A ballet to fall in love with - Cinderella.
THE Lowry presents Matthew Bourne’s Cinderella from November 24-28.
Its hard to find the superlatives to do justice to this ballet icon’s productions, having seen numerous examples of his extraordinary work.
Anyone interested in booking tickets should call 0343 208 6000 or online at www.thelowry.com.
JILL Halfpenny will join the cast of Noel Coward’s Private Lives, part of the 50th birthday season at the Royal Exchange.
Her extensive stage credits include an award winning production of Chicago on the West End and she’s no stranger to the small screen, having appeared in the second series of Daddy Issues.
The actress said the RET has a very special place in her heart.
Private Lives runs at the Royal Exchange Theatre from March 27 to May 2 and tickets are available from 0161 833 9833 or online at www.royalexchange.co.uk.
DARE I mention the ‘c’ word in January?
The Lowry will stage The Jolly Christmas Postman from December 4 to January 3 2027.
Anyone interested in booking tickets should call 0343 208 6000 or you can book online at www.thelowry.com.
Photo by Robert Day.
Something to get revved up about - The Car Man.
THOSE hazy days of summer may seem like a long way off, as Christmas looms large.
Fans of the ballet icon Matthew Bourne can however, look forward to a production of his The Car Man which comes to The Lowry from June 23-27.
Tickets are now on sale and can be booked by calling 0343 208 6000 or online at www.thelowry.com.
MANY performances for Goldilocks and the Three Bears have either sold out or on the verge of doing so.
The panto runs until January 4 and anyone interested in doing so should call the box office on 0161 928 1677 to avoid disappointment.
A great British institution, the panto has been much maligned and yet remains an ideal way to introduce children to the theatre.
You can also book online at www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.
Photo - Martin Ogden.
CHILDREN grow up so fast these days - that’s a phrase most of us are familiar with.
And its normally delivered by grim faced individuals who sound like they’re mourning a loss of innocence.
However, on the opening night of the Garrick’s ever popular panto they all knew exactly when to boo and hiss in all the right places after receiving hardly any motivation from a cast who made it their mission to ensure the kids, even the big ones, left the theatre with a smile on their faces.
They also new all the words to Nelly the Elephant, a song I can remember sing along to even though my own childhood is now a dim and distant memory.
A tribute, of course, to director Joseph Meighan and the cast including Daniel Ellis, great fun as Silly Billy and, at the scary end of the spectrum, Alexander Day as the panto’s baddie, Ringmaster Heinkel, a character whose name is routinely mispronounced all night by fellow cast members.
Personally, I would have loved to have seen Meighan play the role of the Dame, a part he’s sharing with Matt Spilsbury, if only to see if he’s shaven off his beard to play the part.
Beverley Stuart Cole - pictured - has a strong presence as Mystic Sharon. Peter and Meg Brassington, a couple in real life, play Daddy and Mummy Bear.
I was also very impressed by the performances of the younger members of the cast, in particular the dancers who didn’t put a foot wrong all night as they rose to the challenge of performing in front of several hundred people, a challenge that’s enough to fill many of us with a real sense of dread.
Until January 4. The box office is on 0161 928 1677 and you also can book online at www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.
Star rating - 3.5 out of 5.
Photo by Martin Odgen.
IF reincarnation actually existed, there would, for me, be a clamour to return as a pair of Louis Gaunt’s tap shoes as he treats festive audiences to a dancing masterclass and I urge people not to miss his amazing feat in this perfect production of Singin in Thee Rain.
Maybe I should use the phrase ‘amazing feet’ instead because simply watching him dance the film star Don Lockwood was absolutely absolutely breath taking, brilliant, awe inspiring, the list could easily go on and on.
Even when Gaunt appears clutching a brolly to sing the shoe’s iconic title song the audience couldn’t resist showing an audible sense of appreciation which was nothing compared to the applause and whoops of delight that greeted the end of it.
We’re in the 19200s when the stars of Hollywood still had a certain mystique and Lockwood harbours a desire to turn his latest film into a musical.
His shrill and incurably entitled co-star Lina Lamont, played by a hilarious Laura Baldwin, a diva with a deep seated love for Lockwood, is reluctance to accept this shift in genre as well as she refuses to accept who she initially sees as the other woman in his life, Kathy Seiden, played so well here by Carly Mercedes Dyer..
It would also be impossible not to warm to Danny Collins as Don’s friend and confidante, Cosmo Brown.
Initially I wondered how this musical would work on the RET’s compact little stage but my misgivings lasted a mere matter of moments when I attended on press night.
For me, this is the musical of the year and what a better city to stage a show with such a title, We’ve been known to have a shower or two here in Manchester.
You simply must not miss this.
