Preview: Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical at Newcastle Theatre Royal

 

All Aboard!
For Fisherman’s Friends

Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Tuesday 11 – Saturday 15 October 2022.

 

1. Parisa Shahmir and Company

It’s time to set sail on a feel-good voyage of friendship, community and music with cast announced for Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical which will be dropping anchor at Newcastle Theatre Royal this week.

 

James Gaddas, Anton Stephans, Dan Buckley, Hadrian Delacey

James Gaddas (Casualty, Bad Girls, Coronation Street, The Girls, Billy Elliot, Monty Python’s Spamalot, MAMMA MIA!) will play Jim, with Parisa Shahmir (The Snow Queen, The Last Ship, MAMMA MIA!) playing the role of his daughter, Alwyn. 

Dan Buckley, James Gaddas, Robert Duncan, Jason Langley, Anton Stephans

They will be joined by Robert Duncan (Drop the Dead Donkey, Casualty, Where the Heart Is, Twelve Angry Men) who will play Jago with Susan Penhaligon (Bouquet of Barbed Wire, Emmerdale, A Fine Romance, Three Sisters, The Real Thing, Mr Love, The Maintenance Man, Dangerous Corner, Of Mice and Men) as his wife, Maggie and Anton Stephans (The X Factor, Blues Brothers Meet Soul Sisters, Porgy and Bess, Starlight Express, Smokey Joe's Café) as  Leadville.

Jason Langley, James Gaddas and Company

Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical is based on the true story of the Cornish singing sensations, Fisherman’s Friends, and the hit 2019 film about their life.  When a group of Cornish fishermen came together to sing the traditional working songs they’d sung for generations, they hoped to raise a few quid for charity.  Nobody, least of all the fishermen, expected their story to end on the Pyramid stage of Glastonbury. 

 

Full company of Fisherman's Friends

Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical features hit shanties made famous by the band including Keep Haulin’, Nelson's Blood, No Hopers Jokers & Rogues and many more.

 

Photos: Pamela Raith

 

Tickets:

Fisherman’s Friends: The Musical plays at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Tuesday 11 – Saturday 15 October 20232. Tickets are priced from £15.00 and can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 0191 232 7010.

REVIEW: The Importance Of Being Earnest at Newcastle Northern Stage

 The Importance Of Being Earnest

Newcastle Northern Stage

Until Saturday 8 October 2022

It is a wonderful feeling when you leave a theatre thinking that you “really enjoyed that!” English Touring Theatre’s production of the Oscar WIlde classic feels fresh but allows the quality of the writing to shine through. Add a really entertaining cast who are able to convey their character with strong non-verbal signals to back up the script and you have a cracking show. 

Adele James, Justice Ritchie and Daniel Jacob 

This is one of the best comedy shows that I have seen this year. The show got so many things right. First presented in 1895, the show looks at relationships and shows how little things have changed.

Abiola Owokoniran and Valentine Hanson

Abiola Owokoniran and Justice Ritchie appear as Algernon Moncrieff and John Worthing - a pair of men with the luxury of time to waste on the pleasures of what their status in society offers. John uses the name Earnest to entice Gwendolen (Adele James) and when the formidable Lady Bracknell (Daniel Jacob) is out of earshot he decides to propose to her.

Adele James as Gwendolen

Algernon then gets the opportunity to create chaos when he arrives at Cecily’s house. He decides to go by the name Earnest which pricks the interest of Cecily (Phoebe Campbell). Matters then become confused when John Worthing turns up, followed by Gwendolen. Who is the real Earnest? Is tutor Miss Prism (Joanne Ridley) interested in Dr Chasuble (Anita Reynolds)? All is revealed in a chaotic comedy that borders at time on farce.

Phoebe Campbell as Cecily 

Lily Arnold’s set allows the comedy to unfurl in such an entertaining way. The living room turns into a garden smoothly. Both settings allow the wonderful physical comedy of Valentine Hanson who appears as the vastly underappreciated manservant/butler characters.

