Sally Cookson’s retelling of Peter Pan by JM Barrie will open at new West London venue, Troubadour White City Theatre, on 20 July 2019 and run through to 27 October, with a press performance on 27 July.
‘It shows how integration can help lift artistry’: IN THE WILLOWS – Touring ★★★★
Who could have predicted that Kenneth Grahame’s genteel Edwardian tale about riverbanks and hot buttered toast would translate so well to Metta Theatre’s grime infused retelling? I went in sceptical; I came out converted by one of the freshest, most original pieces of theatre I’ve seen this year.
NEWS: Tom Morris’ production of Touching the Void receives West End transfer
Tom Morris’ production of Touching the Void will open in the West End at the Duke of York’s Theatre, previewing from 9 November 2019 for a strictly limited season with an opening night of 14 November.
‘The kind of work that should open some doors’: BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES – Touring ★★★★
Theatre is tackling a constant diversity issue, a key component being how to attract an audience that rarely feels the theatre is open to them. Barber Shop Chronicles is the kind of work that should open some doors.
‘Geographical & emotional odyssey’: BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES – Touring
Barber Shop Chronicles is a bold and inexorable march towards changing the way we share stories, shifting the mainstream narrative and dealing with both joy and pain in equal measure.
‘It produces a thrilling effect’: EQUUS – Touring ★★★★
Arousing and disturbing in equal measures, English Touring Theatre’s production of Equus stirs the senses as much as engages the brain.
NEWS: Emma Rice follows Wise Children with Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers adaptation
Following the success of Wise Children, Emma Rice will adapt and direct Malory Towers, based on Enid Blyton’s classic children’s novels.
‘A bewitching, bewildering work from one of Britain’s foremost physical theatre companies’: INSTITUTE – Bristol Old Vic ★★★
Many of us will be all too aware of the 9-to-5 drudge that office life can encompass. Yet in Gecko’s Institute, the office becomes a place of both dream and nightmare.
FEATURED SHOW: Check out the ★★★★ reviews for Headlong’s ‘heart-stopping’ Richard III at Alexandra Palace
“Thrilling”, “illuminating” & “excellent” – Headlong’s new production of Richard III has impressed critics in both Bristol, where it opened earlier this month, and at Alexandra Palace, where it continues until 31 March. Take a look at the fantastic reviews we’ve gathered together, then book your tickets!
‘Deserves to be seen far & wide’: RICHARD III – London & Touring ★★★★★
Truly great acting is rare to see on stages these days, the type that elevates good work into a higher form of art. Yet right now at Bristol Old Vic, Tom Mothersdale’s Tricky Dicky, Richard III, is music, verse and sculpture of the highest order.
PRODUCTION IMAGES: Step into the dark, reflective world of Headlong’s Richard III
Mirrors, mist and paper crowns – the world of Headlong’s Richard III looks dark, Gothic and ominous. Check out these stunning production shots from the touring production’s run at Bristol Old Vic, then book your tickets for its run at London’s Alexandra Palace!
BEHIND THE SCENES: Discover more about the restoration of Alexandra Palace’s Victorian theatre before the arrival of Richard III
Alexandra Palace Theatre, which hosts Richard III from 13 to 31 March 2019, entertained audiences of thousands during its Victorian heyday, but has been closed to the public for 80 years. Thankfully it is open once more and co-producing the Shakespearean classic. Take a look at the fascinating restoration process.
GALLERY: Peek into rehearsals for Headlong & Alexandra Palace’s exciting new version of Richard III
Crowns, contortion and the most neatly arranged mood wall you’re ever likely to see – take a look into rehearsals for Richard III, then book your tickets to see it as it comes to the newly restored Alexandra Palace Theatre from 13 to 31 March 2019!
‘You can’t help falling in love with it’: PRINCESS & THE HUSTLER – Touring ★★★★
A few hours before press night, on Valentine’s morning, playwright Chinonyerem Odimba tweeted out that her new play Princess & The Hustler was a love letter to her Bristol, a city she fell in love with 20 years ago.
NEWS: Shakespeare returns to Alexandra Palace with Headlong co-production of Richard III
Far from a winter of discontent, March 2019 is the spring of excitement, as Alexandra Palace mounts its first ever co-production, staging Shakespeare’s Richard III with Headlong, Bristol Old Vic, Royal & Derngate Northampton and Oxford Playhouse. The history play runs in the newly restored London venue from 13 to 31 March.
‘A constant frenzy of invention’: WISE CHILDREN – Touring ★★★★
An adaptation of Angela Carter’s 1991 novel about a theatrical dynasty, spanning a century and loaded with Shakespeare, sex and song, Wise Children can exhaust in its constant frenzy of invention, but a surplus of ideas is always preferable than too few.
Twenty shows to look forward to in 2019
So many of the recommendations for shows to see next year focus on the West End. And for sure, I’m excited to catch big ticket numbers like All About Eve, Come From Away and Waitress, but I wanted to cast my eye a little further afield.
‘They captured my heart, engaged my mind & punched me in the gut’: In Praise of Theatre in 2018
In my round-up of theatre in 2017, I warned 2018 that it had “big shoes to fill”. Not only did 2018 not need the door to be opened, but it also didn’t even need anyone to hold its coat.
‘There is greatness striding through the heart of it all’: A CHRISTMAS CAROL – Bristol ★★★★★
There is greatness striding through the heart of Bristol Old Vic’s A Christmas Carol and it comes in the shape of Felix Hayes’ Ebenezer Scrooge.
NEWS: Nominees for The Stage Awards 2019 include Almeida Theatre, Nottingham Playhouse & Sonia Friedman
Top theatres across the UK, including nominees from London, Manchester, Nottingham, Wales and Scotland, have made the shortlist for The Stage Awards 2019.