Category Archives: NEWS

NEWS: Scottish Premiere of Hamilton comes to the Festival Theatre Spring 2024

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HAMILTON

ANNOUNCES SCOTTISH PREMIERE AS PART OF FIRST EVER UK TOUR

AT THE FESTIVAL THEATRE, EDINBURGH

FROM WEDNESDAY 28 FEBRUARY – SATURDAY 27 APRIL 2024

TICKETS ON GENERAL SALE 13 MARCH 2023

Producers Jeffrey Seller and Cameron Mackintosh announced that the multi award-winning HAMILTON will tour the UK for the very first time including a Scottish Premiere at the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh from Wednesday 28 February – Saturday 27 April 2024. Casting for the UK tour is currently underway.

 

Tickets go on general sale for the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh on 13 March 2023. To be in the room where it happens before anyone else become a Friend of Capital Theatres for priority booking: https://www.capitaltheatres.com/support/our-memberships and you can subscribe for updates at http://www.hamiltonmusical.com

 

The Olivier, Tony and Grammy and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical opened at the newly re-built and restored Victoria Palace Theatre in London in December 2017 where it continues to play to sell-out houses and is currently booking until 2 March 2024. The production continues to play to record breaking houses on Broadway at the Richard Rodgers Theatre, throughout North America, in Toronto, Australia and Germany with forthcoming seasons in New Zealand an International tour also planned.

 

Since the day the show opened at the Victoria Palace Theatre, London has embraced Hamilton with an enthusiasm we could never have imagined.” Hamilton Producer Jeffrey Seller said “We are excited to embark on a UK tour and share this special musical with audiences in Manchester and Edinburgh first.”

 

Cameron Mackintosh said today “Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton is indisputably the most brilliant, ground-breaking, contemporary musical of modern times. I feel extraordinarily fortunate that Lin and my friend Jeffrey Seller, the show’s original producer, have entrusted me with their wonderful musical in the UK and Ireland.  The London production opened in 2017 at the Victoria Palace, a theatre I completely rebuilt to house Hamilton, where it continues to play and has proved to be as big a success as the Broadway original. So, I am thrilled that it is time to put together a second British national touring company to bring this great show to our leading cities.  Opening first in Manchester, followed by Edinburgh – not far from where the real story of Alexander Hamilton began in Ayrshire, where his father was born in the 1700’s, before he moved to Nevis in the West Indies. Tomorrow we start casting for a brilliant new company. We look forward to welcoming audiences to “the room where it happens”.

 

Fiona Gibson CEO of Capital Theatres who runs the Festival Theatre, Edinburgh said today:

“We’re utterly thrilled to be hosting the Scottish Premiere of Hamilton at the Festival Theatre. It’s even more significant that Alexander Hamilton was of Scottish descent, so in many ways the story is coming home. To have this iconic show which has delighted audiences round the world here at the Festival Theatre and in Edinburgh where Lin-Manuel Miranda once busked at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe is really special. Today we welcome another iconic Scotsman, Cameron Mackintosh, who we’re overjoyed to be working with again. We know audiences will be as excited as we are to see this musical phenomenon.”

 

HAMILTON is the story of America then, told by America now.  Featuring a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B and Broadway, HAMILTON has taken the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton and created a revolutionary moment in theatre—a musical that has had a profound impact on culture, politics, and education.

 

With book, music, and lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda, direction by Thomas Kail, choreography by Andy Blankenbuehler, and musical supervision and orchestrations by Alex Lacamoire, HAMILTON is based on Ron Chernow’s acclaimed biography.  The HAMILTON creative team previously collaborated on the Tony Award®-Winning Best Musical In the Heights.

 

HAMILTON features scenic design by David Korins, costume design by Paul Tazewell, lighting design by Howell Binkley, sound design by Nevin Steinberg, hair and wig design by Charles G. LaPointe.

 

HAMILTON is produced in the UK by Jeffrey Seller, Sander Jacobs, Jill Furman, The Public Theater and Cameron Mackintosh.

NEWS: Jesus Christ Superstar returns

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The King’s Theatre, Glasgow has announced that the Oliver Award-winning musical Jesus Christ Superstar is to tread the boards this autumn.