Phoebe Campbell as Cecily and
Adele James as Gwendolen 

Director Denzil Westley-Sanderson has made a number of great decisions in allowing Ritchie and Owokoniran’s characters to spar off each one another. Occasionally they’d break the fourth wall with a glint in their eye. Even the brief moment that the show “went tech” was started with a improvised comment off Lady Bracknell to “sort that out” and finished with the two leads laughing it off when they returned.

Phoebe Campbell, Abiola Owokoniran, Adele James,
Valentine Hanson and Justic Ritchie

This was a fun night of  theatre. From Tinovimbanashe Sibanda’s choreographed entry of the ensemble to their final moment together (no spoilers!), the cast work really hard to deliver a fast paced treat. 

Review: Stephen Oliver

Photos: Mark Senior

 

Tickets:

The Importance of Earnest comes to Northern Stage 4-8 October. Tickets are available from £10 from www.northernstage.co.uk and entrance to the exhibition is free. Box Office: 0191 230 5151

Preview: Invention of Baron Avro Manhattan Laurel’s Whitley Bay

 

Celebrated local playwright brings the ghost of South Shields’ mysterious Baron to Whitley Bay

 

The Invention of Baron Avro Manhattan

Laurel’s Whitley Bay

Thursday 6 – Saturday 8 October 2022

 

If you ask most people to name a Baron, they may mention the Bloody Baron from Harry Potter or the notorious fantasist, Baron Munchausen. People over 50 from South Shields might remember a different Baron, Avro Manhattan, who, it turns out, may have shared some characteristics with Munchausen.

He was a painter and a poet but is best known for writing over 30 books, mostly packed with conspiracy theories critical of the Catholic Church. He lived for nearly 30 years in an unassuming terraced house in Henry Nelson Street and was a well-known local celebrity. He told exciting stories of risking his life in the war and associating with celebrities like H G Wells, George Bernard Shaw and Picasso. The question is; how many of the stories were actually true?

Tom Kelly, mainstay of the Customs House, who brought us the hugely popular musicals Tom and Catherine, Geordie the Musical and The Dolly Mixtures, as well as the plays, Bobby Robson Saved My Life, I left my heart in Roker Park and many others, is bringing Avro’s story to the stage at Laurel’s in Whitley Bay on 6-8 October.

Tom Kelly
Photo: Victoria Lamb

In a co-production between Baby Love Productions and Olivier-Award-winning producer, Jamie Alexander Eastlake, who is also directing, the play will occupy the performance space in Whitley Bay’s newest arts venue for 3 nights, with a view to touring the region in Spring 2023.

According to Jonathan Cash, who is playing Avro, “The play is a fascinating mix of drama and comedy, fact and speculation. Avro claimed his middle name was really Lucifer, he visited Moscow and associated with Russian spies, he was the lover of Marie Stopes, the famous birth control campaigner, he may have run an underground radio station during the war, and he died with numerous honours, some of which are almost certainly bogus. Trying to find the truth has been a real challenge. In the end, it doesn’t really matter. He is a fascinating character.”

Jonathan Cash
Photo: Joanne Oliver

“It was Gary Alikivi, South Shields cultural historian, blogger and film-maker that brought the character to my attention when he asked me to voice him for a short film, Secrets and Lies. I was intrigued by the idea of bringing him to the stage and Tom shared my vision.  We first had a draft 3 years ago but then the pandemic hit and everything was put on hold. Once things were moving again, we took the idea to Jamie Eastlake and he was really keen to stage the play.”

Avro and Anne

The play features a fictional journalist played by Cramlington-based actor, Charlotte Wraith, who comes to interview Avro at his home. She is determined to uncover the truth but Avro has a few tricks up his sleeve, so it soon becomes a game of cat and mouse, with no certainty which one is which.

