THE KINGS THEATRE, EDINBURGH – UNTIL SATURDAY 21 SEPTEMBER 2019
REVIEWED BY SIOBHAN WILSON
4****
This story shows the trials and tribulations of a young carer stuck between flying the nest to following her own dreams and remaining at home to look after her mother. This difficulties of navigating A levels is enough for any young person to struggle with topped with looking after a relative proves for some heart tugging moments. Being a physic geek myself in my younger days I found I could really associate with Emmie being the only girl in the class.
Emmie Price (Rosey Cale) despite all the hurdles life throws at her still manages to come up with an amazing idea based on her love of extreme weather phenomenon Tropical Revolving storms – known as Tornados and her perfect understanding of physics. Unfortunately, things do not go as planned and she has a fall from grace which gives her great opportunity. Can she take this opportunity and leave her unstable mother, or will she stay in “Wales, England”? You will have to see this to find out for yourself!
Rosey Cale voice is beautiful and the complimented Amy Wadge’s score perfectly. Her control to belt out when needed and reign in when singing duet is outstanding. The rest of the cast also live up to a very high standard with their talents.
Having the instruments set up on stage played buy the actors really will leave you aw-struck by how talent these people are. Mr. Church (Keiran Bailey) guitar solo to Walt’s (Dan Bottomley) science filled song will have you chuckling, tapping and clapping along.
This show has literally everything in it! Live stage experiments, Cameos from a Canadian Scientists, a beautiful score and incredible acting and music making. It addresses serious situations such as young carers, A Levels, first relationships, global warming and being made redundant. It will take you on a rollercoaster of emotions where you will love and hate characters and everything in between.
This will resonate with all ages from school kids to parents alike.
A seriously inspiring and enjoyable evening and I would highly recommend that go and be in the Eye of the Storm.
BLITHE SPIRIT STARRING JENNIFER SAUNDERS ANNOUNCED TO RETURN IN 2020 FOR UK TOUR AND WEST END TRANSFER
SIR RICHARD EYRE’S CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED PRODUCTION OF NOËL COWARD’S CLASSIC COMEDY BLITHE SPIRIT WILL RETURN IN JANUARY 2020 FOLLOWING HUGE SUCCESS AT THEATRE ROYAL BATH’S 2019 SUMMER SEASON
BAFTA-WINNING COMEDIAN, ACTOR AND SCREENWRITER JENNIFER SAUNDERS REPRISES HER STAR ROLE AS MADAME ARCATI WITH ORIGINAL CAST MEMBERS GEOFFREY STREATFEILD, LISA DILLON, EMMA NAOMI, SIMON COATES, LUCY ROBINSON, AND ROSE WARDLAW
BLITHE SPIRIT WILL TOUR TO BRIGHTON, MALVERN, BATH, CAMBRIDGE, RICHMOND AND NORWICH FROM 22 JANUARY TO 29 FEBRUARY BEFORE ARRIVING IN THE WEST END AT THE DUKE OF YORK’S THEATRE FROM 5 MARCH TO 11 APRIL
Theatre Royal Bath Productions, Lee Dean and Jonathan Church Productions are delighted to announce that Noël Coward’s classic comedy Blithe Spirit, directed by Sir Richard Eyre and starring Jennifer Saunders, will return next year for a UK tour followed by a strictly limited 6-week engagement at the West End’s Duke of York’s Theatre following a celebrated reception in Bath earlier this summer.
The new tour opens at Theatre Royal Brighton where it runs from 22 to 25 January and will then visit Malvern Theatre from 27 January to 1 February, Theatre Royal Bath from 4 to 8 February, Cambridge Arts Theatre from 10 to 15 February, Richmond Theatre from 17 to 22 February and Norwich Theatre Royal from 24 to 29 February before arriving in the West End at the Duke of York’s Theatre from 5 March to 11 April 2020, with opening night for press on Tuesday 10 March.
Jennifer Saunders, one of the UK’s most popular comic actors, will revive her role as the preposterous clairvoyant Madame Arcati. She is joined by original cast members Geoffrey Streatfeild who will star as Charles, Lisa Dillon as Ruth Condomine, Emma Naomi as Elvira, Simon Coates as Dr Bradman, Lucy Robinson as Mrs Bradman, and Rose Wardlaw as Edith. The production brings together a distinguished and multi-award-winning creative team, directed by former National Theatre director Sir Richard Eyre with design by Anthony Ward, lighting by HowardHarrison, sound by John Leonard and illusions by Paul Kieve.
