Regional

FIRST LOOK: David Hare’s Racing Demon at Theatre Royal Bath

Features, Gallery, Regional
Racing Demon by David Hare at Theatre Royal Bath

The Theatre Royal Bath has released these great first look production photos of David Hare’s play Racing Demon directed by Jonathan Church. Four clergymen seek to make sense of their mission in inner-city London whilst facing their own personal crises. There’s Lionel Espy, a cleric whose faith is wavering as his parishioners dwindle; tabloid-hounded gay vicar Harry Henderson; ‘Streaky’ Bacon, a genial reverend with a taste for tequila, and a charismatic young curate, Tony Ferris whose arrival is set to fan the flames, whilst his sexual relationship with his lover turns to ash. The day of judgement is at hand for all. The cast of Racing Demon includes Olivier Award-winning David Haig will star as Lionel Espy,  Sam Alexander, Michelle Bonnard, Anthony Calf, William Chubb, Paapa Essiedu, Andrew Fraser, Ian Gelder, Rebecca Night, Amanda Root and Ashley Russell. Racing Demon is the first production in Jonathan Church’s innaugural season as … Read more

Nadim Naaman and Bill Champion to lead cast of By Jeeves at Old Laundry Theatre

News, Regional
By Jeeves revival at Old Laundry Theatre starring Nadim Naaman and Bill Champion

  The Old Laundry Theatre have announced that their upcoming revival of Alan Ayckbourn and Andrew LLoyd Webber’s musica By Jeeves will star Bill Champion and Nadim Naaman. This will be Alan Ayckbourn’s first revival in over 20 years of this jocular musical – from Broadway to Bowness! Nadim Naamanwho will play Bertie Wooster is currently playing Raoul in the 30th anniversary cast of Lloyd Webber’s ThePhantom Of The Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre. Other theatre credits include Anthony in Sweeney Todd at Harrington’s Pie and Mash Shop on Shaftesbury Avenue and Titanic in Toronto and Southwark Playhouse. Long-time Ayckbourn collaborator actor Bill Cgampion is to play the faitful, long-suffering man servant Jeeves. Bills other credits include Stephen Joseph Theatre, Broadway and West End including: Henceforward, A Chorus of Disapproval, Arrivals and Departures, Woman in Mind, Damsels in Distress Trilogy, Absurd Person Singular, Comic Potential; also Calendar Girls, Sunset Boulevard, … Read more

National Youth Ballet of Great Britain announce 30th Anniversary Season

Dance, News, Regional, West End
National Youth Ballet 2017 Season

For its 30th Anniversary Season, The National Youth Ballet of Great Britain (“The NYB”) will present Time in Motion, a mixed programme of ballets choreographed by some of the UKs most eminent professionals and rising talents, performed by a company of young dancers aged 8-18 from across the UK. Time in Motion will encompass seven short ballets that together will make a compelling journey through time. Highlights include Scottish Ballet Artistic Director Christopher Hampson’s abstract ballet Carnival set to Saint-Saëns’s humorous score; Birmingham Royal Ballet soloist Jonathan Payn’s classical work IKEN inspired by the Suffolk landscape; a new narrative work by New Adventures Associate Director Etta Murfitt inspired by the Dream Ballet from Oklahoma; and Aspirations, a piece by English National Ballet School’s Director of Dance Samira Saidi. The Beyond Ballet platform also returns, offering emerging choreographers the opportunity to devise, develop and showcase new works at a professional level. … Read more

5 Famous Actors Who Started In British Theatre

Regional

5 Famous Actors Who Started in British Theatre A lot of today’s leading Hollywood thespians can be traced back to theatre, especially some of our very own British stars. It’s also not uncommon to see Hollywood actors make their mark on the British theatre stage. With that in mind, this article is going to cover some of the most notable actors and actresses to transition from the theatre to the silver screen. Daniel Craig He may well be known as the toughest ever incarnation of James Bond, but Daniel Craig’s roots can be traced back to theatre. He started performing on stage as early as 16-years-old, when he dropped out of school to join the National Youth Theatre. His first performance was as Agamemnon in “Troilus and Cressida”. According to Stagemilk his working class exterior was considered charming by audiences and he was soon noticed. Robert Pattinson Before he was … Read more

