Preview: Snow White at Newcastle Tyne Theatre

Collabro star Matt Pagan joins Tyne Theatre & Opera House Pantomime, Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs, as the Prince!

Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs

Newcastle Tyne Theatre & Opera House

Friday 8^th to Sunday 31^st December 2017

Tyne Theatre & Opera House are thrilled to announce that Matt Pagan, one fourth of Britain’s Got Talent winners Collabro, will star as the Prince in this year’s Pantomime, Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs. 

 

Matt Pagan

After winning Britain’s biggest reality TV show, Collabro joined the likes of One Direction, Susan Boyle and Il Divo and signed with Syco, music mogul Simon Cowell’s prestigious record label. They are now recognised as the world’s most successful Musical Theatre group.

Since winning the competition three years ago, Collabro have released a Number 1 debut album Stars as well as a second album Act Two, which peaked at Number 2 in the charts, summer 2015. Most recently, the group released Home which consolidated another Top 10 album.
Collabro were voted ‘The Nation’s Favourite BGT Winner’ in a national poll, and recently returned to the BGT stage to perform in the 10 year Grand Final compilation of past contestants. The group have appeared on the Royal Variety Performance and performed for royalty on numerous occasions alongside Ed Sheeran, Dame Shirley Bassey and One Direction.

Collabro have established an incredibly successful international reputation and completed tours in America, Japan, Hong Kong and Canada, as well as three sell-out UK tours. They performed for over 30 million people in Japan on Music Station and received a Gold Disc award for Best International Artist alongside Sam Smith and Meghan Trainor. Most recently, the group joined Sir Cliff Richard on his Summer tour of the UK and Ireland.

Matt is incredibly excited to be performing at the Tyne Theatre and Opera House this December as the Prince in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, presented by Enchanted Entertainment. He joins local favourites Charlie Richmond and Lewis Denny who have already been announced to return as Muddles and Herman the Henchman. More cast members are to be announced very soon!


On The Web:
Twitter @MattCollabro
Instagram @mattpagan_official

Tickets

Tickets are available now from Eventim Tickets LINK

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)

Preview: Hairspray at Sunderland Empire

CAST ANNOUNCED FOR MAJOR UK TOUR OF SMASH-HIT MUSICAL

Hairspray

Sunderland Empire 

Monday 25th -Saturday 30th September 2017

Directed by Paul Kerryson
Choreographed by Drew McOnie

AWARD-WINNING COMEDIAN NORMAN PACE TO STAR AS WILBUR TURNBLAD WITH MATT RIXON RETURNING AS EDNA

RETURNING TO THE PRODUCTION, LAYTON WILLIAMS WILL PLAY THE ROLE

Photo: Darren Bell

OF SEAWEED ALONGSIDE MUSICAL THEATRE STAR BRENDA EDWARDS AS MOTORMOUTH MAYBELLE

NEWCOMER REBECCA MENDOZA WILL MAKE HER PROFESSIONAL DEBUT AS TRACY TURNBLAD

Norman Pace

Norman Pace(ITV1’s The Hale and Pace Show) will play Wilbur Turnblad in the major UK tour of the smash hit musical Hairspray, opening at Wales Millennium Centre in Cardiff this summer. He will be joined by Matt Rixon (The Ladykillers, Around the World in 80 Days) reprising his role as Edna Turnblad, musical theatre star Brenda Edwards (Chicago, We Will Rock You, The X Factor) returning as Motormouth Maybelle and Layton Williams (Bad Education, Rent) now starring as Seaweed.  

Matt Rixon - Photo Darren Bell

Gina Murray (Chicago andFull Monty) joins the cast as Velma Von Tussle with Jon Tsouras (Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Crazy for You) once again playing Corny Collins; Edward Chitticks (On the Town, Mamma Mia) as Link Larkin; Aimee Moore as Amber Von Tussle; Annalise Liard-Bailey as Penny Pingleton and Monifa James as Little Inez. Rebecca Mendozawill make her professional debut as Tracy Turnblad.