Written in 1941, Coward’s inventive, witty and meticulously engineered comedy proved light relief and a popular distraction at the height of World War II when it was first staged. The show had a record-breaking run in the West End and on Broadway and remains one of the playwright’s most popular works.
This new production opened in June as part of Artistic Director Jonathan Church’s second Summer Season at Theatre Royal Bath where it played to sell out houses and was widely praised by critics and public alike. It is the third play from Jonathan Church’s Summer Season programmes to transfer to the West End following last year’s 50th anniversary production of Arthur Miller’s The Price at Wyndham’s Theatre and Switzerland at the Ambassadors.
Novelist Charles Condomine and his second wife Ruth are literally haunted by a past relationship when an eccentric medium inadvertently conjures up the ghost of his first wife, Elvira, at a séance. When she appears, visible only to Charles, and determined to sabotage his current marriage, life – and the afterlife – get complicated.
Noël Coward was an English playwright, composer, actor, producer and director. His dramas include Hay Fever and Private Lives. For film, he wrote and directed the Academy Award-winning In Which We Serve and the screenplay for Brief Encounter.
Jennifer Saunders is well known as one half of the comedy duo French and Saunders, for which she and Dawn French received a BAFTA fellowship in 2009, and for the hit comedy series and subsequent film, Absolutely Fabulous, which she also wrote and starred in. She has received numerous awards including two Emmys, five BAFTAs and four British Comedy Awards. Other recent credits include Lady Windermere’s Fan (West End) and the BBC series Jam and Jerusalem.
Geoffrey Streatfeild has appeared on TV in Spooks, The Hollow Crown, The Thick of It and The Other Boleyn Girl, and on film in Making Noise Quietly, The Lady in the Van, Kinky Boots and A Royal Night Out. Stage credits include the Histories Cycle (RSC), Cell Mates (Hampstead), The Beaux Stratagem (National Theatre) and My Night with Reg (Donmar).
Lisa Dillon starred as Mary Smith in the BBC series Cranford. Her stage credits include Richard Eyre’s Private Lives in the West End, the RSC’s The Roaring Girl and The Taming of the Shrew,A Flea in Her Ear and Design for Living at the Old Vic and The Knot of the Heart and When the Rain Stops Falling at the Almeida.
Emma Naomi starred recently in Pinter at the Pinter (Jamie Lloyd Productions/ATG), Bread and Roses (Oldham Coliseum), The Cherry Orchard (Bristol Old Vic, Manchester Royal Exchange), Dead Don’t Floss (National Theatre), Don Juan in Soho (Wyndham’s Theatre) and, for television, Channel 4’s Chimerica.
Simon Coates’s stage credits include Richard III (Almeida), 1984 (West End), The Cherry Orchard (Royal Exchange, Bristol Old Vic), King John (Shakespeare’s Globe). He has also toured the UK with Regeneration, The Misanthrope, Romeo & Juliet and The Hypochondriac.
Lucy Robinson’s stage credits include Waste, The Hard Problem (National Theatre), Handbagged (Vaudeville), Sweet Bird of Youth (Old Vic), In the Next Room (Theatre Royal Bath). Her many TV credits include Cold Feet, Coronation Street, Call the Midwife, Doc Martin, Doctor and Pride and Prejudice.
Rose Wardlaw recently performed in Outlying Islands at the King’s Head. She has previously appeared in Eyam, The Winter’s Tale (Shakespeare’s Globe), Jubilee (Lyric Hammersmith) and Great Expectations (West Yorkshire Playhouse) and, for television, Call the Midwife and Doctors.
Sir Richard Eyre was at the helm of the National Theatre for 10 years and is the winner of five Olivier Awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award. His numerous hugely-acclaimed productions include Guys and Dolls, The Invention of Love and Private Lives. His award-winning film and television work includes Iris, Tumbledown and The Children Act.
