THEATREWORLD

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FORTHCOMING PRODUCTIONS

LONDON

WEST END (LARGE THEATRES)

 

LOVE STORY – Duchess Theatre;    AN IDEAL HUSBAND – Vaudeville Theatre;    WHEN WE ARE MARRIED – Garrick Theatre;    SHREK – The Musical – Theatre Royal, Drury Lane;    BLITHE SPIRIT – Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury AVENUE;    YES, PRIME MINISTER – Gielgud Theatre;    ONASSIS – Novello Theatre;    THE WIZARD OF OZ – London Palladium;     BIRDSONG – Comedy Theatre;    THE PRISONER OF SECOND AVENUE – Vaudeville Theatre;    DEATHTRAP – Noel Coward Theatre;    GHOST STORIES – Duke of York’s Theatre;    FLASHDANCE – Shaftesbury Theatre;    

NATIONAL THEATRE - All forthcoming productions - OLD VIC COMPANY All forthcoming productions - SHAKESPEARE'S GLOBE THEATRE (Bankside) - information on SHAKESPEARE'S GLOBE –

REGENT'S PARK OPEN AIR THEATRE (The New Shakespeare Company) - (2010 season)

 

(to find a specific production use the "find/search" facility on your Internet server, and enter the title or Theatre)

 


 

WEST END TRANSFER FOR ERICH SEGAL’S

L O V E   S T O R Y

 

The Chichester Festival Theatre production of Love Story will transfer to the West End previewing at the Duchess Theatre from 27 November, with press night on 6 December 2010.  Love Story, which is produced in the West End by Michael Ball – making his producing debut, Adam Spiegel and Stephen Waley-Cohen, is currently booking until 26 February 2011. 

 

Oliver Barrett IV went to Harvard and Jenny Cavilleri to Radcliffe. He was rich, she was poor. He was sporty, she played music. But they fell in love. This is their story.

 

Erich Segal’s best-selling novel, Love Story, became one of the most romantic films of all time, has sold over 21 million copies world-wide and has been published in 33 languages.

 

This new musical version of Love Story, inspired by Erich Segal’s novel, is directed by Rachel Kavanaugh, with music by Howard Goodall, book by Stephen Clark and lyrics by Stephen Clark and Howard GoodallLove Story, which enjoyed a run at The Chichester Festival Theatre earlier this year, is designed by Peter McKintosh with musical direction by Stephen Ridley. Casting will be announced shortly.

 

Emmy, Brit and BAFTA award-winning Howard Goodall is one of the UK’s most versatile and distinguished composers having written choral music, stage musicals, film and TV scores. Goodall was appointed as England's first ever National Ambassador for Singing, he is the Classical Brit Composer of the Year and Classic FM's Composer-in-Residence and a highly respected broadcaster and an energetic campaigner for music education.  His extensive scores include Q.I., The Vicar of Dibley, The Gathering Storm, The Borrowers, The Catherine Tate Show, Mr Bean, Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie, Mr Bean's Holiday and Blackadder.  Previously his musical theatre compositions include The Hired Man, Girlfriends, Days of Hope, Catwalk, The Kissing Dance and The Dreaming.

 

Stephen Clark’s work includes Mahabharata for Sadler’s Wells, The Far Pavilions at the Shaftesbury Theatre, the Laurence Olivier award-winning Martin Guerre at the Prince Edward Theatre, La Traviata for English National Opera and Zorro at the Garrick Theatre and Folies Bergère, Paris.

 

Love Story is directed by Rachel Kavanaugh, Artistic Director of Birmingham Repertory Theatre where her many credits include Hapgood, Peter Pan – A Musical Adventure and Uncle Vanya as well as David Hare’s Racing Demon, Murmuring Judges and The Absence Of War.  Her other credits include The Music Man starring Brian Conley and A Small Family Business for Chichester Festival Theatre, The Merry Wives of Windsor and Alice in Wonderland for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Hilda for Hampstead Theatre and The Rivals for Bristol Old Vic. 

 

Michael Ball makes his producing debut with Love Story.  His many West End credits include originating the role of Edna Turnblad in Hairspray, produced by Adam Spiegel, and for which he won the Laurence Olivier and Whatsonstage Awards for Best Actor in a Musical.  He can currently be seen on tour in the UK reprising the role of Edna.  His other theatre roles include Marius in Les Misérables, Giorgio in Stephen Sondheim’s Passion, Raoul in The Phantom of the Opera, Alex  in Aspects of Love, Caractacus Potts in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Count Fosco in The Woman in White in the West End and on Broadway.  His made his English National Opera debut as Hajj/Poet in Kismet and in 2005 he made his debut with the New York City Opera as Reginald Bunthrone in Gilbert and Sullivan’s Patience.  As well as his Sunday Brunch for BBC Radio, he will present a new series for ITV, The Michael Ball Show, starting next month.  His 15 solo albums have all achieved gold or platinum status and his discography includes: Michael Ball, Always, One Careful Owner, First Love, The Musicals, The Movies, Music, One Voice and the superb homage to Burt Bacharach, Michael Ball – Back To Bacharach.

 

 

Listings Information                                 LOVE STORY

 

Dates                                                  27 November 2010 – 26 February 2011

                                                          Press Night 6 December 7pm

 

Address                                               Duchess Theatre, Catherine Street,

                                                          London WC2B 5 LA

 

Box Office                                            0844 412 4659

 

Running time                                        90 minutes

 

Performances times                               Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm

                                                          Wednesday and Saturday at 3pm

 

Ticket prices                                        £25, £40, £55

 


 

OSCAR WILDE’S CLASSIC                         

                  

AN IDEAL HUSBAND

DIRECTED BY LINDSAY POSNER

 

STARRING SAMANTHA BOND, ELLIOTT COWAN,  ALEXANDER HANSON AND RACHAEL STIRLING

 

OPENS IN LONDON

AT THE VAUDEVILLE THEATRE, THE STRAND

 

ON 10 NOVEMBER 2010

WITH PREVIEWS FROM 4 NOVEMBER 2010

 

Oscar Wilde’s much loved play, An Ideal Husband returns to the West End for the first time in over 10 years. Directed by Lindsay Posner and starring Samantha Bond, Elliott Cowan, Alexander Hanson and Rachael Stirling, An Ideal Husband will open at the Vaudeville Theatre for previews from 4 November 2010.

 

Sir Robert Chiltern (Alexander Hanson) is a successful Government minister, well-off and with a loving wife (Rachael Stirling). All this is threatened when Mrs Cheveley (Samantha Bond) appears in London with damning evidence of a past misdeed. Sir Robert turns for help to his friend Lord Goring (Elliot Cowan), an apparently idle philanderer and the despair of his family.  For the next 48 hours all their lives will be turned upside down.

 

An Ideal Husband, written in 1895, is a stylish critique of politicians and social morality, portrayed with tremendous humour and elegant style. Last performed on the London stage in Peter Hall’s acclaimed 1996 production, An Ideal Husband soon after transferred to Broadway and has since completed various UK tours. In 1999 the play was made into a film starring Rupert Everett, Cate Blanchett and Julianne Moore.

 

Samantha Bond is best known for her role as ‘Miss Moneypenny in the James Bond films starring Pierce Brosnan. She has appeared in many television series, including the ITV drama-comedy Distant Shores, Outnumbered (BBC), Mansfield Park, Emma, Rumpole of the Bailey and Agatha Christie's Poirot. On stage, Bond starred opposite Dame Judi Dench in David Hare's award-winning play Amy's View at the  National Theatre, for which she was nominated for a Tony Award. Recent West End stage roles include Michael Frayn's Donkey's Years (Comedy Theatre), Oscar Wilde’s A Woman of No Importance (Theatre Royal Haymarket) and Tom Stoppard's Arcadia (Duke of York's Theatre).

 

 

 

Elliott Cowan played the title role in Lucy Bailey’s production of Macbeth at The Globe earlier this year and the role of Stanley Kowalski in the acclaimed version of A Streetcar Named Desire at the Donmar Warehouse in 2009. Other stage credits include Michael Grandage’s Frost/Nixon (Donmar & West End) and Don Carlos (Sheffield Crucible & West End). Cowan’s film credits include The Golden Compass, Happy Go Lucky and Alexander. He is also a familiar face from television having recently appeared in The Fixer (Kudos), Blood and Oil (BBC) and Lost in Austen with Jemima Rooper.

 

Alexander Hanson most recently starred in Sondheim’s A Little Night Music (West End, Broadway) for which he was nominated for an Olivier Award for ‘Best Actor in a Musical’. Other credits include Marguerite (Theatre Royal Haymarket) for which he was also nominated for an Olivier Award; ‘Captain Georg Von Trapp’ in The Sound of Music (West End); Sunset Boulevard (Adelphi Theatre); The Merchant of Venice; Troilus and Cressida both for Trevor Nunn at the National Theatre and Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia at the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Television credits include Six Characters in Search of an Author (BBC) and Auf Wiedersehn Pet (BBC).

 

Rachael Stirling was recently in Peter Hall’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Rose Theatre, Kingston with Judi Dench. Other stage credits include The Priory (Royal Court), Pygmalion (Theatre Royal & Japan) and Theatre of Blood (National Theatre).  Stirling’s television credits include Women in Love (BBC), Minder (Talkback Thames), Boy Meets Girl (ITV) and Lewis (ITV). Film credits include Centurion and The Young Victoria with Emily Blunt and Rupert Friend.

 

Full cast includes: Caroline Blakiston (A Woman of No Importance, Theatre Royal Haymarket), Samantha Bond, Fiona Button (Madame de Sade, Rock ‘n’ Roll), Elliott Cowan, Alexander Hanson, Charles Kay (Amadeus – the film and at the Old Vic, Kenneth Branagh's Henry V and at the RSC, Julius Caesar, The Merchant of Venice, The Comedy of Errors and Hamlet) and Rachael Stirling.

 

Director Lindsay Posner received rave reviews for his production of A View from the Bridge starring Ken Stott, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio and Hayley Atwell at the Duke of York’s Theatre in 2009. Previously, he directed the critically acclaimed productions of Carousel starring Lesley Garrett and Fiddler on the Roof starring Henry Goodman (both Savoy Theatre). Other credits include David Mamet’s A Life in The Theatre with Patrick Stewart and Oleanna with Julia Stiles and Aaron Eckhart, Sam Shepherd’s Fool For Love with Juliette Lewis (all West End), and Tom and Viv at the Almeida Theatre. Stephen Brimson Lewis will design and Peter Mumford will light the production.

 

 

An Ideal Husband is produced by Kim Poster for Stanhope Productions.

 

 

 

BOOKING INFORMATION

 

Vaudeville Box Office 0844 412 4663

www.anidealhusbandwestend.com

 

Thursday 4th November 2010 – Saturday 19th February 2011

 

Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm

Wednesday & Saturday at 2.30pm (except Wednesday 10th November)

 

No performances on Friday 24th December at 7.30pm, Saturday 25th December at 2.30pm and 7.30pm

 

Additional performances on Friday 24th December at 2.30pm, Friday 31st December at 2.30pm

 


 

Nica Burns & Max Weitzenhoffer for Nimax Theatres and Duncan C. Weldon & Paul Elliot in association with Guildford’s Yvonne Arnaud Theatre present

 

WHEN WE ARE MARRIED, JB PRIESTLEY’S TIMELESS COMEDY

 

WHEN WE ARE MARRIED, JB Priestley’s gloriously timeless traditional British comedy about class and hypocrisy opens at the Garrick Theatre on the 19th October starring a fine ensemble of West End favourites including Maureen Lipman as Clara Soppit and Roy Hudd as the photographer Henry Ormonroyd.

 

Set in 1908 in Clecklewyke in the heart of Northern England, three well-to-do West Yorkshire couples - the Parkers, Soppitts and Helliwells -  married on the same day, at the same church, and by the same vicar, join to celebrate 25 years of blissful matrimony.

 

Disaster strikes with the shocking revelation that the vicar who married them wasn’t actually licensed – these pillars of the church and the community, aren’t as respectably married as they thought they were!

 

Home truths fly like confetti, an old flame returns and other uninvited guests start to call. With a photographer from the local paper due to arrive, a missing housekeeper and a doorbell that wont stop ringing, can the three couples keep a lid on their embarrassing secret or will the neighbours find out, destroying their standing in the community.

 

Roy Hudd says: When We Are Married was the very first play I ever saw at the Grand Theatre Croydon when I was about thirteen.   I'd seen lots of variety but no "legit".  There and then I vowed if I ever became an actor (I'm still working on it!) the photographer is the part I'd love to play. Now, sixty years later, I'm getting the chance.  Yippee!”

 

Nica Burns says: “This is an utterly delightful classic comedy by J.B. Priestley, one of our greatest and most loved playwrights. This fine acting ensemble will relish doing J.B. justice.”

