Features

PHOTOS: Gala Night For The Girls

Features, Gallery, West End
Book now for The Girls at the Phoenix Theatre

Last night the great and the good gathered for the Bloodwise Gala Night of The Girls – a new musical by Gary Barlow and Tim Firth which opens in the West End tonight Tuesday 21 February 2017. Celebrity guests, who were in the presence of HRH The Duke of Kent and HRH The Countess of Wessex, included Graham Norton, Mel Giedroyc, Mark Owen, Michael Ball, and Angus Deayton. At the curtain all, the cast were joined on stage by writers Gary Barlow and Tim Firth, producers David Pugh & Dafydd Rogers and Bob Wankel of The Shubert Organization, and the original Calendar Girls. The ‘Girls’ are played by Debbie Chazen, Sophie-Louise Dann, Michele Dotrice, Claire Machin, Claire Moore and Joanna Riding. The Girls is directed by Tim Firth. BOOK NOW FOR THE GIRLS AT THE PHOENIX THEATRE

FIRST LOOK: The Wild Party at The Other Palace

Features, Gallery, West End
Book tickets for The Wild Party at The Other Palace

We are pleased to bring you these great first look production images from The Wild Party starring Frances Ruffelle, John Owen Jones, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt and Simon Thomas opening at The Other Palace tonight. With a book by Michael John LaChiusa and George C. Wolfe and music and lyrics by LaChiusa. The Wild Party is based on the 1928 Joseph Moncure March narrative poem of the same name. BOOK TICKETS FOR THE WILD PARTY AT THE OTHER PALACE Photos: Scott Rylander

INTERVIEW: Frances Ruffelle Talks The Wild Party and New Musicals

Features, Interviews, News, West End
Frances Ruffelle to star as Queenie in The Wild Party at The Other Palace

We had a brief moment during rehearsals for The Wild Party to talk to British Musical Theatre star Frances Ruffelle about new musicals, The Wild Party and her attraction to new talent. What Is The Wild Party About? It’s a very debauched poem written in the 1920’s at a time when prohibition forced people to hold parties in their own homes with drug taking, bath tub gin and a lot of free love. It’s about a racy 24 hours in the life of New York chorine Queenie. She’s unsatisfied with her life. Having come to New York to make it big, she’s now stuck with her lover Burrs who is violent and nothing has quite worked out as she planned. Unhappy, she gets her fulfilment from multiple lovers and partying her life away. In the midst of the partying, she has a revelation that she needs to find her own … Read more

Samuel French Closes London Theatre Bookshop

Features, News, West End
Samuel French's London Theatre Bookshop will close in Mid April.

We were saddened to hear today that play publisher Samuel French will close their theatre bookshop in London in mid-April. Samuel French has been publishing plays in London for over 187 years, but faced with a rental increase of 200%, the shop’s current location in Fitzroy Street was no longer tenable. In an email thanking their loyal customer base Samuel French made the following statement “we want to thank our loyal customers from all over the world who’ve supported our bookshop through the years. We’ve loved meeting and helping you all, and we’re very grateful that the shop has played such an important part in the theatre community. Before the shop closes, we’ll be throwing a party to say farewell and thank you to all of you, and to celebrate the wonderful times we’ve had.” Samuel French will continue to sell theatre books online and their licensing division will continue. … Read more

UPCOMING: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, The Ambassadors Theatre

Features, Reviews
The Sorcerer's Apprentice a new musical by Ben Frost and Richard Hough

Julian Eaves attended a preview presentation of new musical The Sorcerer’s Apprentice by Ben Frost and Richard Hough. The wonderfully gifted songwriting team of Ben Frost (music) and Richard Hough (lyrics) are making their way steadily up the ladder of new talent in the world of musical theatre, and with this – their most recent project – they score a number of important successes. Seen just twice, in workshop ‘concert’ performances (although Ryan McBryde’d direction gave us nearly a whole production, at least as far as the six principals and narrator – the forces available here – were concerned), first in Letchworth and then at The Ambassador’s with an industry-heavy audience, this was a fascinating insight into the development of a new musical entertainment. Commissioned by James Seabright, the pair have devised and elaborated their own libretto, inspired by – rather than based on – the brief, rollickingly funny poetic … Read more

FIRST LOOK: Anyone Can Whistle at the Union Theatre

Features, Gallery, Off West End
Book tickets for Anyone Can Whistle at the Union Theatre

We’re pleased to bring you these great first look production photos of Anyone Can Whistle which is now playing at London’s Union Theatre. This rare revival of Stephen Sondheim and Arthur Laurents musical satire will run until 11 March 2017. Anyone Can Whistle is political allegory in musical comedy form that tells the story of a town that’s gone bankrupt because its only industry is manufacturing something that never wears out. In order to revive her town Mayoress Cora Hoover Hooper and her town council fake a miracle – water flowing from a rock – to attract tourists. When patients at the local mental hospital escape and mix with the townspeople and tourists, chaos ensues whilst J. Bowden Hapgood, a fake psychiatrist falls in love with Fay Apple, a nurse at the asylum who has disguised herself as a miracle verifier sent from Lourdes. The show contains a raft of … Read more

Do Standing Ovations mean anything anymore?

Broadway, Features, News, Off West End, West End
Standing Ovations - To stand or not to stand?

Wikipedia defines a Standing Ovation as a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. It’s a form of celebration that dates back to ancient Rome and is one of the highest forms of thanks or praise afforded to a performer in the theatre or at least it used to be. In times past, the Standing Ovation was something that was given by audiences to exceptional or outstanding performances. There are stories in the annals of theatre history which have Standing Ovations lasting for up to half an hour at farewell performances, other productions use dance dominated curtain calls to get the crowds on their feet proclaiming ” A Standing Ovation Every Night”, which whilst the show may have been good is probably more than a slight exaggeration. Of late, the practice of standing ovations has even led … Read more

BritishTheatre.com Playlist – February 2017

Broadway, Features, News, Touring, West End

Welcome to the February 2017 BritishTheatre.com playlist. We thought it would be fun to share with you some of the tracks we are listening to at BritishTheatre.com HQ as well as tracks from some of the shows in the West End and on Broadway at the moment. This month we’ve included a tribute to Andrew Lloyd Webber who has become the first composer since Rodgers and Hammerstein to have four musicals running concurrently on Broadway. There’s a track from the new cast album for Dear Evan Hansen which we love, tastes of Young Frankenstein, Bat Out Of Hell, An American In Paris, 42nd Street, and from Idina (does she need a surname) Menzel. There’s also a track from Newsies due for cinema release this month. There’s a lot to enjoy, so keep making suggestions and we’ll try to include your favourites in upcoming playlists. LISTEN TO THE BRITISHTHEATRE.COM FEBRUARY 2017 … Read more