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EDDIE ELKS: BOTALLACK O'CLOCK
'Botallack O'Clock', currently in the early stages of a run at London's Old Red Lion theatre, is a biographical piece about renowned British post war artist Roger Hilton. We first came across the play quite a long time ago - at the 2011 Edinburgh Festival if I remember correctly - so I was quite excited to see that it was getting another airing.
To find out more about the play, and the new production, I spoke to playwight Eddie Elks of Third Man Theatre, ahead of the show's upcoming run. And you can read the interview here.
'Botallack O'Clock' is on at the Old Red Lion theatre until 6 Feb. See the venue website here for more info and to book.
MORGAN & WEST: PARLOUR TRICKS
If you haven't yet been exposed to the work of the brilliantly entertaining magic-making, time-travelling Victorian duo known as Morgan and West, then you frankly haven't lived. Well, okay, you have lived, but your life could be better. Believe me.
Anyway, I let out a number of mildly decorous Victorian-style cheers when I heard they would be headed to Wilton's Music Hall for four performances of their latest show 'Parlour Tricks', and then almost immediately arranged to put some questions to them. I spoke to just the one half of this talented outfit, Mr Rhys Morgan. And you can read the interview here.
Morgan & West's 'Parlour Tricks' is on at Wilton's Music Hall from 19-23 Jan. See the venue website as soon as you possibly can to book your tickets.
MILLY THOMAS: CLICKBAIT
The latest show to make its way to Theatre503 is 'Clickbait', a play that tackles a complex, current, and emotive issue - the subject of pornography, something that in the internet age, has spilled over from the 'seedy corners' and into our everyday lives.
It's the work of up and coming playwright (and actor) Milly Thomas. I put some questions to her, to find out more about the piece, her career, and what she hopes her writing will achieve. And you can read the interview here.
'Clickbait' is on at Theatre503 from 19 Jan-13 Feb. See this page on the venue website for more info and to book tickets.
MERLIN HOLLAND: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY
This month sees the staging at Trafalgar Studios of an adaptation of Oscar Wilde novel 'The Picture Of Dorian Gray' co-written by the renowned writer's only grandson, Merlin Holland, in collaboration with playwright John O'Connor.
To find out more about the play, what makes this staging different from previous productions, and his other work on Wilde, I put some questions to Holland, ahead of the upcoming London run. And you can read the interview here.
'The Picture Of Dorian Gray' is on at Trafalgar Studios from 18 Jan-13 Feb. See this page here for more information and to book tickets.
FRIDAY 15 JANUARY 2016 >>
Oog | Jacksons Lane | 15-17 Jan (pictured)
This display of physical theatre is pretty much guaranteed to make a serious impact on you if you choose to check it out. Winner of a 2015 Total Theatre Award, it explores the damaged mind of a shell shocked soldier, and offers an intense portrayal of the psychological damage that exposure to violence and conflict can cause. Another show from the ongoing London International Mime Festival. See this page here for more info and to book.
Top Deck Funnies with Joe Davies, Sam Fletcher and Lou Sanders | Blundabus (Hackney Road) | 15 Jan
A number of dates aboard Bob Slayer's Blundabus (he talks about it a little in this Q&A we did with him late last year) are imminent, taking place at Hackney Road N2. This week, the line up is as in the title above, but the bus will be there on two subsequent Fridays, so why not go every week? Especially on 29 Jan for Bob's 'Fat Jockey'. But I'll remind you of that nearer the time. More info right here.
Richard III | Draper Hall | 14-30 Jan
Last Friday I sent you all to see The Faction's highly physical rendering of 'Richard III' over at New Diorama. This Friday I'd like you to head to Draper Hall for Emily Carding's acclaimed one woman version of the play. And don't give me any of that "I don't see more than one Richard III" per month rubbish, this is one that's not to be missed. See this page here for more info.
SATURDAY 16 JANUARY 2016 >>
Mr Popper's Penguins | Rose Theatre Kingston | 14-17 Jan
Yay, I found the perfect thing to cheer up your kids on this (no doubt) dull January weekend, a lovely and lively musical adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwater's book of the same name. You might have seen the film with Jim Carrey in it, though that was more of a departure from the original text than this promises to be. Anyway, sounds fun. Booking info and more detail right here.
The Rolling Stone | Orange Tree Theatre | 14 Jan-20 Feb
This award nominated play had its premiere just last year at Manchester's Royal Exchange, and was received with much critical acclaim. It tackles a thorny and topical issue, but on a very much personal level - Dembe and Sam have been seeing each other for a while, and should be ready to take the next step of meeting each others' families - only they are in Uganda, and the consequences of doing so could be pretty disastrous. More info and booking links here.
Lumiere London | various locations | 14-17 Jan
Remember before Christmas when we kept telling you to go to evening light displays? Well, there were at least two such recommendations, if I remember correctly. Well, the light-fun doesn't have to be over because this weekend it's Lumiere London, and loads of light-based installations from international artists will be lighting up the capital. How many times can I say light in one small paragraph of text? Light light light light light. More info here.
SUNDAY 17 JANUARY 2016 >>
Whose London - film night | Camden People's Theatre | 17 Jan
This is part of CPT's ongoing 'Whose London Is It Anyway?' festival, which explores the changing face of the capital through theatre, performance, and discussion. Or, in this case films, four of them, of varying lengths, each one introduced by the respective film's maker. They all sound really interesting (and probably fairly poignant). See this page here for all the info.
Fear And Misery Of The Third Reich | Union Theatre | 6-30 Jan (pictured)
Brecht's first openly anti-Nazi play gets its first proper UK airing courtesy of The Phil Willmott Company (well, it's been airing for a while, I am a bit late to the party, to be honest) and is undoubtedly still relevant in its questions of how people react to living with fear, paranoia, and violence. More info on the production from the Union Theatre website here.
