Summary of some Shows being covered this week!
Death Takes A Holiday, directed by Thom Southerland, has a lush, romantic score by multi Tony Award-winner Maury Yeston (Titanic, Nine) and a book by multi Tony Award-winners Thomas Meehan and Peter Stone. It is based on the 1928 Italian play of the same name, which also inspired the movie, Meet Joe Black, starring Brad Pitt.
In Northern Italy, shortly after World War One, Death disguises himself as a handsome young prince to try to understand why life is so precious and death so feared. But when he unexpectedly falls in love with a newly engaged young woman, this mysterious stranger discovers that love may in fact be stronger than death. Death Takes A Holiday was nominated for 11 Drama Desk Awards when it premièred Off Broadway in 2011.
Gazing At A Distant Star
Arun works in a call centre, desperately trying to save the money to go to university.
Anna trains for the 5k she never thought she wanted to run.
Karen works at a hardware store and tries to work out where it all went wrong…
Three lives intersect, three people struggle to cope with loss, to reach out and find the light beyond.
Dirty Great Love Story
Two hopeful, hapless romantics get drunk, get it on and then get the hell away from each other. In her eyes, he’s a mistake. A mistake who keeps turning up at parties. In his eyes, she’s perfect. He’s short-sighted. An achingly funny romantic catastrophe of good intentions and bad timing that asks, can a one night stand last a lifetime?
Cinderella (Mayflower Southampton)
Birmingham Royal Ballet’s production of Cinderella premiered in 2010. It is a full-evening (2 1/2 hour) ballet in three acts closely following the traditional Cinderella story of the wicked stepmother, ugly sisters, the fairy Godmother and of course, the slipper.
The music is the complete original score by Russian composer Sergei Prokofiev which premiered in 1945 at the Bolshoi in Moscow but the choreography, by Company Director David Bintley, was created for this version. The set and costume designs are by John F. Macfarlane who designed the Company’s famous, and hugely popular, version of The Nutcracker and the lighting is by David A. Finn, who also lit The Nutcracker.
In a break from the character portrayal in Cinderella that has dominated in recent years, David Bintley returned to the original idea of having ballerinas as the two sisters who are ‘ugly on the inside’, rather than being played by two men. He also added a short prologue showing Cinderella and father at her mother’s graveside. This also serves as the introduction of the wicked stepmother who comes to dominate the family.
A Year From Now
This new production from RedBellyBlack Theatre is a fascinating combination of verbatim and physical theatre, using movement and audio narrative, that asks 14 people ‘where do you see yourself a year from now?’. Following a successful run at Tristan Bates Theatre, A Year From Now returns to the stage with new answers to some seemingly simple questions.
Bare Essentials
A critically acclaimed series of events that stages new plays by established and emerging theatremakers from all around the world, BARE ESSENTIALS takes place in the heart of theatre-land at the Seven Dials Club, Covent Garden. Join Encompass Productions for ‘an outstanding international new writing night’ (London Pub Theatres) and experience stripped back, bare bones theatre at its best!
THE BARE ESSENTIALS MISSION:
We put established and emerging talent on the same stage. We’ve previously staged work by exciting new writers, BAFTA winners, Netflix and Dreamworks producers and published playwrights. We’re one of London’s longest-running independent new writing nights, answering the demand for fresh new theatre right here in the theatre capital of the world.
Carn's Theatre Passion 