THEATRE TRADGE

In a week where we've had MusicalCon, Darren Criss and "Love Never Dies" have performed concerts, and the professionally filmed performance of "Hadestown" finally has released to UK cinema audiences, no shortage of exciting stagey announcements have also been released, so time to once again round up the past 7 days worth of announcements... ----- THE POPINJAY CAVALIER Initial casting revealed for Tarantino debut play As well as the reveal of its official artwork, the producer

PREMIERED: 2025 (Almeida Theatre, London) PLAYWRIGHT: Ava Pickett ----- Official "1536" artwork Anyone who pays attention to what's going on on the London stage will know that when this recent Olivier-nominated play ran in the west end, finding a ticket was nigh on impossible, as it became one of the hottest tickets in town during its limited runs at both the Almeida Theatre and at the Ambassador's Theatre. Operating under the tagline "kings don't kill their wives, right?" Th

Happy Sunday, we have reached the end of another week, and what a week it’s been, so what better way to close it out than to do another news recap in case there’s anything you’ve missed… ----- ROWAN ATKINSON New London show to open in the new year After an absence of over a decade, legendary comedy actor and performer Rowan Atkinson, star of TV shows like “Blackadder” and “Mr Bean”, and stage shows such as the 2008 west end revival of “Oliver!”, is set to return to the west

After a week off last week to get some much needed recovery (during a thankfully fairly quiet week), we are back to recap the past week of news announcements, so let's dive back into it before things inevitably pick up again... ----- HADESTOWN New dates and venues added for first ever UK tour Ahead of the launch of the first ever UK tour of Anaïs Mitchell’s 8 time Tony-winning musical “Hadestown”, five extra stops have been added to the schedule, with the tour now also set to

It feels like the year is flying by like Beverly Bass, as we are already on approach to the festive period, so before we undoubtedly start hearing the same ten songs playing on repeat everywhere we go, let's revel in the post summer influx of new shows, cast announcements and other exciting news about what is to come, as well as a touching tribute to one of the all time greats... ----- GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES Staged concert to be performed in the west end A brand new staged

PREMIERED: 1938 (Alvin Theatre, NYC) MUSIC: Richard Rodgers LYRICS: Lorenz Hart BOOK: George Abbott ----- We’re back again, and this week we’ve truly gone classic, with a Rodgers and Hart musical that first had its world premiere almost 90 years ago. Taking inspiration from "The Comedy of Errors", this is the first ever musical to have been based on a Shakespeare tale, with librettist George Abbott adapting the original story of two sets of identical twins being accidentally

There is no shortage of new shows set to open in the coming months, with both London, regional and touring productions heading into arguably the busiest period of the year. With that also comes a plethora of news stories to round up, so let's dive right into it... ----- BILLY ELLIOT Full cast announced for UK tour and west end return The full cast for the upcoming return of “Billy Elliot: The Musical” has been revealed, with additional tour stops also announced. As previously

Dear diary: It's official, summer has come to a close, and we have a fresh new batch of news updates from the world of theatre to get us geared up for the new season, and it truly has been a mixed bag over the past week... ----- MAMMA MIA! Latest cast announced for the west end production The latest cast to join the west end production of Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaelus’ musical “Mamma Mia!” has been revealed, and has also announced its latest extension at the Novello Thea

PREMIERED: 2003 (National Theatre, London) PLAYWRIGHT: Martin McDonagh ----- Artwork from the 2023 west end revival I'm back again with the latest in my series of theatrical exponents which I would rather like to see either return to the stage, or be staged for the first time; today's featured work is the former, a Tony-winning play that has been staged in London more than once, as well as on broadway. Written by Oscar-winning Irish writer and director Martin McDonagh, "The P

The summer seems to have absolutely whizzed by, as we shall soon be waving it goodbye, and heralding the autumn days, darkening nights, plummeting temperatures, and undoubtedly a whole new set of shows opening, so let's round off the summer with another round of news updates from the past week. ----- RENT Full cast announced for upcoming west end revival The full cast for the upcoming west end revival of Jonathan Larson’s groundbreaking musical “RENT” has been revealed, with