Following several acclaimed and sold-out runs in London, as well as an extensive tour of North America, this reimagined new production opens on Monday 16 October for five nights as part of a UK tour. The show will also visit Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Tickets will go on sale to ATG Theatrecard holders on Monday 20 February at 10am with general sale opening on Thursday 23 February at 10am.

The celebrated show, which is produced by David Ian for Crossroads Live, is set against the backdrop of an extraordinary series of events during the final weeks in the life of Jesus Christ, as seen through the eyes of Judas. Reflecting the rock roots that defined a generation, the legendary score includes I Don’t Know How to Love Him, Gethsemane and Superstar.

Jesus Christ Superstar’s iconic 1970s rock score is now a global phenomenon and was originally released as a concept album by EGOT winners Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice. The show opened on Broadway in 1971 at the Mark Hellinger Theatre and opened at The Palace Theatre in London in 1972 and ran for eight years. By the time it closed, after 3,358 performances, it had become the longest-running musical in West End history at that time. Jesus Christ Superstar has been reproduced regularly around the world in the years since its first appearance, with performances including a Broadway revival in 2012, an ITV competition TV show called Superstar that led to casting Ben Forster as Jesus in an arena tour of the show, and a production at the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre celebrating 45 years since the musical’s Broadway debut.

Producer David Ian said: “I am thrilled to be taking this award-winning production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s much loved musical JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR on tour in 2023/2024. Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre has created a fresh and bold new version of a beloved classic which will enthrall both longtime fans of the show and delight those seeing it for the very first time”.

This production was reimagined by London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and is helmed by director Timothy Sheader and choreographer Drew McOnie. Completing the creative team is design by Tom Scutt, lighting design by Lee Curran, sound design by Nick Lidster and music supervision by Tom Deering.

Jesus Christ Superstar won the 2017 Olivier Award for Best Musical Revival and the 2016 Evening Standard Award for Best Musical, selling out two consecutive engagements in 2016 and 2017. The production played a West End engagement at the Barbican in 2019 before returning to Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre in concert version during the summer of 2020.

Listings

Jesus Christ Superstar

The King’s Theatre, Glasgow

Mon 16 – Sat 21 Oct 2023

atgtickets.com/Glasgow

NEWS: SIR DAVID MCVICAR RETURNS TO SCOTTISH OPERA TO DIRECT PUCCINI’S IL TRITTICO

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On March 11, Il trittico (The Triptych) — a new production of Puccini’s Il tabarro (The Cloak), Suor Angelica (Sister Angelica) and Gianni Schicchi — opens at Theatre Royal Glasgow before touring to Festival Theatre Edinburgh. Directed by the world-renowned Scot Sir David McVicar, who last worked with the Company on its 2021 production of Verdi’s Falstaff, this is the first time he has directed the epic triple bill and the first time Scottish Opera has staged it. Only one complete performance of Il trittico has taken place in Scotland, at King’s Theatre, Glasgow, in 1957 by Sadler’s Wells Opera.

A new co-production with Welsh National Opera, this glorious trio of one-act operas tell the stories of people trapped by circumstances and unfulfilled desire. Il tabarro sees a wife stuck in a marriage she longs to escape, Suor Angelica is the tale of an outsider forced into a life for which she has no vocation, and Gianni Schicchi focuses on a dysfunctional family caught in the snare of a shameless conman.

The set designs by Charles Edwards span the 1920s, 50s and 70s and take inspiration from the city of Glasgow and the work of French-Hungarian photographer Brassaï, as well as Oscar Marzaroli, who was famous for capturing images of Glasgow from the 1950s to 1980s.

Scottish Opera Music Director Stuart Stratford conducts Roland Wood (Don Giovanni 2022), Sunyoung Seo, Viktor Antipenko, Francesca Chiejina, Julian Close (making their Scottish Opera debuts), Jamie MacDougall (Candide 2022), Louise Winter (Falstaff 2021), Máire Flavin (Opera Highlights 2018) and internationally-acclaimed Scottish mezzo-soprano Karen Cargill (Bluebeard’s Castle 2017). They are joined by former Scottish Opera Emerging Artists Elgan Llŷr Thomas (A Midsummer Night’s Dream 2022) and Sioned Gwen Davies (The Gondoliers 2022).

Il trittico has an early start time of 6pm, with a long second interval for dinner and drinks.  Audiences are able to order food from the theatre in advance, and are advised to do so as early as possible as availability is limited.

