Actor, Television Presenter, Pantomime Dame, Climate Activist and former Chief Scout Peter Duncan sat down with fairypowered to answer 20 questions. Peter is just about to take his one man show A Falling Tree to The Fringe at Prestonfield, Edinburgh on Saturday 26 August. Tickets can be purchased here
Let’s start with a few favourites
Favourite Book
The Earth Transformed by Peter Frankopan
Favourite Song
Heart of the Country by Paul McCartney
Favourite Music
My daughters, they are singer songwriters
Favourite Food
It’s got to be Italian
Favourite Drink
A good red wine to go with the Italian food
What advice would you give to 16 year old Peter
Always be yourself
What was your first role
My first professional role was Jim Hawkins in Treasure Island
What is your favourite role
Denry Machin in The Card, a musical based on the novel by Arnold Bennett.
Peter starred in the 1994 revival at Regents Park Open Air Theatre
If you could be someone else for the day, who would it be
Greta Thunberg
What’s the nicest/weirdest gift you’ve been given by fans
I was in the film, Flash Gordon and was killed by having my arm ripped off by the Stump Monster. Blue Peter presented me with the Stump Monster and I’ve still got it.
Do you prefer acting or presenting
Acting but I’ve enjoyed the challenges the I’ve had from presenting
How did you become Chief Scout
I was a cub scout in my youth and they asked me to be Chief Scout after I’d done the expeditions with my family.
Peter was was appointed as the Scout Association’s Chief Scout, for a five-year tenure from 5 September 2004 to July 2009
Do you still have your green check suit
Yes, but it doesn’t fit anymore
You did Blue Peter twice, were you happy to return
I did Duncan Dares and then went back into Blue Peter so I had two careers running at once.
Peter joined the Blue Peter team in September 1980, he is the only presenter to do two stints on the programme. September 1980 – June 1984. Peter returned to Blue Peter in September 1985 and stayed for a further 15 months. He also filmed a further six Duncan Dares. He has often made guest appearances on the programme including in 2007 when he was awarded a Gold Blue Peter Badge
Do you still run Marathons
I ran my last one in 2021.
He still holds the record for the fastest run by a Blue Peter presenter at 3 hours 11 minutes and 42 seconds
How did you become a bit of an action man
I enjoyed the thrill and was quite sporty, so I took on the challenges. I sometimes look back on them and wonder why I did it. Apart from cleaning the face of Big Ben, I did Flying Trapeze and took part in the Royal Marines Endurance Course.
Why did you do the travelling with your family
My mum died and wanted to celebrate her life so we went three times.
Between 1999 and 2005, Peter filmed and produced three travelogue documentary series. Each series consisted of six episodes and featured his family embarking on backpacking trips around the world. The family consists of his wife Annie, and their four children: Lucy, Katie, Georgia and Arthur. The first series, Travel Bug, charted a six-month tour of the world. Filmed in 1999 when the children were aged 7 to 13, the series was shown on children’s television on BBC1. The next series, Chinese Breakaway, charted the family’s two-month backpacking trip across China in 2002. The series was aired on Five and Sky Travel. In the third series, Arthur’s trip to India (also aired on Five), Peter’s 13-year-old son was featured as the chief presenter. A one-off additional episode (Arthur’s trip to Jordan) followed his son to the heart of the Middle East.
Do you still have your Blue Peter badge
The ones I have left I give them away to good causes
And now you are an Eco Warrior.
As a newly appointed Ambassador for Se-ed (Sustainability and Environmental Education), I’m taking my ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ for all ages to explore and to discover what we have lost and what we might lose in the future. A Falling Tree overlaps what I did with Blue Peter and Scouts. It’s all about sustainability and while we are floundering, it might give us some answers of how we can help. It’s a family show but anyone can come along.
And what will you be up to next
I’m in the middle of moving to the countryside, to try to lead a more sustainable life and to live by example.
Peter’s plans for his current move from London to a new home in the countryside where he hopes, alongside his wife and grown-up children, to regenerate fifteen acres of land with wildflower meadows and orchards and to create a bio-diverse patch of land.
A Falling Tree at The Fringe at Prestonfield, Edinburgh, on Saturday 26 August 2023 at 12pm.