Anthony Ward has designed numerous productions including the Tony Award-winning Mary Stuart, the Olivier Award-winning Oklahoma! and What’s on Stage Award winner Chitty Chitty Bang Bang.
Howard Harrison is a two-times Olivier Award-winning lighting designer whose recent works include Impossible and Mamma Mia! (London, Broadway and worldwide).
John Leonard is an award-winning sound designer and has worked extensively across the UK including at the National Theatre, Almeida, Royal Court, Chichester Festival Theatre, Birmingham Rep and Manchester Royal Exchange.
Paul Kieve is an internationally renowned illusionist whose recent theatre credits include Matilda (West End and UK tour) and Groundhog Day (Broadway). He is the co-creator of David Blaine Live and Dynamo’s international tour and consultant on the live shows for David Copperfield, Penn & Teller in Las Vegas and Derren Brown.
Blithe Spirit is presented by Theatre Royal Bath Productions, Lee Dean and Jonathan Church Productions.
Theatre Royal Bath Productions, Lee Dean and Jonathan Church Productions present BLITHE SPIRIT By Noël Coward Directed by Richard Eyre Designed by Anthony Ward Lighting Design by Howard Harrison
Monday 24 to Saturday 29 February *on sale end of September Norwich Theatre Royal Theatre Street, Norwich NR2 1RL Box office: 01603 63 00 00 www.theatreroyalnorwich.co.uk
SET TO TERRIFY THE UK AS FIRST NATIONAL TOUR ANNOUNCED
Professor Goodman will visit venues across the UK to confirm the supernatural is PURELY a trick of the mind… or is it?
Ghost Stories opens at The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham, 7th January 2020
After exhilarating audiences across the globe with record breaking, sell-out productions and a smash hit film, the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s production of Andy Nyman and Jeremy Dyson’s supernatural sensation Ghost Stories begins it’s first ever regional tour in early 2020 on completion of its West End run this autumn at The Ambassadors Theatre, London, which transferred following a smash-hit, extended run at the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre. More spine-tingling and terrifying than ever, the Olivier Award-nominated show opens at The Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham on the 7th January 2020.
The tour then continues to Bath,Theatre Royal; Nottingham, Theatre Royal; Woking, New Victoria Theatre; Aylesbury, Waterside Theatre; Brighton, Theatre Royal; The Lowry, Salford; Cardiff, New Theatre; The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury; York, Grand Opera House; Richmond Theatre; Liverpool Playhouse, Glasgow, Theatre Royal; King’s Theatre, Edinburgh, Nuffield Southampton Theatres City and the Sheffield Lyceum.
WARNING
Please be advised that Ghost Stories contains moments of extreme shock and tension. The show is unsuitable for anyone under the age of 15. We strongly advise those of a nervous disposition to think very seriously before attending.
There’s something dark lurking in the theatre. Enter a nightmarish world, full of thrilling twists and turns, where all your deepest fears and most disturbing thoughts are imagined live on stage. A fully sensory and electrifying encounter, Ghost Stories is the ultimate twisted love-letter to horror, a supernatural edge-of-your-seat theatrical experience like no other.
Casting to be announced.
Andy Nyman is an award-winning actor, director and writer who has earned acclaim from both critics and audiences for his work in theatre, film and television. On stage Andy is currently playing the iconic role of Tevye in Trevor Nunn’s revival of Fiddler on the Roof. It is playing at the Playhouse Theatre until November 2nd. Andy was also seen in Martin McDonagh’s Hangmen (Wyndham’s Theatre), Stephen Sondheim’s Assassins(Menier Chocolate Factory) and Abigail’s Party (also Wyndham’s Theatre). Other theatre work includes the original production of Ghost Stories (Lyric/Duke of York’s Theatre) which has recently been made into a major motion picture, also written, starred and directed by Andy & Jeremy Dyson. Other film credits include The Commuter, Death at a Funeral andKick-Ass 2. Hisupcoming films include playing opposite The Rock & Emily Blunt in Disney’s Jungle Cruise plus starring opposite Renee Zellweger in Judy. TV he is best known for Peaky Blinders, Campus & Dead Set, and has recently appeared in BBC 1’s Wanderlust.