New Production Company Formed by Marianne Elliott and Chris Harper

News, Regional, West End
Marianne Elliott and Chris Harper form own production company

A new production company called Elliott and Harper Productions has been formed by Marianne Elliott, the Olivier and Tony Award-winning director of the National Theatre’s hugely successful productions of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and War Horse and producer Chris Harper. The pair have also announced the UK premiere of their first West End show today: Simon Stephens’ Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle. Starring Anne-Marie Duff and Kenneth Cranham which will be directed by Marianne Elliott. Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle will play at the Wyndham’s Theatre from 3 October 2017 until 9 January 2018. Tickets are on sale at midday today. In this uncertain world, who can predict what brings people together? When two strangers meet by chance amidst the bustle of a crowded London train station, their lives are changed forever. Tony and Olivier-Award-winning playwright Simon Stephens’ Heisenberg: The Uncertainty Principle is a surprising and life-affirming … Read more

REVIEW: Boris and Sergey’s Preposterous Improvisation Experiment, Pulse Festival ✭✭✭✭

Regional, Reviews
Boris and Sergey’s Preposterous Improvisation Experiment

Boris and Sergey’s Preposterous Improvisation Experiment. Pulse Festival, New Wolsey Theatre. 10 June 2017 4 Stars And here is a great way to close the Pulse Festival, Flabbergast Theatre presenting one hour of totally unscripted work, with no rehearsals and no preparation. This approach always makes me feel a little nervous as I enter the auditorium, but there were only moments when the performers seemed to run out of steam, but, of course, they made a feature out of those moments! The troupe wisely made fun of the Pulse Festival by going through the programme, quickly noticing how many shows dealt with death, and began by presenting their version of those shows. Performed just two days after the general election, improvisation suggestions from the audience were along the lines of ‘strong and stable’, so for every time the performers looked to be clutching at straws, there were wheat fields to … Read more

REVIEW: Golem, New Wolsey Theatre, Pulse Festival ✭✭✭✭

Regional, Reviews
Golem Pulse Festival Ipswich

Golem Pulse Festival, New Wolsey Theatre 10 June 2017 4 Stars Very much thought of as the jewel in the crown of this year’s Pulse Festival, 1927’s Golem is a show that has reached legendary status sine it was first staged, and comes to the Wolsey after long national and international tours. Drawing on the myth of The Golem, of a man who fashions a creature out of clay to work for him, the piece examines the relationship between man and machine, until the machines take over. The star of the show is the animation and projections that create a graphic novel coming to life, very much in the style of Fritz Lang, particularly Metropolis. The genius of the piece is that, despite its style, it is a world very familiar to us as the Golem is updated, each time becoming technologically smaller and more powerful. Human emotions are sublimated … Read more

REVIEW: Nuclear Family, New Wolsey Theatre, Pulse Festival ✭✭✭

Regional, Reviews
Nuclear Family at Pulse Festival

Nuclear Family Pulse Festival, New Wolsey Theatre. 10 June 2017 3 Stars Presented as an inquiry into the meltdown of Ashtown Nuclear Plant, this interactive piece by Sunday’s Child and Fever Dream Theatre asks the audience to step in and make decisions that will affect the outcome of the drama. Racing against the clock, and with strictly timed discussion points, the majority choices are then acted out. It takes a while to get going, the opening scene establishing recent history and problems with the plant, and the relationship between siblings Joe and Ellen, who become trapped when disaffected former workers break in and enter the control room. Anne O’Riordan and Aidan O’Callaghan work well as the siblings, creating a good sense of tension as the play progresses. The scenario would have benefited from being a little more realistic; some of the circumstances presented appeared highly unlikely. More character development would … Read more