Kill the King and vengeance will be mine!

First introduced at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2001, Hamlet The Musical has since been workshopped and developed by a number of different casts. The current ensemble, lead by a vibrant Jack Shalloo as Hamlet, is ingenious and irreverent. We all know how the story goes: The young Danish prince Hamlet is to avenge the death of his father but cannot bring himself to do the deed. His uncle Claudius marries his mother Gertrude to become king. Ophelia is in love with Hamlet but he rejects her and kills her father Polonius by accident which drives Ophelia mad. Hamlet has seen many adaptations but none is as hilarious as Alex Silverman’s, Timothy Knapman’s and Ed Jaspers’ version.

There is literally one joke a minute and one does not need to be a Shakespeare expert to enjoy the show although it helps to get some of the nuances such as the writing of the tombstone for “A.P. Yorick.” The comic timing is perfect and the show is packed with catching tunes such as It Is Rough To Be A Psychopath (Claudius).When Hamlet finally starts his most famous monologue To Be Or Not To Be is turned into a rock anthem making Hamlet an instant star. His revenge plot completely forgotten, he now concentrates on his music career. The Ghost is not pleased. Another highlight is the play within a play called Der Fledermaustrap - an opera medley covering everything from Verdi to Wagner and clearly inspired by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The set seems to have been cut right out of a fairy tale book (design by Diego Pitarch) and costumes are a great spoof of the musical genre (design by Mia Flodquist).

Mark Inscoe's  Claudius  would steal the show if the rest of the ensemble were not so outstanding. Virge Gilchrist is superb as Gertrude, the former “Queen of Hearts” who is drowning her sorrow over her loss in popularity in whatever poison she can find. Jess Robinson is wonderful as the Disney princess Ophelia in her pink dress and petticoat, frolicking about with the cute animals in the forest. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are puppets looking like American college students. Gabriel Vick is brilliant as Laertes who starts out as a passionate and jealous Spaniard in an open red silk shirt only to return as a Frenchman clobbering Hamlet with baguettes. Polonius resembles a Mafia godfather and is played by the charismatic actor David Burt who also portrays the Grave Digger and Fortinbras – a true Viking complete with skulls fastened to his costume who appears whenever the words “we need a real hero” are mentioned.

See this show, it is a great evening out!

The show runs until 28 May 2011 at the Richmond Theatre.

The Green, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1QJ

Booking:

·         Online - AmbassadorTickets.com

·         AmbassadorTickets - 0844 871 7615

·         Box Office - 0844 871 7651

·         Groups - 0844 871 7696 or Click here

·         Access bookings - 0844 871 7677

·         Typetalk - 18001 0871 297 5477 (textphone)

NATIONWIDE AUDITIONS FOR THE COMPANY OF FIRST EVER UK TOUR OF DIRTY DANCING TO TAKE PLACE IN BIRMINGHAM,
CARDIFF AND EDINBURGH

The producers of Dirty Dancing – The Classic Story On Stage, one of the most successful musicals in West End history, are delighted to announce that they will be holding nationwide auditions to find outstanding performers to star in the first ever national tour of the production.

Dirty Dancing is the classic story of the iconic ‘Johnny Castle’ and idealistic ‘Baby Houseman’, played so memorably by Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey in the 1987 movie. Since its announcement in November 2010, demand for tickets for the first ever UK tour for has been phenomenal, with sales already exceeding £10m for the first seven cities currently on sale, and many performances already sold out.

Auditions will be held as follows:

Tuesday 3 May          Birmingham

Hippodrome/ Dance Xchange Ltd
Birmingham Hippodrome, Thorp Street, Birmingham, B5 4TB

Wednesday 4 May                 Cardiff                       

THE GATE ARTS & COMMUNITY CENTRE
Keppoch Street, Roath, Cardiff CF24 3JW

Thursday 5 May         Edinburgh     

DANCEBASE

14-16 Grassmarket, Edinburgh, EH1 2JU

For each of the venues:

Women: Sign-in begins at 7.45am. Sign-in/be in line no later than 7.30am

Men: Sign-in begins at 12.45pm. Sign-in/be in line no later than 12.30pm.

Women must wear dance shoes with a heel, and no baggy clothes. All auditionees should bring along a photo and CV stapled together, and artists of all ethnicities are encouraged to attend.

