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Sunderland Culture, Sunderland Empire and National Theatre to create new Public Acts production celebrating the people and music of Sunderland

Sunderland Culture, Sunderland Empire and National Theatre today announce a new production as part of the National Theatre’s Public Acts nationwide programme that creates extraordinary acts of theatre and community.

Director of Public Acts Emily Lim, Co-Director and Choreographer Dan Canham and Sunderland-born musician Ross Millard (The Futureheads) are teaming up to develop a new production Public Record, a celebration of the people and music of Sunderland performed by community members and professional artists from across the city. Set in a live recording studio, we witness the community coming together to record an album and, in doing so, to make a record of who they are.

Using a combination of dance and live music the piece will explore what it means to come together to write our own history, to capture our present and to look forward to a shared future. The piece is being developed in collaboration with communitymembers and will feature an array of inspirational artists and musicians who represent the breadth of Sunderland’s rich cultural identity. 

The production will take place from 25 – 27 April 2025 at The Fire Station in Sunderland and will feature over 50 people from partner community groups.

Community groups across Sunderland will take part in weekly creative workshops with theatre-makers, theatre trips and creative social opportunities from June, building towards the production of Public Record next year.

The local partner community groups taking part will include:

• Back on the Map – working with and for local people to transform Hendon for the better. They work in the heart of the community to empower the people of Hendon by creating a better place, a stronger community and a local voice
• Connect Company – part of the beating heart of Sunderland Empire, a relaxed drama group for adults aged 18+ with additional needs. The group has toured shows and performed across the city of Sunderland
• Sunderland Nigerian Family Group – provides support for Nigerian families through shared experiences to encourage wellbeing for members and their children while navigating new cultures
• The Alumni Group – an intergenerational group formed of Sunderland community members who took part in the 2023 nationwide Public Acts production of The Odyssey

Director of Public Acts Emily Lim said, “We are so excited to be creating our next show in Sunderland with such an inspiring group of community partners and artists. Sunderland is a city with an incredible musical history where music making and community activism go hand in hand. We can’t wait to start work with our company, celebrating and honouring that spirit in the creation of our new show”.

Helen Green, Head of Performance at Sunderland Culture said, “We’re thrilled to be working on another prestigious project with National Theatre, especially one that is going to celebrate Sunderland’s fantastic musical landscape made even more exciting by the opportunity to incorporate some big dance routines. It’s an amazing opportunity for community members and local artists and musicians to create a new production alongside the National Theatre and Sunderland Empire. A key part of our ongoing collaboration with National Theatre is that community members with no experience of performing, as well as amateur musicians and dancers, will get to work with professional practitioners from around the UK as well as our own region who are hugely experienced and nationally respected. Those involved in The Odyssey last year had a brilliant time and a feature of Public Record is that some of those involved in last year’s production will be involved again this year.”

 Anthony Hope, Senior Creative Learning Manager at Sunderland Empire said: “National Theatre’s Public Acts programme presents an incredible opportunity to celebrate Sunderland’s creative and community spirit. Following our involvement in 2023’s Public Acts performance of The Odyssey, we look forward to once again supporting diverse voices and communities from across all corners of our city to take centre stage, showcasing how a shared community theatre experience on an epic scale has the power to bring people together and make a lasting positive change that will resonate for the long term.”

 Steven, a company member of The Odyssey, said, ‘”Being a lad who is born and bred in Sunderland it is an honour to be involved as we showcase what incredible, diverse talent and community spirit Sunderland has always had. Backed with the beautiful core values of Public Acts this will be a tremendous project.’

This new production follows last year’s epic multi-venue production of The Odyssey, reimagined with hundreds of community members in five episodes nationwide, including Sunderland. The fourth episode The Island of the Sun took place at The Fire Station in Sunderland in April 2023 and featured 24 local participants, with an epic finale production bringing performers from all five locations together on the National Theatre’s Olivier stage in August 2023.