Peter will not only talk about his own global adventures and how they have fed into his take on the subject, but he will also be asking the age-old question ‘if a tree falls down in the forest and there’s no one to hear it, does it make a sound?’ There will be an audience Q & A to discuss potential answers to this dilemma, and perhaps a quick song about extinction at the end! The event is for eco-warriors of all ages.
TICKETS ON SALE 10:00 TODAY, FRIDAY 18 AUGUST 2023
The Dodgers and Staci Levine are delighted to produce Broadway’s master songman, Mandy Patinkin, accompanied by Adam Ben-David on piano, in Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue in London’s West End for strictly eight performances only from Tuesday 7 November 2023. This is the first time Mandy has appeared on the West End stage since 2009. Tickets go on sale from 10am today, Friday 18 August.
To some fans, he’s the Tony Award-winning revolutionary from Evita who grew into a bonafide Broadway star in Sunday in the Park with George. To others, he’s the Emmy Award-winning Best Actor, for his portrayal of Dr. Jeffrey Geiger in Chicago Hope, or Saul Berenson of Homeland. To some, he’s Madonna’s piano man in Dick Tracy or the scholar who made Streisand swoon in Yentl. And to others still, he will always be the man whose name is Inigo Montoya, the swashbuckling swordsman in The Princess Bride. But whichever role you know him for, Mandy Patinkin’s favourite is reaching out to live audiences with the power and the passion of popular song. He belongs to the special breed of singer who doesn’t merely dramatize songs, but incorporates them into his very being.
Mandy Patinkin
Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert presents the acclaimed actor/singer/storyteller in his most electrifying role: concert performer. Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert is a marriage of many of Mandy’s favourite Broadway and classic American tunes, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Stephen Sondheim, from Harry Chapin and Randy Newman to Irving Berlin and Meredith Willson.
In his 1980 Broadway debut, Mandy won a Tony Award for his role as Che in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita and was nominated in 1984 for his starring role as George in the Pulitzer Prize-winning musical, Sunday in the Park with George. Mandy’s other stage credits include Compulsion, Paradise Found, The Tempest, Enemy of the People, The Wild Party, Falsettos, The Secret Garden, The Winter’s Tale, The Knife, Leave It to Beaver is Dead, Rebel Women, Hamlet, Trelawney of the Wells, The Shadow Box, The Split, Savages and Henry IV, Part I.
Mandy’s feature films include Before You Know It, Life Itself, Wonder, Smurfs: The Lost Village, The Queen of Spain, Ali and Nino, Wish I Was Here, The Wind Rises, Everybody’s Hero, The Choking Man, Pinero, The Adventures of Elmo In Grouchland, Lulu on the Bridge, Men with Guns, The Princess Bride, Yentl, The Music of Chance, Daniel, Ragtime, Impromptu, The Doctor, Alien Nation, Dick Tracy, The House on Carroll Street, True Colors and Maxie.
Mandy Patinkin
On television, Mandy was recently seen as Judge Wackner in the Paramount+ series The Good Fight. He won a 1995 Emmy Award for his performance in the CBS series Chicago Hope. He starred in the CBS series Criminal Minds and in the Showtime original series Dead Like Me and Homeland as CIA Agent Saul Berenson.
As a recording artist on CBS Records, Mandy released two solo albums, Mandy Patinkin and Mandy Patinkin In Concert: Dress Casual. More recently, on the Nonesuch label, Mandy released Children + Art and recorded three digital albums with pianist/producer Thomas Bartlett: Diary January 2018, Diary April/May 2018 and Diary December 2018. Also with Nonesuch are Experiment, Oscar & Steve, Kidults and Mandy Patinkin Sings Sondheim. In 1998, he debuted his most personal project, Mamaloshen, a collection of traditional, classic and contemporary songs sung entirely in Yiddish. The recording of Mamaloshen won the Deutschen Schallplattenpreis (Germany’s equivalent of the Grammy Award).