 

The production stars Olivier Award Nominated Rosemary Ashe (Witches of Eastwick, Phantom of the Opera), Lynda Baron (Open All Hours, Fat Friends), Susie Blake (Coronation Street, Victoria Wood), Michele Dotrice (Some Mothers Do Have ‘Em), David Horovitch (Bedroom Farce, Taking Sides & Collaboration), Roy Hudd (Coronation Street, BBC Radio 2), Sam Kelly (‘AlloAllo), Olivier Award winning Maureen Lipman (A Little Night Music, Glorious) and Simon Rouse (The Bill). 

Director Christopher Luscombe’s  directing credits include The Shakespeare Revue (Vaudeville), Star Quality (Apollo), Home and Beauty (Lyric), One Last Flutter (Comedy), The Rocky Horror Show (Playhouse), The Comedy of Errors and The Merry Wives of Windsor (Shakespeare’s Globe), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Regent’s Park), Enjoy (Gielgud) and Alphabetical Order (Hampstead). Other directing credits include Masterpieces (Birmingham Rep), Little Shop of Horrors (West Yorkshire Playhouse), Things We Do for Love (Harrogate), Candida (Oxford Stage Company), The Likes of Us (Sydmonton), Arms and the Man (Salisbury), A Small Family Business (Watford) and tours of The Importance of Being Earnest, Tell Me on a Sunday, The Lady in the Van, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Single Spies. He currently has two other productions on tour: The History Boy,  The Rocky Horror Show and Spamalot.

The production is designed by Simon Higlett (Yes, Prime Minister, Collaboration and Taking Sides, Chichester & West End), Lighting by Olivier Award winning designer Mark Henderson and Sound Design by Jason Barnes (Enjoy).

 

When We Are Married is produced by Nica Burns & Max Weitzenhoffer for Nimax Theatres and Duncan C. Weldon & Paul Elliot in association with Guildford’s Yvonne Arnaud Theatre

 

Listings Information:

 

Theatre:  Garrick Theatre, Charing Cross Road, London, WC2H 0HH

Booking Period: 19th October 2010 - 26th February 2011

PN: Wednesday 27th October at 7pm

Times: Mon- Sat 7.30pm; Thurs & Sat @ 2.30pm

Ticket Prices: £19.50 - £49.50. Price includes £1 restoration levy.

Box Office: 0844 412 4661

www.whenwearemarried.com

Christmas Schedule:

24 Dec – no show

25 Dec – no show

26 Dec – no show

27 Dec – 2.30pm & 7.30pm

28 Dec – 2.30pm & 7.30pm

29 Dec – 7.30-pm

30 Dec – 2.30pm & 7.30pm

31 Dec – 7.30pm

01 Jan – 2.30pm & 7.30pm

www.whenwearemarried.com

 


 

 

SHREK THE MUSICAL
THEATRE ROYAL, DRURY LANE, LONDON
MAY 2011

DreamWorks Theatricals and Neal Street Productions announced today that SHREK THE MUSICAL® will open at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in May 2011, with a press night on June 7, 2011.  The new stage musical is based on the story and characters from William Steig’s book Shrek! and the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation feature film Shrek, the first chapter in the series of irreverent fairy tales.

The Anglo-American creative team is led by directors Jason Moore and Rob Ashford and includes David Lindsay-Abaire (Book and Lyrics), Jeanine Tesori (Music), Tim Hatley (Scenic, Costume and Puppet Design), Hugh Vanstone (Lighting Design), Peter Hylenski (Sound Design), and Josh Prince (Choreography).

Casting, performance dates, and box office details will be released soon.

Tickets will go on sale to the general public on October 1, 2010.

Register for priority booking and sign-up for our newsletter at www.shrekthemusical.co.uk

Amanda Holden will play Princess Fiona.

Richard Blackwood will play Donkey.

SHREK THE MUSICAL® will open at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane in May 2011.  Tickets will go on sale to the general public on October 1, 2010.  The new stage musical will be booking until February 19, 2012.

Amanda Holden played the title role in the West End production of Thoroughly Modern Millie in 2003, for which she was nominated for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical.  As Princess Fiona in SHREK THE MUSICAL® she will be reunited with director Rob Ashford and composer Jeanine Tesori. Among her varied television roles are Mel in the BBC’s Kiss Me Kate, Mia Bevan in the BBC’s Cutting It and Sarah Trevanion in ITV1’s Wild at Heart.  Amanda is a judge on ITV1’s Britain's Got Talent, and the UK correspondent for CBS America’s The Early Show.

A regular on the comedy circuit, Richard Blackwood recently performed in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Novello Theatre alongside James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad. In 2007 Richard became the host of ‘RB’s Sunday School’ on Choice FM. He has a range of TV credits including Anton in ITV’s Britannia High, BBC1’s Dani’s House and his own show on Channel 4, The Richard Blackwood Show. Stage credits include national tours of Roy Williams’ Angel House and The Unexpected Guest, and The Brothers at the Hackney Empire.

SHREK THE MUSICAL® is based on the story and characters from William Steig’s book Shrek! and the Oscar-winning DreamWorks Animation feature film Shrek, the first chapter in the series of irreverent fairy tales.

The Anglo-American creative team is led by directors Jason Moore and Rob Ashford and includes David Lindsay-Abaire (Book and Lyrics), Jeanine Tesori (Music), Tim Hatley (Scenic, Costume and Puppet Design), Hugh Vanstone (Lighting Design), Peter Hylenski (Sound Design), and Josh Prince (Choreography).

Register for priority booking and sign-up for our newsletter at www.shrekthemusical.co.uk

 

SHREK THE MUSICAL® tells the story, loved by people of all ages, of the swamp-dwelling ogre who, in a faraway kingdom, embarks on a life-changing adventure in order to reclaim the deed to his land. Joined by a wise-cracking donkey who won’t shut up, this unlikely hero - not a handsome prince - fights a fearsome dragon, rescues the feisty Princess Fiona and learns that real friendship and true love aren’t only found in fairy tales. With all-new songs, and an old favourite in I’m a Believer, this spectacular stage musical brings to life the film’s cast of dysfunctional characters and the accompanying subversive fun. 

SHREK THE MUSICAL® played on Broadway from December 2008 to January 2010 and was nominated for eight Tony Awards; winning Tim Hatley the Tony for Best Costume Design of a Musical. The original creative team has now re-assembled to stage the production with new songs and additional scenes. Currently in rehearsal, this production will tour 60 cities in the United States beginning in July 2010. The UK production will start rehearsals in London in early 2011. 

SHREK THE MUSICAL® is DreamWorks Animation’s first theatre venture. The production was initiated when Sam Mendes, a fan of the first Shrek film, suggested the idea of creating a musical to DreamWorks Animation’s Jeffrey Katzenberg around the time that the second film (Shrek 2) was in production. The musical is produced by DreamWorks Theatricals (Bill Damaschke, president) and London-based Neal Street Productions (Caro Newling, producer).

David Lindsay-Abaire (Book and Lyrics) won the Pulitzer Prize in 2007 for his play Rabbit Hole, which also attracted five Tony nominations. He recently wrote the screenplay for a film version which stars Nicole Kidman (currently in post-production).

Jeanine Tesori (Music) won the Olivier Award for Caroline, or Change when it transferred to the National Theatre in London. The production received a Tony nomination for Best Musical; one of three ‘Best Musical’ nominations for Tesori.   She has written numerous songs for films which include Shrek The Third.

Jason Moore (Director) directed Avenue Q in London. His Broadway credits include Avenue Q, Steel Magnolias and Jerry Springer: The Opera. He has also directed TV episodes of Dawson’s Creek, One Tree Hill and Brothers and Sisters.

Rob Ashford (Director) is an Associate Director of the Donmar Warehouse and recently directed A Streetcar Named Desire at the London venue. He choreographed Guys and Dolls, Evita and Thoroughly Modern Millie in the West End and his production of Promises, Promises is currently running on Broadway.

Tim Hatley (Set & Costume Design) won the 2009 Tony Award for Shrek The Musical on Broadway and the 2002 Olivier Award for Humble Boy and Private Lives in the West End. He designed the Broadway and West End productions of Spamalot and his film credits include Stage Beauty, Closer and Notes on a Scandal.

Hugh Vanstone (Lighting Design) has won three Olivier Awards for his work. He designed the lighting for God of Carnage, Mary Stuart, Boeing-Boeing, Spamalot and Bombay Dreams amongst other plays, musicals and operas in London, New York and around the world.

Peter Hylenski (Sound Design) was nominated for an Olivier Award for his sound design on Ragtime in the West End in 2003. He created the sound design for Walking With Dinosaurs and on Broadway he has worked on The Wedding Singer, Sweet Charity and Little Women. 

Josh Prince (Choreographer) made his Broadway debut as a Choreographer on Shrek The Musical and worked on movement for The Bridge Project productions at Brooklyn Academy of Music and the Old Vic. 

www.shrekthemusical.co.uk

The final chapter in the feature film series, Shrek Forever After, is on general release in cinemas now and opens in the UK on July 2, 2010. www.shrek.com

·         PRESS REPRESENTATIVE

The Corner Shop PR

·         DREAMWORKS THEATRICALS – PRODUCER

DreamWorks Theatricals was established in 2007 by DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (Nasdaq: DWA) to produce stage productions based on its films and other original adapted works. DWA is devoted to producing high quality family entertainment though the use of computer-generated animation. DWA’s current and upcoming film slate includes Shrek Forever After, Megamind, Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom and Puss In Boots.  Past titles include How to Train Your Dragon, the Shrek and Madagascar film series, Monsters vs. Aliens and Kung Fu Panda. Shrek was the winner of the first-ever Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. Jeffrey Katzenberg serves as DWA’s CEO and was a co-founder of DreamWorks Studios in 1994. Bill Damaschke serves as president of DreamWorks Theatricals.

·         BILL DAMASCHKE – PRODUCER

Bill Damaschke is president of DreamWorks Theatricals and co-president of production at DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. He joined DreamWorks Studios in 1995 and has served in a variety of roles at the animation studio, including head of creative production and head of development. Damaschke served as producer of Shark Tale (nominated for Best Animated Feature Academy Award in 2004) and executive producer of Over The Hedge and Kung Fu Panda. He oversees the creative development of DWA’s film slate from inception to screen.

·         NEAL STREET PRODUCTIONS – PRODUCER, CARO NEWLING

Formed in 2003 by Sam Mendes, Caro Newling and Pippa Harris to produce film and theatre. Currently: The Bridge Project, Enron (West End), Red (Broadway). In development: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Warner Brothers Theatre Ventures Inc. Previously: Three Days of Rain (director Jamie Lloyd), The Vertical Hour (director Sam Mendes). Commissioned projects and premieres also include: The House of Special Purpose (director Howard Davies), All About My Mother (director Tom Cairns), The Hound of the Baskervilles (director Orla O’Loughlin), Days of Wine and Roses (director Peter Gill), Anna in the Tropics (director Indhu Rubasingham), Fuddy Meers (director Angus Jackson). West End/Broadway transfers 2006-9: Hamlet (director Michael Grandage), Mary Stuart (director Phyllida Lloyd) - from the Donmar Warehouse; Sunday in the Park with George (director Sam Buntrock) - from the Menier Chocolate Factory. Films: Stuart: A Life Backwards, Starter for Ten, Things We Lost in the Fire, Jarhead, Revolutionary Road, Away We Go.

Sam Mendes and Caro Newling established and ran the Donmar Warehouse from 1992 to 2002, originating some 70 productions including The Blue Room, Electra, True West, and Tony Award winners Cabaret, The Real Thing, Take Me Out. For more information, go to www.nealstreetproductions.com

·         WILLIAM STEIG – AUTHOR OF SHREK!

Named the ‘King of Cartoons’ by Newsweek, William Steig remains The New Yorker’s longest-running contributor with more than 1600 drawings and 117 covers to his name. He began writing and illustrating books for children at the age of 60. His work Sylvester and the Magic Pebble earned him the Caldecott Medal, the highest honour bestowed on children’s picture books, but it was the 1990 fairy tale Shrek! that ultimately brought him his largest audience by inspiring one of the most successful film franchises in motion picture history. William Steig wrote and illustrated children’s books up until the last year of his life and died in 2003 at the age of 95.

 


Theatre Royal Bath Productions presents

ALISON STEADMAN IN BLITHE SPIRIT

By Noel Coward                                      

Directed by Thea Sharrock

Designed by Hildegard Bechtler, Lighting Design by Mark Henderson

Wednesday 2nd March – Saturday 18th June, 2011

Apollo Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, London W1

 

A classic of high English comedy…addictively entertaining” Daily Telegraph

 

Blithe Spirit opened in 1941 when it played for over 2,000 performances. It has been one of the world’s favourite comedies ever since.