Director Sir David McVicar said: ‘Il trittico is such a huge project, with a big and exceptional cast performing in three separate operas, a gripping evening in the theatre that takes us from the dark drama of Il tabarro, through the unbearable heartbreak of Suor Angelica to the acerbic and hilarious Gianni Schicchi, one of the greatest comic operas ever composed. It’s beautiful, tragic, hilarious, epic, and I couldn’t be prouder to be directing Scottish Opera’s first ever production of the three operas, so rarely seen, as Puccini intended, performed in one evening.’

Scottish Opera Music Director, Stuart Stratford, said: ‘Il trittico is the Mount Everest of the Puccini operas. These three, great one-act operas have a most concise structure which makes them so devastating to watch, and yet each is a perfect world in its own right, complete with a different way of delivery of musical material from the performers. Puccini has a special sound world for each, from the French impressionism and passion of Il tabarro to the unbearably sweet, yet poignant, outbursts of Suor Angelica, to the quick-fire stand-up comedy of Gianni Schicchi, leaving the listener after four hours having gone on an exhausting, challenging yet memorable climb to the summit.’

Scottish Opera General Director, Alex Reedijk said: ‘It’s something of a serendipitous confluence that this year sees our 60th Anniversary, Sir David McVicar’s return to Scottish Opera and the staging of Puccini’s triptych by the Company for the very first time. What a way to celebrate our Diamond Anniversary!  We are so excited to bring these incredible operas to Glasgow and Edinburgh, where audiences can expect a truly memorable theatrical experience and the chance to hear all three glorious operas in one night.’

The Company recently launched new afternoon Access shows to allow audience members the flexibility and freedom to relax and move about as required during performances. This Season there will be Access performances (supported by Scottish Opera’s Education Angels) of Gianni Schicchi in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

With Dementia Friendly values at their core, these shorter performances (under two hours including an interval) are open to all, whether you’re recovering from an operation, have breathing difficulties, are living with dementia, have a young baby or on the autism spectrum.

The Access performances, which include a presenter to help guide audiences through the story, are conducted by Head of Music Derek Clark, and performed by a cast of singers. Doors open 45 minutes before the start time so there is no need to rush, brighter lighting levels than usual in the auditorium and there are television screens around the theatre for those who prefer to watch in the lobby or sit in a quiet area.

Half-hour pre-show talks, delving into the detail of Il trittico are also available this season. Those who are visually impaired can take advantage of audio-described performances, where a live commentary is provided, describing the action on stage without compromising the music. As part of the experience, a recorded introduction to the operas is provided in advance, and there is a free Touch Tour of the set and a live audio introduction before the start of the performance.

Performance diary

 

Il trittico

 

Theatre Royal Glasgow

11, 15, 18 March 2023, 6pm

Pre-show talk and Touch Tour, 18 March, 4.45pm

Audio-described performance, 18 March 6pm

Access Gianni Schicchi, 16 March, 3pm

 

Festival Theatre Edinburgh

22 & 25 March 2023, 6pm

Pre-show talk and Touch Tour, 25 March, 4.45pm

Audio-described performance, 25 March, 6pm

Access Gianni Schicchi, 23 March, 3

IMAGES: JAMES GLOSSOP

The Birds and The Bees starring Helen Lederer & Michael Starke visits Glasgow

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With Spring just around the corner, the UK tour of comedy The Birds and the Bees,  starring Helen Lederer and Michael Starke has announced it will visit Glasgow.

On Sarah’s East Anglian farm, the honeybees are dropping like flies – just like her love life. She hasn’t slept with anyone since her husband bolted years ago. Her daughter’s marriage is going bust just like her turkey farm. Neighbour Earl is fighting a losing battle with his sugar beet yield and his ‘no strings’ relationships. Can bio-student Ben perk up the pollinators and give the turkeys a helping hand? Perhaps all they need is some local mead and the annual Turkey Day’s Dance to help them discover that the best way out of a crisis is to commit to those closest to you. Just don’t get stung!

The comedy written by Mark Crawford has been reimagined for a UK audience, relocating the play from modern-day Canada to Norfolk with additional material by James McDermott .

Helen Lederer is best known for her role as the dippy Catriona in ‘Absolutely Fabulous’. Helen was part of a group of early 1980’s comedians, including Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders, the late Rik Mayall and Ben Elton who made their names at London’s Comedy Store and continues to perform her on stand up to this day.