As diverse as his professional life has been, Mandy’s education in the field of social activism has been even more varied and continues to evolve. He has helped raise funds for organisations dear to his heart, including Brady Campaign, PAX, Doctors Without Borders, Association to Benefit Children, American Jewish World Service, Search For Common Ground, National Dance Institute and ACLU. Mandy is a board member of the Arava Institute and continues to work with the International Rescue Committee (IRC), highlighting the plight of refugees worldwide.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, Mandy and his wife Kathryn Grody entertained millions on social media when they shared hilarious nuggets of “uninterrupted togetherness”, thoughts on their 40-plus years of marriage and hundreds of other topics. With the help of their son Gideon, Mandy and Kathryn continue to share “scenes of their marriage” on social media, as well as highlight charities and causes near and dear to their hearts.
Mandy Patinkin
Adam Ben-David has been living his “bucket list” dream of accompanying Mandy Patinkin in concert since 2016. He has been active as an arranger, music director, conductor and pianist on Broadway for the past 22 years. Adam’s credits include The Book of Mormon, Jersey Boys, Spring Awakening, Wicked, High Fidelity, The Light in the Piazza, Bombay Dreams, Aida and Once Upon a Mattress. He has accompanied numerous artists including Kelli O’Hara, Jarrod Spector, James Taylor, Patti LuPone and Megan Hilty.
Mandy Patinkin Live in Concert is produced in London by The Dodgers and Staci Levine.
BIRMINGHAM ROYAL BALLET AND THE ROYAL BALLET SINFONIA ANNOUNCE YI WEI AS CONSTANT LAMBERT CONDUCTING FELLOW
Birmingham Royal Ballet has announced that Yi Wei, a Chinese conductor based in Manchester, has joined BRB and the Royal Ballet Sinfonia as the Constant Lambert Conducting Fellow for the 2023/24 and 2024/25 seasons.
Named after the Founding Music Director of The Royal Ballet & Birmingham Royal Ballet, The Constant Lambert Fellowship, generously supported by Paul Ridout, provides a tailor-made programme for ballet conducting working across The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet. This unique 2-year Fellowship offers a blend of performance, study and cover conducting and is fully mentored by Koen Kessels, Music Director of The Royal Ballet and Birmingham Royal Ballet and Paul Murphy, Principal Conductor of Birmingham Royal Ballet, plus a range of other ballet music professionals.
Yi Wei’s first assignment in the role will be as Assistant Conductor on Birmingham Royal Ballet’s upcoming sold-out performances of Black Sabbath – The Ballet. He said; “It is such a privilege to join the BRB for the next two seasons, I am thrilled to start the season with Black Sabbath – The Ballet, very much looking forward to working with fantastic conductors, musicians and dancers.”
Paul Murphy, BRB’s Principal Conductor added; “We are delighted to welcome Yi Wei as our 3rd Constant Lambert Fellow, following on from Thomas Jung and Charlotte Politi. Both Thomas and Charlotte now have very successful careers in and out of the orchestra pit and each will return to conduct for BRB in the forthcoming season. The concept of the CLF sprang out of the success of the BBC Performing Arts Fellowship where Jonathan Lo worked closely with BRB for one year before becoming Music Director of Northern Ballet and now, The Australian Ballet.
“Yi Wei is a hugely talented young conductor and I feel sure that his tenure will also be a great success.”
Having achieved one of the highest final recital scores ever, Yi was awarded the Brierley / Kershaw Prize and obtained a postgraduate degree in Conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in 2022. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Conducting from the China Conservatory of Music under the guidance of Youqing Yang.
Yi has conducted the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra Academia China. He was also an assistant conductor at the 2021 BBC Proms with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
Windsor brings you the world premiere of Alone Together written by Simon Williams and Directed by Sean Mathias. It tells the story of an unhappy couple Colin (Martin Shaw) and Angela (Jenny Seagrove) with a tragic and devastating relationship, with not much more to hold onto! With life seeming utterly depressing, she meets a young man named Jonty (Josh Goulding) in the surroundings of her favourite park, whilst sitting on a bench. Jonty is a young writer looking for the motivation for his new novel, which he may have just found in Angela. The two find themselves meeting weekly, divulging snippets of their lives to one another. Her unhappy marriage going nowhere with Colin, a man who plays a nasty unthoughtful character, gives her no hope of being happy once again. Her dreams become apparent of who and what she could have been – studying art, listening to Bob Dylan and smoking weed! Jonty only encourages her to leave Colin and pursue her dreams – it’s amazing just how much they have in common! With Jonty also opening up about his life and past and talking about his love he has met online but not in person, now seeking advice from Angela about this relationship. The two form a friendship of intelligence and emotion but all is not as it seems.