  The National Theatre also today releases a new documentary, The Odyssey: A National Story, following the creation of the 2023 landmark Public Acts production The Odyssey which was reimagined with hundreds of community members in five episodes in Stoke-on-Trent, Doncaster, Trowbridge, Sunderland and at the NT. The documentary gives a unique insight into how this epic production was brought to life, highlighting the power of theatre to bring communities together. It has been created by award-winning director Hanan Abdalla and will be available to watch on the NT’s YouTube channel from 7pm, Tuesday 7 May.

Sisco Entertainment & Sweeney Entertainments Present

PETER ANDRE

In THE BEST OF FRANKIE VALLI AND THE FOUR SEASONS

AT THE DOMINION THEATRE IN LONDON ON 16 FEBRUARY 2025

As Part Of A Major UK Tour

Starring Peter Andre – The Best of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons is a spectacular high-pitched celebration of timeless music from one of the biggest selling groups of all time. As part of a major UK Tour in 2025, the show will play one night only at The Dominion Theatre in London on Sunday 16 February.

This nostalgic musical journey pays tribute to the life and career of those four boys from Jersey, who started singing under a street lamp but soon went on to become one of the most recognised groups in history.

From the streets of New Jersey to the dizzying heights of the West End and Broadway, this incredible music has delighted audiences for over five decades, The Best of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons features all your favourite songs including Sherry, My Eyes Adored You, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You and many more.

Featuring a supporting cast of incredible performers from smash-hit award winning West End musicals, The Best of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons will leave you on a ‘high’ and guarantee you’ll be saying ‘Oh, What A Night!

150 MILLION RECORDS SOLD

20 TOP TEN HITS

8 NUMBER ONE’S

ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME

Tickets: https://www.nederlander.co.uk/whats-on/7123?event_id=7123

https://fourseasonsshow.com

Instagram: @fourseasonsshow

X: @fourseasonsshow

Facebook: /fourseasonsshow

⭐⭐⭐⭐

“A show of timeless classics was performed with joy and vulnerability and proved that these hits could still excite a crowd 50 years on – and no doubt win the approval of Mr Valli himself, too.”

– Worcester News

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

“A non-stop journey through a host of hits in a tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons”

Birmingham Mail

CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR THE UK PREMIERE OF VISIT FROM AN UNKNOWN WOMAN BY CHRISTOPHER HAMPTON DIRECTED BY CHELSEA WALKER

Casting has been announced for Visit from an Unknown Woman; a new play by Christopher Hampton based on the compelling short story by Stefan Zweig.

Directed by Chelsea Walker, the play will have its UK premiere at Hampstead Theatre from 21 June to 27 July.

Set shortly before Nazi Germany’s occupation of Austria, Christopher Hampton’s riveting psychological drama will be brought to life by Natalie Simpson as the enigmatic Marianne and Thomas Levin as the captivating Stefan.   

Natalie Simpson won the prestigious Ian Charleson Award in 2017 and her recent stage appearances include Jack Absolute Flies Again and Three Sisters at the National Theatre. Making his London theatre debut, Danish-born Thomas Levin’s credits include Constellations and Ghosts, Aarhus Teater and the Danish TV drama series Borgen. Further casting is to be announced.

‘There’s this monstrous idiot – this monstrouselected idiot – who keeps telling his fellow-idiots to throw my books on a bonfire and beat me up in the street…’

Vienna 1934. Stefan is one of the world’s most successful authors – widely read, universally admired, and translated into every language. His is the life of a wealthy playboy, enjoying only the finest things in life – from luxurious world travel to the company of his most dazzling contemporaries in Europe’s most fashionable restaurants. Only two things cloud his prospects: the rise of the Nazi Party, and the sudden appearance of a woman who he clearly knows… but who he cannot, for the life of him, remember.

Christopher Hampton’s adaptation of the short story, Letter from an Unknown Woman, by Stefan Zweig published in 1922 receives its UK premiere following a triumphant run at Vienna’s Josefstadt Theater. Winner of multiple awards including two Oscars, Hampton’s plays include Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Tales from Hollywood, and The Philanthropist, and he is celebrated for his translations of Reza and Zeller. 

