NATIONAL THEATRE ANNOUNCES TWO NEW PRODUCTIONS THE CRUCIBLE AND THE BOY WITH TWO HEARTS ON THE SOUTH BANK AND A MAJOR NATIONWIDE TOUR OF THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE

• NT Associate Lyndsey Turner directs Arthur Miller’s The Crucible in the Olivier theatre with Brendan Cowell as John Proctor and Erin Doherty as Abigail Williams
   
• Wales Millennium Centre’s widely acclaimed adaptation of Hamed and Hessam Amiri’s The Boy with Two Hearts transfers to the Dorfman theatre. Directed by Amit Sharma, and adapted for the stage by Phil Porter
   
• Previously announced productions of Pearl Cleage’s Blues for an Alabama Sky directed by Lynette Linton and the revival of Hex, the new musical based on Sleeping Beauty directed by Rufus Norris, also go on sale to the public on Wednesday 8 June
   
• Opening at The Lowry, Salford, Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane will tour the UK and Ireland visiting 29 towns and cities for 40 weeks from December

The National Theatre today announces two new productions, and the booking dates of two previously announced productions, to be performed on all three South Bank stages this Autumn, as well as the UK and Ireland tour of The Ocean at the End of The Lane.

Lyndsey Turner (Under Milk Wood) will direct Arthur Miller’s The Crucible in the Olivier theatre in September. A gripping parable of power and its abuse, this urgent new staging will see Brendan Cowell (Yerma) make his National Theatre debut as John Proctor alongside Erin Doherty (The Crown, My Name is Rachel Corrie) playing the role of Abigail. Further casting includes Fisayo Akinade, Rachelle Diedericks, Nick Fletcher, Karl Johnson, Gracie McGonigal, Matthew Marsh and Eileen Walsh. 

With set design by Es Devlin, costume design by Catherine Fay and lighting design by Tim Lutkin. Sound design by Tingying Dong (content design) and Paul Arditti (system design). Staff director is Blythe Stewart, and dialect coaches are Majella Hurley and Hazel Holder.

Following its revival in Cardiff in September, Wales Millennium Centre’s widely acclaimed stage adaptation of The Boy with Two Hearts will open in the Dorfman Theatre in October. Directed by Amit Sharma (Badhaai Ho) and adapted for the stage by Phil Porter (The Miser) the play is based on the book of the same name by Hamed and Hessam Amiri. Drawing on extraordinary real-life experiences, it is a powerful story of hope, courage, and humanity – and a heartfelt tribute to the NHS.

The original cast of Afghan and Iranian performers will return to their roles, including Shamail Ali, Dana Haqjoo, Farshid Rokey, Ahmad Sakhi and Géhane Strehler as well as the award-winning Afghan vocalist and composer, Elaha Soroor.

Set and costume designer is Hayley Grindle, lighting designer is Amy Mae, sound designer and co-composer is Tic Ashfield, movement director is Jess Williams and Hayley Egan is video designer. Casting is by Sarah Hughes CDG and associate director is Sepy Baghaei.

Also going on sale is the previously announced Blues for an Alabama Sky by Pearl Cleage, directed by Artistic Director of the Bush Theatre, Lynette Linton, who makes her National Theatre debut. This startling play set in 1930 during the Harlem renaissance, is about four friends whose lives and passions collide when a newcomer from Alabama arrives. Samira Wiley (The Handmaid’s Tale, Orange is the New Black) performs the role of Angel Allen with Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo (Three Sisters) as Delia Patterson, Osy Ikhile (Sweat) as Leland Cunningham, Sule Rimi (Barber Shop Chronicles) as Sam Thomas and Giles Terera (Death of England: Face to Face, Hamilton) performing the role of Guy Jacobs.

Set and costume design by Frankie Bradshaw, lighting designer is Oliver Fenwick, composer is Benjamin Kwasi Burrell, sound designer is George Dennis, movement director is Kane Husbands, wigs hair and make-up design is Cynthia De La Rosa and Staff Director TD Moyo.

The National Theatre’s new musical Hex returns to the Olivier theatre for Christmas. A vividly original retelling of Sleeping Beauty, Hex is a mythic, big-hearted musical that goes beyond the waking kiss. Directed by Rufus Norris with book by Tanya Ronder, music by Jim Fortune and lyrics by Rufus Norris. Original concept by Katrina Lindsay and Rufus Norris. Set and Costume designs by Katrina Lindsay, choreography by Jade Hackett.

With music supervision and vocal arrangements by Marc Tritschler, orchestrations by Simon Hale, music direction by Tarek Merchant, lighting design by Paul Anderson, sound design by Simon Baker and video design by Ash J Woodward. Consultant Choreographer Bill Deamer and Séimí Campbell as Associate Director. Casting to be announced.

