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Royal Court sets the stage for More Life

Royal Court Theatre will play host to Lauren Mooney and James Yeatman’s More Life, debuting in February.

Described as a sci-fi horror, a woman wakes up in 2075 in a body that is not her own. Fifty years ago, Bridget died in a car accident. Now, thanks to a technological breakthrough, she is back: her mind, her consciousness, in a synthetic body. Metal. Wires. But she’s still Bridget, isn’t she? She must be. 

The cast includes Marc Elliott, Alison Halstead, Lewis Mackinnon, Tim McMullan, Danusia Samal and Helen Schlesinger. The director is Yeatman and text and dramaturgy is by Mooney.

More Life is designed by Shankho Chaudhuri with lighting design by Ryan Joseph Stafford. The composer and sound designer is Zac Gvirtzman, the co-sound designer is Dan Balfour and the costume supervisor is Isobel Pellow. 

The Kandinsky Theatre Company production will run from Thursday, February 6 to Saturday, March 8.

Tickets: https://royalcourttheatre.com/whats-on/more-life/

Kerry Ellis, David Hunter wonder If/Then at Savoy Theatre

Kerry Ellis and David Hunter lead the cast of If/Then, which will have its UK premiere at the Savoy Theatre in February.

This is the first time UK audiences will have the chance to experience Tony Award-winning writers Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey (Next to Normal)’s celebrated musical – presented in a staged concert format.

If/Then follows Elizabeth, a 38-year-old city planner returning to New York after 12 years, ready to rebuild her life in the wake of a recent divorce. Standing at a pivotal crossroads, Elizabeth faces a choice that will send her down two parallel paths, each leading to a radically different future. On her first day back, she reconnects with Lucas, an old friend, and meets Kate, her vibrant new neighbour. Lucas invites her to join him in the world of activism, while Kate
offers a lighter diversion—coffee, music, and the temptation of a charismatic guitarist nearby.

As the story unfolds, audiences follow Elizabeth’s journey along these parallel lives, exploring how every decision, no matter how small, shapes the course of destiny.

Hunter plays Lucas, with Ellis as Elizabeth, a woman torn between two possible journeys. Joining them are Preeya Kalidas as Kate, Tim Howar as Stephen and Jenny Fitzpatrick as Anne. Carl Man plays David and Joni Ayton-Kent is Elena.

The ensemble features Christian Maynard and Kayleigh Thadani, as well as Lauren Hall and Sario Solomon.

The production will be directed by Bill Buckhurst (101 Dalmatians The Musical, Sister Act). The musical staging is by Alistair David (Kiss Me, Kate), with music direction by acclaimed Michael England (The Phantom of the Opera, Les
Misérables).

If/Then comes to London on Monday, February 10 after opening on Broadway in 2014 and is produced by Adam Blanshay Productions and Daniel Hinchliffe in association with The Savoy Theatre.

Tickets: https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/if-then/savoy-theatre/

Broadway’s Stereophonic soars to West End with Duke of York’s Theatre run

Stereophonic, the most Tony Award-nominated play of all time, will transfer from Broadway to the West End this year for a run at the Duke of York’s Theatre from May.

The show, which also won the most Tony Awards in 2024, had its Broadway run extended twice and now brings original cast members include Andrew R Butler as Charlie, Eli Gelb as Grover and Chris Stack as Simon. Further casting to be announced in due course.

With music from Arcade Fire’s Will Butler, Stereophonic mines the agony and the ecstasy of creation as it zooms in on a music studio in 1976. Here, an up-and-coming rock band recording a new album finds itself suddenly on the cusp of superstardom. The ensuing pressures could spark their breakup — or their breakthrough.

Stereophonic originally had its world premiere at Playwrights Horizon’s before transferring to Broadway on 3 April 2024. The hit play will also embark on a US tour from October 2025.

The Stereophonic creative team includes David Zinn (scenic designer), Enver Chakartash (costume designer), Jiyoun Chang (lighting designer), Will Butler and Justin Craig (orchestrations), Ryan Rumery (sound designer), Justin Craig (music director) and Robert Pickens & Katie Gell (hair & wig design). UK casting is by Julia Horan, with US casting by Alaine Alldaffer, Lisa Donadio and Taylor Williams.

Stereophonic is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions, Sue Wagner, John Johnson, Seaview, Linden Productions and Ashley Melone & Nick Mills, and Playwrights Horizons: Adam Greenfield, Leslie Marcus and Carol Fishman.