 

Novelist Charles Condomine and his second wife Ruth are literally haunted by a past relationship when an eccentric medium manages to conjure up the ghost of Charles’s neurotic first wife, Elvira, at a seance.

 

They have assumed the preposterous Madame Arcati is a fraud who will simply entertain their dinner guests with a little chicanery and supply Charles with material for his forthcoming novel. But when Elvira appears, visible only to Charles, and is determined to sabotage his current marriage, life – and the afterlife – begin to get complicated.

 

Alison Steadman plays the improbable clairvoyant, one of theatre’s most hilarious comic creations. Alison is one of our best-loved and most prolific actresses who recently enjoyed a West End run in Alan Bennett’s Enjoy. Also on stage she created the role of the monstrous Beverly in Mike Leigh's Abigail's Party and starred in The Rise and Fall of Little Voice, for which she won an Olivier Award. Her films include ‘Shirley Valentine’ and Mike Leigh’s ‘Life Is Sweet’ and ‘Topsy Turvy’. Television work includes ‘Fat Friends’, ‘Selling Hitler’, ‘The Singing Detective’, ‘Pride and Prejudice’ and ‘Gavin & Stacey’.

 

Thea Sharrock is an award-winning director who has previously worked with Daniel Radcliffe, Keira Knightley, Derek Jacobi, John Hurt, Ken Stott, Richard Griffiths and Damian Lewis in the West End. Her production of Rattigan’s After the Dance is currently running at the National Theatre.

 

Tickets go on sale on 30th June 2010.

 

Further casting details will be announced shortly.

 

Press Night: Wednesday 9th March 2011, 7pm

 


 

 

YES, PRIME MINISTER

TRANSFERS TO THE WEST END ON 17th SEPTEMBER 2010

AFTER BREAKING BOX OFFICE RECORDS AT

CHICHESTER FESTIVAL THEATRE

 

PUBLIC BOOKING OPENS AT THE GIELGUD THEATRE ON MONDAY JUNE 21st at 10am

 

The world premiere of Jonathan Lynn and Antony Jay’s play Yes, Prime Minister will open at the Gielgud Theatre, London on 17th September 2010, following a record-breaking run at Chichester Festival Theatre. The production will retain original cast members Henry Goodman as Sir Humphrey Appleby and David Haig as Prime Minister Jim Hacker.

 

Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn, the original writers of the classic TV series Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister have reunited for this anniversary production.

 

Prime Minister Jim Hacker and Cabinet Secretary Sir Humphrey Appleby face a country in financial meltdown.  The only prospect of salvation comes from morally dubious allies – leading to deliciously comic consequences. 

 

Sir Humphrey Appleby is played by Henry Goodman whose recent theatre credits include Duet For One, Fiddler on the Roof and Feelgood. He received Olivier Awards for Best Actor in 1993 for Assassins, and in 2000 for Trevor Nunn’s production of The Merchant of Venice. Recent screen credits include the films The Damned United and the Ang Lee comedy Taking Woodstock. 

 

Prime Minister Jim Hacker is played by David Haig who recently featured in the latest series of the award-winning BBC political comedy The Thick of It.  His other screen credits include Mo, My Boy Jack (which he also wrote, originally for the stage), The Thin Blue Line and Four Weddings and a Funeral. Haig’s theatre credits include West End productions of Donkey’s Years, Mary Poppins and Hitchcock Blonde.  He won an Olivier Award in 1988 for Actor of the Year in a New Play for Our Country’s Good.

 

Antony Jay has enjoyed a distinguished career as writer, broadcaster and producer. He was founder and editor of the BBC’s legendary Tonight programme, is the editor of The Oxford Dictionary of Political Quotations, and author of Elizabeth R and two acclaimed documentaries on the Royal Family. He is a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order.

 

Jonathan Lynn’s prolific career spans more than four decades as a director, screenwriter, producer and actor in films, television and theatre, as well as best-selling author and novelist.  As well as co-writing, he will be directing this stage version of Yes, Prime Minister. His film credits as director include Wild Target (due for release this Spring), The Whole Nine Yards, The Fighting Temptations, The Distinguished Gentleman, My Cousin Vinny and Nuns on the Run (which he also wrote). 

 

Jay and Lynn’s BAFTA award-winning political comedy Yes, Minister first aired on BBC2 in 1980 and ran until 1984. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister ran from 1986 until 1988.

Lynn and Jay also wrote three novels, The Complete Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister, Volumes 1 and 2, which cumulatively sold more than a million copies in hardback, were on the British top-ten bestseller list for three years and have been translated into numerous languages.

The production is designed by Simon Higlett, Associate Designer at Chichester, where his previous work includes The Circle, Taking Sides/Collaboration (which transferred to the West End) and The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby (which also transferred to the West End and toured nationally and internationally).  Lighting Design is by Tim Mitchell, Associate Lighting  Designer at Chichester, who has previously lit Oklahoma!, The Grapes of Wrath, Cyrano de Bergerac and A Small Family Business for Chichester.

 

The West End transfer of the Chichester Festival Theatre production of Yes, Prime Minister is produced by Mark Goucher, Wimpole Theatre and Matthew Byam Shaw for Playful Productions.

 

For further information please contact The Corner Shop PR on 020 7494 3665 or email stephen@thecornershoppr.com or ben@thecornershoppr.com

 

Creative Team:

Jonathan Lynn                           Director

Simon Higlett                             Designer

Tim Mitchell                              Lighting Designer
John Leonard                             Sound Consultant
Gabrielle Dawes CDG                  Casting Director

           

Yes, Prime Minister

Written by Antony Jay and Jonathan Lynn

Gielgud Theatre, 39-45 Shaftesbury Avenue London W1D 6LA

Box Office 0844 482 5130

Public Booking opens at 10am on Monday June 21st.

 

First preview: Friday September 17th at 7.30pm

Press previews: September 23rd, 24th and 25th at 7.30pm

Gala performance: Monday September 27th at 7.30pm

Performances: Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm; Wednesday and Saturdays at 3pm

Booking until: Saturday January 15th 2011

 

Tickets £20 - £52.50

www.yesprimeminister.co.uk


ROBERT LINDSAY RETURNS TO THE WEST END STAGE

TO STAR IN THE TITLE ROLE

OF MARTIN SHERMAN’S NEW PLAY

“ONASSIS”

OPENING AT THE NOVELLO THEATRE ON TUESDAY 12 OCTOBER

 

Robert Lindsay will return to the West End stage to star in the title role of Martin Sherman’s new play “ONASSIS”, which will be directed by Nancy Meckler. “ONASSIS” will open at the Novello Theatre on Tuesday 12 October 2010, following previews from Thursday 30 September 2010. The limited London season will finish on Saturday 5 February 2011. “ONASSIS” will also feature Lydia Leonard as Jackie Kennedy and Anna Francolini as Maria Callas.

 

“ONASSIS” is the story of the last years in the life of Aristotle Onassis, and of his passionate and interwoven relationships with Jackie Kennedy and Maria Callas, and his son Alexandros. Based on material from Peter Evans’ book “Nemesis”, “ONASSIS” is an explosive account of how those in positions of enormous power and wealth often live lives detached from the realities and moral codes of everyday existence.

 

Robert Lindsay has a distinguished career including on television “Citizen Smith”, “Jake’s Progress” and “GBH”, for which he won a BAFTA Award for Best Actor. His films include “Divorcing Jack”, “Genghis Cohn” and “Remember Me”. His award-winning theatre includes “The Entertainer”, “Richard III”, “Oliver!”, for which he won the Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical and “Me and My Girl”, for which he won the Olivier Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Musical and, when it transferred to Broadway, the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical. Robert Lindsay can currently be seen in the hugely successful BBC television series “My Family” with Zoë Wanamaker.

 

The cast will also include Tom Austen, Liz Crowther, Ben Grove, Robert Hastie, John Hodgkinson, Sue Kelvin, Graeme Taylor and Gawn Grainger.

 

Martin Sherman has written plays including “Bent” and “When She Danced”, the book for the musical “The Boy from Oz” and the screenplays for “Alive and Kicking” and “Mrs Henderson Presents”. Nancy Meckler recently directed the RSC productions of “The Comedy of Errors” and “Romeo & Juliet” and she is an artistic director of Shared Experience. “ONASSIS” will be designed by Katrina Lindsay, with lighting by Ben Ormerod, music by Ilona Sekacz, sound by John Leonard, video and projection design by Lorna Heavey, choreography by Lizzi Gee and casting by Gabrielle Dawes CDG.

 

Lydia Leonard playing Jackie Kennedy has an extensive television career, recently including “Ashes to Ashes”, “Casualty 1907”, “The Long Walk to Finchley” and “The 39 Steps”  her stage credits include “Frost/Nixon”  at the Donmar Warehouse and she has appeared on stage at both the RSC and the National Theatre. Anna Francolini playing Maria Callas has appeared in many West End productions including “Merrily We Roll Along” and “Company”, both at the Donmar Warehouse and “Caroline or Change” at the National Theatre, whilst her television work includes “This is Dom Joly” and “Jonathan Creek”.

 

Performance times at the Novello Theatre will be Mondays-Saturdays at 7.30pm, with Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. Tickets, priced from £10.00 to £49.50, are available from the Novello Theatre Box Office on 0844 482 5170 or at www.onassistheplay.com. Prior to London, “ONASSIS” will play the Derby Theatre from 9-25 September 2010.

 

The Chichester Festival Theatre production in association with Derby Live of “ONASSIS” will be presented in London by Aukin/Vogel for DAP Ltd, Playful Productions, Act Productions and Bob Bartner.

 


We’re off to see The Wizard of Oz!

The most magical adventure of them all

 

Tickets now on sale !

 

Follow the yellow brick road, over the rainbow and into The London Palladium for a fun packed night of family entertainment.

 

Today, Saturday 8th May, 2010, tickets go on sale for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s much anticipated West End adaptation of The Wizard of Oz. There’ll be no place like The London Palladium, the capital’s home of the family musical, where the brand new show will premiere in early 2011, with tickets going on sale today for performances from 29th March 2011.

 

Developed from the ever popular 1939 MGM screenplay, The Wizard of Oz is an enchanting adaptation of the all time classic, totally reconceived for the stage by the award-winning creative team who delighted audiences of all ages with their recent London Palladium revival of The Sound of Music.  This new production contains all the much-loved songs from the Oscar winning movie score including; Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Follow the Yellow Brick Road, If I Only Had a Heart and We’re Off to See the Wizard. All the favourite characters and iconic moments will be there, plus a few surprises along the way - not just “lions and tigers and bears” but some new songs by Andrew Lloyd Webber adding extra colour to the story as it moves from film to stage. The entire family will be captivated as The London Palladium is transformed into the mythical Emerald City with breathtaking special effects and scenery to re-tell the real story of Oz.

 

The London Palladium, arguably the world’s most famous theatre, is a great favourite with performers and audiences alike and has a very rich entertainment history presenting variety, pantomime and spectacular family musicals. Just one aspect of the elaborate stage design for The Wizard of Oz will be a restoration of the legendary revolving stage which was the main feature in the finale of Television’s Sunday Night at the London Palladium.

 

Andrew Lloyd Webber said, “We are incredibly excited to be adapting The Wizard of Oz for the stage and re-telling this all time classic family story.  I have long been a huge fan of the original movie, the songs and characters and am really looking forward to bringing it to life again.”

 

Click your heels together and join Scarecrow, Tin Man, Lion, Dorothy and her little dog Toto, as they journey through the magical land, helped and hindered by the Witches of Oz, to meet the Wizard and obtain their heart’s desires. 

 

Performances of The Wizard of Oz at The London Palladium will be Wednesday - Saturday at 7.30pm, Tuesday at 7pm, with matinees on Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm and Sunday at 3pm. Tickets, priced from £25.00 – £62.50 (to include 75p theatre restoration levy and inclusive of booking fees if booked through the website or phone number), are available from The London Palladium Box Office on 0844 412 2957 or online from www.wizardofozthemusical.com.

 


 

SEBASTIAN FAULKS’S BIRDSONG,

IN A VERSION FOR THE STAGE BY RACHEL WAGSTAFF,

OPENS AT THE COMEDY THEATRE ON SEPTEMBER 18, 2010

DIRECTED BY TREVOR NUNN


Sebastian Faulks’s 1993 novel is one of Britain’s best-loved books. It has sold more than two million copies in the United Kingdom and more than three million worldwide; and still regularly appears in the best-seller lists. 

