What are the big shows opening in November 2017? Here’s Love London Love Culture’s monthly guide to shows opening in London’s West End and Off-West End, including those led by big-name American stars Bryan Cranston, Kelsey Grammar and Christian Slater… Click on links to BUY tickets in the Mates Ticket Shop.
1. Trestle, Southwark Playhouse: This world premiere production of Stewart Pringle’s play will run at the theatre from 1 to 25 November 2017, officially opening on 3 November. It is a story of community, ageing and falling in love told through two very different perspectives.
Harry feels like life is beginning to tick down, his autumn years spent quietly caring for the community he loves. Denise thinks life begins in retirement and she’s dancing like she’s still at high school. When their paths cross at the village hall, their understanding of the time they have left changes irrevocably. What do community, growing old, and falling in love really mean? And who gets to decide anyway?
2. The Red Lion, Trafalgar Studios: Following a successful run at the Live Theatre in Newcastle, Patrick Marber’s drama transfers to the Trafalgar Studios from 1 November to 2 December 2017, with a post-show Q&A hosted by Mates co-founder Terri Paddock on Thursday 9 November. The production sees Stephen Tompkinson, John Bowler and Dean Bone reprising their roles.
A promising young football player arrives at a struggling non-league club and pits the veteran kit man against the ambitious manager who’ll do anything to keep the club and himself afloat.
Get social media for Big Fish, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie & all London musicals & their casts on www.stagefaves.com
3. Big Fish The Musical, The Other Palace: Frasier star Kelsey Grammer makes his London musical debut in this new adaptation of the beloved book and film by Tim Burton, officially opening 7 November.
What is it to really know your own father? Meet Edward Bloom. An ordinary man, and an extraordinary father. He has always told his son tall tales filled with beauty, love and imagination but when his son confronts him about what is truth and what is fiction, they go on a life-affirming journey that will change them forever.
4. Glengarry Glen Ross, Playhouse Theatre: Hollywood’s Christian Slater leads this all-star production of David Mamet’s play, receiving its first major revival in over a decade. Officially opening 9 November 2017, it is a story of lies, greed and corruption.
Set in an office of cut-throat Chicago salesmen. Pitched in a high-stakes competition against each other, four increasingly desperate employees will do anything, legal or otherwise, to sell the most real estate. As time and luck start to run out, the mantra is simple: close the deal and you’ve won a Cadillac; blow the lead and you’re f****d.
5. Network, National Theatre: Bryan Cranston and Michelle Dockery lead the cast of Lee Hall’s adaptation of Paddy Chayefsky’s renowned film. Opening for previews on 4 November, the story depicts a dystopian media landscape where opinion trumps fact.
Howard Beale, news anchorman, isn’t pulling in the viewers. In his final broadcast, he unravels live on screen. But when the ratings soar, the network seize on their newfound populist prophet, and Howard becomes the biggest thing on TV.
6. The Dark Room, Theatre503: This UK premiere of Angela Betzien’s play runs from 8 November with a cast led by Alasdair Craig and Katy Brittain.
Deep into the night, in a run-down motel somewhere in central Australia, six lost souls collide in a distant tragedy of lovesickness and social breakdown – only it’s not the same night. A teenage boy from a nearby country town longs for a stranger. Pregnant Emma longs for her husband, a country cop, drunk after his best friend’s wedding. Anni, a government youth worker accompanied by a withdrawn and violent fourteen-year-old girl, longs for the dawn. As the night draws on, each of them become trapped in a dark and dangerous territory, all searching for a way out.
7. Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, Apollo Theatre: Following a successful run at Sheffield Crucible, this award-winning new musical by The Feeling’s Dan Gillespie Sells and Tom MacRae transfers to the West End from 6 November, with John McCrea reprising his acclaimed title performance.
Jamie New is sixteen and lives on a council estate in Sheffield. Jamie doesn’t quite fit in.
Jamie is terrified about the future.Jamie is going to be a sensation. Supported by his brilliant loving mum and surrounded by his friends, Jamie overcomes prejudice, beats the bullies and steps out of the darkness, into the spotlight.