Laurel’s recently saw two sell-out runs of Jamie Eastlake’s self-penned Gerry and Sewell -A purely Belter Adventure.

Website: https://www.laurelswhitley.co.uk/

Tickets

The Invention of Baron Avro Manhattan runs at Laurel’s Whitley Bay from Thursday 6 – Saturday 8 October at 7.30 pm. Tickets are available from the venue: https://app.lineupnow.com/event/the-invention-of-baron-avro-manhattan

REVIEW: A Doll's House at North Shields Exchange

 A Doll’s House

By Henrik Ibsen

Translated by Michael Meyer

North Shields Exchange Theatre

1 October 2022

On Tour Across the North East

Ibsen’s powerful examination of 19th Century married life is still as powerful today as it was when it shocked European audiences. Elysium Theatre Company are rightly proud of their touring production as it captures the conflict between one’s public image and our internal monologue. Ibsen’s feminist play holds a mirror up to modern society.

They said “Focusing on the self-discovery of central character Nora Helmer, a woman who goes against conventions and rules of a patriarchal society by defying her husband, ‘A Doll’s House’ was one of the first plays to put modern marriage under the spotlight, and look at the institution from a woman’s point of view. A Doll’s House is regarded as one of the greatest plays of all time, and is said to have ‘fired the starting gun’ on modern theatre.”

A Doll’s House was considered revolutionary back in 1879. Set in a living room featuring normal people talking normally. A naturalistic drama that we take for granted now. But, in order for a show to still be relevant nearly 150 years later and to be a text that is studied at school it needs to have a relevant message. The series of reveals in the second act, as Ibsen exposes the inner turmoil of the characters, is in direct contrast to the largely public front maintained in the first act. Despite the passage of time it is still a rollercoaster of a show that offers something for modern audiences.

Hannah Ellis Ryan appears as the central character Nora who has been married for 8 years and apparently has three children that are never seen in the living room. She is known as a spendthrift and publicly comes across as quite egocentric - never fully understanding the consequences of her actions. As the marriage vows used to say - she has promised to “honour and obey” her husband Torvald, who has just been promoted to Vice-President of the Bank. Danny Solomon portrays a man who views his wife as yet another one of his possessions that should behave the way that he expects them too. He orders his wife not to eat treats such as the delicious macaroons that she is fond of.

The play begins with Nora arriving after a Christmas present shopping spree. Torvald offers her additional housekeeping money to cover the festival period as the maid Anne-Marie (Wynne Potts) brings in the Christmas tree. Then one of Nora’s friends from the past drops in. Heather Carrol’s role as Christine Linde is as much about what is not said as it is about her actual dialogue with Nora. Under Jake Murray’s direction the pauses and glances are significant as the monologues from Nora about how good life is.

Also appearing on the scene at this juncture is bank worker Krogstad (Michael Blair) who is clearly up to something and family friend Dr Rank (Robin Kingsland).

At the interval one has formed an opinion about each character's public persona. The quality in Ibsen’s writing is how it unravels in the second act.  Chris Neville-Smith’s sound design adds to the tension once we can hear the faint sounds of the party nearby knowing that Nora and Torvald are about to return for the final showdown.

Is this play relevant today? Absolutely. On our way home we discussed some couples we know in which the husband had set the parameters of their married life.  There are “Torvalds” out there expecting their wives to “obey”. Apart from the lack of technology (other than Nora’s wristwatch) the play doesn’t feel dated - and that is remarkable after so many years. Perhaps a modern script might be shorter - this show was just short of 3 hours with an interval - but Ibsen had a lot to say. Ibsen was able to show characters without prejudice about their motivations. 

