The Smeds and The Smoos soar into Blackpool Grand July 11–13. Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler’s star-crossed aliens take an interplanetary exploration with music and laughs for everyone aged three and up. On a far-off planet, Smeds and Smoos can’t be friends. So when young red Smed Janet and young blue Smoo Bill fall in love… Continue reading Making space for Smeds & Smoos
Month: March 2025
Once the Musical
If asked to picture a musical set in Dublin, you might be forgiven if that evoked an imagined mishmash of Riverdance, pints of the black stuff and Bono. But from those first opening bars, and the penetrating spotlight trained on our protagonist—Guy—Once seeks to disperse your preconceptions. The Barn Theatre itself is an intimate venue… Continue reading Once the Musical
Inflatable fun for Manchester festival
Manchester International Festival returns until July 16 with new work from artists including Ryan Gander, Maxine Peake, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Tino Sehgal and Juan Mata, and music from John Grant, Angélique Kidjo, Alison Goldfrapp and more. A major exhibition of Yayoi Kusama’s spectacular inflatables forms a centrepiece of the festival and offers the first opportunity to… Continue reading Inflatable fun for Manchester festival
Mrs Doubtfire
Mrs Doubtfire, the new comedy musical, is the latest in a long line of all-singing, all-dancing versions of classic retro ’80s / ’90s movies filling London theatres from Back to the Future, Dirty Dancing and Groundhog Day. Some are better than others, but if the movie, like in our home, is a firm favourite integrated… Continue reading Mrs Doubtfire
Glastonbury to Blackpool just like that!
West End performer Daniel Taylor bursts into Blackpool Grand Theatre this month fresh from Glastonbury Festival with his show The Very Best of Tommy Cooper. His one-man show celebrates one of Britain’s best entertainers and was billed as one of the top ten attractions at this year’s festival. Daniel was last seen at Blackpool Grand in… Continue reading Glastonbury to Blackpool just like that!
English National Ballet School 2023 Summer Performance
English National Ballet School (ENBS), founded in 1988 by the then ENB artistic director (1984–1990) Peter Schaufuss, with only twelve students as a feeder for the main company, now auditions three hundred every year for thirty places. It has come a long way in thirty-five years. Tonight we see the standard of raw material and… Continue reading English National Ballet School 2023 Summer Performance
Manchester Anthem for Edinburgh
Hit solo show A Manchester Anthem, winner of VAULT Festival ‘Show Of The Week Award’ and Pleasance ‘Pick of VAULT Award’, heads to Edinburgh Festival Fringe August 2–27 (except 7 & 16) at The Green, Pleasance Courtyard (33). Actor Tom Claxton delivers a high-energy performance as working-class Mancunian Tommy, bidding a final farewell to his hometown… Continue reading Manchester Anthem for Edinburgh
They
The Manchester International Festival (MIF) is an arts festival with a capital ‘A’. There is a tendency to favour works which are extreme or obscure. The attraction for the MIF of Kay Dick’s dystopian They: A Sequence of Unease is clear. Set in an alternate reality / near future in which mobs of philistines systematically roam the… Continue reading They
Octagon on tour to Bolton libraries
The Octagon Theatre is planning free storytelling sessions for a tour of Bolton Libraries. It’s part of the Octagon’s three-year Sharing Stories community project funded by The Oglesby Charitable Trust, which works with families across Bolton. Families can enjoy a live story reading of popular children’s books, followed by a creative session, with activities varying… Continue reading Octagon on tour to Bolton libraries
Nabucco
The première of Nabucco at La Scala in Milan in 1842 was a major turning point in the 28-year-old Giuseppe Verdi’s artistic career. The ensembles are a rallying cry and they had a tremendous political impact during Italy’s struggle for independence over the next 30 years. The slogan “Viva VERDI!” was used as an acronym… Continue reading Nabucco