With all parties trying desperately to escape their real lives – was their meeting really by coincidence or is there more to the story than meets the eye!
Angela is portrayed as a crushed and broken woman trying to hold onto her life before. She plays her part tremendously well, capturing the audience from start to finish.
Jonty plays a clumsy but vulnerable character that has an intellectual mind. I have to say all three actors showed much talent, offering many levels of emotion alongside a fantastic connection on stage.
The show gives you a realistic view on life as well as a look into fantasy and the dangers of online social media where you can pretend to be someone you are not. Two wrongs don’t make a right but maybe in this story it does!!
This production was spectacular from start to finish, a very enjoyable watch with Martin Shaw and Jenny Seagrove on tip top form. Windsor you have done it again with a fantastic and exceptional all-around play that should definitely not be missed!!!
SingEasy West End extends their legendary West End sing-along party with Lates From Saturday 9th September, 9:45pm – 3am The Piano Works, Clareville House, 47 Whitcomb Street, London WC2H 7DH
From Saturday 9th September, SingEasy West End will be keeping the party going into the early hours, cementing their reputation as the home of spectacular stagey nightlife in London’s West End. During brunch and dinner service, SingEasy’s singing waiters host their unique sing-along West End party, serving delicious food and performing audience requests for songs from bestloved musicals, Disney favourites and off-Broadway deep-cuts! SingEasy Lates keep the good times going with a DJ playing musical theatre favourites and cheesy pop hits from 12am until 3am.
With the announcement of SingEasy’s Lates comes the introduction of their brand-new latenight Happy Hour. From 12am-1am, guests can grab a half-price drink to enjoy on SingEasy’s dancefloor where the tunes will keep going until 3am.
SingEasy’s exclusive, free membership scheme allows guests to book in advance for Lates tables from 9:45pm onwards. Members also have the option of a £20 Late ticket that includes their entry and 3 drinks vouchers, and for more spontaneous members Late entry on the door is only £10 on a Saturday night. SingEasy is only open to bookings, membership card holders and their guests in order to ensure SingEasy is an exclusive and affirming space
In just five weeks, internationally acclaimed psychological illusionist Derren Brown launches his brand-new show UNBELIEVABLE, which will open in London’s West End at the Criterion Theatre, Piccadilly Circus on 19 September 2023.
After decades of appearing on stage solo, this will be the first time that one of Derren’s shows will be performed by a cast rather than himself.
From the team behind Derren’s recent project SHOWMAN, UNBELIEVABLE is an exciting new production that reinvents and challenges the traditional magic show.
Fusing the best of theatre with magical illusions, UNBELIEVABLE features a live band and a company of multi-talented performers who will bring to life, live on stage, an evening of trickery that will leave you entertained and amazed.
From the moment you set foot in the theatre, you and the rest of the audience will be an essential element – indeed the beating heart of the performance.
UNBELIEVABLE is the magic show you’ve been waiting for.
Speaking on UNBELIEVABLE, Derren Brown said: “We have reimagined what a night of illusion could be. We have taken the love and experience we’ve put into my own stage work over twenty years and created, from the ground up, a proper, original, theatrical experience. I think we have liberated the magic show. It’s going to be a glorious thing.”
Created, written and directed by UK stage and screen phenomenon Derren Brown, and long-time collaborators Andy Nyman and Andrew O’Connor.
Derren Brown will not appear on stage in Unbelievable.
A co-production with Colchester Mercury Theatre Ltd
Curve Theatre Leicester – until Saturday 19th August 2023
Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh
3***
I arrived at the theatre, armed with a bag full of tissues and a heart full of hope. This adaptation of Lara Williamson’s hit novel, The Boy who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair promised to tell the story of Becket, whose life is left all at sea when he is bundled into his Dad’s fish van, along with his younger brother and mums armchair as they all run away in the middle of the night, leaving behind their almost-mum Pearl, without saying goodbye. Becket lost his real mum when he was 4 years old, and he didn’t have a chance to say goodbye to her either. This retelling promises an armchair of stories, one thousand paper cranes, a journey of loss and a young boy’s determination to bring his family back together again.
Unfortunately, after watching the performance, I was confused with a capital z.