Further casting is announced for Simon Godwin’s production of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing which will open in the Lyttelton theatre in July. Set in the Italian Riviera at the fictional Hotel Messina, Katherine Parkinson (Home, I’m Darling) will play Beatrice with John Heffernan (The Pursuit of Love) as Benedick in Shakespeare’s timeless romantic comedy alongside Celeste Dodwell, Eben Figueiredo, Olivia Forrest, David Fynn, Ashley Gillard, Brandon Grace, Nick Harris, Phoebe Horn, David Judge, Kiren Kebaili-Dwyer, Wendy Kweh, Ioanna Kimbook, Marcia Lecky, Ewan Miller, Mateo Oxley, Rufus Wright and Ashley Zhangazha.

With set design by Anna Fleischle, costume design by Evie Gurney and lighting design by Lucy Carter. Composer is Michael Bruce and sound design by Christopher Shutt. Staff Director is Hannah Joss.

National Theatre on Tour

Following a celebrated six-month run at the Duke of York’s Theatre in the West End, the National Theatre’s critically acclaimed adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane will tour the UK and Ireland later this year, visiting 29 towns and cities for a total of 40 weeks. This is the largest tour mounted by the National Theatre since before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Featuring an ensemble cast of 17, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is directed by Katy Rudd (Camp Siegfried) and adapted by Joel Horwood (Skins, I Want My Hat Back). The first major stage adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s work is a thrilling adventure of fantasy, myth and friendship, which blends magic with memory in a tour-de-force of storytelling that takes audiences on an epic journey to a childhood once forgotten and the darkness that lurks at the very edge of it.

With set design by Fly Davis and costume and puppet design by Samuel Wyer. Movement direction is by Steven Hoggett, composition by Jherek Bischoff, lighting design by Paule Constable (winner of the 2020 Olivier Award for Best Lighting Design), sound design by Ian Dickinson for Autograph, magic and illusions direction and design by Jamie Harrison and puppetry direction by Finn Caldwell. Tour casting is by Sarah Hughes CDG. Cast to be announced. 

For full details of the tour and venues visit oceanonstage.com

National Theatre International

In New York, The Lehman Trilogy received a total of eight Tony Award nominations yesterday, the most nominations for a play this season. Stefano Massini and Ben Power are nominated for Best Play; Simon Russell Beale, Adam Godley, and Adrian Lester for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play; Es Devlin for Best Scenic Design of a Play; Jon Clark for Best Lighting Design of a Play; Nick Powell and Dominic Bilkey for Best Sound Design of a Play; and Sir Sam Mendes is nominated for Best Direction of a Play for the production’s sold out run at the Nederlander Theatre.  A co-production with Neal Street Productions, The Lehman Trilogy, which first opened in the Lyttelton theatre and has since played in New York at the Park Avenue Armory, in the West End, on Broadway and on tour in Los Angeles, is also nominated for a record nine Outer Critics Circle Awards, and three Drama League Awards. The 75^th annual Tony Awards will take place in New York at Radio City Music Hall on June 12.

National Theatre Digital

National Theatre Live cinema audiences are invited to an early autumn escape to the Italian Riviera in Much Ado About Nothing, with Katherine Parkinson (The IT Crowd) and John Heffernan (Dracula), directed by Simon Godwin (Romeo & Juliet), broadcast live from the National Theatre from 8 September 2022. The season of comedy continues with Jack Absolute Flies Again by Richard Bean (One Man, Two Guvnors) and Oliver Chris, a new version of Sheridan’s The Rivals, directed by Emily Burns. Caroline Quentin (Jonathan Creek), Laurie Davidson (Cats), Natalie Simpson (Three Sisters) and Kelvin Fletcher (Emmerdale) lead the cast, set for release into cinemas from 6 October 2022.

To celebrate the NT’s first ever BAFTA nomination for Death of England: Face to Face, the full Death of England trilogy, written by Clint Dyer and Roy Williams, will be available to stream on National Theatre at Home this month. This includes Death of England, with Rafe Spall as Michael and Death of England: Delroy with Michael Balogun, from 12 May 2022; Death of England: Face to Face, which sees Michael (Neil Maskell) and Delroy (Giles Terera) come together in this critically-acclaimed feature film, is now available on the platform.

Working with young people and communities nationwide

Public Acts continues with Cast joining forces with the community of Doncaster to present The Doncastrian Chalk Circle on 27 – 29 August in a new version of Brecht’s classic adapted by Chris Bush, directed by James Blakey with music by Ruth Chan. Following this, the multi-venue production of The Odyssey will be taking place nationwide in 2023 to mark the fifth anniversary of Public Acts.

The Connections and New Views Festivals recommence at the NT this summer. Ten youth theatre companies will perform new plays at the 2022 NT Connections Festival, taking place in the Dorfman Theatre from 28 June – 2 July. Over 5,400 young people from 228 youth theatres and schools are currently staging specially commissioned new plays at partner theatres across the UK, bringing together some of the UK’s most exciting writers with the theatre-makers of tomorrow. 

2022 is the 10th anniversary of New Views playwriting competition with over 3,250 new plays by young writers submitted over the last decade. Over 1,000 students have taken part in New Views this year and the winning play will be staged in a full production on the Dorfman stage on 6 – 7 July, with rehearsed readings of shortlisted plays in the Duffield Studio.

