Preview: Heaven On Earth at Newcastle Metro Arena

BRAND NEW MUSICAL HEAVEN ON EARTH ANNOUNCES UKARENA TOUR

STARRING KERRY ELLIS, HUGH MAYNARD

FEATURING THE VOICE OF RUSSELL WATSON

Heaven On Earth

Newcastle Metro Arena

Wednesday 11^th – Saturday 14^th April 2018

Telling the story of Adam and Eve Heaven on Earth will be touring arenas across the UK from December 2017 through to May 2018 appearing at the Metro Radio Arena from Wednesday 11^th – Saturday 14^th April 2018.

This spectacular new musical is brought to audiences by Eden International Productions and journeys back to the very beginning of time.

Starring Kerry Ellis (Wicked) and Hugh Maynard (Miss Saigon) and featuring the voice of Russell Watson, the greatest story ever told is to come to life with brand new musical Heaven on Earth.

Heaven on Earth is a classic re-telling of the story of Adam and Eve and their fall from Paradise.  It is an exhilarating story of love, loss, and redemption, and an exploration of the universal search for the meaning of life.

Kerry Ellis

A huge production is planned which will see the Garden of Eden created in all its magnificent glory and a whole host of special effects including fire, water and animatronics.

Russell Watson

Writer Sara Jeffs is the creator behind the script, music and lyrics.

She said: “It is so very exciting to see my script coming to life in Heaven on Earth.

“This brand new musical, and its original emotive songs, will resonate with people of all ages and backgrounds, and stay with the audience long after they view this thrilling and visual treat of a production.

Hugh Maynard

“The story of Adam and Eve is the oldest and greatest story ever told and whether you are someone with faith or someone who just enjoys the theatre and a great show this will appeal to you.”

The creative team behind Heaven on Earth includes director & choreographer Racky Plews - American Idiot (West End and Tour), Footloose (West End and Tour), Thoroughly Modern Millie (Tour), set designer Jacqueline Pyle - Robbie Williams (Take The Crown Tour), Olympic Opening and Closing Ceremony (UK), Take That (Progress Live Tour), and arranger Geoff Alexander - Harry Potter, Notting Hill, Conductor for Gravity.

For further details about Heaven on Earth go to www.heavenonearththemusical.co.uk   

Follow Heaven on Earth:

Twitter: @heavenearthtour

Facebook: @heavenonearthtour

Tickets

Tickets are available online: Online Ticket Link for this event from Eventim Tickets and from the booking hotline number 0844 493 6666 or in person from the Metro Radio Arena Box Office. Please note venue facility and booking fees will apply.

Tickets will be available from:-

•       Credit Card Booking and Information Line 0844 493 6666

•       The Metro Radio Arena NewcastleBox Office (Mon – Fri: 10.00am – 4.00pm, Sat: 11.00am – 2.30pm)

•       Internet Site:- www.metroradioarena.co.uk

•       Group Bookers should call (0191) 260 6006

•       Accessible Bookings should call 0844 493 6666 and select option 3 for further details

Preview: ESC on Tour

PAINTINGS SPRING TO LIFE IN NEW DANCE WORK – ON TOUR!

Newbiggin-by-the-Sea Wednesday 26th April 2017

Berwick-upon-Tweed Saturday 29th April 2017

Bamburgh Saturday 6th May 2017

Warkworth Saturday 13th May 2017

Newcastle Dance City Friday 19th May 2017

Photo: Simon Drew

ESC, the Newcastle based contemporary dance company could hardly have expected the public reaction to their latest work, PITMAN. Choreographed by the Company’s Artistic Director, Eliot Smith, it tells the story of the miners through dance interpretations of six of the paintings of the Pitmen Painters that are on permanent exhibition at Woodhorn Museum.

Photo: Simon Drew

Part of the work was previewed at Woodhorn Museum before its première at Newbiggin Maritime Centre in November. It played to a sell-out audience, and the same happened the following evening when the performances moved to the Laing Gallery in Newcastle. What was particularly moving was the reaction of relatives of miners who found the work emotionally charged, and there were tears. The work of the Pitman Painters has been the subject of a successful play by Lee Hall, a definitive academic study by William Feaver, and is featured in Bill Bryson’s Notes from a Small Island, but this is the first time that a dance company has offered their interpretation of the paintings.

