Preview: Rambert at Newcastle Theatre Royal

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RAMBERT TO BREW UP A PERFECT STORM OF ART, SCIENCE AND NATURE

Rambert

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Tuesday 2^nd – Thursday 4^th February 2016

The UK’s longest established contemporary dance powerhouse, Rambert are back in Newcastle next year with a brand new show celebrating the dual forces of nature and art.  Thought provoking, visually stunning, and featuring Tyneside-born dancer Adam Park, the new tour is set to blow audiences away at Newcastle Theatre Royal in February 2016.

The tour programme features two new pieces – the Picasso-inspired The 3 Dancers and Frames, which takes us into a choreographer’s world, and a third piece, which was one of the huge successes of 2014 - The Strange Charm of Mother Nature.

The 3 Dancers is inspired by the tragic love triangle behind Picasso’s masterpiece of the same name.  A new work from former Rambert dancer Didy Veldman, it will explore the eternal themes of the painter’s work: love, desire and death. An internationally-renowned choreographer, Veldman uses a total of six dancers, three dressed in white and three as their shadows or darker selves in order to delve into the social, psychological and human elements of Picasso’s work.

Veldman, well known for her theatrical style and earthy choreography, reveals how Cubism can be applied to movement to create the fragmented world which is so characteristic of Picasso’s work. The 3 Dancers features an original score by Australia’s leading composer Elena Kats-Chernin.

Frames is a new work from another Rambert alumni, Alexander Whitley, which lays bare the process of making a dance performance. Twelve performers assemble and dismantle the set, move lighting and change angles, constantly creating new spaces and playing with what’s revealed and what’s hidden in their sequences of highly technical dancing.

This thought-provoking work, which sees dancers create a stage within a stage, is a continuation of Whitley’s collaboration with award-winning visual artists Tuur Van Balen and Revital Cohen and is accompanied by a new score from Icelandic composer Daníel Bjarnason.

The Strange Charm of Mother Nature, which premiered in September 2014, is inspired by particle physics and the recent discovery of the Higgs boson ‘God Particle’. Continuing choreographer Mark Baldwin’s fascination with science which has seen previous pieces inspired by the theories of Einstein and Darwin, the show sees dancers fizz with the energy of the miniscule building blocks that created life, the universe and everything. The work is set to a musical score of Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No.3, Stravinsky’s Dumbarton Oaks and a new piece by Cheryl Frances-Hoad.

This season, the company once again features north-east born dancer Adam Park, aged 24, of Jesmond who trained at Dame Allan’s and Dance City and has been in the company for four years.  Adam last performed with Rambert at Newcastle Theatre Royal in 2012 as part of the Seven for a Secret tour.

Tickets:

Rambert appears at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 2^nd – Thursday 4^th February 2016.

(Evenings: 7.30pm, Matinee: Thursday 2pm). Tickets are from £12.00 (pay less online) and can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 (calls cost 7ppm plus your phone company’s access charge).

Preview: Aladdin at Newcastle Tyne Theatre

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Traditional Geordie Panto

for all the Family

Aladdin

Newcastle Tyne Theatre & Opera House

Friday 4^th – Wednesday 30^th December 2015

This Christmas, Newcastle Panto brings back one of the most popular pantomimes with audiences:  follow Aladdin as he pursues his love of the beautiful Princess Jasmine, from the steamy rooms of Widow Twankey's Laundry to the distant shores of Egypt via a magic cave packed with treasure! 

Founded in 1995, the professional theatre company has brought traditional panto entertainment to the historic city centre theatre every Christmas for the past 13 years.

Writer and Director, Maxie Peters, stars in his much loved Dame role as Widow Twankey, while panto favourite, Charlie Richmond, returns as Wishee-Washee; loveable Kevin O’Keefe is set to receive all the boos this year as he switches to the dark side to take on the baddie role of Abanazar.  Show choreographer, Emily Swan, will appear as the beautiful Princess Jasmine, opposite Jayne Mackenzie as Aladdin.

New faces this year include local newcomers, Lewis Denny and Gary Walsh as the hapless Chinese policemen, and Lorraine Crosby, known best for her legendary voice on Meatloaf’s “I’d Do Anything For  Love”, who will play the Empress of China.