Jeremy Dyson is a screenwriter, stage-writer and author, best known as a member of comedy group The League of Gentlemen. With Andy Nyman he co-wrote and co-directed the stage and film versions of Ghost Stories. In addition he co-created and co-wrote the BAFTA-nominated comedy-drama series Funland and co-created, co-wrote and directed the Rose d’Or-winning all-female comedy show Psychobitches. His second collection of stories, ‘The Cranes that Build the Cranes‘ won the Edge Hill Award for short fiction.
Ambassador Theatre Group Productions, Smith and Brant Theatricals and the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre present the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s production of Ghost Stories.
THE TRIUMPHANT, NEW PRODUCTION WILL RETURN TO THE LONDON PALLADIUM
FOR SUMMER 2020
Smash hit show played a completely sold out 2019 season
Performances next year begin Thursday 2 July 2020
Michael Harrison and The Really Useful Group are thrilled to announce that the new, smash hit production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will return to the iconic London Palladium next summer, following its triumphant season this year.
Performances will begin on Thursday 2 July 2020, with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat playing a strictly limited 10-week season through until Sunday 6 September 2020 (Gala Night: Thursday 16 July 2020). Tickets for 2020 go on General Sale on Friday 27 September 2019.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat enjoyed a completely sold out season this year, with audiences giving the new production nightly standing ovations. Critics were also unanimous in their acclaim for the legendary musical – the first major collaboration by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice – as it returned to the London Palladium.
Released as a concept album in 1969,the stage version of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat has become one of the worlds most belovedfamily musicals. The multi-award winning show, which began life as a small scale school concert, has been performed hundreds of thousands of times including multiple runs in the West End and on Broadway, international number one tours, and productions in over 80 countries as far afield as Austria and Zimbabwe and from Israel to Peru! The show features songs that have gone on to become pop and musical theatre standards, including Any Dream Will Do, Close Every Door To Me, Jacob and Sons, There’s One More Angel In Heaven and Go Go Go Joseph.
Told entirely through song with the help of the Narrator, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat follows the story of Jacob’s favourite son Joseph and his eleven brothers. After being sold into slavery by the brothers, he ingratiates himself with Egyptian noble Potiphar, but ends up in jail after refusing the advances of Potiphar’s wife. While imprisoned, Joseph discovers his ability to interpret dreams, and he soon finds himself in front of the mighty but troubled showman, the Pharaoh. As Joseph strives to resolve Egypt’s famine, he becomes Pharaoh’s right-hand man and eventually reunites with his family.
Casting for 2020 will be announced at a later date.
The hype surrounding BIGthe musical has been everywhere around the London theatre scene and I must say being a huge fan of the original 1988 film starring Tom Hanks I was a little apprehensive about going to see a musical adaptation.
The opening of the show held much promise as the lighting design by Tim Lutkin and Production design by Simon Higlett are very impressive with the added flare of moving LED screens with videography by Ian William Galloway creating back drops for scenes on a revolve. Sadly it seemed this was a case of style over substance and didn’t help the book or score much.
The story follows Josh Baskin a 12 year old living in the suburbs of New York and struggling with teenage hormones and girls. He is the little guy with a big heart and has the support of his best friend and neighbour Billy, who has good intentions but not always the most appropriate advise. Josh’s mom played by Wendi Peters is a slightly over bearing mother who is reluctant to accept her little boy is growing up and as a result is a little over protective.Josh and his family head to the local carnival where Josh has finally had enough of being treated like a kid and he makes a wish to be ‘BIG’ after stumbling across a mysterious ‘Zoltar’ Machine.
The events that unfold are totally unexpected as his wish is granted and Josh wakes up as a grown up played by Jay McGuiness. From here the journey begins into what it means to be an adult and responsibility and ultimately what it means to love.
Sadly this show missed the mark for me. The film is so iconic and the book of the show doesn’t match it. The score has no memorable numbers and all kind of blurs into one. The cast do their best with what they have but it’s all just a bit disjointed. Numbers have been added that don’t enhance the story but more halt it.
There are moments of comedy that are good but also moments that are unnecessary and mock what the original film is known for, in particular the Zoltar machine is over egged and becomes farcical instead of weird and mysterious with a booming operatic voice bellowing ‘your wish is granted’, it’s just a bit hammy.