The producers of Dirty Dancing have said, “After five triumphant years in the West End, we are so pleased to be able to expand on the production’s success to date and take this iconic story to cities across the UK. The production demands performers of huge talent and passion, and we are really looking forward to drawing on the incredible quality of artists across the UK to fill these much loved roles and bring this classic love story to life.”

For further press information, please contact:

David Bloom - Target Live

T: 020 3372 0950
E: david.bloom@target-live.co.uk

Arabella Neville-Rolfe – Target Live

T: 0203 372 0961

E: arabella.neville-rolfe@target-live.co.uk

Tour Venues

Bristol – Bristol Hippodrome, Thursday 1^st September to Saturday 8^th October 2011

Glasgow – King’s Theatre, Wednesday 19^th October to Saturday 12^th November 2011

Manchester – Manchester Palace, Tuesday 22^nd November 2011 to Saturday 7^th January 2012

Dublin – Grand Canal Theatre, Tuesday 17^th January to Saturday 25^th February 2012

Aberdeen – His Majesty’s Theatre, Tuesday 6^th to Saturday 31^st March 2012

Southampton – Mayflower Theatre, Tuesday 3^rd to Saturday 28^th April 2012

Milton Keynes – Milton Keynes Theatre, Tuesday 1^st to Saturday 26^th May 2012

Leeds – Leeds Grand Theatre, Tuesday 29th May to Saturday 23^rd June 2012

Birmingham – Birmingham Hippodrome, Wednesday 4^th July – Saturday 25^th August 2012

Norwich – Norwich Theatre Royal, Tuesday 28^th August – Saturday 15^th September 2012

Sunderland – Sunderland Empire, Tuesday 18^th September – Saturday 6^th October 2012

Liverpool – Liverpool Empire, Tuesday 9^th October – Saturday 27^th October 2012

Cardiff – Wales Millennium Centre, Tuesday 6^th November – Saturday 1^st December 2012

Edinburgh – Edinburgh Playhouse, Tuesday 4 December 2012 – Saturday 12^th January 2013

www.dirtydancingontour.com

For the West End production, please contact:

Kate Etteridge/ Ali Castriotis - LD Communications

T: 0207 439 7222

E: kate.etteridge@ldcommunications.co.uk / ali@ldcommunications.co.uk

Put your imagination into overdrive!

Written by David Harrod and Peter Scott-Presland, who won a DORA for Dorothy’s Travels, this free musical adaptation of Arthur Schnitzler’s La Ronde explores the gradations of sex and love between a variety of gay and lesbian characters.

La Ronde is set in a gay bar and in the bedrooms of various protagonists. A young boy – the Kid – enters the bar just as the patrons are told to finish their drinks and leave by the seemingly uncaring Barman. To his great surprise he finds men making out in the toilet and is told to take his business elsewhere. The Wolf is looking for game and the naïve boy is easy prey. He seduces the innocent and then kicks him out into the street.  In the next episode the Wolf is deserted by his lover, the Soldier, who thinks he can find more exciting sex on the internet. The scene where the Soldier is chatting up his future playmate is hilarious. The Fag is not at all into the rough role playing that the Soldier adores so much. They meet and the Fag later tells his friend, the Dyke, about his strange experience - before she starts a fight with the Barman-Singer for crooning a provocative song titled “We Don’t Serve Fish”. And the merry-go-round moves on.

The musical score is tuneful and exciting and supports the structure of the episodic play which explores many aspects of gay and some heterosexual sex and love. The cast is very good, led by an outstanding Simon Chilvers as the Kid, Randy Smartnick as the sweet and sensitive Fag, Joe Schefer as the Husband who has not really found himself yet and Bradley Clapson as the Barman and naughty singer Connie Linctus.  

The show is funny and satirical but it is also touching and thought provoking. Very good entertainment indeed!

7.30pm 15 March - 3 April
Tuesday – Saturday 7.45pm, Sundays 4pm

Suitable for over 18s only

Tickets: £ 12 / £ 10 (concessions)

BOX OFFICE: 020 7704 6665

The Rosemary Branch, 2 Shepperton Road, London N1 3DT

If you rearrange “unemployed” it spells opportunity!

From its modest origins as an idea for television that hit the stage merely by accident at the Vineyard Theatre in New York, Avenue Q has been an unexpected Tony-winning success for its writers Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx (music and lyrics), d Jeff Whitty (book), and for its director Jason Moore. After its long and deserved West End run the popular puppet show now tours the UK. 