Her vast appearances on TV include ‘The Young Ones’, ‘French and Saunders’, ‘Happy Families’, ‘One Foot in the Grave’, ‘Bottom’, ‘Love Soup’ and ‘Miss Marple’ among many more.  A comedy writer with an extensive portfolio, Helen is a regular panellist on radio on shows such as ‘The News Quiz’, ‘Just a Minute’, ‘Quote…Unquote’, ‘A Good Read’, ‘Open Book’ and ‘Woman’s Hour’ as well as a prolific columnist.  Theatre work includes ‘Educating Rita’, and Alan Bleasdale’s ‘Having a Ball’. She has been in ‘The Vagina Monologues’, ‘Calendar Girls’, and ‘The Killing of Sister George’, in London’s West End.

Michael Starke remains universally known and loved for creating the role of Thomas ‘Sinbad’ Sweeney in Channel 4’s Brookside, a loveable rogue role he was to play for sixteen years. Michael’s countless further TV appearances include ITV’s ‘The Royal’ and ‘Coronation Street’ and on the BBC ‘Stig of the Dump’, ‘Casualty’,  ‘Benidorm’, ‘Holby City’, ‘Moving On’ and ‘The Responder‘. He also appeared in ‘The Virtues’ on Channel 4 and ‘Tin Star ‘ on Sky Atlantic.

Michael has also become well known as a leading actor in musical and plays, both in the West End and in theatres across the country. His theatre credits include White Christmas, Waitress, Sister Act, Hairspray, The Rocky Horror Show, Bouncers, The Play What I Wrote and Hamlet.

Helen Lederer said:

‘I am so looking forward to getting out on tour and channelling my middle aged ‘karma’ on stage with the fabulous Michael Starke. The Birds and the Bees is not only very funny, it is about ‘awakenings’ – It’s been worth the wait’     

Michael Starke said:

‘The Birds and the Bees is a Valentine to nature in all its glory! I’m delighted to be part of this magnificent company and to be touring with the fantastic Helen Lederer and friends old and new’

Producer John Stalker said:

“The Birds and the Bees is one of the funniest plays I have come across in a long time. Having seen the belly laughs from audiences during our short run in 2022 and with spring around the corner, I’m delighted to take this gem of a comedy to share with many more across the UK and I can’t imagine the play in better hands than this stellar cast” 

Set in an East Anglian farm, the hilarious comedy romp tackles topics of sex, love, science, family, and the artificial insemination of turkeys. This hilarious comedy romp has a heart as big as the laughs it brings. Indeed it’s the bees’ knees!

Find out more at thebirdsandthebeesplay.com

The show contains strong language, adult themes and partial nudity – recommended for ages 14+

LISTING: 20 – 24 June 2023  Glasgow Theatre Royal                 www.atgtickets.com/glasgow (ON SALE SOON)

NEWS: Pretty Woman has its Scottish premiere in Glasgow this year

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The musical based on the smash hit film Pretty Woman will make its Scottish Premiere in Glasgow later this year.

Hot on the success of the production’s ongoing run at the Savoy Theatre, London (where it is currently booking until 11 June 2023), the show visits the Hope Street venue for two weeks in November as part of an extensive UK tour.

Pretty Woman: The Musical is Hollywood’s ultimate rom-com, live on stage. Based on the 90s film of the same name, the story is set nce upon a time in the late ’80s when Vivian met Edward and her life changed forever. Prepare to be swept up in their romance in this dazzlingly theatrical take on a love story for the ages – and get to know these iconic characters in a whole new way – in a sensational show guaranteed to lift your spirits and light up your heart. It’s going to be a big night out. Big. Huge.

James Haworth, Theatre Director at Theatre Royal said: “I’m thrilled to welcome Pretty Woman to Glasgow this autumn. It’s been immensely popular in London and its arrival in Glasgow is a testament that we really do have some of the best theatre shows right here on our doorstep.”

Pretty Woman: The Musical features original music and lyrics by Grammy Award winner Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance, a book by Garry Marshall and the film’s screenwriter J.F. Lawton, it is directed and choreographed by the two-time Tony Award winner Jerry Mitchell.