I’m going to start with the positives. There was a huge wealth of talent on the stage. Sam Carter as Becket Rumsey was phenomenal. He commanded the stage with ease and sang with a beautiful clarity. James Breen was superb as Billy Rumsey, cheeky and on point. I truly hope to see a lot more of these stars in the making. The rest of the cast and musicians were equally as talented, singing, playing and dancing with aplomb.
Where it falls down, however, is with the production/adaptation itself. The aspect I loved most about the book and I feel a lot of readers did too, was how it felt to be 10 years old again and see the world through young Becketts eyes. Harnessing that innocence even when dealing with momentous difficulties. The way children seek out magic in the mundane and utilise the power of imagination to get through hard times, relying on each other to carry you through. There is such a simplicity even when the situation is quite complex.
This production, book, music and lyrics, by Jordan Li-Smith, lost it’s way because it was trying to be too full. When adapting from a book it’s clear not everything can be included, so focusing on important aspects/themes/characters is crucial. In this production there was such a mish mash of everything that character and relationship building was lost. Main characters came across as shallow and 2 dimensional, their actions and motivations did not make sense and jarred. The relationship between Becket, Billy and their father is lost. Ibiza Nana left me scratching my head, she looked the same age as almost mum Pearl.
The show contained 41 musical numbers (28 of them in it’s extremely long first half). The only songs which were memorable were the Crane song ‘Fold and Fold’ and One where Billy tap danced with a rather charming snail. Both were far too short in relation to ‘Becket’s Birthday’ which had 2 parts and was reprised twice. The production felt too long.
In terms of set design, by Richard Cooper, there was a huge red armchair, with a bright colourful halo which sat impressively on stage as the audience took their seats. Very soon it became clear this was the only piece of set. It had a trap door on the seat which people came up through, but I’m not sure how much this added to the story, gimmicky it became repetitive. The chair revolved to reveal it had things hanging on the back, signs, maps etc. The cast brought on props. Umbrellas to represent the ocean, and at one stage (reminiscent of The Ocean at the End of the Lane) there were carboard puppets bobbing in the umbrella sea. The puppets were crude and ineffectively lit and displayed, so were lost amongst the umbrellas and cast.
Choreographically, led by Steve Kirkham, there were a lot of people on the stage at once for almost every musical number, adding to that feeling of fullness. Certain effects were lost as there was a lot of repetition, the ensemble coming around the audience for example. To have less people on stage at once and the dance numbers being tightened up would work a lot better.
In it’s current format The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair has a cast of talented performers but unfortunately it’s humour misses the mark, it’s songs are plentiful and forgettable, it’s story line and themes meander, the characters don’t have depth or ring true and it’s far too long. However, there is no doubt a huge amount of passion has gone into this production. It needs a rethink, a rewrite, but like Becket and Billy, I will not lose belief that things will get better.
With Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey’s Next to Normal currently running at the theatre, Donmar Artistic Director Michael Longhurst and Executive Director Henny Finch today announce full casting for the European première of Clyde’s which reunites double Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage and director Lynette Linton as a follow up to their Donmar smash hit Sweat which transferred to the West End.
Linton directs Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́ (Letitia), Patrick Gibson (Jason), Gbemisola Ikumelo (Clyde), Sebastian Orozco (Rafael) and Giles Terera (Montrellous). The production opens on 19 October, with previews from 13 October and runs until 2 December.
CLYDE’S
By Lynn Nottage
Directed by Lynette Linton
13 October – 2 December 2023
Designer: Frankie Bradshaw Lighting Designer: Oliver Fenwick Sound Designer: George Dennis Movement Director: Kane Husbands
Composer: Duramaney Kamara
Wigs, Hair and Make Up Designer: Cynthia De La Rosa
Voice and Dialect Coach: Hazel Holder
Casting: Anna Cooper CDG
It’s kind of a ritual, we speak the truth. Then, let go and cook.
In the bustling kitchen of a run-down Pennsylvania truck stop, the formerly incarcerated staff have been given a second chance. Under the tyrannical eye of their boss Clyde, this unlikely team strives to create the perfect sandwich, as they dream of leaving their past mistakes behind for a better life.