Join us from Friday 4^th – Wednesday 30^th December to boo and cheer, sing and dance and laugh out loud in a Christmas tradition you simply can’t miss!

Tickets:

The Tyne Theatre & Opera House Box Office is open 10am-3:30pm Monday to Friday and event days

Booking and Information Line: 0844 2491 000 (10am – 6pm Monday to Friday)

Tickets are now available from www.tynetheatreandoperahouse.uk

Preview: An Inspector Calls at Newcastle Theatre Royal

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CLASSIC THRILLER RETURNS TO NEWCASTLE THEATRE ROYAL

An Inspector Calls

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Tuesday 9^th – Saturday 13^th February 2016

A night of intrigue is on the cards for audiences at Newcastle Theatre Royal as the multi award-winning production of J.B Priestley’s An Inspector Calls returns from Tuesday 9^th – Saturday 13^th February 2016.

A National Theatre production and winner of 19 major international awards, Stephen Daldry’s legendary production of the classic thriller stars Liam Brennan (Inspector Goole), Caroline Wildi (Mrs Birling), Tim Woodward (Mr Birling), Matthew Douglas (Gerald Croft), Katherine Jack (Sheila Birling), Hamish Riddle (Eric Birling) and Diana Payne Myers (Edna).

Photo: Mark Douet 

This tour marks 70 years since An Inspector Calls first premiered, in Moscow in 1945. Written at the end of the Second World War and set before the First World War, J.B Priestley’s play is a compelling and haunting thriller. The story begins when the mysterious Inspector Goole calls unexpectedly on the prosperous Birling family home. 

Photo: Mark Douet 

Their peaceful dinner party is shattered by his investigations into the death of a young woman whom each of them in turn has exploited. His startling revelations not only shatter the very foundations of their lives but challenge us all to examine our consciences. Daldry’s visionary production unites the 1912 setting with the time it was written in 1945, transferring the play to a dramatic cobblestone war-torn wasteland, where the Edwardian Birling family home looms precariously, suspended on stilts.

Photo: Mark Douet 

Featuring Ian MacNeil’s ingenious designs, a sweeping score by Oscar-winning composer Stephen Warbeck (Shakespeare in Love) and atmospheric lighting by Rick Fisher, the production has received an unprecedented string of awards, including the Olivier Award for Best Revival, Best Director and Best Designer and the Tony Award on Broadway for Best Revival, Best Director and Best Lighting.

Photo: Mark Douet 

Director Stephen Daldry has received Academy Award nominations for Best Director and/or Best Picture for his films The Reader(starring Kate Winslett, Ralph Fiennes), The Hours (starring Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore), Billy Elliot (starring Jamie Bell) and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close(starring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock). He won his first major directorial success in 1992 when his visionary revival of J.B. Priestley’s An Inspector Calls opened at the National Theatre to outstanding critical acclaim.

Photo: Mark Douet 

Daldry’s recent West Endtheatre work includes a revival of David Hare’s Skylight starring Bill Nighy and Carey Mulligan at the Wyndham’s Theatre and PeterMorgan’s The Audience, originally starring Helen Mirren at the Gielgud Theatre and currently starring Kristen Scott Thomas at the Apollo Theatre. His multi award-winning production of Billy Elliot The Musical is now enjoying its 10^th year at the Victoria Palace.

Photo: Mark Douet 

The longest running play revival in history, Stephen Daldry’s An Inspector Calls has played in the West End (including a 6-year run), on Broadway, across Australia, the United States, Japan and Europe and has currently completed seven major UK tours. The production returned to the West Endin 2010, winning a host of 5-star reviews and enjoying sell-out performances at the Novello Theatre before transferring to the Wyndham’s for an extended run. Widely renowned as the theatrical event of our generation, this production has now been seen by an excess of three million theatregoers worldwide.

Photo: Mark Douet 

The National Theatre Production of An Inspector Calls is produced on tour by PW Productions Ltd. Directed by Stephen Daldry, Designed by Ian MacNeil, with Music by Stephen Warbeck, Lighting by Rick Fisher, Associate Director Julian Webber.