Featured in the musical is Roy Orbison and Bill Dee’s international smash hit song Oh, Pretty Woman which inspired one of the most beloved romantic comedy films of all time. PRETTY WOMAN the film (produced by Arnon Milchan – New Regency Productions) was an international smash hit when it was released in 1990.

Tickets are on sale from noon on 14th February.

NEWS: Gray O’Brien to star in Perth Theatre’s Educating Rita

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Award-winning ex-Corrie favourite, Scottish film and television actor Gray O’Brien is taking on the iconic role of Frank in Perth Theatre’s production of Educating Rita.

Gray picked up the British Soap Awards Villain of the Year gong for his role as Tony Gordon on the cobbles from 2007 until 2010, and has also had regular roles in Peak Practice, Casualty and River City. In 2017, he starred in ITV mini drama series The Loch. He recently played Levine in Bill Kenwright’s touring stage show Catch Me if you Can.

Gray will be joined by Rachael-Rose McLaren in the role of Rita. Emerging talent Rachael-Rose was last seen in Perth Theatre in November 2022 in the sell-out National Theatre of Scotland production Enough of Him about the Perthshire slave Joseph Knight and his bid for freedom.

Running in Perth Theatre from Thursday 16 March until Saturday 1 April, Educating Rita is directed by Martin McCormick, who won the hearts of the people of Perth with celebrated community football show Oh When the Saints in June 2022.

Willy Russell’s hysterical, thought-provoking modern classic premiered in 1980 at the RSC and went on to win multiple awards as well as being adapted for a feature film starring Julie Walters and Michael Caine.

Still as relevant and powerful more than 40 years after it first hit the stage, Educating Rita centres around the relationship between Rita a working-class hairdresser with a thirst for knowledge and disillusioned university lecturer Frank.

Martin McCormick said:

“I’m thrilled to be directing Educating Rita as it’s very much what I’d consider to be a modern classic.  It’s the typical clash of cultures formula between teacher and pupil that can be traced back to Pygmalion and beyond. Rita seeks to enlighten herself with the help of university professor, Frank. There is loads going against her; family, class, her gender.  But the major stumbling block is Frank himself!

Educating Rita contains all the hallmarks of what audiences love in a play. It’s funny, entertaining, thought-provoking and- even after the 40 plus years since Willy Russell wrote it – very relevant.”

Educating Rita is the first play in the revitalised Perth Theatre Season Subscription which gives regular theatregoers significant discounts when booking a selection of shows including popular classics, timeless comedy, mind-boggling mysteries and uplifting musicals.

Other productions in the Perth Theatre Season Subscription are The Mousetrap, National Theatre of Scotland’s Kidnapped, London Classic Theatre’s Abigail’s Party and the Raw Material and Eden Court co-production The Stamping Ground.

Audiences receive a discount of 15% when booking at least three shows, or 25% when booking all five together.

For tickets and info about Educating Rita and the Perth Theatre Season Subscription visit perththeatreandconcerthall.com or call or visit the Perth Theatre Box Office on 01738 621031 (10am – 4pm Monday to Saturday).

NEWS: Pitlochry Festival Theatre announce line up for 2023 season

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Pitlochry Festival Theatre has today announced an exciting line up of world premières, classic plays, new writing and a smash-hit musical for its 2023 summer season

 

Running from 19 May until 30 September, the 2023 season will open with the legendary musical Gypsy. With lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, the musical tells the story of the burlesque performer Gypsy Rose Lee and her ambitious showbiz mother, Rose.

This will be followed by a rare Scottish theatre revival of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire. Williams’ masterpiece follows sisters Blanche and Stella’s reunion in New Orleans. Reality and illusion collide for these complex women, especially when Stella’s husband Stanley uncovers hidden truths.

The 2023 season in the Auditorium will host the Scottish première of Emma Rice’s acclaimed adaptation of Noël Coward’s Brief Encounter in which a chance meeting at a railway station tearoom hurls two strangers headlong into a whirlwind romance that threatens to blow their worlds apart. It will also feature the world première of Scottish playwright Peter Arnott’s new play Group Portrait In A Summer Landscape, co-produced with the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh.

