Rose Theatre Announces Upcoming Events and Shows

The Rose Theatre is a 900-seat venue located in the London Borough of Kingston Upon Thames. The astonishing circular auditorium is modelled on the original Elizabethan Rose Theatre, situated on London's Bankside. Its unique design incorporates a pit area where audience can sit on cushions for only £8.

Monday 4 April - Saturday 9 April, 7pm
National Theatre CONNECTIONS

National Theatre Connections is a nationwide celebration of young theatre talent. Ten thrilling new plays have been commissioned by the National Theatre from some of today's most exciting writers.

New, local youth theatre groups, schools and colleges perform them for the first time in what promises to be an exciting, lively and inspiring event.

Tickets £8

Sunday 10 April, 7.30pm
John Cooper CLARKE

Now recognised and studied as one of England's most important poets and performers, John Cooper Clarke's verse is biting, satirical, political, very funny and - as always - delivered in his unique rapid-fire performance style. Strong language.

Tickets £12, £15.

Monday 11 April - Saturday 16 April
HAMLET, THE SEAGULL & ROUND 2
Presented by The Factory

Three different shows offering unique and spontaneous interpretations, often guided by the audience. Never to be repeated experiences.

Tickets £5-£18

Monday 11 April, 5.30pm
TIME TO TALK WITH TIM CARROLL

David Fletcher, Executive Director of the Rose, talks to the Director of The Factory, Tim Carroll.

The Factory are presenting Hamlet, The Seagull and Round 2 at the Rose from Mon 11 - Sat 16 April.

Tickets £5, £3

Tuesday 12 April , 2pm
THE FACTORY: VERSE SPEAKING WORKSHOP

Join members from The Factory theatre company for techniques and training on delivering Shakespeare.

Tickets £5, £3

Wednesday 13 April , 2pm
THE FACTORY: IMPROVISING CHEKHOV WORKSHOP

Members of The Factory theatre company talk about their approach to The Seagull.

Tickets £5, £3

Tuesday 19 April - Sunday 24 April
THE FABULOUS FLUTTERBYS

Join in the adventures of two very different caterpillars who eat their way to success! Hamish and Grace encounter a host of fabulous and fascinating creatures on the way, in a joyous puppetry show, accompanied by live music.

Tickets £11, Groups £8.50

Sunday 24 April, 7.30pm
THE COMEDY STORE

The Comedy Store continues its monthly residency, presenting the best stand-up from around the globe on your doorstep on the last Sunday of the month. Check the Rose website for line-up.

Tickets £12, £14

Tuesday 26 April - Saturday 30 April
GOODNIGHT MISTER TOM

In the build up to the Second World War, we follow sad William Beech, who is evacuated to the countryside and builds a remarkable friendship with the elderly recluse Tom Oakley (Oliver Ford Davies). All seems perfect until William is devastatingly summoned by his mother back to London. Tickets £8-£25

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Goodnight Mister Tom, and on Wednesday 13 April writer Michelle Magorian will read from Goodnight Mister Tom at John Lewis in Kingston at 3.30pm. The event is free of charge and no booking necessary. All ages are very welcome.

Goodnight Mister Tom ROSE PLUS
Wednesday 27 April 11am Page to Stage Workshop
Friday 29 April Post-show talk with company members
Saturday 30 April 1pm Touch Tour
Saturday 30 April 2.30pm Audio-described performance

Monday 2 May, 3pm
PETER AND THE WOLF

Peter and the Wolf is a classical piece, ideal for introducing children to classical music. In this version Chamberhouse Winds have five players showcasing the key parts of the work, with a narrator to bring you a more intimate experience. There will also be other popular pieces and a chance to try out the instruments afterwards.

Tickets £8, £10

Sunday 8 May, 7pm
MUSIC & COMEDY NIGHT

An evening of comedy and terrific musical talent in aid of the Mayor's charity! There will be appearances from Tara London (Winner of Best Female Solo Artist at The Peoples Music Award 2010) and from popular local singer/songwriters such as Aaron Norton and Rachel Rabin. The comedy compere for the night is Kate Smurthwaite, who is a regular at the Edinburgh Festival, and features on many TV and radio shows.

Tickets £10

Tuesday 10 May, 2pm
FORCES SWEETHEARTS

Beryl, Carolyn and Jenny are our three sweethearts who present a glorious selection of songs from the great female vocalists who so helped raise morale during the wartime Forties. Favourites include Vera Lynn, Gracie Fields, Marlene Dietrich, Carmen Miranda, Anne Shelton and many more. Guaranteed to have audiences singing along from beginning to end.