Brenda Edwards

North East audiences will have the chance to get a taster of the smash-hit musical when theatre star Brenda Edwards (Motormouth Maybelle) makes a special appearance at the opening of the Sunderland International Airshow on Friday 21 July 2017.

Layton Williams

It’s Baltimore 1962, where Tracy Turnblad, a big girl with big hair and an even bigger heart, is on a mission to follow her dreams and dance her way onto national TV. Tracy’s audition makes her a local star and soon she is using her new-found fame to fight for equality, bagging local heartthrob Link Larkin along the way.

Amana Jones

 

Featuring the iconic music and lyrics by Academy Award, Tony and Emmy winning duo Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, this big, bold and beautiful production is choreographed by Olivier Award-winning Drew McOnie with direction from Paul Kerryson. This 37 week tour of the much loved musical based on the 1988 film follows the phenomenally successful 2016 UK tour which played to packed out houses and received public and critical acclaim across the country in 2015/16. 

Photo: Darren Bell

Hairspray is a musical based on the 1988 film of the same name which starred Divine and Ricki Lake by cult filmmaker John Waters. With music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman and book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, Hairspray originally opened to rave reviews on Broadway in 2002 and subsequently won eight Tony Awards. 

Photo: Ellie Kurttz

The production opened in London at the Shaftesbury Theatre in 2007 and won four Laurence Olivier Awards including Best New Musical. Proving to be an international success, Hairspray has also opened in South Africa, Japan, South Korea, China and Dubai. Following the musical’s phenomenal success on stage, a film of the musical was released in 2007 which starred John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer and James Marsden.

Full cast includes: Lauren Concannon, Melissa Nettleford and Emily-Mae Walker as The Dynamites, Shay Barclay, Ben Darcy, George Hinson, Jordan Laviniere, Graham MacDuff, Lindsay McAllister, Tracey Penn and Freya Rowley. 

On The Web:

Facebook
www.facebook.com/HairsprayUKTour   

Twitter  
@HairsprayUKTour 

Instagram
@HairsprayUKTour

YouTube
www.youtube.com/HairsprayUKTour  

Booking Information:

Tickets are 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 up to 7p per minute plus your standard network charge. Booking fees may apply to telephone and online bookings

Preview: The Railway Children at Newcastle Theatre Royal

 THE RAILWAY CHILDREN DISEMBARK AT NEWCASTLE THEATRE ROYAL

The Railway Children

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Monday 26^th June – Saturday 1^st July 2017

It’s full steam ahead for a brand new adaptation of E. Nesbitt’s classic tale, The Railway Children, calling at Newcastle Theatre Royal this Summer.  All aboard!

A faithful interpretation of the much loved children’s tale, this new stage version of The Railway Children tells the story of Roberta, Peter and Phyllis, and how their lives are turned upside down when their father mysteriously disappears with two strangers one evening.  Forced to leave the comforts of their privileged London life in exchange for a simple existence in the depths of the Yorkshire countryside, the fractured family soon discover new friendships and an unexpected secret that will change their lives forever.

First published as a serial in The London Magazine in 1905 and then as a book in 1906, the novel - a thrilling coming of age story and a fascinating insight into Edwardian rural life – has become a great classic and been adapted for TV and film multiple times. Most notable adaptations include the 1968 TV series which starred Jenny Agutter as Roberta and was placed 96^th in the BFI’s 100 greatest British Television Programmes, and the iconic 1970 movie starring Jenny Agutter again and Bernard Cribbins.

Complete with beautiful period costumes and ingenious designs, this new production promises an uplifting theatrical experience for all ages, packed with intrigue, adventure, joy and jubilation.

E. Nesbit wrote and collaborated on more than 60 books of children’s literature and as well as The Railway Childrenis possibly best known for Five Children and It, The Treasure Seekers and The Phoenix and The Carpet.  Nesbit is credited for being one of the earliest ‘modern writers’ for children, for her ability to write of real life rather than imaginary worlds and for her extraordinary talent for evoking the English countryside.