After a highly successful opening season in 2022, the Theatre’s new Studio will stage the première of To The Bone, Scottish playwright Isla Cowan’s (She Wolf, Edinburgh Festival Fringe) new play which explores haunting, healing, and what we call ‘home’. The new performance space will also see Pitlochry Festival Theatre collaborate with A Play, A Pie and A Pint for the first time with The Great Replacement, Uma Nada-Rajah’s darkly comedic romp through intergenerational politics and the absurdities and peculiarities of race. Finally, the 2023 Studio season will see the welcome return of The Maggie Wall, Martin McCormick’s acclaimed play inspired by a mysterious monument built in Dunning, Perthshire to commemorate the death of a woman who was tried and executed in the 17th century for witchcraft. The Maggie Wall will be a co-production with Aberdeen Arts Centre.

The 2023 season will also see live performances in the venue’s picturesque Amphitheatre, nestled within its Explorers Garden and in the shadow of Ben-y-Vrackie, with the première of Elizabeth Newman’s new adaptation of Frances Hodgson Burnett’s much-loved classic tale The Secret Garden and the return of the sold-out tale of Sherlock Holmes: A Study in Lipstick, Ketchup and Blood, Lesley Hart’s adaptation of Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1887 classic Sherlock Holmes adventure A Study in Scarlet. The acclaimed play will be a co-production with OVO and will transfer to the Roman Theatre in St Albans later in the year.

In February, Pitlochry Festival Theatre can’t wait to announce the news of its tenth and final production of its 2023 season – the world première of a brand-new play that is set to captivate audiences this Summer.

Elizabeth Newman, Artistic Director of Pitlochry Festival Theatre said:

“We are proud to continue to be the nation’s largest producing Theatre located in beautiful Pitlochry.  We reach audiences and artists from all across Scotland (mainland and islands), and we cannot wait to spend next year deepening our relationships locally, regionally, and nationally.

This summer season we also collaborate with other companies to share Pitlochry with the world and the world with Pitlochry. We will collaborate with A Play, a Pie and a Pint, OVO and Aberdeen Arts Centre, all for the first time and continue our important relationship with the Royal Lyceum Edinburgh.

Pitlochry Festival Theatre prides itself on making great drama in the heart of Scotland and we can’t wait to welcome more people to get involved through our participation activities too, and if you’re an artist, you can also connect with us through our different talent development initiatives and Writers Room.

The investment made by Creative Scotland and Perth & Kinross Council to Pitlochry Festival Theatre enables us to create meaningful, accessible, and entertaining work for the people of Scotland. In a typical year, we reach audiences across an extraordinary third of the entire country and have the widest reach of any Scottish theatre maker. With the support of these two organisations, we are delighted to provide theatre Inside, Outside and Online for all.”

Further to an already great line-up of theatre, Pitlochry Festival Theatre will also be celebrating live music throughout the season by hosting a series of Inside and Outside events, featuring music from the great musicals.

 Ahead of the start of the summer 2023 season, Pitlochry Festival Theatre will be staging its annual Winter Words Festival (9 – 12 February), which will be in person for the first time in two years and will include the extremely popular Banff Mountain Film Festival (11 February) and The Makings of a Murderer (12 February) with the Scottish detective David Swindle.

Further information about the casting for the 2023 ensemble and the full line up for the Winter Words Festival will be announced in the coming months.

Tickets for the 2023 season will go on sale to existing Pitlochry Festival Theatre members on Wednesday 15 February 2023 and on general sale on Wednesday 1 March 2023. Tickets for Winter Words Festival will go on sale in mid-January. For further information on tickets and productions visit www.pitlochryfestivaltheatre.com or call 01796 484626.

NEWS: SCOTTISH OPERA’S OPERA HIGHLIGHTS TOURS THIS SPRING TO 18 VENUES ACROSS SCOTLAND

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Scottish Opera’s hugely popular Opera Highlights is taking to the road this February, travelling across the country from the Scottish Borders to the Highlands and Islands.

The tour kicks off on Valentine’s Day at East Kilbride Village Theatre, exploring love in all its forms in one enchanting evening.

Marking its 60th Anniversary, Opera Highlights forms part of the Company’s commitment to bring opera to over 60 communities across all points of the compass around Scotland this Season. This beautifully crafted show travels to Crail, Garvald, Perth, Stonehaven, Boat of Garten, Invergarry, Wick, Orkney, Ullapool, Torridon, Skye, Oban, Campbeltown, Islay, Gretna, Hawick and Ayr.