Tickets:

An Inspector Calls is at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 9^th to Saturday 13^thFebruary 2016, playing evenings at 7.30pm, matinees Wed and Thu at 2pm and Sat 2.30pm. Tickets from £14.50 (save 50p per ticket online). Tickets can be purchased from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 08448 11 21 21 (Calls cost 7ppm plus your phone company’s access charge) or book online at www.theatreroyal.co.uk. 

Preview: The Bodyguard at Sunderland Empire

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NORTH EAST’S ZOE BIRKETT TO STAR IN THE SMASH HIT MUSICAL

The Bodyguard

Sunderland Empire

Tuesday 1^st – Saturday 12^th March 2016

Michael Harrison and David Ian are delighted to announce that Zoe Birkett will star in the leading role of ‘Rachel Marron’ in Thea Sharrock’s hit musical The Bodyguard (www.thebodyguardmusical.com) when it returns to the North East to play Sunderland Empire from 1-12 March 2016.

Zoe Birkett

Zoe Birkett said "Playing Rachel Marron is a dream come true for me. Whitney Houston has always been an idol of mine, singing those legendary songs I will have to pinch myself. I can't wait to start the production and get on the road around the UK."

Consett-born actress and singer Zoe Birkett is probably best known as the highest placing female contestant in ITV’s Pop Idol, 2002. Since then she has appeared in the West End productions of Priscilla Queen of the Desert, originated the female lead in Thriller Live and was also a lead role in Respect La Diva. Her other theatre credits include the Acid Queen in Tommy, Maureen in Rent and Dion in Hair.

Producer Michael Harrison said today “Not only am I thrilled that our production of the musical The Bodyguard is returning to the North East next March, but for the North East’s very own leading lady, the amazing Zoe Birkett, to be playing the role of star Rachel Marron is truly the icing on the cake. Zoe is such a wonderful actress and singer that I’m sure the theatregoers of Sunderland will welcome her home with the same fantastic reception she has been receiving throughout the UK.”

Based on Lawrence Kasdan’s 1992 Oscar nominated Warner Bros. film, The Bodyguard, which starred Whitney Houston and Kevin Costner, was nominated for four Laurence Olivier Awards including Best New Musical and Best Set Design and won Best New Musical at the Whatsonstage Awards.

Former Secret Service agent turned bodyguard, Frank Farmer, is hired to protect superstar Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. Each expects to be in charge; what they don’t expect is to fall in love. A romantic thriller, The Bodyguard features a host of irresistible classics including Queen of the Night, So Emotional, One Moment in Time, Saving All My Love, I’m Your Baby Tonight, Run to You, I Have Nothing, I Wanna Dance with Somebody and one of the biggest selling songs of all time – I Will Always Love You.

Tickets:

Tickets on sale now and available in person at the Box Office on High Street West, from the Ticket Centre on 0844 871 3022* or online at www.ATGtickets.com/Sunderland*

*Calls cost 7p per minute plus your standard network charge. Booking fees may apply to telephone and online bookings

Preview: Day of the Flymo at Newcastle Live Theatre

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Day of the FlymoReturns to Live Theatre Following Sell-Out Run

Day of the Flymo

Newcastle Live Theatre 

Thursday 12^th to Saturday 21^st November 2015

What do you do when the state decides it’s going to take over from your Mam? A play by award-winning writer, Paddy Campbell.

Day of the Flymo is to return to Newcastle’s Live Theatre next month,with shows from Thursday 12^th to Saturday 21^st November, following its sell-out run at Live Theatre earlier this year, when it was awarded four stars by The Guardian.

Written by award winning playwright Paddy Campbell (Wet House), Day of the Flymo looks at the chaotic lives of a brother and sister struggling to cover up the cracks and the mechanisms that swing into action when social services step in. It asks what do you do when the state decides it’s going to take over from your Mam?

The same cast returns including talented young actors from Live’s Youth Theatre including Kalem Patterson (age 14, from Ryton), Tezney Mulroy (age 17, from Newcastle), and Sophie Pitches (age 17, from North Shields), once again supported by a professional cast of Jill Dellow (Chalet Lines), a former member of Live's Youth Theatre, and Akemnji Ndifornyen.

