Grand Opera House York.  Reviewed by Michelle Richardson

Phil McIntyre Entertainments Ltd presents The Commitments at the Grand Opera House, York, running until Saturday 18th February.

Based on the Roddy Doyle novel The Commitments. Set in 1987 it’s the story of Jimmy, Andrew Linnie, a young working class music fan who dreams of putting a band together, the finest soul band in Dublin. Despite the criticism of his Da, Kevin Kennedy, fondly remembered as Curly from Coronation Street, he auditions a motley crew of wannabes and somehow turns them into a band, The Commitments.

The first part of the show was too much! Too much shouting, too much bickering, too much swearing and just too many people on the stage, that it was hard to follow what was going on. I could just not get into the story or the characters. I must admit that at this stage I was thinking OH NO!, what a disappointment, I had so much been looking forward to watching this show after being blown away by the film many years ago, especially by the vocal performance of Andrew Strong, now whatever happened to him? I suppose that is another story.

I’m glad to say by the second half things improved massively. Brian Gilligan as the lead singer Deco really comes into his own, and did the vocal part justice. His voice is amazing and he plays his character distastefully well, including the strip tease, if you can call it teasing. We can excuse Deco’s bad behaviour and obnoxiousness because of his great voice. He is supported by The Three Commitmentettes, played by Amy Penston, Leah Penston and Christina Tedders, who all deliver great vocal performances, and the rest of the band can sure paly. This is of course before everything goes pear shape because of Deco’s laziness and selfishness.

The second half is really like going to a music concert, and to be honest was the most enjoyable aspect of the whole evening. I did not really feel that engaged by most of the characters and it was really about the great Soul music. By the end of the show the whole audience were on their feet dancing and singing along, begging for more, including me. At least this meant that we as an audience were left feeling on a high. What more could anyone ask for?

Jack Studio Theatre 7 – 25 February.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

Arrows & Traps return to the Jack Studio in triumphant form with Marilyn Campbell and Curt Columbus’s adaptation of Crime and Punishment. Pared down into a 90-minute production, the psychological punch of this doorstop of a novel is enhanced rather than diluted. There are no filler lines – everything uttered, every single action, is important and revealing.

Raskolnikov’s conviction that extraordinary people can commit crimes for the greater good of humanity crumbles in the aftermath of the murder of the old pawnbroker and her innocent sister. Conversations take place back to back, characters prowl constantly in circles around the set as the isolation and motivations are revealed. The idea of redemption is constantly haunting Raskolnikov as the story of Lazarus and belief in God are questioned and his intellectual theories and morality collide. The fractured timeline, full of memories, dreams and the seemingly benign probing of Inspector Porfiry portrays the darkness and torment of Raskolnikov with chilling and enthralling skill. This is a play that grabs you by the balls and doesn’t release its grip until the cast take their bows.

Christopher Tester is phenomenal as Raskolnikov – capturing the initial intellectual arrogance so well that his final confession and acceptance of his true nature is all the more devastating. Christina Baston multitasks in the female roles with great skill, but it is her pure and self-sacrificing Sonia that is most effecting. The moment she loses herself completely in telling the tale of Lazarus after initially struggling to read it is glorious. Stephen MacNeice also plays multiple roles effortlessly. His charming and dogged Porfiry is basically a prototype Lt. Columbo, with his admiration for the suspect always bubbling away as he tries to catch him out. None of these actors puts a foot wrong – utterly captivating performances.

Director Ross McGregor has a fantastic track record in finding the right atmosphere for a play – the minimal set and masterful lighting design ramps up the confusion and tension, and the musical choices are, as ever just brilliant. From the murder played out in slow motion to Exit Music, to the Doctor Zhivago-esque rendition of modern classics in the bar scenes, this is pitch perfect.

You’ll probably need a drink when you leave the theatre – this play will put you through the emotional wringer. Stunning.

Production images released for Evita

At The Lowry Tue 14 – Sat 18 March

Show images have been released for  Bill Kenwright’s production of the extraordinary musical, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita, set to thrill audiences at The Lowry from Tue 14 – Sat 18 March 2017.