Director Emma Jenkins and designer Janis Hart bring verve and creativity to this year’s original piano-accompanied production. The cast includes Scottish Opera 2022/23 Emerging Artist Colin Murray, alongside Annie Reilly who both recently performed in the five-star production of Ainadamar, as well as Andrew Henley (Thérèse 2022) and Holly Teague, led from the piano by James Longford. Join the cast as they transport to another world, where anything is possible.

The production also features the world premiere of a new piece by Scottish Opera 2021/22 Emerging Artist and composer Toby Hession, with libretto by Emma Jenkins. Enitled ‘Told By An Idiot’ it is a modern and humorous re-working of Macbeth.

Scottish Opera’s Head of Music Derek Clark, introduces audiences to a treasure trove of work with a playlist from much-loved opera’s including Mozart’s The Magic Flute and The Marriage of Figaro, Beethoven’s Fidelio, Verdi’s Macbeth and Bizet’s The Pearl Fishers alongside music by Rimsky-Korsakov, Gounod and a composition written by Mendelssohn when he was just 12 years old.

Director Emma Jenkins said: ‘Four young singers in search of an identity find themselves, like Alice in Wonderland or the children of Narnia, propelled along an operatic rollercoaster of love and loss, devotion and desire, jealousy and jubilation. The overriding theme of the Opera Highlights is LOVE. Our singers put on and take off various roles as if possessed by the force of love in a fast-paced performance that celebrates not only the voice, but also ensemble work and physical theatre. All this against the backdrop of Janis Hart’s stunning design which combines a retro 70s feel with an anarchic theatrical space in which one feels that anything could happen!’

Scottish Opera’s Head of Music, Derek Clark said: ‘The programme is the usual mixture of music from familiar operas and the less well-known, so we are confident that there will be something for everyone to enjoy, whether you are an experienced opera goer, or coming to see us for the first time.’

Having toured with a different cast in Autumn 2022, audience members said of the show:

‘Fantastic night in Markinch. A real tour de force – superb singing, brilliant acting and the set was masterful. I don’t even know much about opera and I loved it!

‘Enjoyed some culture on my doorstep last night! Was superb, great performances and set, fab opera taster with a mix of drama, deaths and laughs.’

‘What an absolute treat – Scottish Opera’s Opera Highlights in my local town hall! Fabulously sung (of course), beautifully delivered and creatively staged. Thoroughly recommended.’

‘The entire performance was perfect; The Pearl Fishers was the finest I have ever experienced. Great credit also to the set designer – fun, imaginative and the amount of ‘feeling’ from such a versatile set was amazing.’

Opera Highlights is supported by The Friends of Scottish Opera and JTH Charitable Trust.

The production will be touring from 14 February to 25 March 2023.

Tickets at www.scottishopera.org.uk/shows/opera-highlights-202223/

Image from 2022 tour

REVIEW: The Wizard of Oz – Eastwood Park Theatre, Giffnock

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Despite it being the first day in December, pantomime season is well and truly in its groove. Eastwood Park Theatre in Giffnock have hit the ground running with the well-oiled machine that is The Wizard of Oz.

Largely a re-telling of the L. Frank Baum tale, it does take a few diversions off of the yellow brick road, (there’s a magic microphone involved) but it is very much a traditional family panto with wide appeal. The double-entendres are at a minimum and there’s enough slapstick for the little ones, TikTok dances and familiar chart hits for the teens and political jokes for the grown-ups.

It all starts with a bang, when we are treated to a rip-roaring version of Proud Mary in the first five minutes: the fine-voiced cast have their first of many chances to shine. With the interest levels up, the audience is carried along on a wave of energy.

To their absolute credit, there isn’t a weak link anywhere in the compact cast and there’s a palpable chemistry between Dorothy’s three chums: Jamie Lemetti (Scarecrow), Alan Mirren (Tin Man) and Liam Webster (Lion) who have an ease and fine timing with each other that ensures each joke lands its punchline. Stand out among the cast is the engaging Garry King who manages to deliver an eye-watering number of roles with a glint in his eye and a spring in his step, getting the audience firmly onside from the get-go. The dancers are well-drilled, and the choreography is sufficiently diverse to keep the interest up. For those wondering, yes, there are Munchkins, many, many, Munchkins, played by members of local dance and drama organisations. The Wicked Witch is sufficiently over-the-top camp and Stephen McLaughlin who plays her, has a powerful but soulful voice which he utilises to great effect here as does Kate Richards as the Good Witch (and Aunt Em).