Young actor, Tezney Mulroy said: "Performing in Day of the Flymo in April was unbelievably exciting. After all the hard work it was so good to get such a great reaction from the audience. I'm over the moon that the whole cast will be back performing the play again next month at Live Theatre."

Paddy Campbell has been appointed as the inaugural joint Live Theatre & Northumbria University’s writer in residence. See NETG article LINK. Paddy moved to Newcastle from Northern Ireland 13 years ago to study fine art and sculpture at Northumbria University and has come through Live Theatre’s writing development programme whilst working in a children's home, which provided the inspiration for Day of the Flymo.

Writer Paddy Campbell, said: "I am delighted that 'Day of the Flymo' is returning to Live Theatre. The audience reaction and having a sell-out run in April was incredible. I'm looking forward to it being back on stage in November during my writer-in-residence year with Live Theatre and Northumbria University."

The Artistic Director of Live Theatre, Max Roberts, said: "Those who saw Paddy’s first play Wet House will be aware of Paddy's talent. And as we saw in April, he has again created another hard hitting piece about the care system he has known as an insider. For those people not lucky enough to see Day of the Flymo during its first run - it's political, at times tragic, and is packed with Paddy's trade mark dark humour.”

Paddy Campbell’s first full length play, Wet House (NETG Review LINK), was the winner of three Journal Culture Awards, and voted one of The Guardian’s Top 10 Plays of 2013. After a sell-out run at Live Theatre in 2013, as part of Live Theatre’s 40^thanniversary year, Wet House returned to Live Theatre and toured to Hull Truck Theatre and Soho Theatre in 2014. Day of the Flymo previewed at Live Theatre in April 2015.

Day of the Flymo is at Live Theatre, Newcastle from Thursday 12 to Saturday 21 November 2015. A free Meet the Writerevent takes place at 6pmbefore the performance on Friday 13 November, in which writer Paddy Campbell, artistic director Max Roberts, director Paul James will talk about the making of the play and are joined by Dr. Matt Hargrave from Northumbria University to talk about the joint writer in residence. There is also a free Talkback discussion, at 9pmon Tuesday 17 November, (approximately ten minutes after the end of the play) in which the writer, director, actors from the show talk about the process of bringing the show to the stage.

Creatives:

Written by Paddy Campbell
Directed by Paul James
Assistant Director Rachel Glover

Set Design by Phil Green

Tickets:

Day of the Flymo comes to Live Theatre from Thursday 12^thto Saturday 21^st November.

PERFORMANCES: Tuesday to Saturday, 7.30pm
MATINEE: Saturday 14 November, 2pm

For more information on Day of the Flymo and to buy tickets costing between £18 to £10, over 60s concessions from £16 to £12 and other concessions £10 to £6 call Live Theatre’s box office on (0191) 232 1232or see www.live.org.uk.

DURATION:  Approx 1hr 20mins
SUITABILITY: 13+, contains strong language and some scenes of violence

TICKETS:£18-£10, over 60s conc. £16-£12 other concs. £10-6

ASSISTED PERFORMANCES: 

BSL Tuesday 17 November, 7.30pm

Captioned Wednesday 18 November, 7.30pm

Touch Tour Thursday 19 November, 6pm

Audio Described Thursday 19 November, 7.30pm

Related Events: 

Friday 13 November, 6pm - Meet the Writer

Discover more about Paddy Campbell’s approach to writing as he talks about being Live Theatre and Northumbria University’s inaugural Writer in Residence, with director Paul James, Artistic Director Max Roberts and Dr. Matt Hargrave, Senior Lecturer in Performing Arts, Northumbria University. 

DATES: Fri 13 November, 6pm
LOCATION: Main Theatre
DURATION:  Approx. 40mins
SUITABILITY: 13+

TICKETS: Free, booking essential

Tuesday 17 November, Approx 9pm (10 minutes after the end of the play) – Talkback

Join writer Paddy Campbell, director Paul James and the actors from the show as they talk about the process of bringing the show to the stage and discuss the issues raised in the play 

DATES: Tues 17 Nov, 9pm(10 minutes after the end of the play)
LOCATION: Main Theatre
DURATION:  Approx. 40mins
SUITABILITY: 13+
TICKETS: Free, booking essential

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