Double Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Lynn Nottage (Ruined, Sweat, The Secret Life of Bees) and director Lynette Linton (Critics’ Circle Best Director for Blues for an Alabama Sky) reunite for the European premiere of the hilarious and hopeful CLYDE’S,the follow up to their Donmar five star production of SWEAT which transferred to the West End.
Ronkẹ Adékọluẹ́jọ́ playsLetitia. Her theatre work includes Blues for an Alabama Sky –nomination forBest Actress at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards, Three Sisters – winner of the third prize at The Ian Charleson Awards and Best Female Actor in a Play at the Black British Theatre Awards (National Theatre), Lava (Bush Theatre – Winner of Best Performance Piece at The Offies, nomination for Best Female Actor in a Play at the Black British Theatre Awards), Cyprus Avenue (Royal Court/Abbey Theatre Dublin/Public Theater New York), Bad Roads (Royal Court Theatre), The Mountain Top (Young Vic), Twelfth Night (Filter Theatre), The Oresteia (Home), Pride and Prejudice (Sheffield Theatres), The House That Will Not Stand, The Colby Sisters of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Tricycle Theatre), Anon (Welsh National Opera) and Random (Crooked Path). For television, her work includes Rain Dogs, Alex Rider, Big Age, Soul Mates, Black Earth Rising, Cuckoo, Cold Feet, Doctor Who, Josh, NW, Sick Note. Chewing Gum and Suspects; and for film, Chevalier, Ear For Eye, The Big Other, Been So Long, Christopher Robin, Ready Player One and One Crazy Thing.
Patrick Gibson returns to the Donmar to reprise his role as Jason – a character who also appeared in Sweat. His television work includes Shadow and Bone, Before We Die, The Spanish Princess, The OA, The White Princess, Guerilla, The Passing Bells and Neverland; and for film, The Portable Door, Good Girl Jane, Tolkien, The Darkest Minds, In a Relationship, Their Finest, Property of the State, Cherry Tree and What Richard Did.
Gbemisola Ikumelo plays Clyde. For theatre, her work includes Twelfth Night (Young Vic), Our Country’s Good (Nottingham Playhouse), Oliver Twist (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), The New Nigerians (Arcola Theatre), The Night Watch (Royal Exchange Theatre), The Lion King (UK tour), The Colored Museum (Talawa Theatre), Death and The King’s Horseman (National Theatre). A BAFTA winning actress and writer, she won the BAFTA for Best Short Form Programme in 2020 for Brain in Gear, her BBC pilot which is currently being made into a 6×30 series for BBC2. This year she was nominated for Best Comedy Performance at the Independent Spirit Awards 2023 for her breakout role as ‘Clance’ in Amazon series A League of Their Own. In 2021 she was BAFTA nominated for Best Female Performance in a Comedy and won the RTS Award for ‘Female Performance in a Comedy’ for her series regular role in BBC sketch show Famalam. Her other television work includes Black Ops (which she co-created), Temple, Roadkill, Sex Education, One Night, and Broadchurch; and for film, The Power, The Last Tree and Cocktail.
Sebastian Orozco plays Rafael. His theatre work includes A Fight Against (Royal Court Theatre), The Laramie Project, Earthquakes in London (Bristol Old Vic) and Ripple (National Youth Theatre, Arcola Theatre). For television, his work includes HALO, Masters of the Air, Alex Rider and You Don’t Know Me; and for film, The Crow.
Giles Terera returns to the Donmar to play Montrellous – he previously appeared in The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui. His other theatre work includes Blues for an Alabama Sky – Olivier Award nomination for Best Actor, Othello, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, Hamlet, Death and the King’s Horseman, The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other, Troilus and Cressida, Candide, Honk!, The Darker Face of the Earth, Walk in the Light, Mind the Gap (National Theatre), The Meaning of Zong (which he also wrote, Bristol Old Vic/Royal Lyceum Edinburgh/Liverpool Playhouse/Barbican), Rosmersholm (Duke of York’s Theatre), Hamilton – Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical (Victoria Palace Theatre), The Merchant of Venice (Shakespeare’s Globe/international tour), King John (Shakespeare’s Globe/UK tour), Pre Imagination – The Songs of Leslie Bricusse (St James Theatre), The Book of Mormon, Rent (Prince of Wales Theatre), The Tempest (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Don’t You Leave Me Here (Leeds Playhouse), The Playboy of the Western World (Abbey Theatre, Dublin), Avenue Q (Noël Coward Theatre), The Rat Pack (Novello Theatre/international tour), Jailhouse Rock (Theatre Royal Plymouth/Piccadilly Theatre), 125th Street (Shaftesbury Theatre), You Don’t Kiss (Stratford Circus), Up on the Roof (Chichester Festival Theatre), The Tempest (RSC), Six Degrees of Separation (Sheffield Theatres), Generations of the Dead (Young Vic), Bill Shakespeare’s Italian Job (Playbox Theatre, Warwick), The Demon Headmaster and The Animals of Farthing Wood (Pleasance Theatre). For television, his work includes Flack and Horrible Histories; and for film, Death of England, The Current War, London Boulevard and Muse of Fire (his documentary created with Daniel Poole).