Kimberly Walsh plays Susan Lawrence – the love interest- with a certain unlikable charm which works initially but vocally her voice doesn’t sound all that safe and I couldn’t get invested in her numbers as they were a bit flat in their content.
Matthew Kelly plays George MacMillan with gusto and does well with the infamous piano choreography but his accent does slip in parts.
The kids ensemble are great and are fantastic additions to the cast but mainly utilised as scene transitions which is a shame.
Jay McGuiness as older Josh brings a child like quality to the role but again his numbers are just a little bit middle of the road and tend to go on a bit too long.
Overall the production was not what I hoped it would be and not anywhere near what it could have been which is a real shame. The original source material has so much to offer in the way of content for a show but sadly this wasn’t the right direction for me.
The Life I Lead is the biographical piece about the life of David Tomlinson, an actor whose name we may not all know but when you see the face you recognise him as Mr Banks, the aloof father from Mary Poppins. The quintessential English gentleman, polite, well spoken, kind, slightly apologetic and a little bumbling.
James Kettle has written an extremely funny and poignant piece. Showing us how David grew up in a home where his father was absent most of the time and unloving when he was. A mother who cared but was a little self obsessed, and for good reason as we find out. David always sought his fathers approval but even as a successful actor appearing in the West End, his father wanted him to change his surname so he wasn’t associated to the family. Little did David know there was a much bigger reason for his fathers wishes. We learn how he survived the war years including getting married to an American mother of two boys and the tragic end to that marriage. How he went on to meet and marry his second wife, who made him a very satisfied chap and the struggles they had with their autistic son at a time when autism wasn’t recognised.
Miles Jupp has an awesome task to entertain the audience for 1 hour 45 minutes alone on stage. He smashes this performance out of the park. He encapsulates the whole man. He looks similar, has a beautiful English accent and mimics David Tomlinson’s mannerisms to a tee. His timing and delivery of both sad and funny lines is impeccable. You feel as if you are sitting opposite the man himself and discussing his life at length.
With a simple set and the interjection of music helps focus the mind on the man and his story.
I left the theatre feeling enriched for meeting the man and wanting to know more. It was like having your favourite bedtime story read to you while being wrapped in a comforter.
A beautifully written and executed play, an extremely satisfying evening.
WALES MILLENNIUM CENTRE HOSTS ALTERNATIVE CHRISTMAS MAGIC THROUGHOUT DECEMBER 2019
Curious families and audiences will have their pick of alternative Christmas shows to see during Wales Millennium Centre’s Performances for the Curious season in December, all of which are on sale now. It’s the Centre’s most family-friendly season, with shows for all ages, from a multi-sensory show for audiences aged 0+, to after-dark entertainment for the grown-ups.
The centerpiece will be RED; an exciting new Christmas show co-produced by Wales Millennium Centre and Likely Story. Directed by Hannah McPake, and performed for audiences aged 7+, RED brings the familiar story of Little Red Riding Hood bang up to date, with new, original punk- and rock-inspired songs. Reflecting on themes of rewilding and discovering your inner courage, RED will remind children – and their families – that the real adventure lies in straying off the beaten path.
Other highlights this Christmas will include;
The Curious Muchness of Stuff and Nonsense; a new show reimagining Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, made by Hijinx’ community theatre group Odyssey, written by Hefin Robinson and performed a large cast of disabled and non-disabled performers from Odyssey and Woodlands High School, Cardiff
50 Shêd o Santa Clôs; Rhys Taylor’s legendary nine-piece band play a one-off gig blasting a string of funk, rock, gospel, Latin and jazz versions of classic Welsh Christmas songs
Connie Orff: A Christmas Con/Connadolig Llawen; Curious regular, and otherwise very irregular Connie Orff returns to offer her own musical take on the festive season
Ffresh Burlesque: Horror at Christmas!; an all-out anti-Christmas night with FooFooLaBelle and Cardiff Cabaret Club
Cabarela Nadolig; a laugh-out-loud music show, performed in Welsh
The Greatest of Shows; an interactive, singalong show hosted by the irrepressible Donna Marie, and featuring hit musical and film songs
The Christmas Clock; Collar and Cuffs present this new show for little ones, all about the excitement and anticipation – and how to manage them – as the big day approaches…
This autumn’s Performances for the Curious season runs from 14 December until 29 December 2019. As always, it champions experimental, contemporary new work and gives audiences an affordable but exhilarating glimpse of some of the latest developments in performance from Wales – in Welsh and English – and beyond, across several artforms.