If it’s bang for your buck you are looking for then you need look no further than Eastwood Park. At almost two and a half hours long, the show is packed with content, delivered by an enormously talented cast, everyone giving their all no matter what their role.

Eastwood Park is an exemplary theatre: great programming; a theatre with excellent sight lines; accessible; friendly, helpful staff and family affordable tickets – what more could you want?

Runs until 30 December 2022 – Tickets here

NEWS: GIOVANNA FLETCHER, CLIVE MANTLE AND GEORGE RAINSFORD TO STAR IN WISH YOU WERE DEAD

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Producer Josh Andrews has announced the lead cast for the UK tour of Peter James’ Wish You Were Dead: George Rainsford, will star as James’ famous detective DSI Roy Grace, alongside Giovanna Fletcher who will star as Cleo Morey and Clive Mantle, who will star as Curtis. Leon Stewart will return to the role of DS Glenn Branson.

The show visits Glasgow 28 March – 1 April 2023 at the Theatre Royal

The world stage premiere of Wish You Were Dead follows five successful stage plays and the critically acclaimed smash-hit primetime ITV series ‘Grace’, which are all based on the best-selling novels by the UK’s number one crime author Peter James. This will be the sixth stage adaptation of James’ novels -making it the most successful crime thriller stage franchise since Agatha Christie.

Adapted exclusively for the stage, Wish You Were Dead kicks off a major nationwide UK tour in February 2023 at the Churchill Theatre, Bromley. The production will then travel to a selection of top theatres across the country until late July. Tickets are on sale now from PeterJames.com.

Giovanna Fletcher is a hugely successful author, podcast host and Queen of The Castle after winning I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here in 2020, Giovanna’s theatrical credits include 2:22 A Ghost Story and Ivanov in the West End and she also appears in the feature film The Boat That Rocked.

Clive Mantle’s extensive range of credits across theatre, film and television, include an Olivier Award nominated performance in Of Mice and Men. He is perhaps best known for his TV work in shows such as Casualty, Holby City, Game of Thrones and The Vicar of Dibley and is also an award-winning children’s author.

George Rainsford has for the last nine years, been playing series regular Ethan Hardy in Casualty on BBC One, for which he won the Inside Soap Award Best Drama Star 2017. Other Television credits include Holby City and Call the Midwife and his numerous theatre credits include productions at the National Theatre, RSC and the Old Vic.

George Rainsford said: “I can’t wait to be part of a theatre ensemble again and delve into Peter James’ thrilling criminal underworld. Getting to play Roy Grace, his most renowned detective creation, will be a huge honour. I am excited to meet audiences from all over the UK, and share with them some enthralling, edge-of-your-seat entertainment!”

Clive Mantle said: “I’m looking forward to terrifying… I mean entertaining… audiences up and down the length and breadth of Britain with ‘Wish You Were Dead’. Full of suspense and drama, there will be  many funny moments too during the course of a captivating evening. There’s a clue there for starters. Roll up, roll up, all you amateur sleuths. Can’t wait to see you all.”

Giovanna Fletcher said: “I’m really looking forward to appearing on stage as Cleo in this brand new play, and excited to work with George and Clive – two wonderful actors I’ve heard great things about. As a novelist, I know how important the characters I create are to me, so I’m thrilled Peter James has entrusted me with this wonderful role, in what is another brilliant and gripping story from one of the greatest masters of crime thrillers!”

Writer Peter James said: “I am beyond thrilled with the wonderful star cast that we have assembled for the world stage premiere of Wish You Were Dead. I love the fact that so many people create their own image of my characters but for me, George, Giovanna and Clive are all inspired interpretations of how I see Roy Grace, Cleo and Curtis and I am equally thrilled that Leon is returning to play Branson again. It is going to be very exciting to work with this great group of actors and I can’t wait for them to give audiences around the country, a thrilling, fun and hugely entertaining night at the theatre.”

The stage play of Wish You Were Dead follows DSI Roy Grace and Cleo Morey as they take a much-needed holiday together. They are hoping for a few days away from their dark worlds of murder and the mortuary. But their dream escape turns out to be the holiday from hell, as the past comes back to haunt them.

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