Telling the story of Eva Perón, wife of former Argentine dictator Juan Perón, Evita follows Eva’s journey from humble beginnings through to extraordinary wealth, power and iconic status which ultimately lead her to be heralded as the ‘spiritual leader of the nation’ by the Argentine people.

With more than 20 major awards to its credit, and an Oscar winning film version starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Evita is iconic. Featuring some of the best loved songs in musical theatre, including Don’t Cry for Me Argentina, On This Night of a Thousand Stars, You Must Love Me, and Another Suitcase in Another Hall.

The 2017 UK tour of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s extraordinary musical has already received critical acclaim with The Stage rating it five stars and the Liverpool Echo labeling it “Oh what a show”. This spectacular production promises once again to be the theatrical event of the year.

Taking on the iconic role of Eva Perón is one of musical theatre’s most exciting leading ladies today, Emma Hatton. She recently finished wowing audiences in the lead role of Elphaba in the West End’s production of Wicked. Prior to this she performed the principle roles of Scaramouche and Meatloaf in We Will Rock You at the Dominion Theatre, and Donna in the West End production of Dreamboats and Petticoats.

Making his UK debut is leading Italian performer Gian Marco Schiarettiwho takes on the role of Che, a character who reflects the voice of the Argentine people – linked to Eva by destiny; he brings conflict to the story of Eva’s rise to fame. Gian Marco Schiaretti most recently played the title role of Tarzan in Disney’s Musical Tarzan, in Stuttgart. Prior to this he played Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet across Italy.

Joining them is Kevin Stephen-Jones, playing Argentine President Juan Perón. He has performed extensively across the UK and Europe in over 20 different operas. His musical theatre credits include Cats, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and Love Beyond.

The cast is completed by Oscar Balmaseda, Sarah O’Connor, Natalie Langston, George Arvidson, Lewis Barnshaw, Jessica Ellen, Callum Fitzgerald, Kellie Gnauck, Dominic Adam Griffin, Kate Leiper, Joe McCourt, Jude Neill, Chrissie Perkins, Oliver Slade, Matias Stegmann and Yuval Zoref.

Listings Info
Evita
Tue 14 – Sat 18 March
7.30pm, Wed, Thu & Sat 2pm
Tickets: £28.50 – £49.50 (Including booking fees)
Box office: 0843 208 6000
Website

TRH Productions, Scott Landis and Tulchin Bartner Productions present the Royal Shakespeare Company Production of

QUEEN ANNE

www.RSCQueenAnne.com / @RSCQueenAnne / #RSCQueenAnne

• ROMOLA GARAI AND EMMA CUNNIFFE WILL BE JOINED BY JONATHAN CHRISTIE, MICHAEL FENTON-STEVENS, JAMES GARNON, RICHARD HOPE, HYWEL MORGAN, BETH PARK AND CARL PREKOPP IN THE WEST END TRANSFER OF QUEEN ANNE

• WRITTEN BY HELEN EDMUNDSON AND DIRECTED BY NATALIE ABRAHAMI, QUEEN ANNE WILL PLAY AT THEATRE ROYAL HAYMARKET FROM 30 JUNE UNTIL 30 SEPTEMBER 2017

• TICKETS ARE NOW ON SALE, MONDAY 13 FEBRUARY WWW.RSCQUEENANNE.COM

 

Romola Garai will star as Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough alongside Emma Cunniffe as the eponymous monarch in the Royal Shakespeare Company’s production of Queen Anne. They will be joined by Jonathan Christie, Michael Fenton-Stevens, James Garnon, Richard Hope, Hywel Morgan, Beth Park and Carl Prekopp with further casting to be announced soon.

After originally opening at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in November 2015, Queen Anne will transfer to Theatre Royal Haymarket for a thirteen week limited run from 30 June until 30 September, with a press night on 10 July. Tickets are now on sale.

www.RSCQueenAnne.com.

Written by Helen Edmundson (The Heresy of Love, RSC) and directed by Natalie Abrahami (Happy Days, Young Vic), this gripping new play explores the life of one of England’s little-known sovereigns and her intimate friendship with her childhood confidante Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough.

1702. William III is on the throne and England is on the verge of war.

Princess Anne is soon to become Queen, and her advisors vie for influence over the future monarch. Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough, a close friend with whom Anne has an intensely personal relationship, begins to exert increasing pressure as she pursues her own designs on power.

