 |
Hello there. So the Edinburgh Festival has reached its conclusion once again. You can check out all our reviews here and all our interviews here, plus read up on who won one of our ThreeWeeks Editors' Awards last weekend here. For those of you signed up to our Edinburgh Festival mailing list, don't forget we tip great shows in London all year round via ThisWeek London. You can access those tips on the website, or in the TW Weekly bulletin, which we publish every Thursday afternoon all year round. You can add yourself to our London mailing list for free by clicking here. All this week's recommendations - Three To See each day - are included in this bulletin, plus you can link through to my latest Caro Meets Q&A with Rasheeda Ali, talking about London's first ever Anglo Punjabi Sufi musical, 'ISHQ'. Have a great week, Caro Moses Editor, ThisWeek London |
'ISHQ', soon to be performed at Sadler's Wells in celebration of 70 years since Pakistan's independence, is London's first ever Anglo Punjabi Sufi musical, based on a well known tale of love and loss.
The show offers a fascinating sounding blend of classical and modern dance, poetry and fusion music, and has been created by award winning company Serendip Productions.
To find out more about the show, and how she got involved with it, I spoke to one of the show's stars, Rasheeda Ali. Read the interview here.
FRIDAY 1 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
Gypsy Queen | King's Head Theatre | 30 Aug-23 Sep (pictured)
Another show from King's Head Theatre's 2017 Queer Season, in London following a successful edfringe run, this play by Rob Ward centres on an unconventional love story. 'Gorgeous' George O'Connell, hero to his people and Gypsy King, leaves the world of travellers behind him to become a professional boxer, and finds gay fellow fighter Dane 'The Pain' Samson occupying the opposite corner. For more information, see this page here.
Talk Radio | Old Red Lion Theatre | 29 Aug-23 Sep
A production of Eric Bogosian's Pulitzer winning 1987 play 'Talk Radio', marking thirty years since its first staging, brought to you by the team behind the 2015 resurrection of Arthur Miller's first play 'No Villain'. Looks like a great cast, and of course the themes are as relevant now as they were back in the eighties. See the venue website here for details and to book.
Deadline Day | Theatre N16 | 29 Aug-16 Sep
"It's the last day of the transfer window. United, the North East's biggest club, have put their star player up for sale and a super rich London club have bid. You're United's biggest fan and the driver transporting the player down south. What do you do?" What indeed? Click here to book your tickets, and find out.
SATURDAY 2 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
Paradiso - Man's Enduring Search For Perfection | Deptford Market Yard | 2 Sep (pictured)
This performance, free to view, is a forty minute dance piece created by leading South Asian dance company Akademi. It's inspired by the final part of Dante's 'Divine Comedy', and promises a "journey through the heavenly cosmos and find answers to the obstacles of vanity, ambition and desire". More info here.
Little Wing Film Festival Shorts 2 | Hen & Chickens Theatre | 2 Sep
I picked this one because it's the earliest I could fit in to the tips schedule, but to be honest, I'd like to see all the screenings on as part of this small film festival. You can find details about this event - which promises films which are "emotive and rooted in truth, illustrating how film can be an instrumental medium for addressing current social issues and personal stories" - here, and to find out about the whole line up, follow this link here.
The Dark Stone | Cervantes Theatre | 30 Aug-9 Sep
"During the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, Rafael has been made prisoner by the Republicans and Sebastián, the young guard in his charge, becomes his only company. They are both unaware that their encounter will change the course of war and theatre". Inspired by the real story of Lorca's friend and lover Rafael Rodriguez Rapún, and performed in English, see the venue website here for more.
SUNDAY 3 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
All In A Day's Work | Jacksons Lane | 3 Sep
"Another alarm clock. Another working day begins. There is more to all of us than meets the eye. The 9 to 5 will never be the same again". London based Aerial Fitness school Flying Fantastic present this debut showcase featuring their everyday aerialists "who will help you find the extraordinary in the most ordinary of circumstances". See this page here to book.
Harriet Braine - Total Eclipse Of The Art | The Bill Murray | 3 Sep (pictured)
Fresh from a run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, this award winning act heads to The Bill Murray to give London a chance to see her perform this well reviewed show. It's admittedly a bit niche - comedy songs about the history of art - but you don't need to be well versed in this area to find it entertaining. See this page here for more.
Stupid Sunday Comedy | Rosemary Branch Theatre | 3 Sep
And another comedy option for you, in hopes of cheering up Sunday before you have to go back to work on Monday. If, indeed, your job is a nine to five one that you don't like very much, not a fabulously freelance delight to your soul. But you lucky ones might need a laugh, anyway. Not sure what the line up is on this occasion, but previous ones have been excellent, head this way to book your tickets.
MONDAY 4 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
The Awkward Silence - The Bastard King | Hen & Chickens | 4-8 Sep
This is The Awkward Silence's third 'narrative sketch show' (I am never quite sure what the difference is between a narrative sketch show and a piece of comedy theatre, could someone send answers on a postcard please) and they've had good reviews in the past so hopefully this will be lots of fun. See the venue website here for more:
Nazeem Hussain - Public Frenemy | Soho Theatre | 4-9 Sep
Award winning Australian stand up and TV star Nazeem Hussain returns to Soho Theatre with a show that won much praise at Mebourne Comedy Festival earlier in the year. In this show he discusses his love/not-so-love relationship with his home country. Seems like he might be working towards global domination, so take your chance to see him now. Click here for details.