In September 2010 a stage version by Rachel Wagstaff, directed by Trevor Nunn, will open at the Comedy Theatre, London running until January 2011. This will be the first stage production of one of Faulks’s works and has been developed by the playwright Rachel Wagstaff whose previous work has included The Soldier and Only The Brave. Wagstaff is a participant of Old Vic New Voices and her work has been performed at the annual 24 Hour Plays. She has previously adapted Faulks’s The Girl at Lion d’Or for BBC Radio 4.

The play tells the story of one man’s journey through an all-consuming love affair and into the horror of the First World War:

While staying as the guest of a factory owner in pre-First World War France, Stephen Wraysford embarks on a passionate affair with Isabelle, the wife of his host. The affair changes them both for ever. A few years later Stephen finds himself back in the same part of France, but this time as a soldier at the Battle of the Somme, the bloodiest encounter in British military history. As his men die around him, Stephen turns to his enduring love for Isabelle for the strength to continue and to save something for future generations.

 For the first time, this beautiful and terrible story about love, courage and the endurance of the human spirit is brought to the stage in a version by Rachel Wagstaff.

The world premiere of this production is directed by Trevor Nunn. 

Casting will be announced soon. 

www.birdsongtheplay.co.uk
Box Office: 0844 871 2118
Public on-sale: Friday 28 May 2010


SEBASTIAN FAULKS’S
BIRDSONG

IN A STAGE VERSION BY RACHEL WAGSTAFF
DIRECTED BY TREVOR NUNN

 

COMEDY THEATRE, Panton Street, London SW1Y 4DN

On sale from Friday 28 May 2010

Box Office: 0844 871 2118
website: www.birdsongtheplay.co.uk

Previews: Saturday 18 September 2010
Press Night: Tuesday 28 September 2010
Booking to Saturday 15 January 2011

Evenings: Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm
Matinees: Thursday & Saturday at 2.30pm
No matinee performances on Saturday 18 September, Thursday 23 September

TICKET PRICES       

Previews to 28th Sep: Stalls £39.50, £29.50, £25

                                                Royal Circle £39.50, £25

                                                Upper Circle £25, £15

                                                Balcony £15, £10

                                                Boxes £29.50

 

From 29th Sep:                        Stalls £49.50, £39.50, £35

                                                Royal Circle £49.50, £35

                                                Upper Circle £35, £25

                                                Balcony £25, £20

                                                Boxes £39.50

 

All ticket prices are inclusive of a £1 restoration levy

Groups (10+):                         £35 (Monday – Thursday)

School groups (10+): £22.50, free teacher with every 10 (Monday – Wednesday)

Balcony/Upper Circle schools rate (10+): £15 (Monday to Wednesday)

 

Concessions               On the day for OAP, NUS & Unwaged – best available @ £25

                                                All subject to availability

                                                Available in advance for Thursday matinee


·         Sebastian Faulks                                              Author (novel)

Sebastian Faulks is one of Britain's best-loved novelists. Birdsong is regularly voted one of the country's favourite novels and is widely taught in schools and universities. His 2005 novel Human Traces was described by Sir Trevor Nunn in The Independent as 'a masterpiece of this or any other century'. Faulks was appointed CBE for services to Literature in 2002 and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. His other novels include Charlotte Gray (filmed with Cate Blanchett in the title role) and most recently the controversial A Week in December, currently in development as a Channel 4 mini-series. He is a regular panellist on the BBC Radio 4 quiz show The Write Stuff and has just completed a four-part series about characters in novels for BBC 2 called Faulks on Fiction, due to be shown in January 2011. In 2008, at the invitation of the Fleming family, he wrote Devil May Care, a new James Bond novel, to celebrate the centenary of Ian Fleming's birth. Faulks was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Tavistock Clinic for his contribution to the understanding of psychiatry in Human Traces and is an Honorary Fellow of Emmanuel College, Cambridge. 

·         Rachel Wagstaff                                               Author (play)

Rachel Wagstaff recently adapted Sebastian Faulks’ novel The Girl at the Lion D’or  for BBC Radio 4 as a five-part series for Woman’s Hour.  She is currently working on a full-length musical of Only the Brave, the smash-hit from the Edinburgh Festival 2008, and co-writing the musical Moonshadow with Yusuf Islam (formerly Cat Stevens).  Rachel's first play, The Soldier, received five-star reviews at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2004, before a sell-out transfer to RADA. Her second play, Night Sky, was performed in 2005 at the Old Vic for Index on Censorship, starring Christopher Eccleston, Saffron Burrows, David Warner and David Baddiel. Rachel adapted Paulo Coehlo's Veronika Decides to Die for the Hobbs Factory, which transferred to the Arcola, as part of their Shortcuts Festival. Her play for Y Touring, Full Time, toured in 2007 and 2008, and she is currently commissioned to write a new play for them, inspired by Susie Orbach’s book Bodies.  

·         Trevor Nunn                                                      Director

From 1968 to 1986 he was the longest-serving Artistic Director and Chief Executive of the RSC. During that time he directed most of the Shakespeare canon, as well as Nicholas Nickleby (5 Tony Awards) and Les Misérables, the longest-running musical in the world. He recently returned to the RSC to direct King Lear and The Seagull. From 1997 to 2003 he was director of the National Theatre, where his 21 productions included award-winning revivals of Troilus and Cressida, The Merchant of Venice, Summerfolk and The Cherry Orchard, as well as Oklahoma!, My Fair Lady, and Anything Goes. He has directed the world premieres of Arcadia, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour, The Coast of Utopia and Rock ‘n’ Roll by Tom Stoppard, and of Cats, Starlight Express, Aspects of Love, Sunset Boulevard and The Woman in White by Andrew Lloyd Webber. More recent theatre work includes Hamlet, Richard II (Old Vic); Timon of Athens, Skellig (Young Vic); The Lady From the Sea (Almeida); Scenes from a Marriage (Belgrade, Coventry); A Little Night Music (Menier Chocolate Factory, West End and Broadway); Cyrano de Bergerac (Chichester Festival Theatre), and Inherit the Wind (Old Vic). Opera includes Idomeneo, Porgy and Bess, Cosi Fan Tutte, Peter Grimes (Glyndebourne); Katya Kabanova, and Sophie’s Choice (Royal Opera House). Television includes Antony and Cleopatra, The Comedy of Errors, Macbeth, Three Sisters, Othello and King Lear. Film includes Hedda, Lady Jane and Twelfth Night.

·         CMP Limited                                               Lead Producer and General Manager

Birdsong is produced and general managed by Creative Management and Productions (CMP) who are theatre producers Nick Frankfort and Tobias Round.  Formed in 2006, the company is committed to commissioning and presenting high quality plays and musicals, as well as delivering management services for a select group of performing arts practitioners and organisations.

Nick Frankfort was formerly Executive Producer of the Donmar Warehouse and has over 20 years of experience in the theatre industry. Tobias Round worked at IMG and Adventures in Motion Pictures before joining the Donmar Warehouse as General Manager in 2003. During this time, plays they produced include Caligula, After Miss Julie, Schiller’s Mary Stuart, A Voyage Round My Father and Frost/Nixon- as well as the musicals Grand Hotel and Guys and Dolls

CMP’s recent work includes co-producing The Hound of the Baskervilles at the Duchess Theatre, commissioning and producing Swimming with Sharks starring Matt Smith and Christian Slater at the Vaudeville Theatre, co-producing Year of the Rat at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, transferring the sell-out Donmar production of Piaf (Vaudeville), producing Three Days of Rain (Olivier Award nomination) starring James McAvoy, Nigel Harman and Lyndsey Marshal (Apollo) and producing the West End premiere of Douglas Carter Beane’s The Little Dog Laughed starring Tamsin Greig, Rupert Friend, Gemma Arterton and Harry Lloyd. 

·         Becky Barber Productions Ltd                 Producer

Birdsong is produced by Becky Barber who is Assistant Producer at Old Vic Productions where she works with Chief Executive Sally Greene and Executive Producer Joseph Smith. Old Vic Productions is an independent commercial producer that works in association with The Old Vic Theatre Company as well as producing in the West End and co-producing the multi award-winning Billy Elliot the Musical worldwide (with Universal Stage Productions and Working Title Films).

Prior to working at Old Vic Productions, Becky spent two years at Cameron Mackintosh, where her work included the opening of Avenue Q, the 20th Anniversary of The Phantom of the Opera and 21st Anniversary of Les Misérables.

Independent work includes Associate Producer on Only the Brave (Edinburgh Festival).

Birdsong marks Becky’s West End debut as an independent Producer.

Becky is proudly supported by the Stage One Start-Up Fund for Outstanding New Producers. To find out more about Stage One and other training schemes for new producers please visit www.stageone.uk.com

 

 


SIMON RUSSELL BEALE TO STAR  AS ‘SIDNEY BRUHL’

IRA LEVIN’S STAGE THRILLER

“DEATHTRAP”

TO OPEN AT THE NOËL COWARD THEATRE

ON TUESDAY 7 SEPTEMBER

CO-STARRING ANNA MASSEY AS ‘HELGA TEN DORPE’

AND INTRODUCING “GLEE” STAR JONATHAN GROFF AS ‘CLIFFORD ANDERSON’

 

Simon Russell Beale, usually referred to as ‘Britain’s greatest stage actor’, will star in a new production of the Ira Levin thriller “DEATHTRAP”, which will be directed by Matthew Warchus. “DEATHTRAP” will open in London on at the Noël Coward Theatre on Tuesday 7 September, following previews from 21 August. Anna Massey returns to the West End stage after a twelve year absence to co-star opposite Simon Russell Beale and “DEATHTRAP” will introduce “Glee” television star Jonathan Groff to both to the West End stage and the British public.

 

Simon Russell Beale, currently starring in the National Theatre’s sell-out production of Dion Boucicault’s “London Assurance” directed by Nicholas Hytner, will play ‘Sidney Bruhl’ and multi-award winning actress Anna Massey will play ‘Helga Ten Dorpe’. Jonathan Groff, award-winning Broadway musical star of “Spring Awakening” and new leading man and star of American television series “Glee”, will star as ‘Clifford Anderson’ opposite Simon Russell Beale. Prolific author and playwright Ira Levin, who is probably best-known for the Roman Polanski film “Rosemary’s Baby”, is also the author of “The Stepford Wives” and “The Boys From Brazil”.

 

This will be the first London revival of “DEATHTRAP” since its original production in 1978 when the play opened to rave reviews and smash-hit business, subsequently running for two and a half years at the Garrick Theatre. “DEATHTRAP was then filmed by Sidney Lumet with Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve in the starring roles.

 

With design by Rob Howell, lighting by Hugh Vanstone, sound by Simon Baker and original music by Gary Yershon, “DEATHTRAP” will be directed by Matthew Warchus, whose more recent credits include “Art” and “God of Carnage”, both by Yasmina Reza  and both produced by David Pugh and Dafydd Rogers. “DEATHTRAP” will preview from 21 August and will open on Tuesday 7 September at the Noël Coward Theatre.

 

“DEATHTRAP” will be produced by David Pugh & Dafydd Rogers.

 

Performance times at the Noël Coward Theatre will be Tuesdays-Saturdays at 7.30pm, with Thursday, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 3.00pm. Tickets, priced from £19.50 - £49.50, with preview tickets priced from £15.00 - £35.00, with no booking fee whatsoever,  are available from the Noël Coward Theatre Box Office on 0844 482 5140.

 


F L A S H D A N C E   T H E   M U S I C A L

OPENS IN WEST END AUTUMN 2010

 

Flashdance The Musical will open in the West End at the Shaftesbury Theatre this autumn.  Previewing from 24 September 2010 with press night on 14 October, Flashdance The Musical is currently booking until 26 February 2011. 

 

Written by Tom Hedley and Robert Cary, with music by Robbie Roth, lyrics by Robert Cary and Robbie Roth, Flashdance The Musical will be directed at the Shaftesbury Theatre by Nikolai Foster with choreography by Arlene Phillips and orchestrations and musical supervision by Phil Edwards. Casting will be announced shortly. 

 

Flashdance The Musical, based on the Paramount Pictures film (screenplay by Tom Hedley and Joe Eszterhas, story by Tom Hedley), is produced in the West End by Christopher Malcolm, David Ian, The Baruch Viertel Routh Frankel Group, and Transamerica.  

 

Set in Pittsburgh, USA, Flashdance The Musical tells the story of 18-year old Alex, a welder by day and ‘flashdancer’ by night, whose dream is to obtain a place at the prestigious Shipley Dance Academy. This musical about holding on to your dreams and love against all the odds features an iconic score including Maniac, Manhunt, Gloria, I Love Rock and Roll and the Academy award-winning title track Flashdance -What a Feeling.