SOMETHING ABOUT SIMON AND

SOMETHING ABOUT GEORGE TO PLAY

ASSEMBLY FESTIVAL AT EDINBURGH FRINGE 

Acclaimed shows shine a spotlight on the life and career of two legendary musicians 

Two music shows which celebrate the talent of a pair of legendary musicians are set to be staged at the Assembly Festival at the Edinburgh Fringe this summer. 

Something About Simon – The Paul Simon Story and Something About George – The George Harrison Story will join the line-up at the UK’s most hotly anticipated Summer event. 

The two shows from Something About Productions will run between Thursday 4 August and Thursday 18 August in The Bijou – a striking 250-seat Spiegel tent – and will join a busy programme of music, comedy, cabaret, theatre, and family shows planned for the 2022 Fringe. Tickets for both productions are now on sale. 

Something About Simon – The Paul Simon Story returns to Edinburgh after triumphing at the Fringe in 2019. It was then chosen for a residency at the Fringe Encore Series at the SoHo Playhouse in New York City, where it playedsix sell-out performances. The show, which was premiered in Liverpool in 2018, then also went on to form part of the programme at the inaugural Liverpool Theatre Festival in 2020. 

Singer songwriter Gary Edward Jones not only recites the music of one of his idols, but also tells the unique story of Paul Simon combining visuals, stage design and, of course, the music. A natural storyteller with charisma and charm, Gary weaves together songs and stories that cross The Atlantic from New Jersey to the North West of England. He traces the sometimes poignant moments in Simon’s life and career, that occasionally mirror his own. 

The show is co-written by Jon Fellowes and features classic ballads like Sound of Silence and America to Wristband, The Boxer, and Bridge Over Troubled Water. 

Meanwhile Something About George – The George Harrison Story enjoys its Edinburgh premiere this Summer. The show pays tribute to the man dubbed the “quiet Beatle”, and was met with acclaim by both audiences and critics when it closed Liverpool Theatre Festival in September 2021. 

Now West End performer and musician Daniel Taylor is set to bring it to the Fringe at the culmination of an eight venue UK tour. 

Featuring beautiful songs like My Sweet Lord, Something, and Handle With Care, Something About George showcases Harrison’s incredible solo material and music from rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest supergroup, The Traveling Wilburys which was made up of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty. 

And any show celebrating one of the Fab Four just has to include a few classics from The Beatles. From heartbreak to hedonism and songwriting to success, Something About George celebrates a life that was anything but quiet. 

Daniel is an award-winning actor, producer, and director. He has previously played John Lennon in the award-winning Lennon Through A Glass Onion; Sammy in Blood Brothers; and appeared at the very first Liverpool Theatre Festival in his show, The Very Best Of Tommy Cooper. 

Both ‘Something About’ shows will be performed in 60-minute one-act festival version. They are also set to be staged at the Assembly Festival Gardens in Coventry ahead of Edinburgh. 

Something About George iswritten by Jon Fellowes, who co-produces the show alongside Gary Edward Jones and theatre producer Bill Elms. Together they make up Something About Productions. 

Co-producer Bill Elms said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to be able to bring Something About Simon and Something About George to the Assembly Festival at the Edinburgh Fringe. The Bijou is a really magical and atmospheric venue in which to tell these compelling musical stories. These shows capture and celebrate the life, work, and spirit of two legendary musicians, Paul Simon and George Harrison, and both have enjoyed a fantastic reception from audiences at venues here at home and, in Something About Simon’s case, across The Atlantic too.” 

Gary Edward Jones commented: “We had an amazing time when we brought Something About Simon to Edinburgh three years ago. Audiences really responded to the heart in the show and to have the chance to perform it in New York too was very special. I’m really proud of what we’ve created, and I’m looking forward to returning and sharing Paul Simon’s story and music again.” 

Daniel Taylor added: “There’s nothing quite like the atmosphere at the Edinburgh Fringe, and I can’t wait to get out there on stage and perform for Assembly Festival audiences. After all his achievements, George is still one of the most underrated songwriters that has ever lived, and this is a perfect chance to celebrate and shine a spotlight on his musical genius.” 

Facebook:       /somethingaboutproductions 

Twitter:           @SomeAboutProds 

Instagram:      /somethingaboutproductions 

LISTING INFORMATION 

Something About Simon – The Paul Simon Story 

DATE: Thursday, 4 August – Thursday, 18 August 2022 

TIME: 1pm 

Something About George – The George Harrison Story 

DATE: Thursday, 4 August – Thursday, 18 August 2022 

TIME: 2.30pm 

Assembly Festival 

The Bijou 

54 George Street 

Edinburgh 

EH2 2LR 

0131 623 3033 

https://assemblyfestival.com/

Theatres Trust protects and promotes
theatres in the post-pandemic world

Theatres Trust, the national public advisory body for theatres, has set out the key issues for the theatre sector post-pandemic and how it will continue to support all the UK’s theatres. Following the toughest two years in living memory for theatres, the sector remains in a precarious position, with theatres facing a range of challenges including depleted reserves, the need to modernise buildings and to respond to the climate emergency.