We're back once again with another week of theatre news, in a week during which we've seen temperatures dip and the rain come back with a vengeance, especially north of the border, with a handful of shows at the Edinburgh fringe being cancelled due to flash flooding. Here are the stories from the past week which have been the most noteworthy... ----- RIGHT BEFORE I GO Edinburgh Fringe success to transfer to London next month In the midst of an enormously successful run at the

PREMIERED: 1955 (46th Street Theatre, NYC) MUSIC/LYRICS: Richard Adler & Jerry Ross BOOK: George Abbott / Douglass Wallop ----- We return this week with a broadway golden age musical that not too long ago celebrated its 70th anniversary, and has its third revival in the big apple not too far round the corner. Richard Adler and Jerry Ross aren't what one would call prolific in their composition for the stage, in fact their partnership was tragically cut short due to the early

Another week, another round of news stories to recap; this week was my annual trip to Edinburgh for the Festival Fringe, and in the midst of sharing another series of reviews for the year, we also have another series of news updates to share, so let's get right to it... ----- LAYTON WILLIAMS West end and broadway actor to tour new concert production To celebrate two decades since he first made his professional stage debut, Tony Award nominee Layton Williams, star of musicals

PREMIERED: 2010 (Chichester Festival Theatre) SCORE: Howard Goodall / Stephen Clark BOOK: Stephen Clark Stream/Download: Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube ----- A return to the wish list sees us dive into the back catalogue of a composer you have probably heard more frequently on television, as Howard Goodall to most is best known for his TV theme tunes, having written intro music to shows such as "Blackadder", "The Vicar of Dibley" and "QI". It would most likely surprise many

As we once again welcome Fringe season, one of the busiest and most creatively vibrant periods of the theatrical calendar, it is also once again time to round off the past week's most notable news stories that have been making waves... ----- SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE Ariana Grande pulls out of production to focus on her health It has been revealed that, having originally been announced as half of the lead pair for the upcoming London revival of James Lapine and Stephen S

Summer is in full swing, as is festival fringe season, with Brighton and Manchester now behind us, and Camden and Edinburgh both just round the corner. That certainly doesn't mean that theatre news has shown any sign of letting up, so we should probably go right ahead and round off another week of news announcements, as there is plenty to discuss from the week just gone... ----- KING LEAR Royal Exchange production announces full cast The full cast for the upcoming production

It's the end of another week, so you know what that means: time to round up the biggest stagey news stories from the past week, with everything from cast announcements, new musicals and UK premieres to report, so let's get to it... ----- BEETLEJUICE Summer Strallen to join west end cast for limited run The netherworld is set for a fresh arrival, as four-time Olivier nominee Summer Strallen is set to take over the role of Delia Deetz for a limited time, whilst Aimie Atkinson i

After a comparatively quiet week, during which we spent more time trying to cool off from the heatwave than paying attention to stagey news, we are back to round up the biggest news stories from the past week, as well as one or two from the previous week... ----- RENT More cast members announced for upcoming west end revival Further casting has been revealed for the upcoming west end revival of Jonathan Larson’s musical “RENT”, to open at the newly christened Tom Stoppard The

MUSIC & LYRICS: Jorge Rivera-Herrans ----- Official artwork for the "EPIC" concept album We turn this week once again to the world of recorded media, and a sung-through musical that has yet to be staged, but exists solely as a concept album. With a story that comprises millennia old stories from ancient civilisation, this is a musical that is an amalgamation of the old and the new, having been produced independently, cast online, and marketed solely on social media, with crit

PREMIERED: 2022 (Asolo Repertory Theatre, Florida, USA) SCORE: Lynn Ahrens / Stephen Flaherty BOOK: Frank Galati ----- Official artwork for "Knoxville" From the timeless classic of our last excursion to a musical that is still in its relative infancy, this week we dive into the latest exponent of Lynn Ahrens (lyrics) and Stephen Flaherty (music), the team behind "Ragtime", "Seussical" and "Anastasia". Conceived originally by playwright Frank Gelati, the trio have adapted the