Lynn Nottage is a playwright and a screenwriter, and the first woman in history to win two Pulitzer Prizes for Drama. Her plays have been produced widely in the United States and throughout the world. Recent work includes the book for MJ the Musical (Broadway), the libretto for the Intimate Apparel Opera (LCT), and Clyde’s (Broadway, 2ST, Goodman Theater), and co-curating the performance installation The Watering Hole (Signature Theater). Past work includes Sweat, Ruined, the book for The Secret Life of Bees; Mlima’s Tale; By the Way, Meet Vera Stark; Intimate Apparel; Fabulation, or the Re-Education of Undine; Crumbs from the Table of Joy; Las Meninas; Mud, River, Stone; Por’knockers; and POOF!. She has also developed This is Reading, a performance installation in Reading, Pennsylvania. Ms. Nottage is a member of the Theater Hall of Fame, and the recipient of a MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship (among other awards). She is also an Associate Professor at Columbia University School of the Arts and is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
Lynette Linton is the Artistic Director of the Bush Theatre. She was previously Resident Assistant Director at the Donmar Warehouse. For the Donmar, her credits include Sweat (also West End; Best Director, Black British Theatre Awards).Her other productions include August in England, House Of Ife and Chiaroscuro (Bush Theatre), Blues for an Alabama Sky (National Theatre, Evening Standard Theatre Award for Best Director and Critics’ Circle Award for Best Director), Richard II (co-directed with Adjoa Andoh, marking the first ever company of women of colour in a Shakespeare play on a major UK stage) (Shakespeare’s Globe), Assata Taught Me (Gate Theatre) Function (National Youth Theatre) This Is (Arts Educational School), Indenture (Dark Horse Festival), Naked (Vault Festival), This Wide Night (Albany Theatre). She was also co-director on Chicken Palace (Theatre Royal Stratford East). As assistant/associate director her credits include The York Realist, Belleville, The Lady from The Sea and Knives in Hens (Donmar Warehouse), Torn (Royal Court), Image of An Unknown Young Woman, The Christians (Gate Theatre), Gutted (Theatre Royal Stratford East), and The Lieutenant of Inishmore (Noel Coward Theatre). As a writer her productions include Hashtag Lightie (Arcola Theatre), and Chicken Palace and Step (Theatre Royal Stratford East). For television, her credits include My Name is Leon; and as writer: Look At Me.
Next to Normal, Clyde’s Evenings Mon – Sat: 7.30pm Matinees Thu & Sat: 2.30pm
Macbeth Evenings Mon – Sat: 7.30pm Tuesday matinee (2 Jan) 2.30pm Thursday matinees (4, 11, 25 Jan, 8 Feb) 2.30pm Saturday matinees 2.30pm No performances 24 Dec – 1 Jan
TICKET PRICES
Clyde’s
£60 / £55 (£50) / £41 (£38) / £21 (£19)
£10 standing tickets
Next to Normal
£65 / £60 (£55) / £45 (£41) / £23 (£21)
£10 standing tickets
Macbeth
£69 (£64) / £48 (£43), £25 (£23)
£15 standing tickets
*Preview discounts apply to the first four performances only
For Macbeth, standing tickets will be released for purchase online from 12pm on the day of the performance. Please note you will not be able to purchase standing tickets in person or over the phone.
*Bookers of Under 30s £10 tickets will be required to show photo ID to collect their tickets at Box Office and must be aged under 30 at the date of attendance.