Chelsea Walker returns to Hampstead to direct following her acclaimed Hampstead Downstairs production of This Much I Know and Yous Two. Her recent work includes On the Beach (Sheffield): Missing Julie (Theatr Clwyd); Hedda Gabler (Sherman); Cougar (Orange Tree) and A Streetcar Named Desire (ETT). 

The full creative team comprises; Rosanna Vize (Designer), Bethany Gupwell (Lighting Designer), Peter Rice (Sound Designer), Max Perryment (Composter), Michela Meazza (Movement Director), Lucy Fennell (Intimacy Director) and Arthur Carrington (Casting Director).

Hampstead Theatre is currently staging the UK premiere of Stephen Adly Guirgis’ Between Riverside and Crazy, directed by Michael Longhurst on the main stage until 15 June, and also the world premiere of Richard Molloy’s The Harmony Test, directed by Alice Hamilton, in Hampstead Downstairs from 15 June.

Visit From an Unknown Woman plays the main stage at Hampstead Theatre from 21 June – 27 July.

Tickets are available from £10 and are on sale now via hampsteadtheatre.com

SPECIAL GUEST STAR

ALFIE BOE

TO JOIN

LUCIE JONES

LIVE AT CADOGAN HALL

ON SUNDAY 12 MAY 2024

FOURTH WALL LIVE and WestWay Music are delighted to announce that global singing sensation, Alfie Boe, will join Lucie Jones as a special guest star at her solo concert, live at Cadogan Hall on Sunday 12 May 2024. Tickets are on sale now at www.fw-live.com and www.cadoganhall.com

Speaking on next week’s event, Lucie said “This show will be a collection of songs from roles I’ve played, roles I’d love to play, bands and artists I adore and songs I’ve always wanted to sing. The band is awesome. My guests will blow everyone’s MINDS. I am so excited for these shows!”

Multi-platinum selling recording artist, ALFIE BOE OBE is one of the most powerful and prestigious UK born and bred voices, with almost 3 decades of a whirlwind career under his belt. The Grammy nominated star has won a Tony Award, multiple Classical Brit Awards and a Silver Clef Award.

Alfie’s recording career has acquired him eleven top 10 albums including two number 1’s alongside numerous sold-out headline tours in the UK as a solo artist and as part of his duo act with Michael Ball ‘Ball and Boe’. He also sold out a US tour with Classic Quadrophenia alongside Pete Townsend, Vegas with his solo Showstoppers debut and Lights On Broadway that he headlined in Japan.

Alfie has performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages, including The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, the balcony at Buckingham Palace, The Horse Guards Parade for VE Day 70, multiple shows at The Royal Albert Hall, Opera Houses around the world, West End and Broadway theatre stages and many more. Alfie also released the official Platinum Jubilee National Anthem as a duet with Sarah Brightman.

Alfie landed his first Broadway role in La Bohème, for which he won a Tony award. His Broadway and West End credits since include lead roles in Finding Neverland on Broadway, The Mikado, Carousel and Jean Val Jean in Les Miserables. He has played Jean Val Jean in the West End and Broadway as well as celebrating the show’s 25th Anniversary at London’s O2 Arena and most recently, The All-Stars Concert version of the show alongside Michael Ball and Matt Lucas. In the classical world, Alfie has performed in La Traviata, as Tamino in The Magic Flute, Don Ottavio in Don Giovanni, Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Ferrando in Cosi Fan Tutti.

In 2016 he partnered with Michael Ball to form the duo ‘Ball and Boe’. The pair released the number 1, double platinum album Together, followed by an equally successful release of Together Again. They have since had another 3 chart topping records and continue to sell out Arena tours across the UK.

In 2023, Alfie released his most recent solo album Open Arms, The Symphonic Songbook. He also sold out a headline solo tour in the UK and released a Sunday Times Bestselling Memoir book, Face The Music. This followed his appearance in BBC1’s Freeze The Fear with Whim Hoff. Alfie is set to go back on the road in May this year for his Encore tour.