Research for Theatres Trust by leading consultancies AECOM, Avison Young, Bristow Consulting and Buro Happold revealed that more than £1bn is needed to make the UK’s theatre buildings resilient, sustainable and suitable for modern and future audiences. Theatres face difficulties in modernising buildings with depleted reserves following lockdowns and theatre closures, funding shortfalls and increasing operating costs. Theatres Trust is advocating for further investment in theatre capital projects to help theatres make changes to their buildings and ensure buildings are fit for purpose.

Responding to the climate emergency is imperative for the theatre sector. Theatres Trust is a lead partner on the innovative Theatre Green Book project, along with the Association of British Theatre Technicians (ABTT) and Buro Happold, led by architect Paddy Dillon. Beta versions of all three volumes – Productions, Buildings and Operations – have now been published and Theatres Trust will continue to promote the project across the sector. The Theatre Green Book sets common standards for theatre sustainability, and many theatres including National Theatre, National Theatre of Scotland and National Theatre Wales have all committed to making their shows to the Theatre Green Book standards for sustainability.

Theatres Trust has welcomed the government’s Levelling Up agenda, which aligns with Theatres Trust’s arguments that culture can be a catalyst for regeneration and reignite civic pride. Of the 41 theatres on its Theatres at Risk list in 2022, three-quarters are either located in the 20% most deprived areas in the country or in the top priority areas (band 1) for Levelling Up. Putting these buildings at the heart of Levelling Up plans could have a hugely positive impact for those communities. Theatres Trust is engaging with national and local government on Levelling Up and cultural place-making, and will continue to make the case for the cultural, social and economic value of theatre buildings in all parts of the UK in a way that protects the theatre ecosystem.

Local authorities are the biggest funder of culture in the UK, contributing £1bn a year in England alone according to Local Government Association (LGA) figures, but with increasing demands on their budgets, many are reducing their spending in this area, a trend that has worsened since the pandemic. Theatres Trust helps local authorities to appreciate the long-term value of their theatre buildings as cultural and community spaces and as drivers of vibrant local economies. The Trust is working closely with the LGA, including contributing to its Commission on Culture and Local Government to promote the role of theatres in the pandemic recovery and in levelling up communities across the country.

Alongside these issues Theatres Trust continues its ongoing work as the only charity that supports every theatre in the UK, historic or modern, commercial, subsidised or voluntary. This includes:
• A free advice service to promote the best use of theatre buildings, including advice on
capital projects, planning applications, building maintenance, business planning and
fundraising.
• Responding to all planning applications involving or impacting a theatre building in its role
as a statutory consultee in the planning system.
• Commenting on local planning and culture policies to ensure they safeguard and promote
culture and sustainable theatre.
• Running two grant schemes offering funding to improve theatres’ resilience, sustainability
or accessibility.
• Assisting community groups campaigning to save or revive their local theatres, particularly those on the Theatres at Risk Register.
• Publishing advice notes to support theatre owners, operators, campaign groups and local
authorities with common issues relating to theatre buildings.
• Submitting and supporting heritage listing applications for buildings of particular
architectural and cultural merit to give them greater protection.

Theatres Trust Director Jon Morgan says, Theatres can play a significant role in supporting their local communities’ economic and social wellbeing. Unfortunately, Covid is casting a long shadow over the theatre sector and its full recovery is by no means guaranteed. As well as supporting individual theatres, Theatres Trust’s work to advocate for the long-term value of theatres and importance of investment in theatre buildings is now more crucial than ever before

THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE
WILL TOUR THE UK AND IRELAND, VISITING 29 TOWNS AND CITIES FOR 40 WEEKS FROM DECEMBER

The National Theatre’s critically acclaimed adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s THE OCEAN AT THE END OF THE LANE will tour the UK and Ireland later this year, direct from the West End, visiting more than 29 towns and cities for a total of 40 weeks. Directed by Katy Rudd (Camp Siegfried) and adapted by Joel Horwood (Skins, I Want My Hat Back), the first major stage adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s work is a thrilling adventure of fantasy, myth and friendship, which blends magic with memory in a tour-de-force of storytelling that takes audiences on an epic journey to a childhood once forgotten and the darkness that lurks at the very edge of it.