Every booking made online, via telephone or in person is subject to a £1.50 transaction fee
YOUNG+FREE
YOUNG+FREE tickets for 16-25 year olds released by ballot. Sign up atwww.donmarwarehouse.com.
Generously supported by IHS Markit.
DONMAR DAILY
New tickets on sale every day at the Donmar. Allocations of tickets will be made available every day for performances 7 days later. Tickets will be available across the auditorium at every price band.
ACCESS
The Donmar Warehouse is fully wheelchair accessible. Guide dogs and hearing dogs are welcome in the auditorium. There is a Loop system and a Radio Frequency system fitted in the main auditorium and there are also hearing loops at all the front of house counters.
Wheelchair space prices vary across all price bands, check the website for details.
ASSISTED PERFORMANCES
If you require a companion to attend the Donmar, their ticket will be free. To book call 020 3282 3808 or email [email protected].
For all other access enquiries or bookings call 020 3282 3808.
CAPTIONED PERFORMANCES (captioned by Stagetext)
Next to Normal: Monday 25th September 7.30pm
Clyde’s: Monday 20 November 2024 7.30pm
Macbeth: Monday 29 January 2024, 7.30pm
AUDIO DESCRIBED PERFORMANCE – 2.30pm (audio-described by VocalEyes)
Next to Normal: Saturday 30th September
Clyde’s: Saturday 25 November
Macbeth: Saturday 27 January 2024, 2.30pm
BRITISH SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETED PERFORMANCES
Next to Normal: Saturday 23rd September 2.30pm
SEASON AT A GLANCE:
NEXT TO NORMAL
12 August – 7 October 2023
Captioned: Monday 25 September, 7.30pm
Audio-Described: Saturday 30 September, 2.30pm
British Sign Language Interpreted: Saturday 23 September, 2.30pm
CLYDE’S
13 October – 2 December 2023
Captioned performance: Monday 20 November 2024, 7.30pm Audio described performance: Saturday 25 November, 2.30pm
MACBETH
8 December – 10 February 2024
Captioned performance: Monday 29 January 2024, 7.30pm Audio described performance: Saturday 27 January 2024, 2.30pm
Alphabetti Theatre Newcastle – until 2nd September 2023
Reviewed by Sandra Little
4****
This family performance has an age recommendation of 7 to 11 years. It was written by Danielle Slade and directed by Stan Hodgson.
Raven is described by Alphabetti Theatre as, “a play about navigating mental health in adolescence and embracing wild hearts.” The story is told using music, puppetry, a talking gargoyle and a cast of four actors! If the opening description sounds a little bleak and intense be reassured that this play is far from bleak or intense!
The action begins in the wild woods where Raven Varmint (Maya Torres) has lived for most of her life. Raven bursts onto the stage at the beginning of the play in an almighty rage and the audience are told that she was born with a “wild heart.” Raven describes how she does things big and is full of big feelings that come from her heart. Raven experiences emotional outbursts of anger, sadness and frustration. We learn that, from the moment she was born, Raven’s family were forced to live as Shadows, never to be seen or heard. Raven eventually finds out why this is so and with the help of a talking gargoyle Artimould (played by Calum Howard) Raven embarks on a quest. The quest takes Raven to a place where life is very different from her life as a Shadow and the setting at this point changes significantly. Here Raven meets Sleek (Carl Wylie) and his grandmother (Ruth Mary Johnson).
Much of the play takes place in the wild woods where the setting is quite gloomy, however the transformation of this quite simple set partway through the play provides a stark contrast from the gloom of the woodland.
At the very beginning of this play I really wasn’t sure I was going to enjoy the performance, however within a few minutes I was hooked! As the story unfolds, the play works on several levels, appealing to different sections of the audience. Themes of exclusion, conformity, and perfection are explored which provide material for discussion for both children and adults. I was particularly pleased to see a positive slant put on children’s mental health issues. I loved Ruth Mary Johnson’s portrayal of the Mayor of Honeyville and Callum Howard’s contribution as Artimould. A talking gargoyle provides some balance to the performance and gives a point of interest and humour for younger children. Maya Torres also gives a very high energy performance as Raven .
Alphabetti Theatre are offering a “pay what you feel” policy for some performances of Raven.