LUCIE JONES first came to prominence when she reached the finals of ITV’s The X Factor in 2009. Quickly winning the hearts of the nation, she became a household name to the millions of viewers who supported her and watched her perform week after week. Lucie performed in the sell-out X Factor Arena Tour in 2010 before joining the West End cast of Les Miserables, playing the role of Cosette. Since then, Lucie has performed all over the world as a solo artist and in many musical theatre productions to great success. Other musical theatre credits include: Meatloaf in We Will Rock You (World Arena tour), Victoria in American Psycho the Musical (Almeida Theatre), Holly in The Wedding Singer (UK tour), Martha in Treason (Cadogan Hall), Christmas Past & Future in A Christmas Carol (Dominion Theatre), Heidi in Title of Show London, Molly in Ghost the Musical, Fantine in Les Miserables (Queen’s Theatre), Jenna Hunterson in Waitress (Adelphi Theatre & UK tour), Maureen in Rent (UK tour), Elle Woods in Legally Blonde (Curve & UK tour) and Elphaba in Wicked (Apollo Victoria Theatre). In 2023, Lucie completed a UK tour with the 50 piece Fulltone Orchestra. She most recently returned to the West End cast of Les Miserables, where she played Fantine at the Sondheim Theatre and Jenna Rink in workshops for 13 Going on 30: The Musical at Battersea Arts Centre.

In 2017, Lucie represented the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest in Ukraine, and subsequently released her first solo single and music video for her song ‘Never Give Up on You’. Lucie performed this track at the live final to a worldwide audience of over 300 million viewers, garnering the best result for the UK in many years.

In 2020, Lucie performed a live solo concert to a sell-out audience at London’s Adelphi Theatre, accompanied by the London Musical Theatre Orchestra. The concert was recorded for a self-titled live album released in 2020. Lucie toured in late 2021 with her live band concluding in another sell-out house at His Majesty’s Theatre, London.

LISTINGS INFORMATION

Sunday 12 May

Cadogan Hall

5 Sloane Terrace

London 

SW1X 9DQ

Performance: 2.30pm & 6.30pm

Tickets: From £16

Box Office: 020 7730 4500

Website: www.fw-live.com and www.cadoganhall.com

Instagram: @luciejones1

X:  @luciejones1
Tiktok: @thatluciejones

Phil McIntyre Live and IN9 Theatre Company Proudly Present

THE WORLD PREMIERE PRODUCTION OF

LIMITED 12 WEEK WEST END SEASON

FROM 18 JANUARY 2025 AT WYNDHAM’S THEATRE

TICKETS ON SALE 19:00 WEDNESDAY 8 MAY FROM INSIDENO9ONSTAGE.COM

The theatrical world premiere of Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith’s award-winning television comedy Inside No.9 will open in London’s West End at Wyndham’s Theatre on 18 January with a newly written story – Inside No.9 Stage/Fright. This show will feature comedic, spooky and dramatic moments as fans of the TV show have come to expect, with some familiar characters and stories mixing with brand new material. Pemberton and Shearsmith will be performing in the production, with further casting to be announced. Tickets for the 12 week limited season will go on sale at 19:00 on Wednesday 8 May from Insideno9onstage.com. The highly anticipated ninth, and final, season of the critically acclaimed series begins on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer on 8 May.

Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith explain all about the stage show here:

“We’ve been asked about doing a live show ever since the series first started on the BBC, probably because each episode is like a mini-play. There are small casts and single locations, and we were definitely inspired by our work in theatre when writing the stories for TV.

We are currently writing the script even as it goes on sale, but we are certain there will be plenty of new material and surprises for fans and new-comers alike. There’ll be something old, something new, something butchered and something… BOO! We want to use the different things a theatre show can offer in terms of comedy – a collective audience behaves very differently to a solitary one, the laughter builds and the shared enjoyment is infectious. So there’ll definitely be some big comic moments, but also something a bit spooky and more dramatic. We have created IN9 Theatre Company with the intention that there could be more stage adaptations in the future.