Tickets £8, £11

Saturday 14 May, 7.30pm
ROYAL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA

The hugely popular Royal Philharmonic Orchestra returns to the Rose this spring with Rossini's The Italian Girl in Algiers Overture, Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto and Elgar's ‘Enigma' Variations.

Tickets £12-£32

Sunday 15 May, 5pm
PRIVATE PEACEFUL

Adapted from the moving novel by Michael Morpurgo, Private Peaceful relives the life of Private Tommo Peaceful, a young First World War soldier awaiting the firing squad at dawn. During the night he looks back at his short but joyful past growing up in rural Devon, and considers the battles and injustices of war that brought him to the front line.

Tickets £8, £12

Wednesday 18 May - Saturday 21 May
MR BENN

Mr Benn, an ordinary man, lives on an ordinary street, and makes the same ordinary journey every day to his ordinary office. One day everything changes: he stumbles across an extraordinary costume shop, with an extraordinary changing room which leads to adventures... For ages 3+.

Tickets £11

Sunday 22 May, 5pm
AN AUDIENCE WITH PAM AYRES

Following her sell-out performance in 2008, Pam Ayres returns to the Rose with material from her bestselling books, Surgically Enhanced, With These Hands and The Works, along with new poems and stories.

Tickets £10-£22.50

Tuesday 24 May - Saturday 28 May
HAMLET

Northern Broadsides' haunting production employs theatrical sleight of hand to conjure ghosts of the dead and demons of the mind, bringing you an inventive and insightful take on the tortured Danish Prince.

Tickets £8-£28

Wednesday 25 May, 1pm
LIONEL SHRIVER

Lionel Shriver found fame with her Orange Prize-winning novel, We Need to Talk About Kevin. As part of the Kingston Readers' Festival, she will talk about her new book So Much For That, which is a tense study of the US healthcare system, and offers the same forensic analysis of situations and relationships. Chaired by Alison Baverstock of Kingston University.

Tickets £8

Sunday 29 May, 7.30pm
THE COMEDY STORE

The Comedy Store continues its monthly residency, presenting the best stand-up from around the globe on your doorstep on the last Sunday of the month. Check the Rose website for line-up.

Tickets £12, £14

Monday 30 May, 7.30pm
ONE-MAN STAR WARS

Charles Ross presents the whole of the Star Wars^TM Trilogy in one show. He single-handedly plays all the characters, sings the music, flies the ships, fights the battles and condenses the plot into just sixty minutes! Whether you're a committed Star Wars fan or simply want to enjoy a fast-paced, side-splitting evening that's out of this world, make sure you don't miss it!

Tickets £12, £16

Tuesday 31 April, 4pm
CHINESEWISE VARIETY SHOW

A specially selected presentation which celebrates the achievements of all enthusiasts in Chinese culture, this unique event will have a wide appeal to families. Programme includes Chinese folk dances, martial arts, music, choir, drama, poetry recital, story-telling, Beijing Opera and Cantonese Opera excerpts, and exclusive guest performances.

Tickets £6.80-£15

Wednesday 1 June, 7.30pm
LIVE SUGGS

Live Suggs reveals the Madness front man on a mission. He takes us on his unique journey across Britain in search of his long-lost father and his Scottish clan roots, in a show that is part music, part personal vision, part music hall extravaganza. It's a surprising, hilarious and sometimes sad story.

Suggs will be joined on stage by a pianist and the occasional surprise guest!

Tickets £15, £25

Friday 3 June, 7.30pm
PENGUIN CAFE

Penguin Café's music has infiltrated daily life from films like Napoleon Dynamite to countless themes tunes, and they've played festivals from Bestival and The Big Chill to the Royal Albert Hall as part of the BBC Proms. Their sound is at once familiar and new, combining acoustic power and a beguiling feisty charm.

Tickets £18, £20

Saturday 4 June, 7.30pm
JIMMY TARBUCK

Having successfully spent more than 40 years in the notoriously fickle world of showbusiness, Tarby revisits the Rose this summer. A master of live performance, he will be sharing anecdotes, demonstrating his quickfire wit and thoroughly entertaining the audience in a show which promises comedy for grown-ups rather than adult comedy.

Tickets £18, £22.50

Monday 6 June, 7.30pm
LADY ANTONIA FRASER

Lady Antonia Fraser speaks with Richard Cohen of Kingston University about her writing. The discussion is followed by a question and answer session and a book signing.

As the author of many acclaimed historical works, which have been international bestsellers, including Marie Antoinette and memoir Must You Go, Antonia Fraser was made CBE in 1999 and awarded the Norton Medlicott Medal by the Historical Association in 2000.