Princeton, a recent Eng Lit graduate, is stranded in a rundown neighbourhood of an outer New York borough. Finding himself laid off before he can even start his first job he joins in with the other less fortunate dwellers of Avenue Q cheerfully chanting the song It Sucks To Be Me. Former child star Gary Coleman, who now works as a handyman, persuades Princeton that all he needs is a purpose in life and losing his job could be a big opportunity. Furry Kate Monster, a kindergarten assistant who is dreaming of founding a school exclusively for little monsters, quickly falls for Princeton and thereby experiences the ups and downs of a relationship. The other inhabitants of Avenue Q include Brian who considers himself a great comic and his Japanese girlfriend Christmas Eve who came to the land of opportunity only to end up working in a Chinese restaurant, seductive Lucy the Slut, the closet homosexual Rod and his buddy Nicky and the porn addict Trekkie Monster.

The show’s comic premise is that muppet-like puppets sing naughty songs and get into all kinds of adult situations. They enjoy wild puppet sex, get drunk, betray each other and worry about each other. The cast is made up of a mixture of puppets and humans which works extremely well. The puppets are skilfully manipulated by actors, who are clearly visible and deliver the dialogue and songs. I was particularly impressed by Rachel Jerram who portrayed both Kate Monster and Lucy the Slut and Adam Pettigrew as Princeton and Rod.

The first half of the show is hilarious and original but the story becomes somewhat sugary in the second half with the feel-good factor taking over completely. Being a German who loves to laugh about the misfortune of others – thus the German word “Schadenfreude” - I was longing for the return of the uncaring Bad Idea Bears who presented Princeton with a noose when he was feeling down. However, this is a very entertaining and refreshingly anti-PC show with great songs like The Internet Is For Porn, Schadenfreude and We’re All A Little Bit Racist. 

So next time you feel down, either “think of all the joy you bring to others when they see how miserable you are” or treat yourself to this hilarious show!

The show runs until 5 March 2011 at the Richmond Theatre.

Richmond Theatre, The Green, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 1QJ

http://www.ambassadortickets.com/2243/659/Richmond/Richmond-Theatre/Avenue-Q-Tickets

Jenny Douglas is the 19 year old from Edinburgh who reached the quarter-final stage of the BBC’s “Over The Rainbow” search for Dorothy in 2010.  She has joined the national tour of the Queen and Ben Elton musical “We Will Rock You” in the role of “Meat”.  The show tours until January 2012.

What has your last year been like?  A bit mental!  I left high school, I went to college, I dropped out of college to appear on “Over The Rainbow”, I auditioned for We Will Rock You, I got the part and now I’m exactly where I wanted to be!  I think to myself … “how did that happen??”.

How did you feel about joining the cast of such a hugely popular show?   I don’t know how to put it into words … it was an amazing feeling.  I saw the show with my mum a year before joining the cast.  I was brought up on Queen music and I said to her “wouldn’t it be great if I could do that”.  I can really feel what the audience feel when the first number, “Innuendo” starts because I was in the audience not so long ago!

Do any of the songs in the show have a special meaning for you?  So many songs … I used to watch a Queen video that had music videos and backstage footage all the time!  I know exactly what Freddie wore in each of the songs!  I really love “No-one But You”, not just because I sing it … because it is a moving tribute to the greats of rock who died young.  The Glasgow audiences have reacted really strongly to that song – you can hear an “aww” out loud!  The audience can really add to the performance.

Have you been starstruck since you started the tour?  When Brian May and Roger Taylor came to the opening of the Glasgow show, that was something special.  When Brian played Bohemian Rhapsody onstage, we were all around him bowing “we’re not worthy” and I was actually greetin’, I was so happy!  I was inches from him.

Are Brian and Roger actively involved with the production?  Yes, they were involved in the audition process, they support the show on the press nights and events and I believe they have a strong say in casting decisions.  It really is their show.

Meat couldn’t be more different from Dorothy … which of the roles is a more natural fit?  I wouldn’t have auditioned for Dorothy if I didn’t think I could do it but Meat is more suited to me as a performer.  I see myself as a singer first and I can really sink my teeth into her songs.  I do bring a bit of my boldness and bossiness to the role – I didn’t realise I could be like that!  Meat takes that to the extreme, though.