Review: Stephen Oliver

Photos: Jake Rusby

Tickets and Tour Information:

3 Oct  – Alnwick Playhouse, Alnwick (https://www.alnwickplayhouse.co.uk/)

5 – 8 Oct – Assembly Rooms Theatre, Durham (https://www.theassemblyroomstheatre.org/)

11 Oct – Princess Alexandria, Yarm (https://www.thepaaonline.org/)

12 Oct – Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond (https://www.georgiantheatreroyal.co.uk/)

13 Oct – Fire Station, Sunderland (https://sunderlandculture.org.uk/our-venues/the-fire-station/)

14 Oct  – Town Hall, Bishop Auckland (https://bishopaucklandtownhall.org.uk/)

15 Oct – Civic Theatre, Gosforth (https://www.gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk/)   

News: The Magic of Panto Shared with Local Charities: Hebburn Helps, Aide4Ukraine and Ethan’s Arc

The Magic of Panto Shared with Local Charities: Hebburn Helps, Aide4Ukraine and Ethan’s Arc

If you have ever been to a Panto at The Customs House, South Shields, you can’t help but get swept away with the magic that the characters bring to life on stage. Each year, The Customs House enables Panto goers to take a piece of that magic home by buying cuddly toys of their favourite characters.

This year, The Customs House wants to spread that magic to three local charities to help with their Christmas toy appeals by donating cuddly toys from previous Panto’s, including Sniffy and Whiffy created by Fox & Shriek.

Paul Shriek said "Finding forever homes for Sniffy and Whiffy brings the legacy of Fox and Shriek theatrical illusion in South Tyneside into the hearts of the next generation who will always believe in the visual magic of pantomime".

The three local charities were chosen by supporters of The Customs House, following a request for nominations on their Facebook page; the lucky charities were Hebburn Helps, Aide4Ukraine and Ethan’s Arc.

Ethan’s Arc was founded in August 2021 by Tracey and Mark Adams following the death of their son Ethan, who was sadly only 10 years old when he died from rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare childhood cancer.

Tracey Adams said: “Thank you so much to everyone who nominated Ethan’s Arc. We know first-hand what it is like to be in hospital over the Christmas Period, it’s a lonely place for an adult, but even more so for children who really miss the excitement of Christmas with their family and friends whilst they have to undergo treatment. This is why in December, Ethan’s Arc will donate all the toys we receive to the Newcastle RVI’s Children’s Cancer Ward 4, in the hope we can put a smile on the children’s faces, and hopefully create a little bit of normal”

Ethan’s Arc

https://www.facebook.com/Ethans-Arc-105625505284272/

Preview: Best Exotic Marigold Hotel at Newcastle Theatre Royal

 Get Ready For The Journey Of A Lifetime

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel 

Newcastle Theatre Royal 

Tuesday 4 – Saturday 8 October 2022

Celebrated stars of stage and screen will bring Deborah Moggach’s best-selling novel – The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel - to life when the feel-good tale of love, adventure, and starting-over comes to Newcastle Theatre Royal this week.

The cherished story, which previously inspired the BAFTA and Golden Globe-nominated film, will see Academy Award winner Hayley Mills (Pollyanna, The Parent Trap, Whistle Down the Wind, Wild at Heart) star as Evelyn alongside Paul Nicholas (Jesus Christ Superstar, BBC 1’s Just Good Friends, EastEnders) who plays Douglas and Rula Lenska (ITV’s Rock Follies, Coronation Street) who performs as Madge.

The cast will also include Andy de la Tour (Plenty, Notting Hill), Marlene Sidaway (ITV’s Coronation Street, BBC 1’s Pride and Prejudice) and Rekha John-Cheriyan (Kerbs, Tomb Raider, Dream Horse). The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is a joyous, feel-good comedy about taking risks, finding love, and embracing second chances, even in the most surprising of places.

Based on the Sunday Times bestseller which inspired one of this century’s most treasured films, the much-loved story takes you on a journey to India with an eclectic group of British retirees as they embark on a new life.

The luxury residence is far from the opulence they were promised, but as their lives begin to intertwine and they embrace the vibrancy of modern-day India, they are charmed in unexpected and life-changing ways.