Photo: Simon Drew

Pitman is part of a double bill. The other work in the programme is We Got the Beat created especially for the company by the American choreographer Maurice Causey who is now based in Amsterdam. Original, very physical, and abstract, this is contemporary dance at its very best and the perfect foil to Pitman.

Both works are to be seen as part of ESC’s 2017 Spring Tour, funded by Arts Council England. Performances will take place in Newbiggin-by-the-Sea on 26th April (returning by public demand), Berwick-upon-Tweed on 29th April, Bamburgh on 6th May, Warkworth on 13th May, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne’s Dance City on 19th May. For full details and to book tickets for these performances please check the ESC website at www.eliotsmithcompany.com.

This looks like being a particularly eventful year for the Company. In January they were invited to Rome to perform, and they will be part of this year’s Northumberland Miners Gala in the summer. Eliot himself has been awarded Associate Artist status for 2017 by Dance City, and he has recently returned back from New York in February, having been awarded an international development grant to research the work of the American choreographer, Martha Graham. Eliot is a powerful advocate of the Graham technique and is determined to keep her name and work alive in this country through his teaching and choreography.

Photo: Simon Drew

At the age of 21 Eliot’s determination to establish and maintain an independent dance company here in the North East and to bring original contemporary dance works to communities throughout the region is, five years later, beginning to pay off in a big way, and he is already planning exciting things for 2018. Another work based on a North East theme, perhaps? The success of Pitman has certainly set Eliot’s mind racing.  We shall just have to wait and see.

Tickets:

Tour details: https://www.eliotsmithcompany.com/tickets

Newbiggin-by-the-Sea Wednesday 26th April https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pitman-eliot-smith-company-tickets-29792795052

Berwick-upon-Tweed Saturday 29th April https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pitman-eliot-smith-company-tickets-29792554332

Bamburgh Saturday 6th May https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pitman-eliot-smith-company-tickets-29792554332

Warkworth Saturday 13th May https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pitman-eliot-smith-company-tickets-29781215417

Newcastle-upon-Tyne’s Dance City Friday 19th May https://www.dancecity.co.uk/performance/62096/double-bill-eliot-smith-company/

Preview: Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Newcastle Metro Radio Arena

JOE McELDERRY COMES HOME FOR CHRISTMAS

IN A STRICTLY LIMITED RUN OF THE MUSICAL PHENOMENON JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR® DREAMCOAT

Bill Kenwright by special arrangement with the Really Useful Group presents

Joseph & the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

Newcastle Metro Radio Arena

Tuesday 19^th - Sunday 31^st December 2017

Lyrics by Tim Rice  

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber

Joe McElderry will return home this Christmas in his celebrated and critically acclaimed role in the sparkling family musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor® Dreamcoat. The musical will run at Newcastle’s prestigious Metro Radio Arena for a strictly limited Christmas season from 19^th – 31^st December 2017. 

Tickets: Online Ticket Link for this event from Eventim Tickets

★★★★★

‘JOE McELDERRY MAY JUST BE THE BEST SUNG JOSEPH THERE'S EVER BEEN’

THE STAGE

This special Christmas homecoming will complete Joe’s hugely successful year touring the UK playing the title-role - his first majortheatrical appearance which has been met with Five Star reviews and standingovations up and down the country. It also follows the release of his new recording of the ‘Joseph’ soundtrack which reached the top of the Amazon Musical Soundtrack Charts; his top 5 entry in the official charts with his new hit single Gloria, released last month; as well as the announcement of hishighly anticipated fifth album Saturday Night at the Movies and supportingconcert The Gloria Tour this summer.

Joe said: “I am so excited to be bringing this wonderful show back home for Christmas! I have had an amazing year touring with Joseph so far and we have had fantastic audiences, so to bring it back to the north east in Newcastle over Christmas is very special and is really the icing on the cake to an already fantastic year! I cannot wait to see everyone at the shows over the festive period.” 