Inside No.9 viewers go into each episode not knowing what to expect and we want this to be the same for the theatre show, with the ability for each audience to experience the performance for the first time and go on that theatrical journey with us. On TV we have done everything from knockabout farce to psychological drama to full on horror. We’ve chosen the subtitle Stage/Fright, which does suggest something theatrical and something unsettling. But to say any more would spoil the surprises and we would never do that. We want to deliver the perfect West End night at the theatre… we might even crack out a song if you’re lucky!”

LISTINGS INFORMATION:

Inside No.9 Stage/Fright

Wyndham’s Theatre, Charing Cross Road, London WC2H 0DA

Previews begin: 18 January

Final Performance: 5 April

Evening performances: 7:30pm Monday – Saturday

Matinee performances: 2:30pm Thursday and Saturday (except 23, 25 & 30 January)

Website: Insideno9onstage.com

ACCESSIBLE PERFOMANCES:

Captioned: Friday 7 March 7:30pm

Audio Described: Thursday 13 March 2:30pm

NATIONAL THEATRE AND COMPLICITÉ ANNOUNCE FULL CASTING FOR MNEMONIC

The National Theatre and Complicité today announce full casting for the return of Mnemonic, conceived and directed by Simon McBurney (Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, The Encounter, Street of Crocodiles). As strikingly relevant today as it was 25 years ago, Mnemonic will play in the Olivier theatre from 22 June – 10 August.     

Joining previously announced original cast members Richard Katz (The Master and Margarita) and Kostas Philippoglou (Captain Corelli’s Mandolin) will be Khalid Abdalla (The Crown), Thomas Arnold (Oslo), Laurenz Laufenberg (Beware of Pity), Tim McMullan (Mnemonic original cast), Hisham Abdel Razek (The Play That Goes Wrong), Sarah Slimani (Grenfell: In the Words of Survivors), Sophie Steer (Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead), Eileen Walsh (The Crucible) and Arthur Wilson (Force Majeure).

A body is found in the ice, and a woman is looking for her father while a man searches for his lost lover. Mnemonic is as much about origins as it is about memory and remembering what is lost. Mnemonic asks: what is our place in the natural world? How have human relationships with the environment shaped patterns of migration? Who are we and where do we come from?

Directed by Complicité co-founder and Artistic Director Simon McBurney, the set designer is Michael Levine, costume designer Christina Cunningham, lighting designer Paul Anderson, sound designer Christopher Shutt, video designer Roland Horvath for rocafilm, casting director Alastair Coomer CDG, associate set designer Peter Butler, associate video designer Hayley Egan, assistant sound designer Bella Kear and associate director Christina Deinsberger.

Playing in the Olivier theatre 22 June – 10 August, with press night on 2 July.

Mnemonic is a co-production with Complicité.

Cambridge Arts Theatre – until Saturday 4 May 2024

Reviewed by Steph Lott

4****

Jude Christian’s daring production of Giacomo Puccini’s “Manon Lescaut” at the Cambridge Arts Theatre is a thought-provoking and divisive interpretation of the composer’s early masterpiece. The decision to perform the opera in English, with a libretto adapted by Christian, was a bold choice but ultimately fell short of its intended impact.

The cast, led by Jenny Stafford as Manon and Gareth Dafydd Morris as Des Grieux, delivered strong performances despite the limitations of the English translation. Stafford’s portrayal of the titular character was nuanced and emotionally charged, her soprano voice navigating the complex vocal lines with skill and passion. Morris was equally impressive as the lovestruck Des Grieux, his powerful tenor voice soaring through the theatre. Brenton Spiteri, as a Puckish Edmondo, provided a solid and engaging support to the main leads.

The orchestra, under the baton of Gerry Cornelius, did justice to Puccini’s lush and dramatic score. The music ebbed and flowed with the emotional tides of the story, I think it’s fair to say that the audience really enjoyed all the musical performances and showed this with many cries of “Bravo!” at the end.

However, Christian’s modern approach to the staging and direction of the opera proved to be a point of contention for many in the audience. The quirky set design, contemporary costumes, and unexpected blocking at times felt at odds with the traditional romanticism of the story. While some may appreciate the attempt to bring a fresh perspective to the work, others found it distracting and detrimental to the overall emotional impact of the piece.

