Twelve Days of Christmas: Day #7

On the eve of 2011 it seems fitting to take a sneak peek at some of the theatre there is to look forward to in the next twelve months. This year has offered us yet more Hamlets in the form of John Simm and Rory Kinnear, the 25^th anniversary celebrations of the seemingly immortal Les Miserables, Judi Dench’s hotly anticipated return to the role of Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the shaggy, psychedelic Broadway import of Hair, and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s long awaited Phantom sequel, Love Never Dies – or Paint Never Dries as the West End Whingers famously dubbed it.

So a New Year brings new theatre. Or perhaps, as it happens, not so new. In the musical theatre world there is a noticeable lack of originality, with the main feature of the 2011 openings being the film adaptation. Firstly we have the musical version of Shrek, transferring from Broadway and starring Nigel Lindsay, Nigel Harman and Amanda Holden. Another major opening is Betty Blue Eyes, touted as Cameron Mackintosh’s first original musical in over ten years, yet this is based on the Alan Bennett scripted film A Private Function.  To complete the movie triumvirate, Ghost the Musical opens at the Piccadilly Theatre next summer.

This last show is my 2011 musical to watch. Ghost looks set to be a theatrical extravaganza with technical ambitions to rival the infamous logistics of Phantom, with plans for what should be some truly breathtaking visual illusions from expert illusionist Paul Kieve. Meeting the expectations of scores of devoted fans – and staging that clay sculpting scene – will prove a challenge but it is one that the creative team seem to be rising to. Unlike the unsatisfying carbon copy of Dirty Dancing, the theatrical Ghost experience will be a new and different take on the film according to writer Bruce Joel Rubin.

With the song writing team of Glen Ballard and The Eurythmics' Dave Stewart on board, the score promises to be fresh and exciting and the tunes previewed at the press launch have certainly whetted the appetite. What’s more, the beautifully soulful Caissie Levy, fresh out of Hair, has been cast in the lead role of Molly. For those who remember her heartbreaking rendition of ‘Easy to be Hard’, Levy’s voice alone should make the show worth a visit. Here is a little snippet from the launch to tide you over until Ghost opens in June:

Elsewhere, the plays coming up in the next few months look promising. The Donmar Warehouse brings us the first major London revival of Harold Pinter's 1993 play Moonlight, opening in April, and in the summer Felicity Jones will star in a new version of Schiller's Luise Miller, directed by Michael Grandage. Simon Stephens will be returning to the Royal Court with a new three-parter entitled Wastwater, which is to be directed by Katie Mitchell. My only experience of Stephens' work is Punk Rock, which appeared at the Lyric Hammersmith in 2009 and recently returned for a brief run preceding a national tour, but if this exciting, edge-of-your-seat play was anything to go by then Wastwater could be one to look out for.

There has been considerable buzz surrounding Keira Knightley's return to the stage in Lillian Hellman's The Children's Hour, following her West End debut last year in The Misanthrope. The starry production at the Comedy Theatre has a cast including Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss and American stars Ellen Burstyn and Carol Kane and is set to open in February. Other big names grace the stage at the Old Vic, with Anne-Marie Duff starring in Thea Sharrock's revival of Terrence Rattigan's Cause Célèbre and artistic director Kevin Spacey taking on the title role in Richard III for the final season of the Bridge Project, reuniting him with American Beauty director Sam Mendes. Big names do not necessarily mean brilliant productions, but the lure of famous actors can only be good for London's theatre and such plays may prove to be rare chances to see these stars tread the boards.

Eclipsing all of this, however (at least in my opinion), is the National Theatre's production of a new stage adaptation of Mary Shelley's Gothic novel Frankenstein. The new adaptation by Nick Dear comes to the Olivier Theatre in February, with a mouth-watering cast and creative team. Director Danny Boyle, of Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire fame, returns to the theatre for this exciting project and Jonny Lee Miller and the wonderful Benedict Cumberbatch will take on the two leads of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature, but with an enticing twist. Miller and Cumberbatch are set to alternate roles in what looks to be an intriguing move - and possibly an extremely clever marketing ploy. Here is Cumberbatch speaking about the play at the Evening Standard Awards:



This is of course only a very limited selection of the theatrical treats on offer in 2011. There is also a promising season coming up from the Royal Shakespeare Company, a star-studded revival of Noel Coward's Blithe Spirit at the Apollo Theatre, the UK premiere of Broadway hit The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (some refreshing originality on the musical theatre scene) and Andrew Lloyd Webber's revival of The Wizard of Oz with Over the Rainbow winner Danielle Hope. For those feeling the strain on the purse strings with all this theatre on the way, Get Into London Theatre are offering discounted tickets to all major productions throughout January and February, and under 26s can continue to get £5 tickets to all National Theatre productions through the Entry Pass scheme.

What are you looking forward to in the next twelve months? Leave a comment with what you think will be the theatre highlights of 2011. A very happy New Year to you all!