Contending with deceit and blackmail, Anne must decide where her allegiances lie, and whether to sacrifice her closest relationships for the sake of the country.

Romola Garai will play Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough. Romola is best known for appearing in films such as Amazing Grace, Atonement, Vanity Fair, Inside I’m Dancing, Glorious 39 and Suffragette, and in BBC series such as Emma, The Hour and The Crimson Petal and the White. She has been nominated for a BAFTA and twice for a Golden Globe Award.

In addition to her work on screen Romola’s theatre credits include Calico (West End; Evening Standard Theatre Award Outstanding Newcomer nomination), King Lear and The Seagull (RSC), The Village Bike (Royal Court), Three Sisters (Lyric Hammersmith), and Measure for Measure (Young Vic).

Emma Cunniffe will play Queen Anne. On stage, Emma won the UK Theatre Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance in The Master Builder in 2000. Her other stage work includes Tales from Hollywood (Donmar), Losing Louis (Hampstead/West End), Women Beware Women (RSC), Proof (Menier Chocolate Factory), The Entertainer (Old Vic), Conquest of the South Pole (Arcola), A Doll’s House (The Lowry), Edward II,  Three Sisters, Major Barbara, Twelfth Night (Royal Exchange), Amongst Friends, The Glass Room (Hampstead). She was nominated for a WhatsOnStage Award in 2011 for her role as Elizabeth Proctor in The Crucible at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre.

Emma has numerous TV credits including Unforgotten, Lewis, Midsomer Murders, George Gently, Waterloo Road, Father Brown, Coronation Street, Moving On, Southcliffe, Good Cop, The Other Child, Doctor Who, Poirot, A Place of Execution, The Genius of Mozart, Clocking Off, All The King’s Men, Great Expectations, and The Lakes.

Helen Edmundson’s plays include The Clearing, (Bush Theatre), Mother Teresa is Dead, (Royal Court), Mary Shelley,(Shared Experience at The Tricycle and on tour), and The Heresy of Love (RSC). Her other work includes Coram Boy (National Theatre and on Broadway), a new version of Calderon’s Life is a Dream (Donmar), a musical adaptation of Swallows and Amazons, written with composer Neil Hannon, (Bristol Old Vic, West End and on tour) and Thérèse Raquin (Bath Theatre Royal and on tour). She has written a number of adaptations for Shared Experience Theatre including Anna Karenina and Mill on the Floss, which toured nationally and internationally, and War and Peace, first staged at the National Theatre.

Helen has recently completed screenplays for See Saw Films and Potboiler Productions and her episodes of the Hat Trick television drama The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher were seen on ITV, as well as the film adaptation of An Inspector Calls on BBC television. Helen is currently working on a new play, commissioned by the National Theatre. She has been the recipient of several awards, including the prestigious Windham Campbell Prize for drama 2015, a John Whiting Award for The Clearing, a TMA Award for Anna Karenina and Time Out Awards for Mill on the Floss and Coram Boy. She is an Associate Artist of Bristol Old Vic, and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Natalie Abrahami is a former Genesis Fellow and Associate Director at the Young Vic. Her Young Vic credits include Happy Days, After Miss Julie and Ah, Wilderness! and the short films MAYDAY, The Roof and Life’s a Pitch. As former Artistic Director of the Gate Theatre, London, Natalie’s productions include Vanya and The Kreutzer Sonata which later transferred to La MaMa, New York.  Other credits include: Queen Anne (RSC), How the Whale Became and Other Tales (Royal Opera House), The Eleventh Capital (Royal Court), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Headlong) and Pericles (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre). Natalie was also an Associate Artist at the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton between 2013 and 2015 and Associate Director at Hull Truck in 2012 where she directed Yerma and Hitchcock Blonde. Natalie won the James Menzies-Kitchin Award for Directors in 2005 for her double-bill of Play and Not I (Battersea Arts Centre).