Featuring an ensemble cast of 17, the tour will open at The Lowry in Salford where it will play over Christmas (12 December 2022 – 7 January 2023), before visiting New Victoria Theatre, Woking (24 – 28 Jan); Leicester Curve (31 Jan – 11 Feb); Theatre Royal Plymouth (14 – 25 Feb); Sunderland Empire (28 Feb – 4 March); Theatre Royal Bath (7 – 18 March); Grand Opera House, Belfast (21 – 25 March); Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, Dublin (28 March – 1 April); The Alhambra Theatre, Bradford (4 – 8 April); New Wimbledon Theatre (11 – 15 April); Edinburgh Festival Theatre (18 – 22 April); Liverpool Empire (2 – 6 May); Sheffield Lyceum Theatre (9 – 20 May); The Alexandra, Birmingham (23 – 27 May); Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff (30 May – 3 June); Nottingham Theatre Royal (6 – 17 June); New Theatre, Oxford (20 – 24 June); Milton Keynes Theatre (27 June – 1 July); Mayflower Theatre, Southampton (4 – 8 July); Newcastle Theatre Royal (11 – 22 July); Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury (25 – 29 July); Cliffs Pavilion, Southend (8 – 12 Aug); Bristol Hippodrome (15 – 19 Aug); His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen (22 – 26 August); King’s Theatre, Glasgow (29 August – 2 Sept); Norwich Theatre Royal (5 – 9 Sept); Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent (12 – 16 Sept); Hall for Cornwall, Truro (19 – 23 Sept) and Wolverhampton Grand Theatre (26 – 30 September).

Check individual venue websites for full details of on sale dates and assisted performances across the tour. Visit oceanonstage.com for the full touring schedule.

Returning to his childhood home, a man finds himself standing beside the pond of the old Sussex farmhouse where he used to play. He’s transported to his 12th birthday when his remarkable friend Lettie claimed it wasn’t a pond, but an ocean – a place where everything is possible…

Plunged into a magical world, their survival depends on their ability to reckon with ancient forces that threaten to destroy everything around them.

Touring for a total of 40 weeks, this is the largest tour mounted by the National Theatre since before the COVID-19 pandemic. It follows a celebrated six-month run of The Ocean at the End of the Lane at the Duke of York’s Theatre in the West End, which opened in November 2021 after the production received its world premiere in the Dorfman Theatre in late 2019.

Writer Neil Gaiman said: “The Ocean at the End of the Lane is about memory, magic, family. It’s about who you were and who you are. It’s not like anything else I’ve ever been involved in. It’s not like anything else you’ll ever see at the theatre. The Ocean at the End of the Lane has its own theatrical magic. It’s why happy people tell you that they cried while watching it, it’s why it becomes a dreamlike experience in memory, it gets bigger the further inside you follow it. Like a duck pond that contains an ocean that holds the universe…” 

Director Katy Rudd said: “When Neil Gaiman gave the National Theatre his blessing to stage his novel The Ocean at the End of
the Lane we knew that this book was treasured across the world by Neil Gaiman’s legions of fans. The writer, Joel Horwood and I wanted to be faithful to the novel and at the same time create a big, bold, visual show with more than just a little bit of magic. Thanks to our amazing creative team we found ways to fit an ocean into a bucket, and bring huge mythical creatures like the Hunger Birds to life on stage….but at its heart, Ocean is a human story about a family and a young boy growing up, experiencing real emotion and real pain, and finding a way to get through it with the help of his friends. We hope we have created something that is both profound and visually exciting that will appeal, not only to regular theatre audiences, but also to younger people from the ‘Netflix generation’ who might not have been to the theatre before. It is a beautiful, rich, multi-faceted story and as this production goes on tour we are still adapting and evolving it and finding new meaning in its depths. That is the magic of live theatre and we can’t wait to share it with our audiences.”

National Theatre Director Rufus Norris said: “That Joel Horwood, Katy Rudd and their formidable creative team have managed to wrestle Neil Gaiman’s incredible imagination and the worlds which spring from it onto a stage is magic in itself. We’re so proud to tour this work around the UK and Ireland, to share this beautiful story with audiences nationally, and to visit so many gorgeous theatres which, like ours, have recently been dark for too long.”

Neil Gaiman is known for his graphic novels, including The Sandman series (with a major new Netflix series scheduled for release in 2022); his novels for adults and children including Stardust, Coraline, and The Graveyard Book; and multiple film and television projects including Good Omens and Anansi Boys. The Ocean at the End of the Lane was the winner of the Book of the Year at the 2013 National Book Awards and has sold more than 1.5 million copies worldwide.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane introduces audiences to Gaiman’s magical world and the much-loved characters that inhabit it, fully realised on stage. An award-winning creative team join Katy Rudd and Joel Horwood; with set design by Fly Davis (Beginning; Caroline or Change) and costume and puppet design by Samuel Wyer (The Boy in the Dress; 2022 Best Family Show Olivier Award winner for Wolf Witch Giant Fairy). Movement direction is by Steven Hoggett (The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time; Harry Potter and the Cursed Child), composition by Jherek Bischoff (LA based composer and multi-instrumentalist whose collaborators include David Byrne, Amanda Palmer, and Regina Spektor), lighting design is by Paule Constable (5 times winner of the Olivier Award for Best Lighting Design, including for The Ocean at the End of the Lane in 2020), sound design by Ian Dickinson for Autograph (Angels in America; Small Island; The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time), magic and illusions direction and design by Jamie Harrison (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child) and puppetry direction by Finn Caldwell (2022 Olivier Award winner for Life of Pi; War Horse). Tour casting is by Sarah Hughes CDG. Cast to be announced. 