 

Nikolai Foster’s recent directing credits include Noel Coward’s Hay Fever for Chichester Festival Theatre, the national tour of The Witches of Eastwick, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, adapted by Bryony Lavery and Jason Carr for Birmingham Rep, Orwell’s Animal Farm at West Yorkshire Playhouse and Barry Hines’ Kes, adapted by Lawrence Till for the Liverpool Playhouse and the Touring Consortium. He has been director on attachment at the Sheffield Crucible, the Royal Court and the National Theatre Studio

 

Multi award-winning choreographer Arlene Phillips has choreographed the West End musicals Grease, We Will Rock You, Starlight Express and most recently, The Sound of Music.  As director and choreographer her credits include Starlight Express – The Tour, Saturday Night Fever and EFX at the MGM Grand. In 2002 she was awarded the OBE for Services to Dance.  She was a judge on BBC1’s hugely popular Strictly Come Dancing for six series, continuing her role on Strictly Come Dancing – The Live Tour.  Most recently she has been seen on our screens as a judge for BBC1’s So You Think You Can Dance.

 

Christopher Malcolm is a producer of West End plays and musicals includingThe Rocky Horror Show, which he also directed and managed throughout the world from 1990 till 2004.  As an actor, as well as appearing in many stage productions and films, he played Saffy’s father Justin in the BBC comedy series Absolutely Fabulous.

 

David Ian is a producer of West End musicals including Grease, La Cage Aux Folles, The King and I, Saturday Night Fever, Guys and Dolls, The Producers andThe Sound of Music.

 

American producers Steven Baruch, Tom Viertel, Marc Routh and Richard Frankel have produced and general managed a wide range of plays and musicals on and off-Broadway, in London and on tour for over twenty-four years including Hairspray, A Little Night Music, Stomp, Young Frankenstein, Porgy and Bess, The Producers, Company, Little Shop of Horrors, The Sound of Music and Smokey Joe's Café.

 

 

LISTINGS INFORMATION

 

Dates:                              24 September 2010 – 26 February 2011

 

Press Night:                       14 October at 7pm

 

Performances:                   Previews 24 September – 13 October 2010:

                                      Monday – Saturday at 7.30pm

                                      Saturday matinee at 3pm             

 

From 14 October:

Mondays – Thursday and Saturday at 7.30pm

Friday at 5.00pm and 8.30pm

Saturday matinees at 3pm

Christmas schedule to be announced

 

Theatre:                           Shaftesbury Theatre, 210 Shaftesbury Avenue, London WC2H 8DP

 

Tickets:                            Preview prices £20.00 - £45.00

Then £20.00 - £55.00

Day Seats - a limited number day seats at £25 will go on sale on the day of performance at 10am and can purchased from the Shaftesbury Theatre Box Office in person

All ticket prices are subject to an additional £1 theatre restoration levy

 

Box Office:                        020 7379 5399

 

Website:                           www.flashdancethemusical.com

www.shaftesburytheatre.com

 

 


THE OLD VIC

The Cut

London SE1 8NB

Box Office: 0870 060 6628

www.oldvictheatre.com

 

 

THE OLD VIC ANNOUNCES ITS NEW SEASON

 

 

Anthony Page to direct Noël Coward’s Design for Living

Richard Eyre to direct A Flea In Her Ear

Thea Sharrock to direct Terence Rattigan’s final play Cause Célèbre

 

The Old Vic today announced three new productions, marking the seventh season of work under Kevin Spacey’s tenure as Artistic Director. This new season continues The Old Vic’s tradition as a great actors’ theatre, championing both established and young talent under the guidance of some of the greatest theatre directors in Britain.

 

In September, Anthony Page will direct Noël Coward’s provocative and unconventional romantic comedy, Design For Living, for the first time on the London stage in over 15 years. Coward focuses on three egotistical, beguiling and self-absorbed characters – Gilda, Otto, and Leo – who challenge the moral boundaries of relationships. Anthony Page’s production for The Old Vic will star Tom Burke, Lisa Dillon and Andrew Scott.

 

Design For Living is a co-production with Nica Burns and Max Weitzenhoffer.

 

Director Anthony Page said: “I love this play for the miraculous lightness of the dialogue which contains a huge range of passions. The central relationship the involvement of two bisexuals and a girl is no longer shocking as it was the 30s, when it had to be presented in a somewhat coded fashion for the play to be performed. But Noel Coward’s unsentimental clarity in his analysis of their passion for each other and for success and the way this brings them pain and ecstasy over the years has the brilliance of a classic dark comedy.”

 

 

In December, Richard Eyre will direct John Mortimer’s version of Georges Feydeau’s 1907 classic farce A Flea In Her Ear, last performed on The Old Vic stage for the National Theatre in 1966. Starring Tom Hollander and Lisa Dillon, A Flea In Her Ear, is a comedy of errors set against a backdrop of jealousy, misunderstandings and confrontation. When Raymonde (Dillon) suspects her husband Victor (Hollander) of infidelity, she enlists the help of a friend to set a trap resulting in mistaken identities, bruised egos and comic disaster. A Flea In Her Ear is a co-production with Sonia Friedman Productions.

 

Richard Eyre commented: “I really admire what Kevin Spacey has done at The Old Vic and am thrilled to be working there for the first time since I directed Comedians in 1974.”

 

 

Terence Rattigan’s final play Cause Célèbre will be staged at The Old Vic in March 2011, celebrating the centenary of his birth. Directed by Thea Sharrock, Cause Célèbre is based on the true story of Alma Rattenbury who went on trial with her 18-year-old lover for the murder of her husband. Condemned by the public more for her seduction of a young boy than for any involvement she may have had in her husband’s death, Alma’s fate is left in the hands of the socially and sexually repressed jury forewoman, Edith.

 

Thea Sharrock said: "Having just directed Terence Rattigan's second play, After The Dance, I am thrilled now to be part of his centenary celebrations next year with his last play, Cause Célèbre. And I can't think of a better stage for it than the historic Old Vic, a first for me as well as for him."

The Old Vic also announced that Bank of America Merrill Lynch is to sponsor the new season.

 

Bank of America  Merrill Lynch has been in partnership with The Old Vic for the past two years as sponsors of The Bridge Project, Sam Mendes’ transatlantic company, which is currently staging As You Like It and The Tempest.

 

Kevin Spacey, Artistic Director of The Old Vic commented: “It’s hard to believe that we are now preparing to open our seventh season at The Old Vic. These are three great plays that all rather brilliantly explore the attitudes of their time and offer wonderful roles to actors. I am delighted to welcome Lisa Dillon, such a compelling and exciting young actress, to our stage in two productions, alongside Tom Burke, whose work I’ve admired since we acted together in the movie Telstar, and Tom Hollander, one of the finest and funniest leading actors of his generation. It is of course a huge thrill to welcome Anthony Page and Richard Eyre, both supremely talented directors, to The Old Vic. We are also delighted to be part of the centenary celebrations for Terence Rattigan and I can’t wait to see Thea Sharrock translate his work to the stage. I would like to thank Bank of America Merrill Lynch for their support and partnership. These are tough times for corporate sponsorship and I applaud them for stepping up and showing their commitment to the arts and culture.”

 

Rena DeSisto, Global Arts & Heritage Executive at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, said: “The Old Vic delivers bold, innovative programmes that showcase some of the top emerging and established talents on the stage today. And this new season is certainly no exception. The three plays selected are broad in their vision but united in their ability to challenge and enhance our understanding of the human experience. Bank of America Merrill Lynch is immensely proud to help bring this exciting new season to stage.”

 

The 24 Hour Plays Gala returns to The Old Vic on 21 November for the seventh year running. 40 internationally renowned actors, directors and writers join forces to test their talents to the limit and create six short plays in just 24 hours. Past participants have included Gael Garçia Bernal, Jim Broadbent, Joseph Fiennes, Josh Hartnett, Tom Hollander, James Nesbitt, Rosamund Pike, Rufus Sewell, Brooke Shields, Kevin Spacey, Catherine Tate and Vince Vaughn.

 

Outside of the main house, The Old Vic Tunnels, an innovative performance space under Waterloo Station, has this year staged a number of events and productions aimed at providing a platform for new talent and new work. The UK Premiere of the international hit play Scorched, by award-winning playwright Wajdi Mouawad, directed by Patricia Benecke and co-produced by Dialogue Productions, will open at The Old Vic Tunnels on 6 September.

 

Following the death of their Mother, twins Simon and Janine are called to the family solicitor, Henry Bell for the reading of her will. They are shocked to find that their father is still alive, that they have a brother they knew nothing of, and that their legacy is to deliver letters to them both. This takes them on an emotional journey into the past, back to their mother's previous life and her middle-eastern homeland - a country caught up in civil war.

 

Sam Mendes’ The Bridge Project is currently playing at The Old Vic with The Tempest and As You Like It, starring Stephen Dillane, Christian Camargo and Juliet Rylance. On 13 July The Old Vic opens its first West End production as Jeff Goldblum and Mercedes Ruehl star in Neil Simon’s The Prisoner of Second Avenue at the Vaudeville Theatre.


The Old Vic 2010/11 Season

BOX OFFICE INFORMATION

0844 871 7628

www.oldvictheatre.com

The Old Vic, The Cut, London SE1 8NB

 

Design for Living

NOEL COWARD

3 September – 27 November 2010

Previews: Fri 3 Sept – Tue 14 Sept;

Press Performance: Wed 15 Sept at 7pm

Mon – Sat 7.30pm; Sat & Wed 2.30pm

[Please note there are no matinee performances on Sat 4 Sept, Wed 8 Sept or Wed 15 Sept]

TICKETS £10, £15, £20, £27.50, £38.50, £48.50

 

A Flea in her Ear

Georges Feydeau

Translation by John Mortimer

4 December 2010 - 5 March 2011

Previews: Sat 4 Dec – Mon 13 Dec;

Press Performance: Tue 14 Dec at 7pm

Mon – Sat 7.30pm; Sat & Wed 2.30pm

[Please note there are no matinee performances on Sat 4 Dec, Wed 8 Dec or Wed 15 Dec. There is a matinee performance on Thu 16 Dec at 2.30pm]

Christmas & New Year schedule as follows:

Fri 24 Dec – 2.30pm only; Sat 25 Dec – No Performance;

Sun 26 Dec – No Performance

Mon 27 – Thu 30 Dec – 7.30pm; Wed 29 Dec - 2.30pm

Fri 31 Dec – 2.30pm only; Sat 1 Jan – 2.30pm & 7.30pm

TICKETS £10, £15, £20, £27.50, £38.50, £48.50

 

Cause Célèbre

Terence Rattigan

17 March – 11 June 2011

Previews: Thu 17 – Mon 28 March 2011;

Press Performance: Tue 29 March 2011 at 7pm

Mon – Sat 7.30pm; Sat & Wed 2.30pm

[Please note there are no matinee performances on Sat 19 Mar, Wed 23 Mar or Wed 30 Mar. There is a matinee performance on Thu 31 Mar at 2.30pm]

TICKETS £10, £15, £20, £27.50, £38.50, £48.50

 

CONCESSIONS FOR DESIGN FOR LIVING, A FLEA IN HER EAR &

Cause Célèbre

The Aditya Mittal tickets Under 25s Tickets

100 £12 tickets at all performances. Bookable in advance for the under 25s but tickets must be collected in person from the Box Office with proof of age.

Senior Citizens: Best available seats for £25 Wed, Thu & Sat matinees.

Groups 10+: £10 off top 3 prices for Mon - Wed eves & Wed & Thu matinees

School Groups 10+: £10 for Mon - Wed evenings and Wed & Thu matinees

Disabled Patrons: Top 3 prices reduced to £21 for all performances

Previews: £5 off top 3 prices (Old Vic Friends £7.50 off)

All concessions are limited and subject to availability. All 2010/11 ticket prices (apart from Aditya Mittal under 25s tickets

& schools tickets) include a £1 restoration levy.

 

Also Showing in The Old Vic Tunnels

 

Scorched

Wajdi Mouawad

3 September – 2 October 2010

Press Performance: Mon 6 Sept at 7pm

Mon – Sat 7.45pm; Thu & Sat 2.30pm

[Please note there is no matinee performance on Sat 4 Sept]

TICKETS £25, £20

Concessions for Scorched

The Aditya Mittal tickets Under 25s Tickets

£12 tickets at all performances. Bookable in advance for the under 25s but tickets must be collected

in person from the Box Office with proof of age.

Senior Citizens & Groups of 10+: £5 off £20/£25 tickets for all performances

Disabled Patrons: £15 for all performances

All concessions are limited and subject to availability. All tickets for Scorched in The Old Vic Tunnels include a £1 levy,

which will be donated to The Railway Children charity

 


 

 

SHAKESPEARE'S GLOBE

New Globe Walk

London SE1

Box Office: 020 7401 9919

· Shakespeare's Globe Trust is a registered charity No.266916.