The play won five Tony Awards last year: Best Play, Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play for Will Brill, Best Direction of a Play for Daniel Aukin, Best Scenic Design of a Play for David Zinn and Best Sound Design of a Play for Ryan Rumery.

Imelda Staunton, Bessie Carter take up Mrs Warren’s Profession

Mother-and-daughter Imelda Staunton and Bessie Carter will take to the stage together for the first time in Mrs Warren’s Profession, coming to the Garrick Theatre this May.

Staunton will play Mrs Kitty Warren and Carter will appear as Vivie Warren in George Bernard Shaw’s play, which will be directed by Dominic Cooke.

Vivie Warren is a woman ahead of her time. Estranged from her wealthy mother, she delights in a glass of whisky, a good detective story, and is determined to carve herself a sparkling legal career in an age ruled by men.

Her mother, however, is a product of that old patriarchal order. Exploiting it has earned Mrs Warren a fortune and paid for her daughter’s expensive education – but at what cost?

Staunton and Cooke previously collaborated on Hello, Dolly! and Follies. The actor also reunites with producer Sonia Friedman following Who’s Afraid of Virgina Woolf; and Cooke and Friedman after Clybourne Park.

The designer is Chloe Lamford, with casting by Amy Ball.

The production will open at the Garrick Theatre on May 22, with previews from May 10, and run until August 16.

Tickets will be on sale in early 2025, with audiences are invited to sign up for pre-sale ticket access at mrswarrensprofession.com.

Hope Theatre dials up 855-FOR-TRUTH

Eva Hudson’s 855-FOR-TRUTH comes to The Hope Theatre in February.

Blending dynamic love story and climate doomsday narrative, this story of shared humanity and our frustrated desire to fix our world and everyone in it, will explore how even the most polarising views can become similar.

Set somewhere in the woods between Hilldale, Utah, and The End of The World, an 18-year-old religious cult member and young climate scientist meet. Meredith, raised in a Christian cult, believes the world will end in six days whilst Isaac, an outsider environmentalist, is racing against time to figure out The Project.

Isaac will be played by Max Raphael (The Hunger Games: Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes), with Molly Hanly (A Very Expensive Poison) starring as Meredith.

Written by Hudson, the production is brought to life by director Lydia McKinley (One of the Boys) and designer Rhiannon Binnington (The Hound of the Baskervilles). It previously played at London’s Pleasance Theatre and Bristol Old Vic in 2024.

855-FOR-TRUTH will run at The Hope Theatre from Tuesday, February 11-Saturday, February 22. Tickets: www.thehopetheatre.com

English National Opera gets hitched (again) to The Marriage of Figaro

English National Opera will present Joe Hill-Gibbins’ acclaimed production of The Marriage of Figaro at the London Coliseum this February.

The seven performances between February 5-22 mark the first revival of Hill Gibbins’ take of Mozart’s comic opera, which is described as a bold, contemporary staging.

It also marks the show’s return to the Coliseum after opening for one performance in March 2020 before the Covid pandemic shut all theatres.#

The comedic story is set in a single crazy day – the wedding of Figaro and Susanna. A whirlwind of mistaken identities, deception and general mayhem, the couple try to elude their employer – a philandering and promiscuous Count – teaching him a lesson in fidelity he’ll never forget.

It was originally based on La folle journée, ou le Mariage de Figaro, preceded by Il barbiere di Siviglia, both by Pierre Beaumarchais. This opera is a sequel of The Barber of Seville, composed by Gioachino Rossini.

Directed by Hill-Gibbins,  conductor Ainārs Rubiķis makes his ENO debut and leads the orchestra. Tess Jackson conducts on Wednesday, February 12. 

In the titular role of Figaro is British bass-baritone David Ireland. He will be joined by British soprano Mary Bevan as Susanna.

Dr Bartolo will be performed by Welsh bass-baritone Neal Davies, Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans returns to ENO in the role of Marcellina and Polish mezzo-soprano Hanna Hipp reprises her role from March 2020 as Cherubino.

Ireland-based Australian tenor Hubert Francis performs the roles of Don Basilio/Don Curzio. British soprano Nardus Williams is Countess Almaviva. Performing alongside her as Count Almaviva, American baritone Cody Quattlebaum makes his house debut. 

Completing the cast is Canadian bass Trevor Eliot Bowes performing as Antonio, and Irish soprano Ava Dodd as Barbarina. 

Johannes Schütz is the set designer, Astrid Klein is the costume designer, Matthew Richardson is the lighting designer, Jenny Ogilvie is the associate director and movement director, and the translation is by Jeremy Sams.