The Ocean at the End of the Lane is suitable for ages 12+. 

Salisbury Playhouse – until 14 May 2022

Review by Nicky Wyatt

3***

Jim Cartwrights 30 year old play about a poverty stricken family surrounded by grief is a clever if slightly dated show. The casting for this latest revival brings it together and they work really well together.

Sara Perks cleverly designed set is brilliant. The family home complete with crackly electrics is perfect for the era.

Mari (Shobna Gulati) takes the role of a sad, lonely, jealous mum to a whole new level. Her brash clothes and heavy drinking do little to mask her sadness of being widowed and left with a daughter that had more in common with dead husband than she did. She has little time, affection or compassion for her young daughter and sees her as hindrance to her own life, which is a constant round of drinking, partying and unsuitable men. Her biggest excitement is the installation of a telephone , oh and the telephone man.

Mari leans heavily on her slightly awkward friend Sadie (Fiona Mulvaney). Sadie is always there to listen, support and help her friend. She is the butt of many jokes but also delivers some amazing humour herself.

As Mari drinks her way through life upstairs in her bedroom is LV ( Little Voice), Christina Bianco, so named because she is shy, timid, grieves for dad and frankly can’t get a word in around her mum. She sits and plays her fathers records and has the most amazing talent to be able to mimic her idols. When she does ‘it’s not Little Voice but what a voice!’

She is develops her one true friend when the family telephone is installed , the slightly awkward Billy (Akshay Gulati). He sees a kindred spirit in her and a proper caring friendship blossoms, unlike the manipulative one that happens when Mari brings home her latest squeeze club promoter Ray Say (Ian Kelsey).

Ray desperately wanting to hit the big time and make it rich overhears LV singing in her room and sees the ££signs in his eyes. He cajoles, manipulates and persuades LV to perform in the club. Stage fright ensues and LV flops much to her Rays disappointment and Mari’s wrath. The only one on her side is Billy who genuinely cares for her. Not one to give up on a give Ray persuades her to one more night and we are treated to a 10 minute ensemble of Christina’s amazing voice.

Sadly her daughters success is to much for Mari and years of bitterness pour out of her and she is left all alone.

There are some great set changes in this show, brilliant one liners , also a lot of shouting and strong language, see through that and the show is great

Boundless Theatre launch new drama
club network for early career and
young theatre makers across the UK
If you’re starting out, start here!

Boundless Theatre have launched the Boundless Drama Club – an online membership-based creative community for 15–25-year-olds and early career creatives, with exclusive content, masterclasses, mentoring, work and funding opportunities alongside real time connections to the Boundless team and artists. The Boundless Drama Club will appeal to those interested in making theatre, offering a new and unprecedented level of support for early career theatre makers.

The Boundless Drama Club will introduce members to theatre making and creative skills; it offers a safe space for collaboration for young adults. Making the most of online learning, real time, digital experiences and creative commissions as well as financial support for work, the Boundless Drama Club will sit at the centre of the company’s artistic development and creative community work. The platform will be live and community-led, constantly evolving and developing based on the needs of its members, including in-time real world meet ups and resources to facilitate members setting up their own activities where they live.

At launch members can engage from home but eventually as part of the real-life clubs set up independently and around the UK. The Boundless Drama Club will show that theatre making can happen anywhere and at your own pace by taking part in self-guided creative challenges or making work that can then be shared around the country with other members in the network. Young adults will experience a new way of highly social theatre-making on their own terms, even in places with little or no existing theatre provision.

During the first year of the Boundless Drama Club, memberships will be offered free for young creatives to explore the platform as it develops and have a say in its direction and growth. After this point, individual memberships will cost £2 a month, with support for those who cannot afford to join. All memberships will be directly invested back into the Boundless Drama Club, paying for direct costs and to resource a creative fund.

Boundless Drama Club members will have access to exclusive guided creative challenges and resources; real-time online events and masterclasses; on demand content such as creative talks and articles; exclusive and early access to paid creative work, commissions and opportunities; networking with peers across the UK; and access to a creative fund for own work (paid for by membership fees). The first opportunity members have to apply for funding is the Boundless Accelerator fund, the scheme that was instrumental in developing Ryan Calais Cameron’s critically acclaimed For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy.

On launch, Boundless will concentrate on growing its community and learning how best to support diverse creatives around the UK with masterclasses, real time creative events and mentoring. The format will develop to offer more support for real life clubs, enabling individual members to form collectives and pre-existing groups to benefit from dedicated resources and creative challenges that act as starting points for productions or more complex projects. This will all culminate annually in a Boundless Summit for members, a hybrid digital and in person event to showcase creative work, discuss future support for 15–25-year-old creatives, and celebrate the creative community. The summit will be led by young people, discussing the industry and what needs to change, looking at lessons and achievements from the previous year.