Hayley Mills said: “I am delighted to join the company of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, as this beautiful story of love and the importance of new beginnings receives a new life as a fantastically feel-good stage play. Tales that warm the heart and lift the spirit are a much-needed tonic at this time and I am thrilled to be part of the production’s exciting journey.”

The film saw its UK theatrical release in 2012 and within two weeks of its cinematic distribution, the film had topped the UK Box Office and went on to become a hit internationally performing as one of year’s highest-grossing films.

Tickets:

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel plays at Newcastle Theatre Royal on Tuesday 4 – Saturday 8 October 2022 with evening performances each night at 7.30pm and matinee performances on Thursday at 2pm and Saturday at 2.30pm. Tickets are priced from £15.00 and can be purchased at www.theatreroyal.co.uk or from the Theatre Royal Box Office on 0191 232 7010.

Preview: The Importance of Earnest at Northern Stage

 Oscar Wilde’s The Importance Of Being Earnest Tours Alongside Black Victorians Exhibition To Celebrate Black History Month

The Importance Of Being Earnest

Newcastle Northern Stage

Tuesday 4 - Saturday 8 October 2022

Oscar Wilde's genius humour meets contemporary culture in a theatrical rollercoaster packed with shade, wit and plenty of gags.

2021 RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award-winner, Denzel Westley-Sanderson breathes fresh new life into Wilde's sharpest and wittiest comedy: The Importance of Being Earnest.

ETT (English Touring Theatre), Leeds Playhouse and Rose Theatre’s co-production of Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest tours the UK as it coincides with Black History Month this October.

Directed by Denzel Westley-Sanderson, the production will be accompanied by a new exhibition from Autograph, Black Chronicles II, exploring Black presences in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, through British studio portraiture. The exhibition presents over 200 photographs, the majority of which have never been exhibited before.

This is a classic satire, vibrantly retold about dysfunctional families, class, gender and sexuality.Denzel Westley-Sanderson is a theatre director and workshop facilitator. He trained at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, has been part of the Resident Directors’ pool at the Almeida Theatre, and was previously director of the CTC Dance Company.

His theatre credits include directing Identity (Edinburgh Festival Fringe), which won the award for ‘Exciting New Work’ at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, co-director on Jesus Christ Superstar - The Concert (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), and associate director on Dick Whittington and Small Island (National Theatre). Denzel has also worked with the Participation team at the Donmar Warehouse on several schools’ project across London.

The Importance of Being Earnest is supported by a grant from the Royal Theatrical Support Trust (RTST).

THE RTST SIR PETER HALL DIRECTOR AWARD

Now in its sixth year, the RTST Sir Peter Hall Director Award – which honours the memory of RTST co-founder, Sir Peter Hall – is made to an up-and-coming director demonstrating exceptional directing skills in a rigorous competitive process. The scheme promotes the RTST’s charitable objectives by supporting up-and-coming theatre practitioners and British regional theatres. It is also intended to appeal to a wide range of candidates and to play a part in promoting diversity in the theatre, onstage, offstage and among audiences.

Cast: Phoebe Campbell, Valentine Hanson, Joanne Henry, Daniel Jacob, Adele James, Abiola Owokoniran, Anita Reynolds and Justice Ritchie

Directed by Denzel Westley-Sanderson;

Designed by Lily Arnold; 

Lighting Design by Zoe Spurr;

Sound Design by Beth Duke; 

Movement Direction by Tinovimbanashe Sibanda; 

Assistant Direction from Becca Chadder; 

Dramaturg Phillippe Cato; 

Casting Director Bryony Jarvis Taylor

Photos: Mark Senior

Tickets:

The Importance of Earnest comes to Northern Stage 4-8 October. Tickets are available from £10 from www.northernstage.co.uk and entrance to the exhibition is free. Box Office: 0191 230 5151