Manchester - Second to London

Manchester in the North West of the UK has a thriving theatre scene. There are many theatres here offering its patrons a diverse amount of productions. The city itself has the second largest amount of theatres in the U.K. So what types of shows can you see here? Well, to be honest a real mixture- everything from ballet, opera, drama, fringe theatre and big lavish musicals. Here is a taster of what you can see in this great city over the coming months.

MUSICALS

There are the usual touring productions of Beauty And The Beast and Saturday Night Fever on their way to Manchester. But there are also two big grand shows on the way: My Fair Lady, fresh from its success in the West End is having its' regional premiere in Manchester. With casting announced including Amy Nuttall, Honor Blackman, Christopher Cazenove and Russ Abbott, this is sure to bring a touch of class to the regions. It opens at the Palace Theatre, Manchester on 28th September. Making a return visit to Manchester in December is the Cameron Mackintosh classic Miss Saigon. I first saw this show when I was a student in London and loved it. I then caught the touring production a few years ago and remained spellbound by it. So when I heard it was returning to Manchester in Nov- I was delighted. I have already booked my ticket and cannot wait to see the sights of Saigon again.

CLASSICS

Romeo and Juliet opens the Royal Exchange new season in September and is directed by Jacob Murray. It opens on Mon 12 Sept. This is followed by an adaptation of Harvey. Many people remember the wonderful James Stewart film but Harvey was first seen on Broadway. It opens in Manchester on 28 Nov.

The wonderful Dancing At Lughnasa opens the Library Theatre new season. This Brian Friel classic featuring four women reminiscing, talking and ultimately dancing is directed by Roger Haines. He previously directed Friel's Translations and Molly Sweeney and both productions were beautifully acted and paced. So this is bound to be another heart warming production.

Arthur Miller's classic The Price opens in Oct at the Library. This is followed by Oliver Twist – the Library's perennial children's production. The Library really knows how to entertain children minus big effects and flashy gimmicks. Go to www.librarytheatre.com for more details of the new season.

The Bolton Octagon opens its season with the Pilot Theatre production of East Is East. This well known piece was a play before it became a hit movie. Following Pilot's huge success with Beautiful Thing, this promises to be another crowd puller. For more details of The Octagon's new season please go to www.octagonbolton.co.uk

I aim to bring you regular Manchester news, reviews and interviews and hope that you will feel inspired to visit and sample the scene for yourself. Happy theatergoing!