Tickets £6

Saturday 11 June, 7pm
CARNIVAL VIBES IN KINGSTON

Celebrate the summer solstice in sizzling fashion with this special colourful evening, showcasing the best of Kingston's Carnival artists in the run up to 2011 and 2012. Get into the groove as bands, singers and dancers representing diverse communities and cultures come together for one night only at this special fundraising event.

Tickets £15

Monday 13 June, 5.30pm
TIME TO TALK WITH Gyles Brandreth

Writer, broadcaster, former MP and Government Whip, Gyles Brandreth is also one of the most popular after-dinner speakers on the circuit. He joins us at the Rose to chat about his varied career.

Tickets £5

Friday 17 June, 7.30pm
RICHARD DURRANT - THE GUITAR WHISPERER

In this unique son et lumiere show, Richard Durrant takes us first to Paraguay, then to Spain and beyond. We hear Debussy, JS Bach on the humble ukulele and the story of the earliest surviving guitar by CF Martin told with a musical twist. Spellbinding.

Tickets £10, £12

Sunday 19 June, 7pm
TWICKENHAM CHORAL SOCIETY PRESENTS VERDI REQUIEM

Twickenham Choral Society celebrates its 90th anniversary with Verdi's powerful and ever-popular Requiem. The 120-strong choir will be joined by four internationally acclaimed soloists - Orla Boylan, Hetna Regitze Bruun, Ulrik Andersson and Richard Wiegold. Christopher Herrick, the choir's conductor, will direct the choir and the Brandenburg Sinfonia, a top-ranking London orchestra. This is a concert not to be missed.

Tickets £15-£20

Friday 24 June - Sunday 26 June
THE GRUFFALO'S CHILD

From the creators of the monstrously successful stage version of The Gruffalo. One wild and windy night the Gruffalo's child ignores her father's warning and tiptoes out into the snow. After all, the Big Bad Mouse doesn't really exist... does he? For ages 3+.

Tickets £11.

Tuesday 26 July - Sunday 31 July
MR STINK

A scratch ‘n' sniff musical adaptation based on the hilarious children's novel by David Walliams of Little Britain fame, which will bring Mr Stink pongingly to life!

When her mother, an awful snob who wants to be an MP, tries to rid the streets of its homeless, Chloe needs to help her only friend, Mr Stink the local tramp, to find a secret hiding place...but is there more to him than meets the nose?

Tickets £8-£18.50

Wednesday 31 August - Saturday 3 September
KORCZAK

Presented by Youth Music Theatre UK, the country's leading music theatre company for young people, Korczak is an uplifting musical which tells the true story of a Polish jew in the Warsaw ghetto who, in the most impossible circumstances, kept childhood alive through love and imagination.

Tickets £9-£35

2 December 2011 - 8 January 2012
THE SNOW QUEEN

Adapted from the story by Hans Christian Andersen and written by Charles Way, this charming tale of friendship sees the power of love triumph over wickedness, as Kai and Gerda embark on an epic journey to conquer the evil Snow Queen.

The Rose stage will be transformed into a winter wonderland for The Snow Queen, the perfect Christmas treat for all the family. Fabulous group discounts and family ticket packages are available. If you love The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe and are looking for a magical adventure this Christmas, The Snow Queen at the Rose is the show for you.

Tickets £8, £15, £20, £24, £26
Family ticket for 4 (2 adults, 2 children) £70, and generous group discounts available

Free Events at the Culture Café in April

Friday 8th and 15th April - 11.15am
Rhyme Time

Saturday 2nd at 9pm and Sunday 3rd April at 7pm
Matt Sofianos plays contemporary Jazz, after the performances of 'Ockham's Razor'

Tuesday 5th April - 1.15pm
Kingston University First Tuesday Jazz. With the 'Kingston in Paris' Ensemble

Friday 8th April - 1pm
Naomi Scott and the 'Opera Cafe'
The Opera Cafe is a collaboration of professional singers committed to bringing opera to a wider audience through an innovative approach to format and setting. Performing scenes from operas and condensed operas in informal venues not typically associated with grand opera, The Opera Cafe explores an exciting dynamic between the performers and audience.

Sunday 10th April - 2.30pm
Swing Dance

Wednesday 13th April - 12pm
Euphonix Choir end of term concert

Thursday 14th April and Thursday 21st April - 1pm
Jack and Asher
Jack and Asher project modern guitar at a fast and furious Latin pace. These two local Kingston boys play a diverse mixture of music ranging from Rodrigo y Gabriela to Jimi Hendrix, the Rolling Stones and even Santana with an imaginative and vigorous twist. They also play their own original rapid-paced instrumental compositions.

Friday 15th April - 1pm
The Mayfly Trio

Tuesday 26th April - 1pm
'Four Hands Piano Recital' with Fei Fan and Chiung - Lan Wu