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News: new dates announced for Monday Night at the Apollo

Revised dates have now been confirmed for Monday Night at the Apollo – a brand-new concert series for 2021, to be performed in front of socially distanced audiences at the Apollo Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue, and simultaneously livestreamed to viewers at home via the theatre discovery platform Thespie, which is dedicated to bringing the best live and recorded theatre to audiences around the world

Originally scheduled for January and February, the concerts have been postponed because of the national government restrictions and venue closures. Tickets are on sale now for Monday 12 April, Monday 26 April and Monday 10 May. In light of the current restrictions, the producers will still review each date as it approaches and react accordingly according to government guidelines at the time. Continue reading “News: new dates announced for Monday Night at the Apollo”

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News: Leave A Light On returns

With lockdown back in full swing, Lambert Jackson are bringing back their hit series Leave a Light On with a wide range of musical theatre stars performing online concerts. Performers announced today are Lauren Byrne, Lauren Drew, Chelsea Halfpenny, David Hunter, Rachel John, Lucie Jones, Rob Madge, Tim Mahendran, Nicholas McLean and Billy Nevers.

Eliza Jackson and Jamie Lambert of Lambert Jackson said, “This series is designed to provide entertainment for people who are currently going through their third UK wide lockdown and are missing the magic of West End performances. We are super excited to be bringing Leave a Light On back, although we didn’t expect we would ever need to, and we would like to thank all of the performers involved for jumping on board so quickly.” Continue reading “News: Leave A Light On returns”

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News update for Christmas theatre in London

Regions across the UK were hoping to win the lottery but with the news of Tier 2 (for now) for London, here’s some Christmas theatre news 

The Donmar Warehouse announces today that it will present a special concert online to mark the festive season. LOOKING A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS will be performed in the beautiful setting of St Paul’s Church (affectionately known as The Actors’ Church), in the heart of Covent Garden and premiere online for free on the Donmar’s YouTube channel on Wednesday 16 December, 7.30pm. The concert will be captioned, and an audio introduction will be available in partnership with Vocaleyes.

This hour-long concert of musical numbers, sketches and seasonal poetry will be directed by Simon Evans (Staged, The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui) with musical direction by Nigel Lilley (Piaf, Caroline, or Change) and production design by Grace Smart (My Beautiful Laundrette, One Night in Miami). Continue reading “News update for Christmas theatre in London”

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News: Dear Audience coffee table book announced

If you’re still writing your lists for Santa, then Dear Audience could be just what you’re looking for. A theatrical coffee table book filled with over 140 pages showcasing the Arts industry, with exclusive imagery, personalised letters to audiences and much more besides.

There’s a veritable who’s who of stage folk involved, from Sally Ann Triplett, Michael Xavier and Frances Rufelle to Oliver Tompsett, Linzi Hateley and Andy Coxon, and the book has been put together by Sophie Ross and Danny Kaan’s Digi Creative. Pre-orders can be made now and are guaranteed for Christmas delivery.

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News: Mondays in January to look distinctly brighter with Monday Night at the Apollo

Tickets are on sale now for Monday Night at the Apollo – a brand-new concert series taking place in front of a socially distanced audience at the Apollo Theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue. The concerts will take place at 7pm on Monday 11 January 2021, Monday 25 January 2021 and Monday 8 February 2021, and will also be livestreamed to audiences at home.

An intimate evening of conversation and song hosted by Greg Barnett (Miss Littlewood, Duchess of Malfi), Monday Night at the Apollo will see some of the West End’s best-known performers sing an eclectic mix of music from their favourite genres. Performers will share their most cherished memories and experiences from their careers, alongside performances of music which is personal to them, in a relaxed and informal theatrical celebration. Continue reading “News: Mondays in January to look distinctly brighter with Monday Night at the Apollo”

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News: November news aplenty

An unnecessary amount of theatre news exploded forth today, maybe everyone was just too busy watching CNN all of last week…  I’m just going to rattle through it all quickly to save everyone time.

Jason Robert Brown’s Songs From A New World will play the Vaudeville Theatre for a month from 5th February. David Hunter, Rachel John, Cedric Neal , Rachel Tucker and Shem Omari James, who all reprise their roles from the London Palladium gigs in October.