Jonathan Christie will play Arthur Maynwaring. He trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and won the National Theatre’s Michael Bryant Verse Speaking Award in his final year. He was also a runner-up in the BBC Carleton Hobbs Radio Competition. His theatre credits include: Queen Anne (RSC), Love for Love (RSC), Twelfth Night (ETT), Pocket Henry V (Propellor), The After Dinner Joke (The Orange Tree), The Conquering Hero (The Orange Tree), The Song of Deborah (The Lowry), Oh To Be In England (Finborough), First Impressions (Margate Theatre Royal), Madness In Valencia (Trafalgar Studios), My Dad’s A Birdman (Sheffield Crucible), Miss Julie (Albany) and Thinking Aloud (ICA). His film credits include: Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, Captain Webb, The Green Park, Winterlong, whilst his television credits include: The Halcyon (ITV) and Vera Brittain: A Woman In Love and War (BBC).

Michael Fenton-Stevens will play Dr John Radcliffe. His recent stage credits include: Love for Love (RSC), Queen Anne (RSC & London), Yes Prime Minister (Apollo & Gielgud) and Stand (Battersea Arts). His long list of television credits includes the regular characters of ‘Sir Henry’ in Benidorm (ITV) and ‘Mr Griffith’ in My Family (BBC). He has also played roles in The Crown (Netflix), Carnage (BBC), Not Going Out (BBC), Parents (Sky), Josh (BBC), Starlings (Sky), Lead Balloon (BBC), Pete Vs Life (Channel 4), Mrs Biggs (ITV), Outnumbered (BBC), New Tricks (BBC), My Hero (BBC), Ladies of Letters (ITV) and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps (BBC). His extensive work in radio includes playing ‘Paul Crawford’ in The Archers (BBC Radio 4) and doing 12 series of Old Harry’s Game (BBC Radio 4).

James Garnon will play Robert Harley. James has performed on stage in Richard III (Almeida), The Winter’s Tale, Pericles, As You Like It, ‘Tis Pity She’s A Whore, Dr Scroggy’s War, The Duchess of Malfi, The Tempest, Gabriel, Richard III, Twelfth Night, All’s Well That Ends Well, Anne Boleyn, Macbeth, A New World: The Life of Thomas Paine, The Storm, Romeo and Juliet, Dido Queen of Carthage (Shakespeare’s Globe); Down By The Greenwood Side (Brighton Festival), Much Ado About Nothing (Old Vic), King Lear (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Hamlet (The Factory/Bristol Old Vic) and Here Lies Mary Spindler (RSC/Latitude Festival). He has also appeared in the following films: Testament of Youth, The Real American: Joe McCarthy, Anonymous and The Brussels and his television credits include: The Crown (Netflix), Who Killed the Princes in the Tower (Channel 4), Foyle’s War, The Lost Honour of Christopher Jefferies (ITV) and Syntax Era (BBC 4).

Richard Hope will play Sydney Godolphin. He has performed on stage in Queen Anne (RSC), The History Boys (UK Tour), Orlando (Royal Exchange), King Lear (Almeida), Democracy (Sheffield Theatre and Old Vic), Dirty Dancing (West End), and The Swan, The Hour We Knew Nothing of Each Other, A Prayer For Owen Meany, War and Peace, Pravda, Hamlet, The Government Inspector, Don Juan, Much Ado About Nothing (all at the National Theatre). Richard is an Associate Member of Complicite and his television work includes Poldark (BBC), Broadchurch (ITV), Unforgotten (ITV), and And Then There Were None (BBC). He has been in the following films: Harbour, Mr Morgan’s Last Love, Antonia and Jane, Bellman and True, Bloody Kids, Breaking Glass, Chromophobia, French Lieutenant’s Woman and The Last Post.

Hywel Morgan will play Prince George. Hywel is from Cardiff and played Nye Bevan in This May Hurt a Bit (Out Of Joint) and Tony Blair in A Walk on Part: The Fall of New Labour (Live Theatre & Soho Theatre). For the RSC he has performed in The Alchemist, Love For Love and Queen Anne. Other theatre credits include: War & Peace, Mill on the Floss (Shared Experience) Blithe Spirit, Dancing at Lughnasa (Watermill), Surviving Spike, Our Man in Havana, (Kenwright) ONA$$I$ (Chichester), Indian Ink (Salisbury Playhouse) and The Importance Of Being Earnest, To Reach the Clouds, Feelgood and A Midsummer Night’s Dream (all at the Nottingham Playhouse). Morgan’s film credits include: Page Eight and W.E whilst his television credits include: Hinterland (BBC), The Tunnel (Sky), Skins (E4) Hollyoaks (Channel 4), Holby City (BBC), Casualty (BBC), Doctors (BBC) EastEnders (BBC) Pobol y Cwm (S4C) and Lee Nelson’s Well Funny People (BBC).