The Sexes | Etcetera Theatre | 16-17 Jan
Part of Etcetera's annual Black Box festival, 'The Sexes' sounds like an interesting exploration of gendery stuff, which is pretty topical at the moment, and, well, it just sounds interesting, because it's got a, well, interesting (intriguing?) plot - a married pair of actors whose star is on the wane compete for the gender-unspecified role in a new film script, and their subsequent fallout rocks their world. See this page here for info and to book.
MONDAY 18 JANUARY 2016 >>
Ivo Graham - No Filter | Soho Theatre | 18-23 Jan
Okay, so, it's 'Blue Monday' today. And I have to be honest with you, I think the whole concept of 'Blue Monday' is ridiculous pseudoscience that that doesn't help anyone. See this article here for better informed and respectable opinion on the matter. However, that's not going to stop me using it as a reason to only recommend comedy today. Wooohooo! The fab Ivo Graham is on at Soho theatre today, and other dates, if you can't make this one. See this page here for more info and to book.
Gloom Aid | 100 Club | 18 Jan
Over at the 100 Club they're doing something useful to, er, celebrate the Blue Monday concept by staging an evening of comedy to raise money for CALM, the charity dedicated to reducing the rate of male suicide. Lots of great acts are involved, including John Shuttleworth, Adam Riches, Robert Newman, Max and Ivan, Nish Kumar and Sarah Louise Young. See this page here for all the gen.
Dry Humour | Leicester Square Theatre | 18 Jan
Those of you partaking of Dry January might be extra blue this Monday, so here's something to cheer you lot up. Maybe. This one's also a charity night, this time in aid of Alcohol Concern, and also has a fantastic line up, which includes the likes of Arthur Smith, Sara Pascoe, Richard Herring, Vikki Stone, and Hal Cruttenden. See this page here if you want to go.
TUESDAY 19 JANUARY 2016 >>
Clickbait | Theatre503 | 19 Jan-13 Feb
This new play from up and coming writer Milly Thomas tackles head on all the issues surrounding the recent burgeoning of the porn industry, its effect on society, whether it can be feminist or not, and where the line is between exploitation and empowerment. Very current and relevant, as well as entertaining and darkly funny, and from a team that I think we can all expect good things from going forward. Yes, I just used the phrase "going forward". I think I need to go and work in some corporate or other. Info and tickets from here.
Morgan & West - Parlour Tricks | Wilton's Music Hall | 19-23 Jan
Ah, Morgan and West, the brilliant, fabulous Morgan and West. Not sure I've got enough complimentary adjectives for them, or at least, not enough space to write them all down. The time-travelling magicians are headed to an extremely suitable venue to perform their latest, no doubt brilliant show, and you would be foolish to miss it. Get your tickets here.
Eden | Camden People's Theatre | 19 Jan
This is yet another event that's part of the Camden People's Theatre's 'Whose London Is It Anyway?' season (can you tell I'm a big fan of CPT?) and it sounds excellent. It's a dystopian sounding piece, set in the future, when the earth is somewhat of a wasteland, and focuses on themes of social exclusion, homelessness and social divides. See the venue website here for more info and how to book.
WEDNESDAY 20 JANUARY 2016 >>
She Is Not Herself and Stateless | Tristan Bates Theatre | 19-23 Jan
This show is part of Kali Theatre's annual new play festival Talkback, which features work produced via the acclaimed company's nine month writer development programme for South Asian women. This is a double bill of two plays, both of which blend contemporary issues with personal stories. 'She Is Not Herself' is by Veronica J Dewan, and 'Stateless' is by Subika Anwar. See the venue website here for further info.
BabaFish | Barbican | 19-23 Jan
This is another piece being presented as part of the London International Mime Festival (it's something I am pretty enthusiastic about) and it promises to be a brilliant and poignant piece of physical theatre performed on an amazing set of weird and wonderful machinery. See this page here for more info on the show.
Dottir | The Courtyard Theatre | 5-31 Jan
I can't think why I missed this earlier in the month (it may have been that Christmas distracted me a bit) but this theatre piece featuring prominent female characters from Shakespeare looks great. As the blurb for this show points out, when it comes to their portrayal in plays and elsewhere, women are so often relegated to the role of lover, mother, daughter; so often only a character that owes its existence to a man. "For four hundred years the men have had their say. Now it’s her turn." Well, good. For more info see this page here.
THURSDAY 21 JANUARY 2016 >>
The Mother | Tricycle Theatre | 21 Jan-5 Mar
This translation by Christopher Hampton of 'The Mother' by young yet acclaimed playwright Florian Zeller features that Gina McKee off films and the telly so, I don't know, I'm taking all of these factors as a fair indication that this will be a quality bit of theatre. 'La Mere' is an award winning piece, about a mother whose life has revolved around her children, who have now grown up and left home. See this page here for all the info.
Pink Mist | Bush Theatre | 21 Jan-13 Feb (pictured)
In this Bristol Old Vic Production, 'Pink Mist' by Owen Sheers focuses on the lives of two soldiers following their return from deployment in Afghanistan, and was inspired by experiences cleaned from interviews with retired servicemen. Probably quite an emotional piece, but definitely one worth seeing. See the venue website here to find out more about it and book tickets.
Shook Up Shakespeare | Rosemary Branch Theatre | 21-24 Jan
Well, after the seriousness of the first two, this sounds a bit lighter. In fact, it sounds very much like fun. Two actresses playing all the parts promise "rowdy and raucous entertainment" with this "boozy, brash and bawdy celebration of the bard". Seems very much just my kind of thing. See this page here for more info and to book.
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