You previously toured with “Any Dream Will Do” finalist, Keith Jack.  Did that experience help you?  Wow … that seems like ages ago!  Not directly, the tour was ‘here and there’ while I was at college so I didn’t have to leave home for long.  But Keith has been a great support to me through the auditions and a great friend.  One thing that I did learn to appreciate was that an audience pays real money to be entertained and Keith is such an amazing performer, I learned a lot from him.

Do you have any plans to record or release music in the future?  Not at the moment.  My “Pops” (my dad) would love that.  That’s what I really wanted when I was younger but I found a passion for acting and costumes and character voices so I’m happy in theatre for now.  I’ve written songs and I really admire artists like Adele and Ellie Goulding.  I’m only 19, though, and my voice is still developing so you never know …

The smash-hit musical collaboration between Queen and Ben Elton rocks into Glasgow this week for a month-long run at the city’s King’s Theatre.

The show premiered in 2002, achieving the enviable feat of combining 24 of the world’s best loved rock songs with a musical narrative that was engaging and entertaining in equal measure.  Set in a future world where musical instruments are banned and the only permitted music is “programmed”, the story takes the dumbed down x-factor inspired music era to a logical conclusion where rock has become legend.  Enter dreamer Galileo (Noel Sullivan) who ‘want’s to break free’ from this musical oppression and rebellious Scaramouche (Amanda Coutts) as his ‘somebody to love’ – you’re getting how this works!  The thing is, as fantastic as the story is, it all works very well because the show is bound together by some of the greatest songs every written, and characters are broadened by the keen wit of one Mr. Elton.

From a production standpoint, the show doesn’t disappoint.  Music is authentically reproduced with sound production and quality of players worthy of Queen’s legendary live performance reputation.  With Brian May and Roger Taylor actively involved with the tour, we couldn’t expect any less!  The show is very high tech (this is rarely a good thing on a touring production) but every queue was executed precisely with lighting, sound effects, dialogue, music and video all smoothly synchronized.  Mark Fisher’s production design had a real ‘wow factor’ throughout, Willie Williams’s lighting was possibly the best touring set I’ve ever seen and Arlene Phillips’s choreography showed great contrast between the Ga Ga and the Bohemian dancer groups adding an extra character dimension.

But even with all of these production superlatives, the show was still stolen by the performances onstage.  Noel Sullivan (of “Hear Say” fame) got a chance to show off his skills as a rounded actor as well as an incredibly talented vocalist hitting every Freddy Mercury inspired note.  Amanda Coutts blew the audience away with a powerful vocal performance and a highly likable comedic character.  These two were wonderfully supported by a talented cast including Jonathan Wilkes (Khashoggi), Ian Reddington (Pop) and local lass, Jenny Douglas (Meat).

People will be rushing ‘headlong’ for these tickets putting the box office ‘under pressure’!  Book today.

WE WILL ROCK YOU

Kings Theatre, Glasgow

Tuesday 18th January 2011 – Saturday 19^th February 2011

Performances: Mon – Sat 7.30pm, Wed and Sat mats 2.30pm

Ticket Price:  £17 - £41.50

Booking Line: 0844 871 7648 (bkg fee) Groups and Schools 0141 240 1122

Website: http://www.ambassadortickets.com/glasgow  (bkg fee)

Keep your head out of politics, your hand out of duelling and your heart out of love.

The Three Musketeers continues Rose Theatre's pledge not to follow the routine of the pantomime period and do something completely different.  

Young D’Artagnan has always dreamt of becoming one of the famous musketeers. Now he is on his way to Paris, riding a flea bitten yellow horse named Solomon, with a letter of introduction for Monsieur De Tréville, Captain of the Kings’s musketeers. Paris is a city seething with deadly secrets, intrigue, and, of course romance. When D’Artagnan finally encounters the legendary musketeers Athos, Porthos and Aramis, each of them challenges him to a duel – and D’Artagnan eagerly accepts. However, before any of the duels can take place the musketeers are attacked by Cardinal Richelieu’s men. D’Artagnan is made one of the King’s guards due to his bravery and his challengers have now become his friends. Together they fight against Cardinal Richelieu’s men for  the greater glory of the King and France!

