News

First productions announced for Bridge Theatre

News, West End
The Bridge Theatre announces new season

Ben Whishaw, Simon Russell Beale, Rory Kinnear and David Morrissey are among stars lined up for the first productions at the new Bridge Theatre opening in London in October. For the new venue by Tower Bridge, London Theatre Company (LTC) founders Nicholas Hytner and Nick Starr have secured new plays by leading playwrights including Lucinda Coxon, Lucy Prebble, Sam Holcroft and Nina Raine. The theatre will open with a new comedy by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, Young Marx, directed by Hytner, with Kinnear in the title role plus Oliver Chris as Engels. Depicting a young Karl Marx in Soho in 1850, it reunites the creative team behind smash hit One Man, Two Guvnors. Design will be by Mark Thompson, music by Grant Olding, lighting by Mark Henderson and sound by Paul Arditti. With previews from October 18, it will open October 26 and run to December 31. In line … Read more

Clary, Havers And Zerdin Return For Palladium Panto 2017

News, West End
Book now for Dick Whittington at the London Palladium

Qdos Entertainment have announced that Following the success of Cinderella last year, Julian Clary, Paul Zerdin and Nigel Havers will return for their production of Dick Whittington which will play at the London Palladium from 9 December 2017 to 14 January 2018. For Dick Whittington Julian Clary will play Spirit Of The Bells, Paul Zerdin will play Idle Jack and Nigel Havers will return to play Captain Nigel. Dick Whittington is being produced by Nick Thomas and Michael Harrison (who will also direct the show) for Qdos Entertainment, the team behind last year’s twice Olivier-nominated production of Cinderella at the London Palladium. Cinderella broke box office records for the highest grossing week in West End theatre history. As the world’s biggest pantomime producer, over the past 35 years Qdos Entertainment has established itself as one of the largest entertainment companies in Europe. Over the past three decades the pantomime giant … Read more

Cast announced for Arcola’s Richard III

News, Off West End
Arcola Theatre Richard III

The full cast has been announced for the new production of Shakespeare’s Richard III starring Greg Hicks at the Arcola Theatre in London. Hicks, who is associate artist at the Royal Shakespeare Company, will take on the role of the tyrant king after acclaimed performances as Macbeth, Julius Caesar, Coriolanus and King Lear for the RSC. He was nominated for the Best Actor Olivier Award and won Best Shakespearian Performance at the Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards for the title role in Coriolanus at the Old Vic. He is returning to the Arcola having previously starred in two sold-out runs of Clarion, An Enemy of the People and The Kreutzer Sonata. Buckingham will be played by Peter Guinness who has recently been seen on TV in Lucky Man, Critical, Strike Back and DaVinci’s Demons. On stage he was in After Independence at the Arcola and played Claudius in Hamlet at Glasgow … Read more

Kevin Spacey To Host Tony Awards 2017

Broadway, News
Kevin Spacey to host Tony Awards 2017

It has been announced that Kevin Spacey will host the 71st Annual Tony Awards live from Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sunday 11 June 2017. This will be Spacey’s first time hosting the prestigious awards event. Kevin Spacey said “I was their 2nd choice for Usual Suspects, 4th choice for America Beauty and 15th choice to host this year’s Tony Awards. I think my career is definitely going in the right direction, Maybe I can get shortlisted to host the Oscars if everyone else turns it down.” “We are thrilled to have Kevin, who has mastered the Broadway stage, the big and small screens and the West End, host this year’s Tony Awards! His spirit and passion for live theatre makes him the perfect host, and we can’t wait to see the energy he brings to Radio City on Tony night!” said Charlotte St. Martin, President … Read more

Cast announced for An Octoroon at Orange Tree

News, Off West End
Cast for An Octoroon at Orange Tree Theatre

The cast has been announced for the European premiere of Branden Jacobs-Jenkins’ Obie Award-winning play, An Octoroon, at the Orange Tree Theatre in London. The line-up comprises Cassie Clare, Emmanuella Cole, Celeste Dodwell, Iola Evans, Ken Nwosu, Vivian Oparah, Alistair Toovey, and Kevin Trainor. They are joined by cellist James Douglas. Ned Bennett returns to the Orange Tree to direct after his successful production of Alistair McDowall’s Pomona which transferred to the National Theatre and Royal Exchange. An Octoroon, which premiered Off-Off Broadway in 2014, is set on a failing plantation, Terrebonne, after the death of its owner Judge Peyton. His handsome nephew George arrives as heir apparent and quickly falls in love with Zoe, a beautiful “octoroon” – a 19th-century term for a mixed-heritage person with just one black great-grandparent. However, the dastardly M’Closky has other plans for both Terrebonne and Zoe. It is based on Irish playwright Dion … Read more

Brighton Fringe Preview – Our Top Picks

Events, News, Regional
Brighton Fringe 2017

From small beginnings, Brighton Fringe has grown over the past five years and now features nearly 1,000 events from comedy, cabaret and music to theatre, dance and visual arts. With a programme running from May 5 to June 4, we pick out some of the theatre highlights. For more, look out for the 160-page free A4 brochure or visit www.brightonfringe.org. The world premiere of Blooming, Patrick Sandford’s take on experiences of happiness, follows his hit show Groomed, which won three Brighton Fringe theatre awards in 2016. Patrick asked 100 people, “How do you know when you are happy?”. The answers – provocative, kaleidoscopic, astonishing – were the starting point for this optimistic-in-spite-of-everything show. Sweet Dukebox, May 19-21, 25-27 Shell Shock tells one soldier’s story of coping with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, adapted from the novel, Shell Shock: The Diary of Tommy Atkins, by Iraq … Read more

Carvel And Coyle Cast In Almeida’s Ink

News, Off West End
Bertie Carvell and Richard Coyle to star in Ink at Aleida Theatre

Bertie Carvel and Richard Coyle are to lead the cast of James Graham’s new play about The Sun newspaper at the Almeida Theatre. Carvel will play a “young and rebellious” Rupert Murdoch who bought the struggling tabloid in 1969 and relaunched it as the populist publication it is today. Coyle will play Larry Lamb who took over as Murdoch’s first editor with a quest, against all odds, to give the people what they want. Joining them will be Pearl Chanda, with further casting to be announced soon. It is being designed by Bunny Christie with lighting by Neil Austin and sound and composition by Adam Cork. Ink will be directed by the Almeida’s artistic director Rupert Goold and run from June 17 to August 5. In his debut at the Almeida, Graham is again exploring modern society and politics as in previous acclaimed plays including This House, The Vote, Privacy … Read more