A coproduction with Oper Wuppertal, The Marriage of Figaro opens on Wednesday, February 5 for seven performances: February 5, 7, 12, 14, 17, 20. Tickets: www.eno.org

The Old Vic takes in The Brightening Air

Chris O’Dowd, Brian Gleeson, Rosie Sheehy, Seán McGinley and Hannah Morrish will come together for The Brightening Air, an entrancing tale of fate, family and unseen forces in 1980s Ireland. 

From writer and director Conor McPherson (The Weir, Girl from the North Country), the play will have its world premiere at The Old Vic.

Dermot (O’Dowd) returns home to County Sligo with hidden aims. His siblings (Gleeson and Sheehy) are desperate to hold on to the family home but with an ex-clergyman uncle and sister-in-law (McGinley  and Morrish respectively) looking for their own answers, plans soon go awry.

The full cast features Derbhle Crotty (Portia Coughlan), Eimhin Fitzgerald Doherty (Juno and the Paycock), Gleeson (Bad Sisters), Aisling Kearns (Juno and the Paycock), McGinley (A Whistle in the Dark), Morrish (The Merchant of Venice 1936), O’Dowd (Bridesmaids) and Sheehy (Machinal). They are joined by understudies Ella Maria Carmen, Callum Cronin, Joseph McCarthy and Amy Vicary-Smith.

Set & costume is by Rae Smith, lighting by Mark Henderson, sound by Gregory Clarke, movement & intimacy by Lucy Hind, casting by Serena Hill, voice by Charlie Hughes-D’Aeth, dialect by Danièle Lydon and fights by Kate Waters.

The associate director is Anastasia Osei-Kuffour, associate set is Niall McKeever, the costume supervisor is Poppy Hall, the props supervisor is Fahmida Bakht and the music associate is Benjamin McQuigg.

The Brightening Air is at The Old Vic from April 10-June 14, 2025. Tickets are on sale now: oldvictheatre.com

Play On! to end UK tour at Lyric Hammersmith

Twelfth Night-inspired musical Play On! will bring its UK tour to an end at the Lyric Hammersmith later this month.

From Black theatre company Talawa, the show is described as a joyous, musical retelling of Shakespeare’s beloved play brings to life the 1940s New York jazz scene, set to a timeless, toe-tapping Duke Ellington score.

In the Cotton Club, New York City, a young songwriter arrives ready to make her name – but disguising herself as a man will give her a better shot in a male-dominated music world. As she meets club impresario The Duke and sensational singer Lady Liv, Vy is swept up in a syncopated symphony of melodies, mistaken identities and romance.

Tsemaye Bob-Egbe (SIX The Musical) heads the cast as Viola, who sets forth to make a name for herself in the New York jazz scene, while Kori Hedgemon (Lovin’ Vegas) is Lady Liv, the star singer at The Cotton Club. The club’s world famous song writer The Duke is played by Earl Gregory (TINA: The Tina Turner Musical).

The cast also includes Llewellyn Jamal (TINA: The Tina Turner Musical) as Jester; Cameron Bernard Jones (Ain’t Too Proud) as Rev; Lifford Shillingford (Britain’s Got Talent) as Sweets; Tanya Edwards (Sister Act The Musical) as Miss Mary; and Gleanne Purcell-Brown (Living) as Ceecee.

The ensemble comprises Natalia Brown (Sister Act The Musical); Freya Karlettis (Sleeping Beauty); Amber Cayasso (The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe); Jarnéia Richard-Noel (SIX The Musical); Andre Coulson (Five Guys Named Moe); Alex Okoampa (TINA: The Tina Turner Musical); Tanaka Bingwa (Free Your Mind); and Dylan Blake-Colbet in his stage debut.

The exciting jazz musical is conceived by Sheldon Epps, with a book by Cheryl L West. It is directed by Talawa’s artistic director Michael Buffong (A Kind of People); Kenrick Sandy is the choreographer; and Liam Godwin is the musical supervisor.

Play On! has toured Belgrade Theatre, Birmingham Hippodrome, Bristol Old Vic, Liverpool Playhouse and Salisbury Playhouse since September last year, and now comes to the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre from January 28–February 22. For tickets, lyric.co.uk/shows/play-on/.

Play On! is produced by Talawa Theatre Company and Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, in partnership with J Clare Productions and Chuchu Nwagu Productions, with coproducers Birmingham Hippodrome; Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse Theatres; Lyric Hammersmith Theatre; and Wiltshire Creative, Salisbury.