The English translation, while admirable in its intent to make the opera more accessible, often felt clunky and unable to capture the poetic nuances of the original Italian. This disconnect between the words and the music occasionally led to awkward phrasing and a loss of the opera’s inherent lyricism.

Despite these shortcomings, “Manon Lescaut” remains a significant work in Puccini’s oeuvre, showcasing the composer’s ability to craft emotionally charged, memorable melodies. The opera’s themes of love, betrayal, and the consequences of one’s actions still resonate with modern audiences, even if this particular production’s execution may have fallen short of its potential.

In conclusion, the English Touring Opera’s production of “Manon Lescaut” boasts strong performances from its lead cast and a capable orchestra. However, controversial directorial choices and the limitations of the English translation may leave some audience members unsatisfied. Those open to a more experimental and modern interpretation may thoroughly enjoy this production, but traditionalists might prefer a more conventional approach that adheres more closely to Puccini’s original vision.

Shock Horror to haunt the UK on tour this Autumn

Today (on National Paranormal Day), Thunder Road Theatre have announced their 2024 Autumn UK tour of Shock Horror: A Ghost Story. Back by popular demand, it is the show’s third outing and the biggest tour yet.

Shock Horror has been described as Stranger Things meets The Woman in Black; inspired by classic theatre ghost stories and cinema’s greatest frights, the show is a chilling journey into a haunted past. Combining live performance and big-screen action, it’s full of shivers, shrieks and shocking revelations.

Herbert grew up in the Metropol. The eerie old cinema was his playground and prison – a place where endless late-night horror films were his only window to the world.

Forbidden from leaving by his disturbed parents, Herbert hid in its shadows and gorged on its movies. But what lurked in the Metropol’s darkness? And how did he manage to escape?

Now Herbert’s back at the abandoned cinema, searching for answers to long-buried questions. But for him, and for you, the real horror has only just begun…

Shock Horror opens in September at Perth Theatre, then tours to the Swansea Grand Theatre, Roses Theatre (Tewkesbury), Uppingham Theatre, Northern Stage (Newcastle-upon-Tyne), Connaught Theatre (Worthing), Key Theatre (Peterborough), Macready Theatre (Rugby), Watford Palace Theatre, Edge Hill Arts Centre (Ormskirk), BEAM Hertford, concluding at Queens Theatre (Barnstaple) in November.

The cast includes Alex Moran (War Horse, National Theatre; Quality Street UK Tour, Northern Broadsides) as Herbert, Chloe Proctor (Emmerdale, ITV; Doctors, BBC) as Norma, Joseph Carter as Jack (Hollyoaks, Channel Four; Yizkor, New Vic Theatre; 100 Years On, Everyman Theatre) and Chris Blackwood as Karras (Miss Julie, Gulbenkian Arts Centre; The Little Mermaid, Kings Theatre).

Shock Horror is written and directed by Yorkshire-based playwright and filmmaker, Ryan Simons (Eastenders, BBC; Emmerdale, ITV).

Alex Moran, producer and actor (Herbert) comments:

“We’re delighted with the excitement and demand the show has generated since it began. Supported by a fantastic tour this year across three countries. We can’t wait to start scaring again.”

Ryan Simons, writer and director comments:

“The venues we’re visiting this year are brilliant, full of atmosphere for a ghost story. It’s our third time touring this show and each time it grows into something creepier. We can’t wait to be in the dark again with an auditorium full of scared people!”

Tour dates and further information can be found at: www.thunderroadtheatre.org/shockhorror

ROYAL EXCHANGE THEATRE, MANCHESTER – UNTIL 25 MAY 2024

REVIEWED BY CATHY CRABB

4****

I have not seen anything like Lynn Nottage’s Sweat in a long time. It’s been a minute since I had the privilege of watching something with such a rich mix of intricately knotted strands of narrative themes that leaves me unravelling it all in my mind afterwards.