Me And Robin Hood | Royal Court Theatre | 4-16 Sep (pictured)
TW uber-favourite Shôn Dale-Jones performs his latest work - about his long standing relationship with his fictional friend Robin - which we saw and loved in Edinburgh last month. It's not just entertainment but a call to arms, really, from someone who wants to change the way we use money, and do something about inequality and the gap between rich and poor. He is so freaking great. See this page here for info.
TUESDAY 5 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
Agent Of Influence - The Secret Life Of Pamela More | Drayton Arms Theatre | 5-23 Sep
"London. 1936. Lady Pamela, Times fashion columnist and socialite, is recruited by MI5 to keep notes on Wallis Simpson and Edward VIII, suspected to be colluding with the German Embassy. But Pamela suddenly realises that what began as an adventure has led to a deadly struggle for power in a world in the shadow of war". The star of this one woman show has been praised for a superb performance, and it's also intriguing subject matter, see this page here for more.
Coriolanus | The Rose Playhouse | 5-15 Sep
A staging of one of The Bard's less frequently performed plays, in the always-atmospheric surroundings of The Rose Playhouse. As the blurb points out, this depiction of conflict between leadership and democracy may be set ancient Rome but it's got a lot of contemporary relevance, given the state of the world in 2017. See the venue website here for details.
Judith - A Parting From The Body | Arcola Theatre | 5-9 Sep (pictured)
Catherine Cusack performs in this production of Howard Barker's 1992 play, which previously ran at the Arcola in 2015 as part of a double bill of the playwright's work, a show we interviewed director Robyn Winfield-Smith about, if you want to take a look. The short piece re-imagines the deuterocanonical legend of Judith - the widow who, on the night before battle, infiltrates the enemy camp to seduce and kill Holofernes, head of the invading army. Click here for info.
WEDNESDAY 6 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
Doubt, A Parable | Southwark Playhouse | 6-30 Sep
I'm sure you will have heard of it, not least because John Patrick Shanley's 2004 play won Pulitzer and Tony Awards in 2005, and was made into an Oscar and BAFTA nominated film starring Meryl Streep in 2008. It's a great piece, and this production has a great cast led by Stella Gonet. See this page here for info.
Keep Calm, I'm Only Diabetic | The Cockpit | 6-7 Sep
"If you think Type 1 Diabetes is a disability, think again". This is a satirical one man show depicting one diabetic's journey and the obstacles he has had to overcome to make his dreams come true. "Yes there's heartbreak and tears as some opportunities are cruelly closed off from him", runs the blurb. "But in a career spanning professional sport, music, and showbusiness this is ultimately a tale of laughter and joy, and how to reach to the top when the odds are stacked against you". See the venue website here for details.
Thebes Land | Arcola Theatre | 6 Sep-7 Oct (pictured)
This play by Sergio Blanco had a very much critically acclaimed run when it was on at Arcola Theatre in 2016, ingeniously staged (in a cage) by Daniel Goldman, but now it's back as part of the CASA Festival of Latin American theatre and culture. We'll be picking other stuff from that line-up, but this is a start, see this page here for info and to book.
THURSDAY 7 SEPTEMBER 2017 >>
The State Of Things | Jack Studio Theatre | 7-23 Sep
This new musical by Thomas Attwood & Elliot Clay is set against the backdrop of austerity Britain and is about six teenagers who, in the run up to their GCSE performance, discover that their school's music course is being cut, therefore dashing any hope they have of studying the subject in the future. See the venue website here for info.
The Night Pirates | Rose Theatre Kingston | 6-16 Sep (pictured)
"One night, young Tom is awoken by noises outside his house. He peeps out of the window and what should he see but pirates..". I think most of the big kids have gone back to school by now, but here's one for your pre-schoolers, based on the well known book by Peter Harris and Deborah Allwright and adapted and directed by Miranda Larson. Click here to book.
Nassim Plays | Bush Theatre | 7-16 Sep
In a celebration of the output of Iranian theatre-maker Nassim Soleimanpour, Bush Theatre are staging all four of his plays, repertory style. You're probably familiar with his work, but if you are not, his shows are never prepared: a sealed script is given to different actor for each performance, and said actor performs an entirely unrehearsed reading. For details of all the plays and the schedule, see this page here.
 |
At TW:CULTURE we champion the best in culture. ThisWeek London recommends Three To See in the capital every day. ThreeWeeks Edinburgh covers the best of the Edinburgh Festival. The TW:TALKS podcast talks to great cultural people. © UnLimited Media, a division of 3CM Enterprises Ltd UnLimited Media, Kemp House, 152 City Road, London EC1V 2NX t: 020 7099 9050 (editorial) 020 7099 9060 (sales) Send press releases to TWlondon@unlimitedmedia.co.uk publishing@unlimitedmedia.co.uk | complaints@unlimitedmedia.co.uk |