 

 

Shakespeare’s Globe presents plans for 2010 theatre season

23 April – 3 October 2010

 

Shakespeare’s Globe confirms further details of the 2010 Kings and Rogues theatre season, following a record-breaking 2009 which achieved the highest attendance figures ever in its 13 year history, as well as seeing the Globe reach new audiences all over the UK, Europe and the US through touring, and having its productions filmed for the first time.

 

Shakespeare’s masterpieces Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 will premiere at the new Globe, as will the rarely performed Henry VIII, which was responsible for burning down the original Globe. Henry VIII will be played by Dominic Rowan who is currently performing in the west-end production of The Misanthrope, following his celebrated performance as Touchstone in the Globe’s 2009 production of As You Like It. Henry VIII will be directed by Mark Rosenblatt (Holding Fire! at Shakespeare’s Globe) and composed by Nigel Hess (Romeo and Juliet and The Merry Wives of Windsor at Shakespeare’s Globe).

 

Artistic Director of the Globe, Dominic Dromgoole, will direct Jamie Parker as Prince Hal and William Gaunt as Worcester and Shallow in Henry IV Parts 1 and 2. Parker (History Boys at the National Theatre and on Broadway) was last seen in the Globe season’s As You Like It and A New World. William Gaunt starred in the popular BBC series Next of Kin, and his recent stage work includes The Family Reunion at the Donmar, The Cherry Orchard at Chichester and King Lear and The Seagull for the RSC. Designer Jonathan Fensom and composer Claire van Kampen return to collaborate with Dromgoole following their recent partnerships on Love’s Labour’s Lost and King Lear at Shakespeare’s Globe.

 

Launching the season on Shakespeare’s birthday, 23 April, will be Lucy Bailey’s production of Macbeth with Elliot Cowan. Cowan recently played Stanley Kowalski in the Donmar’s award-winning A Streetcar Named Desire, and his screen credits include Mr Darcy in the TV drama series Lost in Austen and Ptolemy in the film Alexander. Bailey’s previous credits at the Globe include Timon of Athens and Titus Andronicus and she now returns to collaborate with the mischievous Venezuelan choreographer Javier De Frutos. De Frutos received the Olivier Award for ‘Best Theatre Choreographer’ for Cabaret, and last year he premiered a sensational new work at Sadler’s Wells for the Diaghilev centenary. Lady Macbeth will be played by Laura Rogers, who received critical acclaim for her performance as Celia in the Globe’s 2009 production of As You Like It. Orlando Gough is composing with design by Katrina Lindsay.

 

Christopher Luscombe’s charming and exuberant production of The Merry Wives of Windsor returns in 2010, following its triumphant 2008 Globe premiere. The Merry Wives of Windsor celebrates the foundations of the modern TV sitcom and features many characters from Henry IV Parts 1 and 2. This highly entertaining production will again feature vibrant designs from Janet Bird and Nigel Hess's delightful score.

 

New writing remains at the core of Dromgoole’s vision for Shakespeare’s Globe and the 2010 season hosts two world premieres. Award-winning playwright Howard Brenton presents his new play Anne Boleyn which dramatises the life and legacy of Henry VIII’s notorious second wife as both a sexually ambitious woman and a religious reformer. Anne Boleyn will re-unite Brenton with director John Dove following their successful partnership on In Extremis at the Globe.

 

Bedlam by Nell Leyshon marks the Globe’s first ever staging of a known female playwright in its entire history, which will be directed by Jessica Swale, who recently scored a big hit with The Rivals at Southwark Playhouse. Leyshon's new play is a fictional portrayal of a London hospital for the insane, and explores the link between art and madness. Nell Leyshon won the Evening Standard Most Promising Playwright Award for Comfort Me With Apples.

 

In 2009, both new plays – Helen by Euripides in a new version by Frank McGuinness and A New World by Trevor Griffiths – smashed their targets and played to packed audiences, indicating the growing audience for new writing at Shakespeare’s Globe.

 

In addition to its main-stage programme, Shakespeare’s Globe will revive its 2009 touring productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Raz Shaw and The Comedy of Errors directed by Rebecca Gatward. Approximately 35,000 people, at over 30 beautiful venues across the UK and Europe attended a performance of the 2009 tour. In 2010, the tours will exchange venue circuits to reach new audiences and both will play two separate weeks at Shakespeare’s Globe.

 

Dominic Dromgoole, Artistic Director of Shakespeare’s Globe commented:

“Our building continues to embrace the most democratic audience in the world – all of us a rogue and a king in our own way – much like William Shakespeare. The 2010 theatre season offers a flavour of some of his wild, warm, violent and virtuous kings and rogues – plus new creations from two of our most rousing, contemporary playwrights. We are proud to continue our national and international touring, reaching out to new audiences for the Globe.”

 

Public booking for the theatre season opens today – 15 February 2010. Tickets are available through the box office: 020 7901 9919 / 020 7087 7398 or online: www.shakespeares-globe.org.

 

Shakespeare’s Globe 2010 Theatre Diary

 

Macbeth by William Shakespeare

23 April – 27 June

Directed by Lucy Bailey; Designed by Katrina Lindsay; Composed by Orlando Gough; Choreographed by Javier De Frutos

Press night: Thursday 29 April

 

Henry VIII by William Shakespeare

15 May – 21 August

Directed by Mark Rosenblatt; Designed by Angela Davies; Composed by Nigel Hess

Press night: Monday 24 May

 

Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 by William Shakespeare

Part 1: 6 June – 2 October

Part 2: 3 July – 3 October

Directed by Dominic Dromgoole; Designed by Jonathan Fensom; Composed by Claire van Kampen

Press nights: 2pm and 7.30pm on Wednesday 14 July

 

Anne Boleyn by Howard Brenton                                                               WORLD PREMIERE

24 July – 21 August

Directed by John Dove; Designed by Michael Taylor

Press night: Wednesday 28 July

 

The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare

14 August – 2 October

Directed by Christopher Luscombe; Designed by Janet Bird; Composed by Nigel Hess

Press night: Thursday 19 August

 

Bedlam by Nell Leyshon                                                                             WORLD PREMIERE

5 September – 1 October

Press night: Thursday 9 September

Directed by Jessica Swale

 

 

·      Shakespeare’s Globe on film - Three productions from Shakespeare’s Globe’s 2009 theatre season will be screened in cinemas and available on DVD and Blu-ray this spring and summer, as part of its new partnership with Opus Arte. For more information visit www.shakespeares-globe.org/onfilm 

·         Globe Education presents a programme of workshops, lectures, events and staged readings all year round. For general enquires about Globe Education please call 020 7902 1430 or visit www.globe-education.org

·         Shakespeare’s Globe Exhibition is open daily – Oct to Apr from 10am to 5pm. May to Sep 9am – 5pm. Admission includes a guided tour of the Theatre. For further information, telephone 020 7902 1500.

·         Shakespeare's Globe Shop stocks a variety of products, including season specific merchandise. Items can be bought at the on-site shop or on-line at www.globe-shop.com.

·         Capital Campaign – Shakespeare’s Globe is currently fundraising for a major development project. The first part of the campaign – to develop a Globe Education and Rehearsal Centre – is underway. To find out more visit www.shakespeares-globe.org/thesecondstage

·         The Shakespeare Globe Trust is a registered charity No.266916. The Globe receives no public subsidy.  

 

 


 

 

NATIONAL THEATRE

BOX OFFICE:  (020) 7452 3000  

Box Office Fax:  (020) 7452 3030

 

NATIONAL THEATRE:  JULY – OCTOBER 2010

 

The Travelex £10 Tickets season culminates in the Olivier with HAMLET, directed by by Nicholas Hytner, with Rory Kinnear in the title role

 

A new play by J T Rogers, BLOOD AND GIFTS, opens in the Lyttelton directed by Howard Davies

 

Neil Bartlett and Handspring Puppet Company collaborate on OR YOU COULD KISS ME in the Cottesloe

 

Josie Rourke directs MEN SHOULD WEEP by Ena Lamont Stewart in the Lyttelton

 

NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE continues with Hamlet, Fela!, Frankenstein, The Cherry Orchard and Complicite’s A Disappearing Number from Plymouth

 

Discover: Prince of Denmark, a new play by Michael Lesslie

 

Watch This Space and Square2 continue; Platforms and Exhibitions

 

 

BLOOD AND GIFTS                                      Lyttelton Theatre

Previews from 7 September, press night 14 September, continuing in repertoire

 

Howard Davies directs a new play by J T Rogers, BLOOD AND GIFTS, opening in the Lyttelton Theatre on 14 September.  The cast includes Philip Arditti, Danny Ashok, Nick Barber, Kammy Darweish, Ian Drysdale, Robert Gilbert, Mark Healy, Adam James, Simon Kunz, Gerald Kyd, Katie Lightfoot, Matthew Marsh,  Lloyd Owen, Jessica Regan and Nabil Stuart. The production will be designed by Ultz, with lighting by Paul Anderson, music by Marc Teitler and sound by Paul Arditti.

 

1981.  As the Soviet army burns its way through Afghanistan and toward the critical Pakistani border, CIA operative Jim Warnock is sent to try and halt its bloody progress.  Joining forces with a larger than life Afghan warlord, and with the Pakistani and British secret services, Jim spearheads the covert struggle.

 

The ferociously dedicated group of men are tied together by a common enemy but, as the brutal chaos escalates, clear political action becomes impossible in the face of mutual suspicion and shifting loyalties.

 

BLOOD AND GIFTS is an epic political thriller shot through with mad humour that sweeps from refugee camps to mountainous tribal regions to the corridors of power in Washington DC.

 

J T Rogers' The Overwhelming premiered at the Cottesloe in 2006 and was subsequently produced at the Roundabout Theatre, New York. His other plays include Madagascar (recently produced at Theatre 503) and White People (recently produced Off Broadway). Part of BLOOD AND GIFTS was seen at the Tricycle Theatre in 2009 as part of the 12-play cycle, ‘The Great Game: Afghanistan’.

 

Lloyd Owen, who plays Jim Warnock, last appeared at the National in Howard Brenton’s Paul;  theatre work also includes Closer (West End), The York Realist (Royal Court/West End), Clouds (UK tour), Julius Caesar (Young Vic), Iphigenia and Edward II (Sheffield Crucible) and Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (Almeida). His screen work includes The Innocence Project, The Monarch of the Glen, Miss Potter, Hearts and Bones and The Young Indiana Jones.

 

Howard Davies is an Associate Director at the NT, where his recent productions include The White Guard, Burnt by the Sun, Gethsemane, Her Naked Skin, Never So Good, Philistines, The Life of Galileo, The House of Bernarda Alba and Mourning Becomes Electra.  His production of All My Sons is currently running in the West End.

 

BLOOD AND GIFTS was commissioned by Lincoln Center Theater, New York City.

 

 

 

OR YOU COULD KISS ME                          Cottesloe Theatre

Previews from 28 September, press night 5 October, continuing in repertoire

 

OR YOU COULD KISS ME, a new play by Neil Bartlett and Handspring Puppet Company, will open in the Cottesloe on 5 October.  Directed by Neil Bartlett and designed by Rae Smith, with puppet design and fabrication by Adrian Kohler, lighting design by Chris Davey, sound by Christopher Shutt and music by Marcus Tilt, the production is presented in association with Handspring Puppet Company. The cast is: Adjoa Andoh, Finn Caldwell, Basil Jones, Adrian Kohler, Craig Leo, Tommy Luther and Mervyn Millar.

 

In the winter of 2036, in a shabby apartment in Port Elizabeth, two old men search for a way to say goodbye after a lifetime spent together. In the perfect summer of 1971, in a very different South Africa, their handsome younger selves search for the courage to fall in love.  And poised halfway between these two stories – one imagined, one remembered – their real-life counterparts bear witness to both the beginning and ending of an incredible journey.

 

Neil Bartlett returns to the National in collaboration with Handspring Puppet Company and designer Rae Smith to create a fierce and tender meditation on love, memory and the power of the unspoken. Using a bare stage, a handful of domestic props and the astonishing puppetry that is Handspring’s trademark, OR YOU COULD KISS ME is an intimate history of two very private lives, lived in extraordinary times.

 

From 1994 to 2005, Neil Bartlett was the Artistic Director of the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith where his work included collaborations with Improbable and Robert Lepage as well as 27 classical plays and five Christmas shows;  his recent work includes The Maids (Brighton Festival), The Pianist (Manchester International Festival), Romeo and Juliet (RSC), Everybody Loves a Winner  (Manchester International Theatre) and The Turn of the Screw  (Aldeburgh Festival).

 

Handspring Puppet Company was founded in Cape Town in 1981 by Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler.  The NT production of WAR HORSE, for which they and Rae Smith won the Evening Standard, Critics’ Circle and Laurence Olivier Awards for set design, is currently running at the New London Theatre and will open in New York in March 2011.  Several of Handspring’s productions have toured internationally, including Starbrites, Woyzeck on the Highveld, Ubu and the Truth Commission and Tall Horse. 