It’s a complex and suffocating tale told in non- linear form, taking place for the most part in a bar in Reading, Pennsylvania. It starts, however, with two you men Jason (Lewis Gribben) and Chris (Abdul Sessay) just out of jail and on edge. Separate from each other, they are being calmed and grounded by Evan (Aaron Cobham), their parole officer. We know something horrendous has happened but not what.

We then go to the bar in Reading 8 years before and are introduced to an easy, breezy and boozy group of three girlfriends on a night out after the factory. Oscar (Marcello Cruz), puts the tender into bar tender- quietly cleaning and being polite even when he is practically invisible. Stan (Jonathan Kerrigan), the bar manager, is a philosophical soothsayer that sees all sides.

We see that Tracey (Pooky Quesnel), is the mother superior of the girls, kind, fair and welcoming- but firey too with an edge pointed towards Oscar. This seems to show that an underlying bigotry. The kind of bigotry you receive when you move to a small town, from the resident whose family have lived in place since the dawn of time. But you get the feeling that takes people under her wing and assume that will happen. The other two women at this stage are nothing but archetypes of 30-40 something factory girls. Jessie (Kate Kennedy) likes to get leathered and Cynthia (Carla Henry) is trying to move on from her dead beat fella Brucie (Chris Jack), who stole her tropical fish- tank and all. And the two teenage kids Jason, the son of Tracey and Chris, the sun of Cynthia are giddy, if this will break up their friendship. When Cynthia gets promoted during a strike at their factory some cracks begin to show in this merry band. Everything is under the surface, waiting to erupt and you can trust the political climate and the end of mass manual labour to drive a spanner through the soldering.

The bar was a solace, it was a place to let loose. But it becomes the setting for the rusting of the rivets of friendship and a coming-of-age story no one wants to tell. It is so complex and layered that I could watch it every night until it finishes and be engaged in a different character’s trajectory.

It’s a very sad conclusion, it’s moving and true and recognisable and frustrating. But there is a jewel that has always been there and that is the change that graciousness and understanding brings. When the picket lines no longer hold, and the workers lose their grip, could we, for once see the that the person really driving the machines is never accountable. I hope so, says the play.

Stand out performances by everyone.

Seann Walsh, Chris Harper and Aden Gillett will star in 
Yasmina Reza’s multi-award winning play

ART 

directed by Iqbal Khan

presented by Joshua Beaumont and Original Theatre

On tour from Autumn 2024 

With award-winning comedian Seann Walsh, Chris Harper (Call the Midwife, Coronation Street) and Aden Gillett (The Crown, The House of Elliot), Iqbal Khan (East is East, National Theatre and Othello, RSC) directs a brand-new production of Yasmina Reza‘s fiendishly clever and hilariously funny play ART on tour from Autumn 2024.

This multi-award winning play (winner of Best Comedy at the Olivier Awards, Tony Awards and Moliere Awards), presented by Joshua Beaumont and Original Theatre, is a razor sharp exploration of art, love and friendship that will stay with you long after the curtain falls.

A seemingly simple purchase of contemporary art – an all-white painting – ignites a hilarious debate amongst three close friends. What begins as a light-hearted discussion about art quickly descends into a riotous exploration of the blurred lines between art and reality.

The Autumn 2024 tour will visit Lighthouse Poole (29-31 Aug), Theatre Royal Bath (3-7 Sept), Norwich Theatre Royal (10-14 Sept), Mercury Theatre Colchester (17-21 Sept), Malvern Theatres (24-28 Sept), Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne (30 Sept-5 Oct), Nottingham Theatre Royal (7-12 Oct), Belgrade Theatre, Coventry (15-19 Oct) and Sheffield Lyceum Theatre (22-26 Oct), with additional dates to be announced. 

The Creative Team is Director Iqbal Khan, Set and Lighting Designer Ciaran Bagnall, Composer and Sound Designer Max Pappenheim, Associate Director Olivia Millar-Ross, Production Manager Brian Watson, Costume Supervisor Nancy Surman and Props Supervisor Katie Balmforth.

For tour information and venue booking links, visit: http://www.artthecomedy.co.uk