Beth Park will play Abigail Hill. Her theatre credits include: Revolt, She Said, Revolt Again (RSC), Queen Anne (RSC), The Harvest (Bath Theatre Royal/Soho Theatre), Exit The King (Bath Theatre Royal); The Dog, The Night and The Knife (Arcola), The Massacre At Paris (Rose Theatre), The Importance of Being Earnest (Stephen Joseph Theatre); Gallathea; The Woman in the Moon (Globe at Glastonbury), Bus Stop (New Vic) and Arcadia (Manchester Library Theatre) whilst her television credits include being in Casualty (BBC).

Carl Prekopp will play Daniel Defoe. His recent theatre work includes performing in Bug (Found111), Love for Love and Queen Anne (both RSC), Peter Pan (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), The Rivals (Arcola Theatre), The Saints (Nuffield Theatre), Dealer’s Choice (Royal and Derngate) and Roots (Donmar Warehouse). His other theatre credits include Love On the Dole (Jagged Fence), Ruffian on the Stair (The Orange Tree Theatre), Richard III (Riverside Studios), Calendar Girls (Chichester/Noel Coward Theatre) and Sexual Perversity in Chicago (Norwich Playhouse). Carl has also appeared in the television series Call The Midwife (BBC), Doctors (BBC) and Lewis (ITV Studios).

*

The RSC Acting Companies are generously supported by THE GATSBY CHARITABLE FOUNDATION and THE KOVNER FOUNDATION.

The work of the RSC Literary Department is generously supported by THE DRUE HEINZ TRUST.

REQUIEM FOR ALEPPO

SADLER’S WELLS

SUNDAY 23 APRIL 2017

 

“Aleppo is no longer – all that is left is its stories” – Anonymous, Citizen of Aleppo

 

Requiem for Aleppo, a brand new work created and conceived by composer David Cazalet with choreography by Jason Mabana, will premiere at Sadler’s Wells on Sunday 23 April 2017. The night will be introduced by BBC World Affairs editor John Simpson, and all money raised will go to support the work of charities Syria Relief and Techfugees.

The work will contain 12 dancers from across the world. Cazalet’s original music is a combination of Requiem Mass lyrics set to choral music, linked by Arabic poetry from the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries, also set to music, and interpolated throughout with the voices of people from Aleppo telling their real-life stories – stories gathered from recent interviews and which have fed into the development of the work.

Techfugees, a social enterprise coordinating the international tech community’s response to the needs of refugees, will live stream the show through its social media channels. Livestreamed screenings of the show will take place in cities where the Aleppo Diaspora has found shelter (screenings are being planned in Cairo, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Istanbul, Berlin,  Paris, Barcelona…Each of these screenings will be used to raise further funds).

Syria Relief is the largest Syria focused charity registered in the UK. With a solid network of committed management and logistics staff on the ground inside Syria , Syria Relief operate in some of the most hard to reach areas of Syria, including besieged areas.

With this level of expertise on the ground, Syria Relief implement  humanitarian projects inside Syria in a number of different sector from education, healthcare, livelihood, protection to food security and sponsoring orphans in the most desperate areas. Syria Relief is directly supporting civilians and displaced communities while providing the tools and training to help them become self-sufficient in their altered circumstances. Since their work started in 2011,they have touched the lives of 2 million people distributing more than 75 million dollars work of aid.

 

David Cazalet said, “I want Requiem for Aleppo to be a reminder, now and ongoing, of the suffering of a people and what the world has lost. It is an appeal to our common humanity – an expression of grief articulated in movement, song and design. It is a refusal to pay silent witness to a humanitarian crisis”. Requiem for Aleppo is written in memoriam for the lives that have been lost, destroyed, dislocated and displaced, it is a lament for the destruction of a city of great sophistication, history and tolerance whose loss is humanity’s loss.”