Twelve Days of Christmas: Day #6

One of this year's theatrical highlights and indeed one of the biggest musical theatre events of the century was the 25th anniversary of Les Miserables, celebrated by a new touring production and culminating in the spectacular concerts at the O2. I have made no secret of the fact that I am a massive Les Mis fan and in fact marked the anniversary of the musical with my own musings on the occasion. My theatrical offerings for this festive season would therefore not be complete without something to celebrate one of the most important events of this year's theatre calendar.

So feast your eyes and ears on this video of John Owen-Jones, who played the role of Jean Valjean in the anniversary tour cast, giving a stunning rendition of 'Bring Him Home'. Unfortunately I did not see the touring production and I will be limited to experiencing the concert from my living room sofa as I watch the DVD recording. I was, however, lucky enough to see John Owen-Jones as Valjean a few years ago when I first saw the musical at Queen's Theatre and his is the performance that I will always associate with the character. I should warn readers before watching this video that you may need your tissues at the ready! Enjoy.

Twelve Days of Christmas: Day #5

The Christmas season is traditionally a time when theatre turns its attention to the younger generation and this year is no exception. One children's show that has appealed to grown-ups as well as the youngsters is the Royal Shakespeare Company's musical version of Roald Dahl's much loved novel Matilda, currently running at the Courtyard Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon. The production has received rave reviews and rumours abound about a West End transfer - rumours that I sincerely hope are true so that I can have the opportunity to see this show. Aside from a childhood love of Dahl's witty prose and delightfully grotesque characters, I am intrigued to hear the songs penned for the show by comedian Tim Minchin, an oddly fitting choice with a quirkiness to match the story itself.

My treat to readers today is an interview with director Matthew Warchus in the Guardian, speaking about the challenges posed by this production as well as discussing his past experiences, including the gargantuan project of transferring literary epic The Lord of the Rings to the stage. Warchus seems to like a challenge, as his next project, Ghost the Musical, may prove almost as difficult to bring to life visually on the stage as Tolkien's trilogy. This interview provides an interesting look at a diverse directing career and I find it hard not to admire a man who admits to growing up loving Brecht, Beckett and Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals.

Matilda runs at the Courtyard Theatre until 30 January 2011. For anyone wanting more reasons to see it, have a look at what the critics said in Whatsonstage.com's review round-up.

Twelve Days of Christmas: Day #4

For the sake of nostalgia, today's offering takes a wistful look back at Spring Awakening. Despite a short-lived run at the Novello Theatre in the West End, this show about adolescent angst and sexual awakening based on Frank Wedekind's nineteenth-century play remains one of the most exciting examples of new musical theatre writing in recent years. My selected video is just one of the many entertaining cast blogs recording the production's highs and lows, which can all still be found on the show's YouTube channel. This is Chris Barton's hilarious performance as Adult Woman, although admittedly the joke will be slightly lost on those not familiar with Spring Awakening. Any fans of Chris Barton can currently see him in The Sound of Music tour as Rolf.

Twelve Days of Christmas: Day #3

Nicholas Hytner, who topped
The Times' 'Luvvie Power List'

As we near the end of another year, list-mania has struck. Journalistic institutions everywhere are compiling their highlights of 2010, be it theatre, film, music, sport - we can even turn to ITV to discover what is the best advert of the year should we so wish. One important list that has made waves in the theatre world is 'The Luvvie Power List' of the top 50 most influential figures in theatre, published in The Times recently. Therefore today's post takes a look at some of the responses to this particular list, providing links to a couple of the more interesting articles on this topic.

Whatsonstage.com's Michael Coveney congratulates the website's own editor Terri Paddock for making the list but bemoans the persistent use of the term 'luvvie', a word that he considers to be derogatory and trivialising. Coveney also speculates about who might take over from Nicholas Hytner, the list's number one, when he leaves the National Theatre, suggesting that perhaps some of the female directors on the list might rise to the challenge. I agree that it is about time more women were recognised and rewarded in this field, as female directors are often overlooked in both theatre and film. The tide appears to be turning in the movie world thanks to Kathryn Bigelow's Oscar win this year, so it can only be hoped that theatre will follow.

Meanwhile, Mark Shenton of The Stage shifts the spotlight to some of the lesser known and under-appreciated people behind this country's theatre. The very nature of this form of entertainment means that the majority of the work is done behind the scenes, by faceless names in small print in the back pages of your theatre programme, so it is both refreshing and enlightening to see these unsung heroes recognised and praised. Working in theatre is to a large extent a labour of love, done for the rewards of the job rather than any significant financial remuneration; in that sense of the word, if no other, we might then see the term 'luvvie' as justified.

One notable disappointment of the list, highlighted by Shenton, is the absence of theatre critics from the ranks of theatre's movers and shakers. Surely critical reception is a significant barometer for the success of a show starting out, and productions without the might of large financial backing and big names can sink or swim on the back of reviews. It is encouraging for bloggers everywhere, however, to see the West End Whingers listed, illustrating just how influential non-professional reviewers can be, hopefully the sign of a shift towards greater respect for bloggers in the theatre journalism community.

For those partial to a bit of list-mania at this time of year, there are round-ups of theatre's best bits of 2010 on The Stage, The Independent, Spoonfed and The Telegraph, among many others.