Having garnered sensational reviews and standing ovations at every performance since its inception over 36 years ago, Bill Kenwright’s ‘amazing’, ‘superb’, ‘wonderful’ and ‘brilliant’ production of Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s family musical has now sold an estimated 20 million tickets.

This vibrant and exciting retelling of the biblical story about Joseph, his eleven brothers and the coat of many colours sings out to young and old alike with a score which is crammed wall to wall with hits, including Jacob and Sons, Close Every Door and Any Dream Will Do.

The UK tour of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor® Dreamcoat has also just extended into the Autumn and will open at the Southend Cliffs Pavilion on Tuesday 5th September before visiting Woking, Dunfermline, Lowestoft, Liverpool, Richmond, Manchester, Stoke, Hull and Swansea.

Earlier this year the Number 1 and Platinum selling artist delighted fans by confirming that he had been back in the studio recording his eagerly anticipated fifth studio album Saturday Night at the Movies. The album includes iconic hits from film and theatre such as I’m into Something Good, Love is All Around, Daydream Believer as well as the hit single Gloria and will be released later this year. To celebrate the release ofhis album Joe will embark on a nationwide live tour from 14th July, named TheGloria Tour.

Joe, who hails from South Shields, Tyne and Wear, was just 18 when he won the sixth series of ‘The X Factor’, having been mentored by Girls Aloud star Cheryl Cole. He soared to number one on the UK Singles Charts with his rendition of Miley Cyrus’s The Climb and his debut album Wide Awake went straight in at number 3 on the UK Albums Chart. He has since gone on to have two more Top 10 albums.

Website: www.kenwright.com

Tickets:

Tickets costing from £15.00 are on sale now available online, from the booking hotline number 0844 493 6666 or in person from the Metro Radio Arena Box Office. Please note venue facility and booking fees will apply.

Tickets are available from:-
Online: Online Ticket Link for this event from Eventim Tickets

Credit Card Booking and Information Line 0844 493 6666

The Metro Radio Arena Newcastle Box Office (Mon – Fri: 10.00am – 4.00pm, Sat: 11.00am – 2.30pm)

Internet Site:- www.metroradioarena.co.uk  

Group Bookers should call (0191) 260 6006

Accessible Bookings should call 0844 493 6666 and select option 3 for further details

Preview: More Light at Newcastle People’s Theatre

“For the first time in my life, it is my life!”

More Light

by Bryony Lavery

Newcastle People’s Theatre

Tuesday 9 to Saturday 13 May 2017

China’s first emperor is dead and entombed in the fabulous tomb he had decreed for himself, with its ceiling of jewelled stars.

Pictured (L-R) : Sarah Scott (Pure Joy),

Mairead Scott (Love’s Gift), Emma Jane Richards (Love Mouth),

 Sara Jo Harrison (More Light), Maya Lant (Fresh Morning),

Eileen Davison (Many Treasures) Photo: Paula Smart

Unfortunately for his concubines, they are immured alive with him in the mausoleum. Used only to dining royally, the starving women soon come up with an ingenious way of staying alive.

The playful wit of Lavery’s script is a celebration of the sisterhood of women, and how people facing extreme circumstances can empower themselves.

There is both laughter and horror as the eponymous figure More Light (Sara Jo Harrison) and her sisters struggle to come to terms with their dilemma.

Co-directors Sarah McLane and Kate Wilkins comment: “It’s been an exciting and challenging experience. Everyone involved in the production has created something unique, from wardrobe to lighting; from set design to the cast themselves, who, as well as performing the play, provide all of the music and sound.”

Originally written in 1997 for National Theatre Connections, this powerful, usual drama explores challenging themes in an often visually spectacular way.

The ensemble of twenty-three is made up of adults and young people who use music and movement alongside Lavery’s lyrical and poignant script to tell the story of the women finding autonomy in captivity. 

More Light has been only rarely produced since its premiere and we are proud once again to be bringing our audiences a drama that would otherwise not be seen on Tyneside.