 

OR YOU COULD KISS ME is sponsored by Neptune Investment Management.

 

 

 


HAMLET                           Travelex £10 Tickets, Olivier Theatre

Previews from 30 September, press night 7 October, continuing in repertoire

 

Nicholas Hytner directs HAMLET by William Shakespeare, the final production of the 2010 Travelex £10 Tickets season, opening in the Olivier Theatre on 7 October.  Rory Kinnear plays the title role; the cast also includes Matthew Barker, David Calder (as Polonius), Jake Fairbrother, Clare Higgins (Gertrude), Ferdinand Kingsley, Alex Lanipekun, James Laurenson (Ghost/Player King), Patrick Malahide (Claudius), Ruth Negga (Ophelia), James Pearse, Saskia Portway, Victor Power, Prasanna Puwanarajah, Nick Sampson, Michael Sheldon, Leo Staar, Zara Tempest-Walters, Giles Terera and Ellie Turner.

 

The production will be designed by Vicki Mortimer, with lighting by Jon Clark, sound by Paul Groothuis and fight direction by Kate Waters.

 

Rory Kinnear plays Hamlet, following his acclaimed performances at the National in Burnt by the Sun, The Revenger’s Tragedy, Philistines and The Man of Mode (which won him an Olivier Award and the 2007 Ian Charleson Award).  His stage work also includes Measure for Measure at the Almeida; The Taming of the Shrew, The Tamer Tamed and Cymbeline for the RSC; Mary Stuart at the Donmar and the Apollo; and Festen at the Lyric. His screen work includes Quantum of Solace, Margaret Thatcher – The Long Walk to Finchley, Mansfield Park, Lennon Naked, Cranford and The Thick of It.

 

Since he became Director of the National in April 2003, Nicholas Hytner has directed Henry V, His Dark Materials, The History Boys, Stuff Happens, Henry IV, Southwark Fair, The Alchemist, The Man of Mode, The Rose Tattoo (with Stephen Pimlott), Rafta, Rafta , Much Ado About Nothing, Major Barbara, England People Very Nice, Phèdre, The Habit of Art and London Assurance.

 

HAMLET will be broadcast to cinemas across the UK and worldwide on 9 December as part of the second season of National Theatre Live.

 

Half of all the tickets for the Travelex £10 shows in the Olivier Theatre are £10 (the rest are £15 and £30).      Media Partner of Travelex £10 Tickets:  The Times

 

 


MEN SHOULD WEEP                         Lyttelton Theatre

Previews from 18 October, press night 26 October, continuing in repertoire

 

Josie Rourke will direct MEN SHOULD WEEP by Ena Lamont Stewart, opening in the Lyttelton Theatre on 26 October, with a cast including Karen Dunbar and Sharon Small. The production will be designed by Bunny Christie, with lighting design by James Farncombe.

 

Ena Lamont Stewart’s moving and funny portrayal of  impoverished 1930s Glasgow, a raw salute to the human spirit, was written in 1947;  it was voted one of the top hundred plays of the 20th century in the NT2000 millennium poll. 

 

Despite cramped tenement living and the turmoil of seven children, there is laughter and strength in the Morrison family. Tough and tender mother Maggie, one of the great stage roles for women, just about holds together her unruly brood against wretched poverty. But sniping neighbours, the flight of daughter Jenny, and the unexpected return to their overcrowded quarters of Maggie’s son and his sexually restless wife erode her spirit.

 

And then, just as temporary employment for beloved husband John affords a decent Christmas, wayward Jenny returns with new-found wealth, offering them the chance of escape and one big moral dilemma.

 

Sharon Small plays Maggie;  her theatre work includes Spur of the Moment (Royal Court), Life is a Dream (Donmar Warehouse), Insignificance (Chichester) and The London Cuckolds (NT).  Her screen credits include six series of The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Mistresses and Glasgow Kiss,

 

Josie Rourke is Artistic Director of The Bush Theatre, where her productions have included Like a Fishbone and 2000 Feet Away by Anthony Weigh, Apologia by Alexei Kaye-Campbell, and If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet by Nick Payne; she was formerly Associate Director of Sheffield Theatres. Other directing includes Loyal Women by Gary Mitchell (Royal Court), Believe What You Will and King John for the RSC; 24 Hour Plays at the Old Vic Theatre and in New York; and The Cryptogram by David Mamet at the Donmar.  This is her NT debut.

 

 

 

NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE

A second season of NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE, the National Theatre’s initiative to broadcast live performances to cinemas worldwide, will launch in autumn 2010.  The first season, which began in June 2009, was seen by 150,000 people on 320 screens in 22 countries.

 

For the first time, NT Live will collaborate with another company outside London by broadcasting Complicite’s multi award-winning production A Disappearing Number live from the Theatre Royal, Plymouth on 14 October.

 

Back at the National, Shakespeare’s HAMLET, directed by Nicholas Hytner, will be broadcast on 9 December;  the musical Fela! on 13 January 2011;  Danny Boyle’s production of FRANKENSTEIN on 17 March;  and, later in 2011, a new production of The Cherry Orchard, directed by Howard Davies, with Zoë Wanamaker as Madame Ranevskaya. 

 

 

TOURING, PRODUCTION AND CASTING UPDATES

 

THE HABIT OF ART returns to the Lyttelton and tours the UK

The cast for Alan Bennett’s The Habit of Art, returning to the Lyttelton repertoire from 15 July* prior to a UK tour, is led by Desmond Barrit (as WH Auden), Malcolm Sinclair (as Benjamin Britten) and Selina Cadell (as Kay); they are joined by Tom Attwood, Simon Bubb, Danny Burns, Martin Chamberlain, Philip Childs, Matthew Cottle, Barbara Kirby, Joss Littler, Luke Norris, Leighton Pugh, Matthew Shilling and Aaron Wetheridge.

 

Nicholas Hytner’s production will visit: Birmingham Rep Theatre (28 September – 2 October), The Lowry, Salford (5 – 9 October), Venue Cymru, Llandudno (12 – 16 October), Milton Keynes Theatre (19 – 23 October), The Grand Opera House, Belfast Festival (26 – 30 October), Theatre Royal, Nottingham (2 – 6 November), Leeds Grand Theatre (9 – 13 November), Theatre Royal, Newcastle (16 – 20 November), and Theatre Royal, Glasgow (23 – 27 November). See page 11 for details of accompanying Discover workshops on tour.

 

*Please note that the first performance will take place on 15 July, not 14 July as originally announced.

 

DANTON’S DEATH

The full cast for Michael Grandage’s production of DANTON’S DEATH by Georg Bűchner, in a new version by Howard Brenton, opening in the Olivier as part of the Travelex £10 Tickets season on 22 July, is:  David Beames, Max Bennett, Stefano Braschi, Kirsty Bushell, Jason Cheater, Judith Coke, Emmanuella Cole, Ilan Goodman, Taylor James, Michael Jenn, Phillip Joseph, Barnaby Kay (as Camille Desmoulins), Gwilym Lee, Elliot Levey (as Robespierre), Eleanor Matsuura, Elizabeth Nestor, Alec Newman (as Saint-Just), Chu Omambala, Rebecca O’Mara, Rebecca Scroggs, David Smith, Toby Stephens (as Danton), Jonathan Warde and Ashley Zhangazha. 

 

EARTHQUAKES IN LONDON

Mike Bartlett’s new play EARTHQUAKES IN LONDON opens at the Cottesloe on

4 August, directed by Rupert Goold, in a co-production with Headlong Theatre. The full cast is: Gary Carr, Brian Ferguson, Polly Frame, Tom Godwin, Tom Goodman-Hill, Michael Gould, Bryony Hannah, Clive Hayward, Anne Lacey, Syrus Lowe, Anna Madeley, Bill Paterson, Jessica Raine, Maggie Service, Geoffrey Streatfeild and Lia Williams.

 

FELA!

In Bill T Jones’s production of FELA!, opening in the Olivier Theatre on 16 November, Sahr Ngaujah will recreate his Broadway role as Fela Anikulapo-Kuti; he will be joined by a new cast for the London production, which will include Paulette Ivory and Melanie Marshall and, in the ensemble, Lydie Alberto, Cindy Belliot, Nandi Bhebhe, Ricardo Coke Thomas, Scarlette Douglas, Jacqui Dubois, Poundo Gomis, Jazmine Jarret Thorpe, Aisha Jawando, Wanjiru Kamuyu, Nyron Levy, Ira Mandela Siobhan, Shelley-Ann Maxwell, Tamara McKoy Patterson, Catia Moto da Cruz, Pamela Okoroafor, Jermaine Rowe and Craig Stein.

 

PRINCE OF DENMARK                    

Cottesloe Theatre, 14 – 26 October at 11.15am and/or 1.30pm; 60 minutes

 

With a company of teenage actors drawn from the National Youth Theatre and a technical team from local FE colleges, talented young theatre-makers have been paired with experienced NT practitioners to produce this specially commissioned new play by Michael Lesslie, for audiences aged 10 and above.

 

In royal Elsinore, the teenage Hamlet, Ophelia and Laertes rage against the roles handed down by their parents. Set a decade before the action in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, this new play is a terrific first introduction to Shakespeare’s anti-hero.

 

PRINCE OF DENMARK will be directed by Anthony Banks, with costumes by Susan Kulkhani and fight direction by Alison de Burgh.  The cast includes Paul Andrew, Adrian Chisholm, Chris Levens, Calum Finlay, Joseph Sarrington-Smith, Eve Ponsonby, Abubakar Salim, Oliver Yellop and James Williams.

 

Workshops exploring the play and its connections to Shakespeare’s original will be available to both schools and family audiences before the morning performances.

Tickets:  £5/£7.50 with workshop (for KS 3/4 or ages 10years plus)

Schools workshops: 14, 15, 22 October, 10am (1 hour)

Family workshops: 25, 26 October, 10am (1 hour)

 

 

 

WATCH THIS SPAce

The National Theatre’s annual outdoor festival Watch This Space continues in Theatre Square until September.  Join us on the Astroturf in Theatre Square for a rich variety of theatre, dance, music, family events and exhilarating world class entertainment.  Highlights include:

 

Flights of Fantasy week, 28 July – 1 August: a week of fun, adventure and circus treats for all the family.

Motionhouse Dance Theatre week, 18 – 22 August:  award-winning contemporary dance and workshops.

Thames Festival Weekend, 10 – 12 September:  fabulous entertainment culminating in an exploding pyrotechnic fountain (waterproofs optional).

A full schedule is available at www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/wts

 

SQUARE 2: International Theatre

Square 2 – located on the riverside next to the National’s Stage Door – plays host to a series of exciting companies, bringing some of the most intriguing and unexpected outdoor theatre to the heart of London.  All tickets are £10.  

Domini Pύblic                                     20 – 25 July

Roger Bernat (Spain) presented in association with The Gate Theatre

Chez Cocotte                                                27 – 31 July

Compagnie Carabosse (France)

FIB                                                          3 – 8 August

metro-boulot-dodo (UK)

 

For further details see www.nationaltheatre.org.uk or

contact:  Caroline Ansdell on 020 7452 3231 / cansdell@nationaltheatre.org.uk

 

 

PLATFORMS

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/platforms

6pm (45 mins), £3·50/£2·50 unless stated;  * = Platform followed by booksigning

 

Mike Bradwell: Adventures in Alternative Theatre* 16 July, Cottesloe

The former Artistic Director of the Bush Theatre discusses The Reluctant Escapologist, his unofficial history of alternative theatre.  Chaired by Aleks Sierz.

 

Louise Rennison *                                       20 July, Cottesloe

The UK’s Queen of Teen talks about Withering Tights, her new book set in a performing arts college, following the dramatic antics of Tallulah and her mates – boys, snogging and bad acting guaranteed.

 

Women in War: Ancient and Modern                28 July, Lyttelton

Welcome to Thebes concerns a woman leading a fragile government after a civil war. Playwright Moira Buffini, classicist Edith Hall and academic Nicola Pratt look at the effects of democratic autonomy and financial dependence on women in post-conflict situations.

 

Howard Brenton and Ruth Scurr *                     30 July, Lyttelton

Howard Brenton, whose version of Danton’s Death is playing in the Olivier, is joined by Ruth Scurr, author of Fatal Purity, to talk about Danton, Robespierre and the French Revolution.

 

Mike Bartlett and Rupert Goold on Earthquakes in London 10 Aug, Cottesloe

Writer Mike Bartlett and director Rupert Goold discuss this new play.

 

Moira Buffini and Richard Eyre on Welcome to Thebes 3 Sept, Olivier

The playwright joins her director to talk about her new play.