Rob Drummer, Artistic Director of Boundless Theatre, comments, The team have been working hard on planning and getting ready to launch the Boundless Drama Club over the past two years. We’ve learnt so much from our existing creative community around the UK and wanted to create new ways to share space with them and others. The Boundless Drama Club is intended to be an evolving response to the amazing creativity young people demonstrate daily and will connect all of our commissioning, creative development and skills and training work. In time we’re excited to see physical clubs appear all over the UK and to get more money and other resources directed exactly where they’re needed, to those starting out.

FIRST LOOK AT AMY ADAMS AS AMANDA WINGFIELD 

REHEARSAL IMAGES RELEASED FOR THE GLASS MENAGERIE 

• AMY ADAMS WILL MAKE HER WEST END DEBUT IN THIS NEW REVIVAL OF TENNESSEE WILLIAMS’S CELEBRATED MEMORY PLAY, DIRECTED BY JEREMY HERRIN. 
• PAUL HILTON, TOM GLYNN-CARNEY, LIZZIE ANNIS AND VICTOR ALLI WILL ALSO STAR. 
• FIRST PREVIEW IS ON 23 MAY AND OFFICIAL OPENING ON 31 MAY
• TICKETS ARE ON SALE NOW AND THE PRODUCTION WILL RUN AT THE DUKE OF YORK’S THEATRE UNTIL 27 AUGUST 2022 WWW.THEGLASSMENAGERIEWESTEND.COM​

Second Half Productions has today released rehearsal images for The Glass Menagerie, a new production of Tennessee Williams’s celebrated memory play, directed by award-winning director Jeremy Herrin. The production will run for 14 weeks at The Duke of York’s Theatre from 23 May 2022 with Opening Night on 31 May 2022. 

Jeremy Herrin’s bold new staging explores the fragility and fallibility of memory in Tennessee Williams’s semi-autobiographical masterpiece. Six-time Academy Award nominated and two-time Golden Globe winning actress Amy Adams takes on the role of one of Williams’s most iconic matriarchs Amanda Wingfield, a former Southern Belle living precariously with her two children, Tom and Laura, in a space between past and present. Tony award-nominee Paul Hilton and Tom Glynn-Carney will both play Tom – at different stages of the character’s life –  with Lizzie Annis and Victor Alli as Laura and Jim O’Connor.

The Glass Menagerie is designed by Vicki Mortimer with lighting design by Paule Constable, video design by Ash J Woodward and is cast by Jessica Ronane CDG. Completing the creative team are costume designer Edward K. Gibbon, composer and sound designer Nick Powell, and design associate Choy-Ping Clarke-Ng. 

The Glass Menagerie is the debut production from Second Half Productions, a new entertainment company founded by Jeremy Herrin, Alan Stacey and Rob O’Rahilly, creating innovative work by world-leading artists for stage and screen, breathing new and unexpected life into classic stories and championing extraordinary writing from new and established voices. 

DENZEL WESTLEY-SANDERSON, WINNER OF THE

RTST SIR PETER HALL DIRECTOR AWARD 2021,

TO DIRECT THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST

It was announced yesterday at a special Royal Theatrical Support Trust (RTST) ceremony that the winner of the RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award 2021, Denzel Westley-Sanderson, will direct a new production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest – in a co-production between English Touring Theatre (ETT), Leeds Playhouse and Rose Theatre.

Oscar Wilde’sgenius humour meets contemporary culture in this theatrical rollercoaster packed with chart-toppers, shade, wit, and plenty of gags.

Award-winner Denzel Westley-Sanderson breathes fresh new life into Wilde’s sharpest and most outrageous comedy: The Importance of Being Earnest.  

This vibrant retelling brings warmth, relevance, and unique insight to this classic satire about dysfunctional families, class, gender, and sexuality.

Denzel Westley-Sanderson’s production of The Importance of Being Earnest will tour in Autumn 2022, with dates and venues to be announced.

Richard Twyman, Artistic Director of ETT and Holly Gladwell, Executive Producer (Maternity Cover) of ETT, commented, “We’re extremely excited to begin work on Denzel Westley-Sanderson’s RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award-winning production this Autumn. This is ETT’s fourth year collaborating with the Royal Theatrical Support Trust; an award which opens up national stages to a director at a crucial point in their career, giving them the opportunity to share work with audiences across the country. This is a unique award which has led to some of the most thrilling work we’ve made at ETT, and we’re delighted to be working with Denzel on his production, in partnership with Leeds Playhouse and the Rose Theatre. He’s an intuitive, playful, and visionary director and we can’t wait to see what he will do with this iconic text.”

Denzel Westley-Sanderson commented, “I’m honoured to have received the RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award. Touring is such a vital part of the theatre industry, and I’m excited to be a part of that, and to open the season at Leeds Playhouse with The Importance of Being Earnest. Expect all the sass, shade, and wit this play has to offer.”

Denzel Westley-Sanderson is a Theatre Director and workshop facilitator based in London; Denzel trained at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts on the MA theatre directing course graduating in 2017.  After graduating, Denzel was a part of the Resident Directors’ pool at the Almeida Theatre in 2017-2018.