Wilton’s Music Hall announce Sally Dexter as first female Scrooge in their festive production of ‘Christmas Carol – a fairy tale by Piers Torday based on the story by Charles Dickens’
· Running 29 November – 4 January
· A brand-new reimagining of a Christmas classic written by Piers Torday
· Staged in the most festive venue in London, Wilton’s Music Hall
Christmas Carol – a fairy tale, the magical new production running at Wilton’s Music Hall this festive season today announces its stellar cast, with Olivier Award-winning Sally Dexter starring as the first ever female Scrooge to appear on a London stage.
Musical theatre legend and soap opera superstar Sally Dexter takes on the role of Fan Marley, the late Ebeneezer Scrooge’s sister who married Marley and who, as his widow, has inherited the business and his reputation as the meanest miser in town. Notorious as the lonely, penny-pinching and downright malicious misanthrope and despised by all who cross her path, three spirits visit Fan on Christmas Eve to show her why she must change her nasty ways.
Known to many as Emmerdale’sFaith Dingle, Sally has appeared in some of the West End’s most loved productions including Billy Elliot The Musical and Oliver! and won an Olivier Award for her performance inDalliance at the Lyttleton Theatre.
Joining Sally in this magical retelling of the Dickens classic will be Chisara Agor (The Wizard of Oz at Birmingham Rep, Bring It On at Southwark Playhouse), Joseph Hardy (The Cherry Orchard at Bristol Old Vic and Manchester Royal Exchange, Uncle Vanya at HOME Theatre) and Edward Harrison (The Strange Case of Dr Jeckyll and Mr Hyde at Storyhouse, Chester), Skellig at Nottingham Playhouse).
Brendan Hooper (The Homecoming and Pygmalion at The Citizens Theatre), Ruth Ollman (Still Alice, UK tour and The Turn of the Screw at Clapham Omnibus) and Yana Penrose (How Love is Spelt at Southwark Playhouse, A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Regent’s Park Open Air) complete the cast, bringing the story to life on the stage of the world’s oldest music hall.
Brought to Wilton’s by the team behind the critically-acclaimed The Box of Delights, this adaptation has been written especially for Wilton’s Music Hall by children’s author Piers Torday (The Frozen Sea, The Last Wild), with design by Tom Piper and directed by Stephanie Street, previously seen in James Graham’s Quizand Nightwatchmen at the National Theatre.
Brimming with spellbinding magic, haunting music and out-of-this-world puppetry, arguably the most famous festive story ever written will be retold beautifully at the most Christmassy theatre in London.
FULL CAST ANNOUNCED FOR THE LONDON PREMIÈRE OF ZINNIE HARRIS’ MEET ME AT DAWN
Arcola Theatre in association with DOT Theatre presents
London première of
MEET ME AT DAWN
by Zinnie Harris
Director and Designer: Murat Daltaban; Lighting Designer: Cem Yılmazer
Sound Designer: Oğuz Kaplangı
9 October – 9 November 2019
Arcola Theatre in association with DOT Theatre today announce the full company for the London première of multi-award-winning writer Zinnie Harris’Meet Me at Dawn. Murat Daltaban directs Jessica Hardwick (Helen) and Marianne Oldham (Robyn).Meet Me at Dawn, which draws on the legend of Orpheus and Eurydice in this gripping tale of devotion and loss, opens on 16 October, with previews from 9 October and runs until 9 November.
“I was near to death but I got this incredible surge, this superhuman surge, and I swam. I swam.”
When a boat trip goes horribly wrong, Helen and her girlfriend Robyn find themselves stranded on an island in the middle of the sea. As the night draws in, it becomes clear that the island is not as it first appears. And neither are Helen and Robyn.
Meet Me at Dawn comes to London for the first time in a new production by Murat Daltaban, whose staging of Zinnie Harris’ Rhinoceros (after Ionesco) at the Edinburgh Lyceum won widespread acclaim in 2017.