 

40 Years of The Young Vic                                  10 Sept, Cottesloe

In September 1970, Frank Dunlop founded The Young Vic as an off-shoot of the National Theatre at The Old Vic. Conceived as a new kind of informal and affordable theatre, the inaugural production was Molière’s Scapino. To celebrate the 40th anniversary, Dunlop is joined by original company members Anna Carteret and Jim Dale, the theatre critic Michael Billington, and the current Artistic Director, David Lan.

 

The Roald Dahl Funny Prize with Michael Rosen and Philip Ardagh *

11 Sept, 10.30am (1hr), Olivier

This annual award for children’s books that make us laugh was the brainchild of former Children’s Laureate and poet Michael Rosen. He is joined by Philip Ardagh, winner for Grubtown Tales: Stinking Rich and Just Plain Stinky in 2009, plus special guests, for a morning of side-splitting stories and a few great giggles!

 

J T Rogers on Blood and Gifts                           15 Sept, Cottesloe

The playwright talks about his new play, set in a country facing an emerging war – Afghanistan in 1981.

 

John Simpson                                              23 Sept, Lyttelton

John Simpson, the BBC’s World Affairs Editor, has been covering the biggest news stories of the day for almost 40 years, including the invasion of Afghanistan and the conflict in Kosovo. In Unreliable Sources, he focuses on the way the British press has reported key moments in our history and charts the development of the reporter’s art over the course of the last 100 years.

 

Neil Bartlett, Basil Jones and Adrian Kohler on Or You Could Kiss Me

18 Oct, Post-show, Cottesloe

The founders of the South African puppet company Handspring, creators of the celebrated War Horse puppets, discuss this new play with their director and collaborator, Neil Bartlett.

 

Craig Brown: The Lost Diaries with Eleanor Bron and Edward Fox*       

                                                               9 Oct, Cottesloe

Private Eye’s Craig Brown and guests read from The Lost Diaries, prying into the intimate daily comings and goings of such celebrated diarists as Virginia Woolf, Heather Mills McCartney, Harold Pinter, Kenneth Tynan and Nigella Lawson.

 

Nicholas Hytner on Hamlet                                 22 Oct, 5.30pm, Olivier

The National’s current Director, like his predecessors Olivier in 1963, Hall in 1976 and Eyre in 1989, has now directed this iconic play; he talks about the production.

 

Josie Rourke on Men Should Weep                 28 Oct, Lyttelton

The Artistic Director of the Bush discusses her NT production of Ena Lamont Stewart’s play, set in Glasgow in the 1930s depression.

 

Steven Berkoff *                                                     29 Oct, Cottesloe

In Diary of a Juvenile Delinquent, the actor, director, writer and playwright paints a startling portrait of his East End childhood and the beginnings of a career that would range from Decadence and The Trial on stage to the films A Clockwork Orange and Beverly Hills Cop.

 

The Art of Revolution               18 Sept, 10.30am (1hr 30mins), £10, Olivier

The French Revolution of 1789 has inspired artists, writers and composers to create provocative and stirring works for successive generations; from Danton’s Death (1835) and The Tale of Two Cities (1859) to The Scarlet Pimpernel (1903), alongside the inspiring paintings of Jacques-Louis David and the flippancy of (Carry

On) Don’t Lose Your Head. This extended Platform is an opportunity to discover how this rich political episode has been manipulated and adapted into a variety of European art forms that say as much about their own times as they do about the upheavals in 18th-century France.

 

In Conversation with… 

3pm (1hr), £5/4 Cottesloe

A series of informal afternoon Platforms with members of the company talking about their work and answering questions from the audience. Chaired by Al Senter.

Toby Stephens               13 August

Lia Williams                      31 August

David Harewood              3 September

Bill Paterson                    10 September

 

 

EXHIBITIONS

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/exhibitions

Stage by Stage, a permanent exhibition on the National’s history is in the Olivier Circle, plus a changing programme throughout the year, FREE to attend.

 

The Press Photographer’s Year 2010              12 July – 12 September

The Press Photographer’s Year is unique: the only competition that showcases the outstanding photography commissioned for and used in the UK media. Designed by photographers for photographers, and judged by their peers, it celebrates the unsung art of seeing through the chaos to capture that one still moment which defines an entire news event. With a thought-provoking collection of images from 2009, The Press Photographer’s Year returns to the NT for a fifth successive year and is held in association with The British Press Photographers’ Association and sponsored by Canon cameras.

 

SE1 9PX: Hidden Corners, National Theatre   19 August – 19 September

The public areas of the National Theatre occupy no more than a third of the total site, and some of the more obscure areas of the building are known to very few people.

With the aid of the technicians, actors and craftspeople who inhabit them, Miriam Nabarro has sought out these secret spaces and presents them in an exhibition of photographs that will surprise and intrigue. Miriam Nabarro has worked as a designer on projects at the NT since 2007.

 

Ralph Koltai – Stage 2 Metal Collage 2002 – 2010  27 September – 14 November

Ralph Koltai is Britain’s senior and celebrated theatre designer. He has embarked on a new challenge, returning to his roots as a 3-dimensional artist, creating a series of metal collages, mostly made from found objects on farms near his studio in France. Koltai selects panels or pieces, predominantly metal, and dissects them in a compositional form. Not in themselves narrative, many spring from his former theatre designs, and have evolved from his life-time approach to his theatre work. A sheet of rusty metal became a wall in Simon Boccanegra; a dish and sphere the entrance to Caliban’s cave in The Tempest.

 

A London Bestiary                                                  23 September – 31 October

Four sea-lions entwine themselves against a red brick wall, a plasterwork bat props up an empty pediment, while Landseer’s famous lions guard Nelson’s column.

London displays a veritable menagerie of animals: some attached to famous landmarks, others perched in all but invisible gravity-defying positions, with many testifying to the heraldic symbolism that adorns our civic spaces. Photographer Ianthe Ruthven has beautifully captured the creatures of the city in an exhibition that pays tribute to the imagination and humour of generations of architects and sculptors. Some may be familiar, others completely unknown.

 

Discover: National Theatre

A programme of events and activities for people of all ages to discover more about the National Theatre.

 

Backstage insights

21 September, 5, 19 October and 2 November, 6pm (1 hour)

Four sessions giving insight into how current NT productions have been made, by the people who make them.  www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/backstageinsights

 

Theatreskills for families

25 – 29 October; suitable for ages 8 – 12. Further details available nearer the time.  www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/families

 

On tour: The Habit of Art

A series of events accompanying the UK tour of Alan Bennett’s The Habit of Art.

Workshops: a participatory open rehearsal session led by the NT company (suitable for 16 years plus); all venues.

Examining Auden and Britten: an illustrated pre-show discussion with the National’s Head of Music, Matthew Scott, examining the life, work and relationships of the poet and composer; some venues.

Playwriting:  a chance for local playwrights to work with NT writers, directors and actors to create a piece of original theatre, culminating in a rehearsed reading, some venues.

Discover: Mobile is supported by The Dorset Foundation.

For venue details visit www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/mobile

 

Theatreworks Open Courses

Providing communication-skills training for adults, Theatreworks draws on techniques used by actors and directors to encourage confident and creative communication.

Personal Impact: 8 September, 20 October, 1 December

Advanced Personal Impact: 4 November

Influence and Rapport:  2 December

Theatreworks Short Season: 21 July, 4 & 18 August, 7pm (2 hours)

A series of fun and challenging evening sessions offering personal and professional development.

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/theatreworks

 

For schools 

Workshops are available throughout the year, suitable for KS3-5,  exploring aspects of current theatre practice, using a current NT production as a reference point. Topics may include textual analysis, performance technique, directing or design. Q&A sessions offer students a unique opportunity to meet a key member of the creative team before seeing a show.  A two-day workshop for teachers on ‘Directing Shakespeare’ (12-13 November) will provide a toolkit of active methods for introducing Shakespeare in class and collaborative approaches to directing his plays. www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/discover/forschools.

 

For further details on all Discover activities – which also include Theatreworks courses for teachers – and to view short films about selected NT productions, an Online Tour of the NT, and the Making Theatre section visit www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/discover

 


Audio-described, touch tour and captioned performances

The National programmes audio-described performances and touch tours for visually impaired people and captioned performances for deaf or partially hearing visitors.

For full details and dates, visit http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/access.

 

 

Public Information:

Public phone/online booking for new productions in the July - October season opens on 20 July. 

Book tickets online at www.nationaltheatre.org.uk  

Box Office:  020 7452 3000, open 9.30am – 8pm  Fax:  020 7452 3030

Information:  020 7452 3400

 

 

THE NATIONAL’S SPONSORS

Travelex £10 Tickets                         TRAVELEX worldwide money

 

The National Theatre would appreciate an acknowledgement in the body of the text and/or as a separate footnote following editorial copy, for example:

 

Hamlet, a Travelex £10 Ticket show’

 

Media Partner of Travelex £10 Tickets

  THE TIMES

 

Innovation at the National Theatre, including the production of War Horse, is sponsored by Accenture

 

The National Theatre’s Cottesloe Partner is Neptune Investment Management

 

Philips and the National Theatre are working in partnership to reduce energy consumption.

 

The National Theatre’s airline partner is American Airlines.

 

NT Connections is supported by Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

 

The National Theatre is working in creative partnership with Corbis on photographs

for its 2010 season.

 

Danton’s Death is supported by The Laura Pels Foundation.

 

The Habit of Art is supported by a group of individual donors.

 

The National Theatre would like to acknowledge the support of US partner

Bob Boyett.

 

The National Theatre is supported by Arts Council England.

 

 

www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

BOX OFFICE:  (020) 7452 3000  

Box Office Fax:  (020) 7452 3030

for details of Platforms; Exhhibitions and "what's going on at The National" log on to the above website

 

 

 

 


 

 

THE NEW SHAKESPEARE COMPANY

AT

THE OPEN AIR THEATRE, REGENT'S PARK

Box Office: 0844 826 4242

Web Site: www.open-air-theatre.org.uk

(seasonal)

AS REGENT’S PARK OPEN AIR THEATRE COMPLETES ANOTHER RECORD-BREAKING SEASON, ARTISTIC DIRECTOR TIMOTHY SHEADER ANNOUNCES THE LINE-UP FOR 2010:

THE CRUCIBLE; A COMEDY OF ERRORS; MACBETH; INTO THE WOODS

 

The Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production of Hello, Dolly!, directed by Timothy Sheader, has become not only one of the critically acclaimed successes of the year, but also the highest grossing production in the history of the theatre.  The production runs until this Saturday, 12 September.

 

This triumphant close to another record-breaking season under the artistic directorship of Timothy Sheader follows productions of Much Ado About Nothing, Liam Steel’s robust and enchanting production of The Tempest – re-imagined for ages 6 and above, and The Importance of Being Earnest. As the first non-Shakespeare play to be programmed at the park in recent history, Irina Brown’s production of Wilde’s classic played to 96.5% of capacity, breaking all attendance records at the 1240 seat venue. Additionally, 2009 has seen over 13,500 school children introduced to the works of Shakespeare and Wilde in the magical surroundings of the park. 

 

The Open Air Theatre team has already started work on the 2010 season and announces today the productions that will make up Sheader’s third season at the park – one of witches, woods and mistaken identity. As part of the ongoing expansion of the venue’s repertoire, and capitalising on the park’s unique environment, The Crucible will be the first production, playing from 24 May to 19 June, 2010. Sheader will direct Arthur Miller’s thriller, based on the events that led to the Salem witch trials.

 

Families and school children will be transported to Burnham wood as Macbeth is re-imagined for audiences aged 6 and over. The Scottish play will be performed in rep for 4 weeks from 3 July, 2010 including two performances on Sundays.

 

Making a welcome return to the Open Air Theatre after 14 years is Shakespeare’s most hilarious play A Comedy of Errors, which will be performed from 24 June to 31 July, 2010.

 

Ending the season will be Sheader’s production of Stephen Sondheim’s musical Into The Woods, playing from 5 August to 11 September, 2010.

 

Priority booking opens on 10 November 2009 for Members; public bookings open on 1 December 2009.  ­Join the Members scheme now from £15 at www.openairtheatre.com.

 

·        Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, at 1240 seats, is one of London’s largest playhouses and welcomes over 130,000 people to its four annual productions of three plays and one musical. Although famed for its productions of Shakespeare’s work the Company has committed to expanding the repertoire to include plays by other writers. The theatre’s outdoor setting, and the scale and ambition of its four annual productions, make it unique in the London, and British, theatre landscape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL / HAYWARD GALLERY

ON THE SOUTH BANK

Box Office: (South Bank Centre) 020 7960 4242

for complete information or to book on-line

visit:     www.sbc.org.uk

(OCCASIONAL)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more details or individual advice/help - email:  GPowner@aol.com