The dancers taking part are Arabella Scalisi (Italy), Beno Novac (Slovenia), Elisa Chou (Spain), Hae Haeyeon Lim (South Korea), Ines Pinheiro (Portugal), Jessica Eirado Enes (Italy), Naima Souhair (The Netherlands), Raoul Riva (France), Rob Bridger (UK), Sarina Sitinjak (Canada), Simone Zambelli (Italy) and Wennah Wilkers (The Netherlands)

FELLINI’S OSCAR-WINNING MASTERPIECE LA STRADA COMES TO THE STAGE

Kenny Wax Ltd in association with Cambridge Arts Theatre & Bristol Old Vic present

The Belgrade Theatre Coventry’s Production

FEDERICO FELLINI’s

LA STRADA

Based on the subject and script work by Federico Fellini, Ennio Flaiano and Tullio Pinelli

Directed by Sally Cookson, Composed by Benji Bower

RICHMOND THEATRE TUE 27 FEB – SAT 4 MAR

One of the true masterpieces of modern cinema, Federico Fellini’s 1957 Oscar-winning film, LA STRADA (The Road), will be brought to life on stage in a brand new adaptation directed by Olivier Award nominee Sally Cookson with music composed by Benji Bower. The production will receive its world premiere at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry on 11 February 2017 where it opens for the start of a 16-week national tour, visiting Richmond from Tue 27 Feb – Sat 4 Mar, prior to its London transfer. On 30 May LA STRADA will receive its London premiere at The Other Palace, the newest addition to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Theatre Group, where it will run for 6 weeks until 8 July 2017. Tickets are now on sale.*

Awarded the honorary Oscar for Lifetime Achievement in 1993, Italian director Federico Fellini changed the face of film-making forever with his seminal films such as La Strada, La Dolce Vita, 8½, Nights of Cabiria and Satyricon. Marking 60 years since La Strada, starring Anthony Quinn, won the ‘Best Foreign Language Film’ Academy award, Fellini’s cinematic masterpiece, hailed as “one of the most influential films ever made” (the American Film Institute), sees its first ever UK stage adaptation.

A soul-searching story filled with beauty, sadness, humour and acute observation, LA STRADA tells the tragic and tender tale of wide-eyed Gelsomina who is sold by her impoverished mother to the brutish strongman Zampano, a travelling sideshow performer. Their journey through the Italian countryside leads them to a ragtag touring circus where they meet Il Matto the free-spirited tightrope walker, who tries to rekindle Gelsomina’s broken spirit.

Director Sally Cookson says:

“Felini’s iconic film has always fascinated me and the thought of using it as a starting point to make a piece of theatre was one I couldn’t resist. A folk-tale like odyssey – this story sees three lost souls travelling ‘the road’ and searching in different ways to find meaning in their lives. Using physical story telling, music and movement, we will be attempting to find a theatricality to re imagine this story of human suffering, longing and redemption.”

Featuring live music and original songs, LA STRADA brings together a multi-skilled cast of performers and musicians. Audrey Brisson (Cirque de Soleil’s Quidam, Kneehigh’s The Cast of the Flying Lovers of Vitebsk, Dead Dog in a Suitcase, The Wild Bride and National Theatre’s The Elephantom) plays Gelsomina, Stuart Goodwin (Sally Cookson’s Sleeping Beauty; Kneehigh’s Tristan & Yseult) plays Zampano and Bart Soroczynski (Cirque de Loin’s The Fool & The Princess; ENO’s Benvenuto Cellini; RSC’s The Merry Wives of Windsor) plays Il Matto. The ensemble cast includes:

Matt Costain, Fabrizio Matteini, Sofie Lybäck, Niv Petel, Niccolo Curradi, Tatiana Santini, Luke Potter and Tee Jay Holmes. Further casting to be announced.

LA STRADA is directed by Sally Cookson, with musical direction and music by Benji Bower, ‘writer in the room’ Mike Akers, set and costume design by Katie Sykes, lighting design by Aideen Malone and sound design by Mike Beer.

Director Sally Cookson is an associate artist of Bristol Old Vic. Together with long-time creative collaborator, composer and musical director Benji Bower, their many productions include: Jane Eyre (Bristol Old Vic and National Theatre), the Olivier Award nominated Hetty Feather (West End, National Tour & Florida USA), Peter Pan (National Theatre), Treasure Island (Bristol Old Vic), and the Olivier Award nominated Cinderella: A Fairytale (Tobacco Factory Theatre), Varmints (Sadler’s Wells).