Tickets:

Tickets are £13.50 (£11 conc), available now from the People’s Theatre Box Office (0191 265 5020) and online at peoplestheatre.co.uk

ALSO IN MAY

THE LATE SHOWS (Saturday 20 May)

We’re delighted to be taking part in The Late Shows again this year, presenting scenes from our recent production of The Tempest at Newcastle City Library. Entry is free and the Library is open 7-11pm with a range of events and activities happening.  

YOUNG PEOPLE’S THEATRE REUNION (Saturday 27 May, 7pm)

It’s fifty years since the People’s Theatre in Heaton first established a Youth Theatre. Since then thousands of young people aged 11 to 18 have taken part. Big names such as comedian Ross Noble and actress Andrea Riseborough have taken their first steps into the arts and entertainment world through the Young People’s Theatre. 

This month all former members of YPT are being warmly invited to join a celebration of this unique and vital youth drama group in the wonderful setting of our new Foyer Bar.

Tickets are £7, available now from the People’s Theatre Box Office (0191 265 5020) and online at peoplestheatre.co.uk

HOBSON’S CHOICE (Tuesday 30 May – Saturday 3 June, 7.30pm)

May also sees us bring Harold Brighouse’s classic northern comedy Hobson’s Choice to our stage. In 1880s Salford, the prosperous bootmaker Henry Hobson is a widower with three “uppity” daughters on his hands.

And when his eldest daughter Maggie sets up a rival business with his best employee, there’s nowt but trouble ahead for the boozy, cantankerous patriarch.

Tickets:

Tickets are £13.50 (£11 conc), available now from the People’s Theatre Box Office (0191 265 5020) and online at peoplestheatre.co.uk 

Preview: Derren Brown - Underground at Newcastle Theatre Royal

DERREN BROWN SET TO MESMERISE AUDIENCES WITH LATEST STAGE PHENOMENON

Derren Brown - Underground

Newcastle Theatre Royal

Monday 7^th – Wednesday 9^th August 2017

Derren Brown, the multi award-winning master of psychological illusion is making a triumphant return to Newcastle Theatre Royal with his latest stage presentation Underground.

The nation’s favourite dark manipulator of magic and mind control transfixed full house audiences during a week long run of Miracle in 2016.  Direct from its recent sold-out London run, Derren Brown: Underground features a collection of some of the very best of his previous stage work brought together into a spell-binding experience of showmanship and magical genius.

Derren comments: “It’s not a brand new show, rather an opportunity to see me perform some of my own choice of favourite bits from the past fourteen years of touring.  Hopefully, it will be just as rewarding an experience for those who have seen me before as it will be for first-timers.”

Derren has toured every year since 2003 and been watched by an estimated audience of nearly two million people. He has won prestigious Olivier Awards, for Something Wicked This Way Comes (2006) and Svengali (2012). His last show, Miracle, his most daring to date, was universally acclaimed by critics and the world-wide audience alike.

Derren Brown: Underground is a Michael Vine, Andrew O’Connor, Derren Brown and Paul Sandler presentation for Vaudeville Productions Ltd. Directed by Andrew O’Connor & Andy Nyman, Written by Andy Nyman, Andrew O’Connor & Derren Brown, setting by Will Bowen, lighting design by Charlie Morgan Jones, general manager is John Dalston.

Tickets:

Derren Brown: Underground appears at Newcastle Theatre Royal from Monday 7^th– Wednesday 9^th August 2017. Tickets go on sale to the general public on Tues 2 May at 9 am with Friends of the Theatre Royal able to purchase from Fri 28 Apr at 11am and Advantage members from Sat 29 Apr at 9am.  Prices from £29.00. Tickets are available 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.

CURTAIN UP ON NEW SEASON AT THE CUSTOMS HOUSE

CURTAIN UP ON NEW SEASON AT THE CUSTOMS HOUSE

Top impressionist Rory Bremner and local comedian Jason Cook are among the highlights of fun-filled summer season at South Tyneside’s premier arts venue. Customs House audiences are in for a treat as the programme for the next few months is packed with comedy, drama, dance and music.

The season opens this week when the Customs House Big Band makes a welcome return to its home venue on Friday (May 5) before legendary Irish singer Dominic Kirwan brings his new show to the north east on Saturday 6^thMay.

