude Workshop to accompany their performance, aimed at young people aged 8 to 16.

Of Time and the Railway, a new film by artist Robert Davies, captures the entire train journey between Birmingham and Aberystwyth. Filmed from the driver’s cabin over the four seasons, it charts the many changes in landscape and scenery between the stations, and will run on loop in Station Hall throughout the festival week.

TakeOver audiences can get stuck in themselves with our Creation Stations, open all day throughout the week. In the Music, Story, Shadow, Art and Poetry Stations, there will be opportunities for museum visitors to create their own work of art and help produce TakeOver Festival.

Listings

A Journey With Maude

An Interplay Theatre production

Monday 26 October – Sunday 1 November

Times: 11.30, 12.15, 14.15, 15.00, 15.45

Location: Tri-Composite Carriage, Station Hall

Tickets: £5

The Great Train Songery

Created by John Hinton

Monday 26 October – Wednesday 28 October

Time: 12.00, 12.45, 14.00, 14.45

Location: Meet at the Warehouse entrance

Tickets: Pay what you can

Ghost Train

An immersive film screening

Monday 26 October

Time: 19.30 (bar and doors open 19.00)

Location: Station Hall, meet at the City Entrance of NRM

Tickets: £10 / £8 concessions

TakeOver Shorts

Scratch night to decide TakeOver 2016 programme

Tuesday 27 October

Time: 19.30 (bar and doors open 19.00)

Location: Station Hall, meet at the City Entrance of NRM

Tickets: £8 / £5.50 concessions

Phantasmagoria

A HookHitch Theatre production

Thursday 19 October – Saturday 31 October

Times: 12.30, 13.15, 14.30, 15.15

Location: Fruit Van, Platform 6, Station Hall

Tickets: £4

The Gentleman For Nowhere

A HookHitch Theatre production

Thursday 29 October – Saturday 31 October

Times: 16.30

Location: Gresley Buffet Car, Warehouse

Tickets: £4

Free events

Coal in the Garden

Directed by the festival’s Artistic Director Lizzy Whynes

Saturday 24 October, Sunday 25 October, Tuesday 27 October, Thursday 29 October, Saturday 31 October, Sunday 1 November

Times: 15.00

Location: The Garden, Great Hall

Pigeon Party

A pop-up dance event

Saturday 24 October, Monday 26 October, Wednesday 28 October, Friday 30 October

Times: Throughout the day

Location: Across the National Railway Museum

Train-Spotting (Not the Film)

Spoken-word piece by Henry Raby

Wednesday 28 October and Saturday 31 October

Time: Several times per hour from 12.00–15.30 (5-minute running time)

Location: Learning Platform, meet at the NRM Box Office

Of Time and the Railway

A film by Robert Davies

Saturday 24 October – Sunday 1 November

Time: On loop throughout the day

Location: Station Hall

Creation Stations (Story Station, Music Station, Shadow Station, Poetry Station, Art Station)

Areas for artists, performers and audience members to get creative

Saturday 24 October – Sunday 1 November

Time: Open throughout the day

Location: Station Hall and Great Hall

Workshops

All Aboard!

50-minute workshop for ages 5 to 11

Monday 26 October – Sunday 1 November

Times: 11.00–11.50 (additional workshops on Monday 26 and Saturday 31 October will start at 14.00)

Location: Learning Platform, meet at the NRM Box Office

Tickets: £5

Suitcase Stories

Morning workshop for ages 8 to 12

Tuesday 27 October

Times: 10.30–13.30

Location: Learning Platform, meet at the NRM Box Office

Tickets: £10

A Journey With Maude Workshop

90-minute accessible workshop run by Interplay Theatre, for ages 8 to 16

Tuesday 27 October

Times: 16.30–18.00

Location: Learning Platform, meet at the NRM Box Office

Tickets: £5

Mind the Gap

All-day workshop for ages 13 to 17

Friday 30 October

Times: 11.00–16.30

Location: Learning Platform, meet at the NRM Box Office

Tickets: £15