Multi Olivier award-winning producer Kenny Wax says:

“I have been trying to mount a stage production of LA STRADA for many years. When Sally Cookson told me it was her favourite film, the stars seemed to align more perfectly than I could have ever dreamed. And that is only half the back story.”

 

FIRST MAJOR REVIVAL

CELEBRATING THE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF Willy Russell’s

SHIRLEY VALENTINE

Starring Jodie Prenger

Directed by Glen Walford

At Richmond Theatre 20-25 March

Willy Russell’s heart-warming comedy Shirley Valentine premiered in 1986 and took the world by storm. In celebration of its 30th Anniversary the first major revival of this national treasure will embark on a UK tour in 2017. Opening on Thursday 2 March in Bromley, Shirley Valentine will star much-loved actress Jodie Prenger as Shirley.

With a career spanning over four decades Willy Russell is undeniably one of the most successful playwrights of his generation. His plays, including Educating Rita, Blood Brothers, Our Day Out and Shirley Valentine, have been performed across the globe and have won countless awards, they continue to be in constant production throughout the world. Shirley Valentine was adapted into an Oscar nominated film starring Pauline Collins and Tom Conti.

Of the revival Willy Russell says; “It’s now thirty years since Shirley Valentine first walked onto the page, into my life and the lives of so many others. Shirley cooked her first meal of egg and chips on the stage of the Everyman Theatre Liverpool before then hoofing it down to London where along with the cooking and talking to the wall she started picking up the string of awards she’d win in the West End, on Broadway and in the film that earned both BAFTAs and Academy Award Nominations. Since those early days Shirley has had an incredibly rich and varied life, appearing in many tongues across the globe in countless productions and being performed by many great actresses. The one thing Shirley Valentine has not done of late is extensively tour the UK. There have been approaches and plans mooted but, somehow, it’s just never quite felt right and so I’ve resisted such efforts – until now! And what has made the difference? When producer Adam Spiegel introduced me to Jodie Prenger I knew in an instant that here was a formidable actress, one who possessed the grit and the warmth, the drive and the vulnerability, the energy and the heart to make Shirley Valentine really live again. How could any playwright resist that or deny the whole of the UK the chance to see Jodie bring Shirley to life?”

Jodie Prenger is perhaps best known for winning the role of Nancy in the West End production of Oliver! through the BBC television series I’d Do Anything. Most recently, Jodie toured the UK in the classic musical Tell Me On A Sunday. She also played the title role in the national tour of the musical Calamity Jane and has starred in One Man, Two Guvnors both in the West End and on tour and as Lady of the Lake in Spamalot. Jodie is also a regular presenter on BBC Radio 2.

Shirley is a Liverpool housewife. Her kids have left home and she makes chips and egg for her husband while talking to the wall. Where has her life disappeared to? Out of the blue, her best friend offers her a trip to Greece for 2 weeks and she secretly packs her bags. She heads for the sun and starts to see the world and herself very differently.

Glen Walford, director of the original production, will direct this major revival. Shirley Valentine is produced by Adam Spiegel Productions (Motown, The Last Tango, The Producers, Dance ‘Til Dawn, Midnight Tango, Love Me Tender, The Mousetrap on Tour).

 

Bread & Roses Theatre 7 – 11 February.  Reviewed by Claire Roderick

Natalie Audley’s new play is a little gem. Family dynamics are always rich pickings for writers, and Audley has created a credible love-hate relationship that will strike a chord with the audience.

The two very different sisters come together the night before Abbie’s wedding. Big sister Juliet thinks Abbie is making a mistake marrying the sexist, downright unpleasant Luke, and so the verbal sparring begins. Insults, judgements and recriminations are thrown back and forth with perfect timing, full of witty zingers that reveal the strong loving bond between the sisters. Their responses when they each think they’ve made the other cry are sweet and laugh out loud funny, but the comedy never becomes cartoonish – the dialogue and situations are all extremely credible.