Mehmet Ergen, Artistic Director of Arcola Theatre, said today, “We are thrilled to be working with DOT Theatre on this new staging of Zinnie Harris’ Meet Me at Dawn. Zinnie’s writing has received immense critical acclaim since her debut – as well as several major awards – and her impact on British theatre has been phenomenal. As one of Turkey’s most pioneering directors, Murat has been instrumental in bringing contemporary British writing to an international audience. Arcola Theatre has always endeavoured to make and support work which transcends location and language to tell stories for everyone. We are very excited to work with Zinnie and Murat on bringing their celebrated international partnership to London and I cannot wait to share Meet Me at Dawn with our audience.”
Zinnie Harris‘ credits includes Rhinoceros (after Inesco) (Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh), This Restless House (Citizens Theatre and Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh – Best New Play Critics’ Awards for Theatre in Scotland), How To Hold Your Breath – Berwin Lee Award, Nightingale and Chase (Royal Court Theatre), The Wheel (National Theatre of Scotland – Fringe First Award, jointly won an Amnesty International Freedom of Expression Theatre Award and was shortlisted for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize), The Message on the Watch, The Panel (Tricycle Theatre), a new version of A Doll’s House (Donmar Warehouse), and her 2000 play Further than the Furthest Thing won the Peggy Ramsay Foundation Award, a Fringe First, and the John Whiting Award. For television, her work includes Legacy, Partners in Crime, and Spooks.
Jessica Hardwick plays Helen. Her theatre work includes Cyrano de Bergerac (National Theatre of Scotland and Citizens Theatre), The Strange Undoing Of Prudencia Hart (National Theatre of Scotland New York Transfer and US Tour), Knives and Hens (Perth Theatre), The Rivals (Bristol Old Vic),Lanark (Edinburgh International Festival and Citizens Theatre), MissJulie (Citizens Theatre) Crime and Punishment (Citizens Theatre/Liverpool Playhouse/Edinburgh Lyceum), Rhinoceros, The Venetian Twins (Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh), The Fair Intellectual Club, Slope (Citizens Theatre and Traverse), and ThreeSisters (Tron Theatre and King’s Theatre Edinburgh). For television, her work includes Float; and for film, Snow Angel.
Marianne Oldham plays Robyn. Her theatre work includes hang (Sheffield Theatres), A Monster Calls, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead (The Old Vic), The Argument (Hampstead Theatre), The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (Chichester Festival Theatre), Sons Without Fathers (Arcola Theatre, Belgrade Theatre Coventry), You Can Still Make a Killing (Southwark Playhouse) and The Real Thing (ETT). For television, her work includes A Very English Scandal, The Living and The Dead, Life in Squares, Obsession, The Musketeers and The Crimson Field; and for film, Finding Your Feet, Absolutely Anything, Silent Girl and Titus.
Murat Daltaban directs. As Artistic Director of DOT in Istanbul, his directing credits include The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart, The Human Ear, Meet Me At Dawn, Rhinoceros ( Edinburgh International Festival, Edinburgh Lyceum Theatre – for which he won the 2018 Critics’ Awards for Theatre in Scotland Best Director Prize), How To Hold Your Breath, Midwinter, Fight Night, Dalgety, Housekeeping, Fragile, Beautiful Burnout, Mandrel, Pornography, Shopping and Fucking, The Storyteller, Mercury Fur, Bug, and Love and Understanding. His other directing credits Let The Right One In (Zorlu PSM), Festen (Dotkoleksiyonda), Shoot/ Get Treasure/ Repeat (Dotatbilsar), and the forthcoming Incendies, and Mrs Puntila and herMan Matti (Edinburgh Lyceum Theatre, Glasgow Citizens Theatre).
PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED EMMERDALE ACTOR KELVIN FLETCHER JOINS STRICTLY LINE-UP SO FORMER STRICTLY STAR COMES TO ST HELENS
Regal Entertainments has announced Strictly Come Dancing star Robin Windsor will join the cast of Aladdin at St Helens Theatre Royal for its festive panto production.
The dance professional replaces the previously announced former Emmerdale actor Kelvin Fletcher, who has joined this year’s Strictly line-up as a late addition after Jamie Laing had to withdraw due to injury – and is therefore now unable to appear at St Helens this Christmas.