There is not a dull moment in Francis Matthews’ rip-roaring production as the actors perform incredible acrobatic feats and participate in some of the most exciting sword fights I have ever seen on stage (fight director: Malcolm Ranson). The action takes place on two levels, the set consisting of a sort of scaffolding with ladders, ropes and other means to allow for long swings from the second level to the ground and other daring stunts (set design by Simon Higlett). The orchestra is situated on the third level.

The ensemble is outstanding. Michael Pickering gives a wonderful performance as the young, and initially naive D’Artagnan, Paul Thornley is glorious as the melancholic Athos who carries a dark secret, Hal Fowler is a very convincing and comical  Porthos, and Matt Rawle gives a fine performance as the spiritual romantic Aramis. I was also impressed by C J Johnson as Milady and Kaisa Hammerlund as Constance. Although the story is very well known the actors succeed in making it appear fresh and new.

The Three Musketeers features an original score by George Stiles and lyrics by Paul Leigh. Riding to Paris, Count Me In, and The Life of a Musketeer were so engaging they became instant hits with the audience.

Do not miss this exciting tale of friendship, courage, romance and daring!

Matinee(s) 2.30pm - 12, 19, 24 December 3pm / 26 December & 2 Jan 1pm & 5pm / 31 Dec 5pm

Evening(s) 7.30pm

The Rose Theatre

24-26 High Street, Kingston

www.rosetheatrekingston.org

WHITE CHRISTMAS

SUNDERLAND EMPIRE THEATRE 

Sunderland Empire kicks off the festive season in the North East of England with a magnificently-staged production of White Christmas. Based upon the 1954 musical film of the same name, which starred Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera-Ellen, this slick, sassy and sophisticated stage show premiered in San Francisco in 2004 and toured America before taking Broadway by storm in the 2008/09 Christmas season. Here, in the United Kingdom, it debuted at Plymouth and Southampton during the 2006/07 season and went on to play at Edinburgh and Cardiff (2007/08 season), Plymouth and Manchester (2009/10 season) and it is now here in Sunderland until the beginning of next year.

It tells the story of two Army buddies who make the big-time with a regular slot on the Ed Sullivan show but then decide to put on a gala concert in an effort to save a magical Vermont inn, owned by their former General, from financial ruin and find their perfect mates in the process. The plot is straightforward and simple yet also engaging enough to keep the audience interested throughout.

Tom Chambers (fresh from his success at winning the 2008 series of Strictly Come Dancing and lead roles in Waterloo Road and Holby City) takes on the role immortalised by the legendary Bing Crosby, whilst Adam Cooper (from Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, Billy Elliott and a principal dancer at the Royal Ballet) steps into the shoes of Danny Kaye. Both can certainly sell a song and a dance, but it was Cooper who seemed most comfortable on stage and somewhat outshone the lead male.

Rachel Stanley and Louise Bowden take on the parts of Betty and Judy Haynes, a singing sister act who provide the main romantic interests for Bob Wallace (Chambers) and Phil Davis (Cooper). Much of the comedy relief comes from Ken Kercheval (who is still instantly recognisable from his days of soap super-stardom playing Cliff Barnes in Dallas) as the kind-hearted blustering buffoon, General Henry Waverly, and his larger-than-life Ethel Merman-esque hotel concierge, Martha Watson (fantastically portrayed by Kerry Washington).

However, the efforts and abilities of the stellar cast were almost outdone by the huge personality of little Millie Thornton – a true star-in-the-making – who stole every scene she appeared in as Susan Waverly, the General’s granddaughter.

It has to be acknowledged that Irving Berlin’s score is as much a star as any of the performers, boasting some of the greatest songs ever written – Happy Holiday, Sisters, Let Me Sing and I’m Happy, Blue Skies, How Deep is the Ocean, I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm and, of course, White Christmas. Each and every one of them are impeccably delivered by the principals, a tap-dancing ensemble of more than thirty and a dynamic 17-piece orchestra, under the musical direction of Robert Scott.

Special mention must also be made of the stunning sets, designed by Anna Louizos, authentic costumes by Carrie Robbins and breathtaking choreography by Randy Skinner, which all add an element of additional pizzazz to the proceedings.

This evergreen sentimental yuletide yarn is a sumptuous seasonal spectacular that brims with the festive feel-good-factor, guaranteeing that ‘the days be merry and bright’ until New Year’s Day, 2011.

Steve Burbridge.

Runs until Saturday 1^st January 2011.