Juliet is a proud non-conformist, conforming EXACTLY to the stereotypical image that conjures. Her own relationship is on the rocks, and she hides behind pronouncements about her moral principles when Abbie questions her. Meanwhile Abbie has always dreamed of a beautiful wedding, is obviously just settling for Luke and a comfortable life, and still has feelings for ex-girlfriend Erin.

Emily Amber is a wonderfully strong and spiky Juliet, and Charlie Lees-Massey’s Abbie is a delight – veering from blind panic to calm self-delusion with consummate ease. Their onstage chemistry is fantastic, bringing a true feeling of sisterhood.

During the short running time the sisters brutally and brilliantly psychoanalyse each other, and it becomes clear that all they want is to fix each other’s lives. Audley’s script is tight and smart, and the ending will make you want to cheer, and hope for a sequel – perhaps based around a homebirth? Please?

Production images released for Opera North’s deliciously dark fairy tales

At The Lowry Wed 8 – Sat 11 March

Production images have been released for two of Opera North‘s brand new productions: Humperdinck’s much-loved Hansel and Gretel, at The Lowry on Wednesday 8 and Saturday 11 March, and Rimsky-Korsakov’s rarely-performed The Snow Maiden, at The Lowry on Friday 10 March.

Hansel and Gretel is perhaps the best-loved of all the operatic fairy tales but there’s a dark twist to this story of two children lost in the woods. The music magically evokes the contrasting worlds of the story, from the daily struggle for survival of an impoverished family, to the world of the forest, both idyllic and full of danger; home to the terrifying Witch and her tempting gingerbread house.

In director Edward Dick’s new production, the action on stage includes hand-held cameras and live video; set against this modern technology is Humperdinck’s charming and melodic music, including the dizzying excitement of the ‘Witch’s Ride’ and the serene beauty of the children’s ‘Evening Prayer’. This production features one of Britain’s leading dramatic sopranos, Susan Bullock CBE, in the dual role of the Witch and the children’s mother, alongside Katie Bray as Hansel and Fflur Wyn as Gretel.

The charming Russian folk story The Snow Maiden tells the tale of the daughter of Grandfather Frost and Spring Beauty, the young Snow Maiden, sung by Irish soprano Aoife Miskelly. She wants nothing more than to live amongst humans, after meeting a shepherd boy, Lel (Heather Lowe) but she hides a tragic secret: her heart is made of ice and, if she falls in love, it will melt.
 
Director John Fulljames has reworked The Snow Maiden’s classic storyline in a contemporary setting, blending the boundaries between reality and fantasy. The opera, a Russian favourite, which is being professionally staged for the first time in over 60 years in the UK, features some of Rimsky-Korsakov’s most lyrical music, including the ‘Chorus of the Birds’, and the ‘Dance of the Clowns’.

The third opera in the fairy tale season strikes a romantic note with Rossini’s sparkling comedy Cinderella (La Cenerentola). Dance is woven into the very fabric of the music, and this contemporary new production opens with Cinderella scrubbing the floor of a ballroom dance school. In Rossini’s work, it is music rather than magic that transforms Cinderella into a princess and enables her to deftly outwit her step-father Don Magnifico (Henry Waddington) and two cruel step-sisters.
 
This fresh, witty take on the Cinderella story is directed by multi-talented director and choreographer Aletta Collins, with two young international stars taking the lead roles. Canadian mezzo-soprano Wallis Giunta is Cinderella, and fast-rising South African tenor Sunnyboy Dladla is her prince, Don Ramiro.

Production images are yet to be released for Cinderella. 
 
The three fairy-tale productions will share basic elements of a highly adaptable set, designed by Giles Cadle, with the inventive use of video bringing the themes of transformation and magic to the forefront. From live video captured on-stage in real time in Hansel and Gretel, folk-influenced dreamscapes in The Snow Maiden, or a riot of colour and invention in Cinderella, the use of video will enable each of the fairytales to further blur the lines between reality and fantasy.

Listings Info
Opera North
Hansel and Gretel, Wed 8 & Sat 11 March
Cinderella (La Cenerentola), Thu 9 & Sat 11 March (Matinee)
The Snow Maiden, Fri 10 March 
7pm, Sat 2pm
Tickets: £20 – £60.50 (Including booking fees)
Box office: 0843 208 6000