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Denzel has worked across several different genres and styles of performance, working with new writing, musicals, opera, devising and dance theatre, working alongside the CTC Dance Company as the company’s director. In 2019, Denzel directed the show Identity, which won the award for ‘Exciting New Work’ at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Denzel has previously worked with the participation team at the Donmar Warehouse on a number of schools project across London. In 2020, Denzel co-directed Jesus Christ Superstar – The Concert at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. In December 2020, Denzel was the Associate Director on Dick Whittington at the National Theatre and in 2022 he was Associate Director on Small Island, also at the National Theatre.

SONIA FRIEDMAN PRODUCTIONS WINS

BAFTA FOR BEST SINGLE DRAMA FOR TOGETHER

Sonia Friedman Productions received a BAFTA for Best Single Drama for its co-produced television drama Together starring James McAvoy and Sharon Horgan. Written by Dennis Kelly and co-directed by Stephen Daldry and Justin Martin, the piece was originally conceived for the stage but adapted for television during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. The drama beat stiff competition from Death of England: Face to Face, Help and I Am Victoria.

The one-off film from Shoebox Films, Sonia Friedman Productions and BBC Film broadcast on BBC Two in June 2021. It focuses on a family in the midst of the pandemic, like so many, who found a way to survive – together. It’s the hilarious and heartbreaking story of a husband and wife who are forced to re-evaluate themselves and their relationship through the reality of lockdown.

Collecting the award on behalf of the producers was scriptwriter and executive producer Dennis Kelly who read a letter from the campaign group Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice, calling for a public inquiry into the handling of the pandemic.

The letter included: “The government’s response has gone from strange to careless to negligent – our loved ones’ lives treated as expendable, collateral damage. The government was too busy partying to spare us a thought, even daring to tell us they were too busy to meet with us, or to start an inquiry promptly. We may never know how many of our loved ones’ lives could have been saved if things had been done differently, but we will not rest until we know that everything possible has been done to ensure others are spared this heartbreak and pain.”

The letter finished with a direct call to action for Boris Johnson: “Prime Minister, if you are listening, start the Covid inquiry now so we can learn lessons and save lives.”

Together is a Shoebox Films and Sonia Friedman Productions film for BBC Two and BBC Film. Executive producers are Dennis Kelly; Rose Garnett, director BBC Film; and Gaynor Holmes for the BBC. Deals were negotiated by Clare Hardwick of Grey Seal Media on behalf of production and Geraldine Atlee for the BBC.

This was one of two BAFTA nominations Sonia Friedman Productions received this year – the second was for Short Form Programme for its co-produced People You May Know.

JAMES BEENY AND GINA GEORGIO OF

TOY SOLDIER PRODUCTIONS

ARE DELIGHTED TO PRESENT

BRITAIN’S GOT TALENT

CHORAL SENSATIONS

THE FRONTLINE SINGERS

James Beeny and Gina Georgio, the musical theatre writing and producing duo behind Toy Soldier Productions are delighted to present The Frontline Singers, who appeared on ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent on Saturday 7 May to the acclaim of both the audience and judges.

Created during the national lockdown, The Frontline Singers is a group of over 20 frontline workers from all backgrounds with a shared passion for music, brought together by James Beeny and Gina Georgio. James and Gina wrote an original song for the group, ‘Strange Old World’, which they recorded remotely with The Frontline Singers during the first national lockdown. The song raised funds for the NHS, doubling its fundraising target within its first week online. James and Gina recruited the members of the group through an online search, and by approaching frontline workers they knew personally, including Gina’s father Demi Georghiou, a Police Community Support Officer from Sussex. In the Autumn of 2021, the group sang together in person for the first time and are now thrilled to have performed on Britain’s Got Talent, receiving four ‘yes’ votes from the judging panel.

The Frontline Singers also includes West End performers Paul Wilkins, Sam O’Rourke and Devon-Elise Johnson who each adapted during the pandemic working night-shifts in supermarkets, volunteering in the community with vulnerable people and working in a pharmacy respectively. 

Watch the video for Strange Old World here: https://youtu.be/oWLMjK_Sw9U

Watch The Frontline Singers performance on Britain’s Got Talent here: https://youtu.be/RXDxiBwfjxc

James and Gina said, “It has been an honour to bring this talented group of frontline workers together to perform on Britain’s Got Talent. What they do for this country is heroic and inspirational, and we are incredibly proud of their journey as a vocal group.”

Toy Soldier Productions is a British production company, founded in 2020 by musical theatre partnership James Beeny and Gina Georgio to develop and produce new, original work. With a background in the music industry, guitarist James and pianist Gina made their theatre debut with new British musical The Dreamers, which was staged for four workshop performances at Abbey Road Studios in 2018. They are now developing their second musical Lady M, based on Shakespeare’s Macbeth.  Lady M recently underwent a workshop in London featuring George Blagden, Kerry Ellis, Jamie Muscato, Maiya Quansah-Breed and Karl Queensborough.

https://www.toysoldierproductions.com/