Jason Cook is back on home turf with his own comedy club nights on Saturday 13^th May, Saturday 3^rd June and Saturday 2^nd September. As well as hosting his own shows, Jason will also be hosting the South Tyneside Comedy Festival, which will run from July 1 and August 6 and features Rory Bremner, one of the UK’s best-loved comedians.

Nine other acts have already signed up for the festival, with more being added every week. Evergreen comedy duo Ray Spencer MBE and Bob Stott are one of the acts confirmed. Ray and Bob, who delighted panto audiences for nearly 40 years, are back with their own show on Friday 14^th July.

The new season includes the return of an old favourite – The Takeover Week. The week involves a team of young people under the age of 25 programming The Customs House for a festival of music, cinema, theatre, poetry, hip hop and theatre.

Drama highlights from the new season include The Filleting Machine, by Tom Hadaway, and set in the 1980s on a tough north eastern estate. Austen’s Women will be another highlight – the show brings together 13 Jane Austen heroines from critical moments in the writer’s major novels and lesser-known works and will be part of The Write Festival, organised by the National Centre for the Written Word, The Word.

Asif Khan’s debut play, a gritty comic drama called Combustion, will be staged on July 6, and will explore issues facing young British Muslims living in the north today. Asif was recently named as part of the BBC’s New Talent Hotlist for 2017.

Drama continues with the musical Legally Blonde (August 11 – 13) performed by The Customs House’s Summer School and local writer Neil Armstrong’s End of The Pier, a critically-acclaimed comedy that will be staged from August 22 – 26. And at the end of this month (May), there’s also a musical adaptation of E. Nesbit’s much-loved book The Railway Children.

T.Rextasy

Meanwhile, some of the UK’s best tribute acts will be appearing at the venue, including Talon, the Best of the Eagles; T.Rextasy; Money for Nothing performing all the hits from Dire Straits; King of Pop, a tribute to Michael Jackson, Magic, A Kind of Queen and Little Fix, who will power through the back catalogue of Little Mix hits.

Other live music highlights include Back in our Rock n Roll Days featuring Billie Davis and Alan Warner, Brian Poole and the Tremeloes and local singer songwriter Jen Stevens (Thursday 25^th May) who has just launched her debut solo album.

Andy Fairweather Low and the Low Riders will be performing later this month, while popular local singing group Encore have two shows coming up – their annual May show is on from May 16 – 20, and they’re teaming up with the Rotary Club of Jarrow with Harton for a charity night on July 13.

Renowned architectural historian Dan Cruickshank will be taking his audience on a journey through time and place in a fascinating talk on Saturday 8^th July.

If you’re looking to keep your young ones busy over the long summer holidays, then The Customs House is the place to be. First of all, for the under sevens, there’s the return of Doddington the cow and Arbuthnot in …And the Cow Jumped Into the Woods and another show for younger children is Beauty and Beast, a summer panto (July 26 and 27).

If your youngsters are more interested in performing than watching, then sign them up for a Search for a Summer Star, The Customs House’s own talent show, looking for the next Jade Thirlwall or Joe McElderry. Young performers will also have the chance to appear in Legally Blonde.

If you’re a fan of dance, then there are several performances that may interest you – including Staging the Dance, a showcase for undergraduates from the University of Sunderland, and Alice in Wonderland, a magical ballet adventure based on Lewis Carroll’s children’s book.

Executive Director Ray Spencer said: “I’m so proud of our summer programme and I really believe it has something for everyone – from top UKcomedian Rory Bremner to Irish superstar Dominic Kirwan to the fantastic local talent we’ll be showcasing in several locally-produced dramas and musicals.  The return of Doddington the cow in her new show is bound to be very popular for families with young children, as will our summer panto Beauty and the Beast.  And talking of panto’s – it’s never too early to book your tickets for The Lambton Worm, this year’s Customs House panto, as they’re selling quickly.”

Tickets:

For more information on what’s on when at The Customs House, or to book tickets, log on to the venue’s website at www.customshouse.co.uk or call 0191 454 1234