Until January 25. Tickets are available from 0161 833 9833 and you may also book online at www.royalexchange.co.uk.
Star rating - *****
Photo by Johan Persson.
Scary stuff - The Silence of the Lambs set to spook Salford.
NOW here’s a man you wouldn’t want to eat Christmas dinner with.
Tickets are now on sale for the world premiere of The Silence of the Lambs which comes to The Lowry from October 6-10.
Played by Anthony Hopkins on the big screen, this grisly tale is that of Dr Hannibal Lecter, a serial killer who just happens to skin his victims.
Anyone daring to do so may book tickets on 0343 208 6000 or online at www.thelowry.com.
IF I could act, sing or dance I would have an endless amount of fun playing the role of Billy Flynn, who takes the term dodgy to a whole new level. There’s something of so alluring and appealing to Flynn, a lawyer who would sell his own grandmother without batting an eyelid.
Lucky then, we have performers as talented as Marcus Florin who delivers a show stealing performance as the man entrusted with freeing Roxie Hart, the fame chasing heroine of the piece, from a murder charge.
Flynn’s big number for me remains Razzle Dazzle, a no holds barred celebration of sleaze and his own ability, silver tongued as he is, to convince gullible juries that black is white.
I also liked Thomas Birch as Roxie’s husband Amos, whose lack of self esteem is captured to perfection in one of my favourite numbers, Mr Cellophane.
Tabitha Valentine has quite a presence as Roxie, commanding the audience’s attention every time she sings a song from Kander and Ebb’s fabulous, dream of a score and both she and Freya Gow, who plays Velma Kelly, a character so resentful of the attention Roxie’s story is getting from the scandal hungry press.
What also strikes me about this production is how slick and professional the dance routines are, especially when you take into account just how small the stage of Altrincham Little Theatre actually is. The cast don’t put a foot wrong, a testament to their talent and the skills of director Kathleen Valentine and Kay and fellow choreographers Lauren Cowle and James Goodwin.
Sale and Altrincham Musical Theatre celebrates the big nine zero next year and on the evidence of this engaging and uplifting production the group’s future looks very bright indeed.
And I challenge anyone who sees and enjoys this show not to be humming at least one of the songs as they make their way home.
Youth theatre is far more than Bugsy Malone and Guys and Dolls and in SAMT’s case its definitely a case of if you’ve got it, flaunt it.
Until December 6. Tickets are available from samtheatre.co.uk.
Star rating - ****
Photo - Derek Stuart Cole.
Enchanting - Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes.
BALLET fans are getting an early Christmas present this week, in the shape of Matthew Bourne’s magical and uplifting production of The Red Shoes.
It was an evening of world class ballet which made it a total mystery as to why the majority of the audience stayed seated when it was time for the final curtain.
Even as a relative newcomer to the genre I think its fair for me to say I know a good thing when I see it, including on a stage.
Based on a fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderssen, The Red Shoes is the story of Victoria Page, a young and gifted ballet dance forced to choose between true love and an insatiable urge to dance.
I don’t want to spoil the ending but rest assured, its sure to have a lasting impression on audiences in Salford.
While I wouldn’t count myself as a ballet fan the conversion process is rapidly taking more and more conversion steps the more Bourne production I get too see as he is without doubt one of our country’s most exciting and innovative choreographers and The Red Shoes is sure win him and his company New Adventures many more admirers.
It was freezing cold when I went to The Lowry on Tuesday night on a dark, dank winter’s evening. What a better antidote to this dreadful time of year - nearly two hours of ballet performed against a backdrop of a sumptuos score.
Enjoy.
Until November 29. The box office is on 0343 208 6000 and you can also book online at www.thelowry.com.
Star rating - 4.5 out of 5..
IT’S hard to believe the original movie wasn’t a huge box office hit because for me at least, Its A Wonderful Life, along with White Christmas, are two of the greatest festive flicks ever made.
While I knew exactly what was coming in act two, when George Bailey’s world starts to fall about his ears, I felt as moved as always.
This is a tribute in no small part to director Barry Purves and Jonathan Higgs who shines as George, a character who is just as angelic as the wonderfully named Clarissa Oddbody, played to perfection by Jacque Hamilton.
Poor George doesn’t have a bad bone in his body and of you’re coming to this story for the first time, you’re sure to find yourself willing her to succeed in her mission to succeed as his supernatural saviour.
I also really enjoyed it when Clarissa takes George for a whistle stop tour of the life he could have had with a whistle stop tour of his home town, renamed Pottersville when in reality its Bedford Falls. This was both haunting and unsettling, shrouded in unrelenting gloom and bleakness.
I also liked Sarah Roberts as Mary, our hero’s devoted and loving wife an Beverley Stuart Cole as Violet, a character who has been there, done it and bought several truck loads of t-shirt.