Robin Windsor waltz’s into St Helens Theatre Royal to join a fantastic cast in Aladdin, which runs from Saturday 7 December 2019 through to Sunday 12 January 2020.
Robin’s illustrious career in dance began aged just three when his parents enrolled him in dance lessons. From the outset, he studied both ballroom and Latin, and has since gone on to compete in those genres at the highest-level representing England both domestically and on the international stage.
In 2001, Robin was cast in the ground-breaking and critically acclaimed dance show Burn The Floor, which he toured the globe with for a decade, culminating in a nine-month run on Broadway. During his time on in the show, Robin was cast as a lead dancer. He fulfilled a childhood ambition in 2013 when he returned to Burn The Floor, headlining the show in the West End.
Robin’s talent has also seen him be part of Dancing With The Stars in Australia, and So You Think You Can Dance in Holland. He was also asked to assist in the choreography for the Australian version of So You Think You Can Dance. Robin began his time with Strictly in 2010, and his partners have included Anita Dobson, Patsy Kensit, Lisa Riley, and Deborah Meaden.
Robin Windsor commented: “I love the audiences in the North-West and can’t wait to join the gang in St. Helens, I’ve heard they’re a rowdy bunch! I’ve played the Genie in the past and am over the moon to be playing the main man “rubbing his lamp as” Aladdin this year. I love Christmas and panto is the cherry on top – it’s so fabulous to have a show that kids, nans and everyone in between can all enjoy. It’s usually the first time that kids get to go into a theatre – it’s so special to be part of that experience, I can’t get enough of the energy, there’s nothing like it!”
Robin joins Olivia Sloyan, Scott Gallagher, Philip McGuinness, Jenna O’Hara, Kai Jolley, and Si Foster to complete the cast.
No stranger to St Helens Theatre Royal stage, Olivia Sloyan join the all-star line-up as PrincessJasmine. Her theatre credits include Sue in Rita, Sue and Bob Too, Tia in The Salon and both Linda and Brenda in Blood Brothers.
Kai Jolley has recently starred in the comedy, Stop!…The Play in Liverpool and St Helens and also played Steve – Head of Security in Jerry Springer – The Opera in Manchester. He will play in Aladdin as the Genie of the Lamp.
After his role of Gaston in the Beauty and the Beast at the St Helens theatre, Philip McGuinness will return as the villainous Abanazer in Aladdin.
As Slave of the Ring, Jenna-Sian O’Hara who has played in Achy Breaky Bride will also join the cast.
And of course, no St Helens Theatre Royal panto would be complete without its resident dame, the hilarious Si Foster will be up to his usual comedy capers as WidowTwankey.
There’s nothing Wishee Washee (played by Scott Gallagher) about Regal Entertainments’ spectacular panto which will whisk audiences off to Old Peking for a genie-ous adventure this Christmas.
Join hero Aladdin as he battles the evil Abanazer and his dastardly plan to rule the world with the help of one very special lamp. With larger-than-life washerwoman mum Widow Twankey, hapless Wishee Washee, the Genie of the Lamp, Slave of the Ring and a beautiful princess, this is a show full of eastern promise.
St Helens Theatre Royal Manager, Chantelle Nolan, added: “We’re already counting down the days and weeks until we welcome Aladdin to St Helens for Christmastime 2019. We’re delighted to welcome Robin to our fantastic cast, and we’re sure with his smooth ballroom and Latin dance moves, Aladdin will promise audiences an unmissable performance.”
St Helens Theatre Royal invites audiences on a magical carpet ride this Christmas time when Aladdin flies in from Saturday 7 December 2019 to Sunday 12 January 2020.
Tickets are on sale now! Be sure to book early to avoid disappointment.
Dates: Saturday 7 December 2019 – Sunday 12 January 2020
Times: Various
Tickets: From £13*
*All prices are inclusive of a £1 per seat transaction fee. On-line bookings are subject to an additional 50p per seat on-line processing fee.
THEATRE ROYAL BOOKING DETAILS
Book in person at the Theatre Royal Box Office, Corporation Street, St. Helens, Merseyside WA10 1LQ (Mon – Sat 10am – 5pm). Alternatively, call 01744 756 000 or log on to: www.sthelenstheatreroyal.com.