National Theatre sets full cast for Alterations revival

Arinzé Kene and Cherrelle Skeete will lead a cast featuring Karl Collins, Gershwyn Eustache Jnr and Raphel Famotibe in Lynette Linton’s revival of Michael Abbensetts comedy Alterations, coming to the National Theatre in February.

Shining a light on the Guyanese experience of 1970s London and focusing on the aspirations and sacrifices of the Windrush generation, this new production from director Linton (Blues for an Alabama Sky) will be the largest ever staging, reinvigorated with additional material by writer Trish Cooke (Black Street Mammy).

Kene (Get Up, Stand Up: The Bob Marley Story) makes his National Theatre debut as Walker Holt and Cherrelle Skeete (Hanna) returns to the National as Darlene Holt.

Additional casting includes Collins (Nine Night) as Horace, Eustache Jnr (Small Island) as Buster, Famotibe (Wonder Boy) as Courtney, Tyler Fayose (Phoenix Rise) as Ensemble + Understudy Walker, Richard Emerson Gould (The Vaudvillains) as Ensemble + Understudy Mr Nat, Joshua John (Romeo & Juliet) as Ensemble + Understudy Courtney, Colin Mace (War Horse) as Mr Nat, Samuel Nunes de Souza (The Prince and the Pauper) as Ensemble + Understudy Horace/Buster and Yolanda Ovide (Slave: A Question of Freedom) as  Ensemble + Understudy Darlene.

The story follows Walker Holt, who has big dreams for his tailor’s shop, and an even bigger order to complete. Over the course of 24 hours, he must work tirelessly to satisfy his new client’s impossible tailoring needs. But as the night goes on, it’s not just the trouser hems that start to fray, as tensions rise, and Walker’s friendships and relationships are pushed to their limits. His success comes at a cost, but what price is he willing to pay?

Linton is joined by set and costume designer Frankie Bradshaw, lighting designer Oliver Fenwick, movement director Shelley Maxwell, composer XANA, sound designer George Dennis, Wigs, hair and make-up designer Cynthia De La Rosa, casting director Naomi Downham, fight director Kate Waters, dramatherapist Wabriya King, voice and dialect coach Hazel Holder, assistant voice coach Tamsin Newlands, associate set and costume designer Natalie Johnson and staff director Kaleya Bax.

Alterations plays in the National’s Lyttelton theatre from February 20-April 5. Tickets are now on sale at nationaltheatre.org.uk

Unicorn Theatre to host Pig Heart Boy world premiere

Southwark’s Unicorn Theatre will premiere the new stage adaptation of Malorie Blackman’s novel Pig Heart Boy this month.

In partnership with Sheffield Theatres and Children’s Theatre Partnership, the show will kick off at the Unicorn from January 26-February 22, before moving to Tanya Moiseiwitsch Playhouse, Sheffield Theatres from February 27-March 15 and then embarking on a UK tour.

The young cast includes Immanuel Yeboah as Cameron, Tré Medley as Dr Bryce/Andrew, Akil Young as Mike/Rashid, Christine During as Cathy/Julie, Christina Ngoyi as Marilyn/Elrich/Presenter/Officer, Chia Phoenix as Nan/Trudy/Mrs Stewart/LEPAR Lady and Olivia Williams Freeman and Rhys Lanahan as understudies.

Blackman’s 1997 novel as been adapted for the stage by playwright Winsome Pinnock and directed by Tristan Fynn-Aiduenu, taking in themes of childhood illness, identity and the profound choices we make to survive.

The story introduces Cameron, who has always dreamed of living a normal life: making friends, going to school and diving to the bottom of his local swimming pool. But his world is turned upside down when he is diagnosed with a serious heart condition and faces an urgent need for a heart transplant. With time running out, Cameron is offered a new heart as he finds himself having to face a difficult decision – how far will he go to get the life he desperately wants back?

Pig Heart Boy is a coproduction with Unicorn Theatre, Sheffield Theatres and Children’s Theatre Partnership.

The UK tour will take in venues including Playhouse, Liverpool; Lowry, Salford; Belgrade, Coventry; Wolverhampton Grand Theatre; Norwich Theatre Royal; Newcastle Theatre Royal; Lighthouse, Poole; Blackpool Grand Theatre; Royal & Derngate, Northampton; Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury; and Curve, Leicester.

For full dates and details, visit unicorntheatre.com or contact the respective theatres.