Pete Grimshaw’s atmospheric music for a production that will move all who see it, unless they’re incurably heartless.
Not content with producing yet another directorial triumph, Purves has also designed a set that’s sure to capture the imagination.
Not to be missed.
Until Nov 23. The box office is on 0161 928 1677 and you can also book online at www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.
Star rating - 4.5 out of 5.
Photo by Martin Ogden.
Their kinda town - some of the cast of Chicago in rehearsal.
SALE and Altrincham Musical Theatre has been entertaining the people of Trafford since 1936, the year which saw the abdication of King Edward VIII and one of my all time favourite events, when Hitler is forced to shake the hand of black athlete Jesse Owens, after his medal success at the Berlin Olympics.
The company started life as Sale Operatic and Dramatic Society and next year sees it celebrate is about to its 90th birthday.
Its youth group will mark its landmark year with the teen edition of the iconic musical Chicago next month. The show is teeming with classic numbers like All That Jazz and Razzle Dazzle and director Kay Valentine said she’s loving every minute working with her very talented charges.
Kay said: “I am very proud to be directing these amazingly talented young people in this special 90th birthday year for Sale and Altrincham Musical Theatre. Its a satirical take on corrupt justice and the media obsessed pursuit of fame.
“Its got it all and includes celebrated Bob Fosse dance choreography. Our wonderful award winning cast has been rehearsing solidly in preparation for its show week at Altrincham Little Theatre.”
Chicago will be performed at Altrincham Little Theatre from December 2-6 at 7.30pm and anyone interested in booking tickets should visit samtheatre.co.uk.
THEATRE is at its best when it transports the audience to a world they don’t know or understand and gives audience a flavour of that world and an empathy with the characters who live and breathe in it.
Barrier(s) by Eloise Pennycott is one of those plays. It focuses on a lesbian couple Alana and Katie, who move in together.
One of them, Katie, is deaf. She works at a primary school for children who are also deaf and while we never see the youngsters in her charge, her devotion to duty is arrestingly apparent.
Like every other couple, Alana and Katie have their ups and downs, their arguments and romantic moments.
While Katie frequently vents her frustrations using British sign language, Pennycott doesn’t paint her as a figure of pity thanks to a script full of humour and anger with the writer resisting the temptation to preach or lazily reach for tired old cliches.
Both characters feel very real, thanks in no small part to a natural chemistry nurtured by director Paula Garfield and the performances of Em Prendergast and Zoe McWhinney, whose performances as Alana and Katie left a lasting impression on me.
The ending of this fabulous piece is one of the most original I’ve ever seen. But I have no intention of giving it away here.
This is contemporary theatre at its best for me and I left HOME in Manchester wondering why the run there was so short.
Not to be missed and I have just two more words to say to Eloise Pennycott - more please.
Until Nov 8. Tickets are available from 0161 200 1500. Star rating - 4.5 out of 5.
Photo by Becky Bailey.
Photo by Danny Kahn.
FANS of Roald Dahl may be interested to find out this year’s seasonal production at The Lowry is a musical version of The Enormous Crocodile which runs from December 10 to January 4.
Anyone interested in booking tickets for what’s being billed as a family show should call 0343 208 6000 or you can book online at www.thelowry.com.
AFTER a generally awful Bleak Expectations, its awfulness a result of the script rather than the acting, normal service has been well and truly resumed at the Garrick, with an eye popping, spellbinding and uplifting production of Roald Dahl’s timeless classic.
There’s a theory which I came across on the Internet which says this timeless fantasy is somehow a critique of capitalism. But the oompa loompas, aka Wonka’s small army of workers, don’t look as if they’re being exploited to me.
Who cares if this theory is true? We’re all aching for a dose of good, old fashioned escapism in these challenging times.
The story is about a mysterious chocolate factory run by the enigmatic Wonka who offers five lucky kids a chance to win a guided tour of the place if they can get their hands on a much sought after golden ticket.
Most of the kids who win are obnoxious, spoilt and entitled, with the exception of the angelic Charlie Bucket.
Life is unrelentingly tough for Charlie who, despite coming from a loving family who don’t have two pennies to rub together, thinks nothing of sharing everything he has.
This role is being shared by three young actors, with Rui Yang Lau setting a very high standard on opening night.
He and Ivor Farley as Grandpa Joe are great together and had a strong chemistry between them when I saw this classic feel good show.
Alex Day, as the incurably obese Augustus Gloop, Lauren Brown as the spoilt rotten Veruka Salt, Nandi Nhariwa as the young diva Violet and Max Lawrence as the screen addicted Mike Teavee were equally impressive.