Adapted by Dave Simpson and designed by Tim Bird, the production is by Exeter Northcott Theatre and Nick Brooke Ltd and is directed by Exeter’s Paul Jepson.  The cast includes Stewart Wright (Love and Marriage, Dr Who, The Vicar of Dibley) as Perks, Joy Brook (Peak Practice) as Mother, Millie Turner as Roberta, Andrea Davy as Mrs Perks, Katherine Carlton as Phyllis, Neil Salvage as the Old Gentleman, Vinay Lad as Peter, Callum Goulden as John, Andrew Joshi as Father/Doctor, Will Richards as Szczepansky and Sally Geake as Ensemble.

Paul Jepson said “I’m delighted to be bringing The Railway Children to Exeter and other wonderful venues across the UK with this fantastic cast. The show will be a faithful retelling of the story and will delight audiences up and down the country.”

Tickets:

The Railway Children is at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Mon 26 June until Sat 1 July 2017, playing evenings at 7pm, matinees on Wed 2pm and Sat 3.30pm. Tickets from £14.50.  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. 

REVIEW: Filleting Machine at North Shields Low Lights Tavern

Debut Success

The Filleting Machine

North Shields Low Lights Tavern

and then on tour

Thursday 1st June 2017

In a week of seeing theatre in places that don’t normally host it, tonight’s show is held in the snug of a pub adjacent to the very Fish Quay that the play was written about a number of decades ago. It is a very intimate place. So intimate in fact, you can smell the food that the cast are eating. This is a perfect setting for a fly-on-the-wall kitchen sink drama about the fish industry.

Photo: Steve Conlan

BlowinA Hooley is a new theatre group that has been conceived to bring shows about our region and deliver them to locations that don’t normally get the chance. This show will be touring to community centres, social clubs and the occasional conventional theatre.

Tom Hadaway was born in North Shields and, before he found himself writing for shows like When The Boat Comes In, he found himself in 1937, aged 14, working on the Fish Quay.  This writing has a feeling of authenticity, helped in no small part, by the actors authentic accents. This is no Billy Elliott-gate moment. You could tell that it resonated with the audience too as they reacted to what was said and what happened.

The Filleting Machine is focuses the action around the kitchen table of the Rutter family.  They live in the Ridges Estate (now, of course, known as the Meadow Well estate). Director Catherine Scott has put the action in the round, with the audience sat around watching the action.

Photo: Steve Conlan

Alice (Erin Mullen) is sat reading a comic listening to ELO on her tape recorder as Ma (Harriet Ghost) is preparing the evening meal. Her son Davy (William Wyn Davies) wonders in and announces Da (Micky McGregor) has found himself in a lock in at the local pub and will be down later. Ma is not impressed as she can smell fish on her son so she knows he’s been down the fish quay. Davy has been offered a job there but Ma wants him to go to an interview as a town clerk. The conflict between the apparent riches to be found in casual work and bettering oneself in a clerical job are already there when Da lands through the door tanked up with ale.

Photo: Steve Conlan

Tom Hadaway’s script is less about some battle between the classes and more to do with the conflict found in the working class. How does someone encourage a child to get an education when you partner feels a lack of one has been no barrier to their future? The script makes it clear there is another family upstairs and multiple other children elsewhere. Perhaps they have their meal at another sitting?

In the close confines of the room you can feel the anger of the parents, the hostility to each other’s values. You can see the pleasure of the younger sibling getting the older one into bother.

Photo: Steve Conlan

The show is well acted and developed though, at under 40 minutes, it is on the short side. It has been a Channel 4 play and perhaps the running time suited that format. It is a shame there is no second act to find the consequences of their actions.