The previously announced Lynn Ahrens and Mike Ockrent’s A Christmas Carol has revealed its supporting cast around Brian Conley’s Scrooge. Lucie Jones, Sandra Marvin, Martyn Ellis, Cedric Neal, Jeremy Secomb, Matt Jay-Willis and Jacqueline Jossa will join him at the Dominion Theatre from 7th December. Continue reading “News: November news aplenty”

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Album Review: Lucie Jones Live at the Adelphi

Covid-19 may have cut her time in Waitress short but Lucie Jones Live at the Adelphi is a great reminder of the leading lady she is and will surely continue to be

“We’re after the same rainbow’s end”

Back in February, Lucie Jones took a break from performing in Waitress as the show’s composer Sara Bareilles took over the lead role of Jenna for a limited run. The musical had already set a closing date for the summer but who could have predicted that Jones, and co-star David Hunter, would never get to do the show again.

The only small benefit is that far from sitting on her laurels in the break, Jones made her solo West End concert debut by nipping back to the Adelphi on one of its nights off/ And that concert was recorded for posterity, now being released digitally on the usual platforms and physically here, where an exclusive bonus disc is available. Continue reading “Album Review: Lucie Jones Live at the Adelphi”

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Review: The Theatre Channel – Episode One

Featuring the likes of Jenna Russell, Matt Henry and Carrie Hope Fletcher, Episode 1 of The Theatre Channel is a roaring success

“Believe me, my admiration for you hasn’t died”

As big question marks remain over if and when theatre doors will start opening again, the move to online delivery of musical theatre  has taken an interesting turn with the arrival of The Theatre Channel. It is officially described as a web series but it is basically a musical theatre version of classic Top of the Pops online, ie heaven!

Set on location in (and on top of) The Theatre Café, the first episode was a slick half hour of cracking entertainment that really gladdened the heart. Director Bill Deamer offers a slice of real variety across its six numbers but also maintains a high level of quality, right down to the witty timing of the snippets of choreography he introduces via the inhouse ensemble. Continue reading “Review: The Theatre Channel – Episode One”

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More September theatre news

SIX reunite, The Theatre Channel switches on, The Shows Go On return and casting is revealed in Bath

© Danny Kaan

The Reunion is the first stage+streaming concert performance by seven powerhouse vocalists who rose to fame as the original West End queens of the musical SIX: Aimie Atkinson, Alexia McIntosh, Grace Mouat, Jarneia Richard-Noel, Maiya Quansah-Breed, Millie O’Connell, and Natalie Paris. The show will be livestreamed by theatre platform Thespie but a lucky few will also be able to get tickets to see the concerts live on Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th October.

Performances will be held in Oval Space, a spacious and well-ventilated East London venue that has been entirely reimagined for safe, seated music and theatre performances. The seating plan is entirely flexible which allows seating to be customised to the audience that books. Audiences book for themselves and their household or support bubble only (to a maximum of six), and Thespie’s technology determines a seat plan that ensures safe spacing between households and optimises use of the space. Continue reading “More September theatre news”

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News: New Musical Theatre Web Series The Theatre Channel

Adam Blanshay Productions and The Theatre Café are delighted to present a brand-new musical theatre-based web series, The Theatre Channel. Bringing together talents from the theatre world, both on and off stage, the series will showcase well-known musical theatre classics; performed by some of the industry’s most beloved performers, many of whom hold a close connection to The Theatre Café.

Producers Adam Blanshay of Adam Blanshay Productions and Ryan Woods of The Theatre Café – legendary for celebrating all things stagey in the West End and Broadway – have teamed up to produce this unique web series; bringing together the extortionary talents of some of the UK’s most sensational performers and West End stars to sing a selection of musical theatre favourites in a manner not seen before.

The pilot episode is set to premiere in September, with a full season of 9 further episodes planned to launch soon after. Each episode will feature a different line-up of star performers, run at approximately 30 minutes and feature a mix of 4-5 musical theatre songs, ordinarily set in a café, bar or restaurant but individually recontextualised and filmed on location at The Theatre Café. Every scene will make full use of The Theatre Café’s space – from the bar seating area to the downstairs office space – and ultimately standalone as individual performances, but each episode shall be linked by a fundamental premise. Continue reading “News: New Musical Theatre Web Series The Theatre Channel”