If you add a score that’s as delicious as one of Wonka’s chocolate bars its fair to say the Garrick has a huge musical hit on its hands.
Until October 26 and October 29 to November 2.
Star rating - 4.5 out of 5.
Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.
Not to be missed - Blood Brothers at The Lowry.
WILLY Russell’s wonderful musical Blood Brothers will be performed at The Lowry from November 18-22 at 7.30pm.
Anyone interested in booking tickets should call 0343 208 6000 or you can book online at www.thelowry.com.
The run also includes matinees.
But be warned - the ending is certain to move you and remains one of the most powerful I’ve ever seen on the musical stage.
For me, this is Russell’s finest work, closely followed by Educating Rita.
THE Waterside Arts Centre will welcome a special visitor this festive season, when Father Christmas comes to town.
From the pen of Raymond Briggs, whose credits include The Snowman, another seasonal favourite, it runs from December 4-27.
The show is suitable for good little boys and girls aged 3 and over and anyone interested in booking tickets should call 0161 912 5616 or online at www.watersideartscentre.co.uk.
IT’S hard to believe a government would sanction the setting up of a secretive police organisation with a specific remit - to smash black activism by targeting its leaders.
Such a body, which gave this fabulous musical its title, was surely the by product of bygone dictatorships like apartheid South Africa.
But the country in question is a little closer to home. The country in question is ours.
The covert unit ran, believe it or not, until the 1990s.
Black Power Desk had a profound effect on me, unlike anything I’ve experienced in a theatre for many, many years.
Urielle Klein-Mekengho has created a script that’s heartfelt and brimming with passion and the end result is a deeply affecting piece of theatre that’s highly emotional in several places, even though this exciting writer, whose work is refreshingly new to me, doesn’t try to play on the audience’s emotions.
My appetite for theatre with a social bite is unquenchable for me, even though every aspect of this genre has its place.
Most of the action takes place in a restaurant that also serves up much hilarity via the banter between owners and customers and the irst 45 minutes of the evening was relatively light hearted.
The show’s central characters are sisters Celia and Dina, who, despite their blood ties, are very different characters. Celia wants to sing. Dina, on the other hand, wants to protest against the racism blighting the lives of those around her.
The musical has a rich and varied score and Rochelle Rose’s voice is so, so good I would willingly listen to her sing the phone book. Veronica Carabai also had quite a stage presence as Dina and the two characters had some memorably heated exchanges as they clashed.
But this celebration of courage defiance, set in London during the 1970s, deserved a far longer run at The Lowry and I hope in return is planned in the not too distant future.
Shows as important as this, as challenging and thought provoking as this, must be seen by as big an audience as possible.
Even more so in our current climate.
For more information about what’s on at The Lowry, visit www.thelowry.com.
Star rating - *****
THE first time I saw this play, I can remember being totally underwhelmed by it, largely as a result of its largely sedate pace.
What a difference a production makes.
The RET has teamed up with Sheffield Theatres to create something that, thanks to Brian Friel’s script, is deeply affecting and warmly humorous.
I guarantee the audience is sure to care deeply about the characters, especially the five unmarried Irish sisters who dream of dancing at the festival of Lughnasa, their dreams taking one step closer to reality after a temperamental radio, later nicknamed Marconi, falls into their posession.
One of the high points of the evening comes when the afore mentioned siblings explode into a dance routine with a fervour that verges on the religious.
As the prim and proper Kate, Natalie Radmall-Quirke excels as the teacher who brings her draconian brand of classroom discipline home with her, consistently branding her sisters’ aching desire for hedonism inappropriate for women of their age.
Laura Pyper as Agnes, Martha Dunlea as Christina, Siobhan O’Kelly as Margaret and Rachel O’Connell as Rose prove to be inspired pieces of casting, with all five actresses immersing themselves totally and effortlessly into their respective roles.
They’re all bright and engaging personalities and you’ll find yourselves hoping their lives don’t simply end in domestic drudgery.
This lay may be set in rural Ireland in the 1930s and yet it feels modern and fresh.
Frank Laverty as the enigmatic Jack is also highly engaging, bringing to life a character with plenty of hidden depths, a character fresh from 25 years of missionary work in Africa and seemingly lured away by the ask no questions spiritualism of the Catholic church.
Only an eejit would miss this.
Until November 8.
Tickets are available from 0161 833 9833 and you can also book online at www.royalexchange.co.uk.
Star rating - 4.5 out of 5.
Photo by Johan Persson.
THE Lowry is about to stage a brand new musical inspired by the Black British Power Movement of the 1970s.
It comes to Salford with five star reviews as far as the eye can see following its hugely successful run in London.
Black Power Desk runs from October 16-18 and anyone interested in booking tickets should call 0343 208 6000 or online at www.thelowry.com.