The Filleting Machine is a promising start for a new theatre company. The authentic feel of both the writing and its delivery is a credit to those involved. It’s worth checking out and I look forward to seeing what they come up with next.   

Review by Stephen Oliver.

Tour Dates:

Wednesday 7th June 2017, 2.30pm & 7.30pm – The Exchange

Friday 9th June 2017, 7.30pm – Wallsend Memorial Hall

Saturday 10th June 2017, 7.30pm – Wallsend Memorial Hall

Friday 16th June 2017, 7pm – South Shields Customs House

Saturday 24th June 2017, 7.30pm – Byker & Heaton Union Club

Friday 4th August 2017, 7.30pm – Old Low Light Heritage Centre

Saturday 5th Aug 2017, 2.30pm & 7.30pm – Old Low Light Heritage Centre

Tickets are available at each venue and online at:

www.ticketsource.co.uk/event/EKKMJK  (The Exchange performances)

www.customshouse.co.uk/theatre/the-filleting-machine/  (The Customs House)

and www.ticketsource.co.uk/blowin-a-hooley-theatre  for all other performances

Preview: Jersey Boys at Sunderland Empire

JERSEY BOYS RETURNS

Jersey Boys

Sunderland Empire

Tuesday 20^th - Saturday 31^st March 2018

Due to overwhelming public demand, the producers of Jersey Boys are delighted to announce a second UK & Ireland Tour, to open at the New Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham on 16 December 2017, with areturn date at Sunderland Empire 20 – 31 March 2018. Casting is to be announced soon.

Jersey Boys first opened in London at the Prince Edward Theatre on 18 March 2008 and moved to the Piccadilly Theatre in March 2014. The Olivier Award-winning West End production will close on Sunday 26 March 2017 following nine amazing years in London. The first UK & Ireland Tour of Jersey Boys was a record-breaking success and ran for 18 months, from 4 September 2014 to 5 March 2016.

Jersey Boys is the remarkable true story of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons and their rise to stardom from the wrong side of the tracks.  These four boys from New Jersey became one of the most successful bands in pop history, were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and sold 175 million records worldwide, all before they turned 30.  The show is packed with their hits, including Beggin’, Sherry, Walk Like A Man, December, 1963 (Oh What a Night), Big Girls Don’t Cry, My Eyes Adored You, Let’s Hang On (To What We’ve Got), Bye Bye Baby, Can’t Take My Eyes Off You, Working My Way Back to You, Fallen Angel, Rag Doll and Who Loves You.

Winner of Broadway’s Tony, London’s Olivier and Australia’s Helpmann Awards for Best New Musical, Jersey Boys is the winner of 57 major awards worldwide and has been seen by over 24 million people worldwide.  Jersey Boys can currently be seen across the United States on its US National Tour.  The Broadway production closed on 15 January 2017 as the 12th longest running show in Broadway history.

Jersey Boys is written by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, with music by Bob Gaudio and lyrics by Bob Crewe.  The National / UK & Ireland Tour production is staged by the entire original Broadway creative team, led by director Des McAnuff and choreographer Sergio Trujillo, with scenic design by Klara Zieglerova, costume design by Jess Goldstein, lighting by Howell Binkley, sound by Steve Canyon Kennedy and projection design by Michael Clark.  The orchestrations are by Steve Orich and the music supervision and vocal arrangements by Ron Melrose. 

The UK & Ireland Tour of Jersey Boys is produced by Dodger Theatricals and Ambassador Theatre Group, with Joseph J Grano, Pelican Group, Latitute Link and Rick Steiner.

On The Web:  www.jerseyboysuktour.com.

Facebook: facebook.com/JerseyBoysLondon/

Twitter: @JerseyBoysUK

Instagram: @JerseyBoysUK

Tickets:

Tickets available from the Box Office on High Street West, via the ticket centre 0844 871 3022* or using the ATG Tickets banner above *calls cost up to 7p per minute plus standard network charges. Booking and transaction fees may apply to telephone and online bookings.