Alan Johnson News

Matt Forde (Spitting Image, Have I Got News For You, The Last Leg) has added Andrew Marr, Wes Streeting and David Davis to the upcoming guest line-up of his West End Political Party fortnightly residency at The Duchess Theatre.

The Royal Society of Literature (RSL), the voice for the value of literature in the UK, has today unveiled the longlist for the 2022 RSL Ondaatje Prize. An annual prize of £10,000, the RSL Ondaatje Prize is awarded by the RSL to an outstanding work of fiction, non-fiction or poetry that best evokes the spirit of a place. 

The Frost School of Music at the University of Miami concludes its 2022 FROST MUSIC LIVE season by offering music for everyone in the family.

It was announced today, x March, that Matt Forde (Spitting Image, Have I Got News For You, The Last Leg) has added Gary Neville, Lisa Nandy and Tom Tugendhat to the upcoming guest line-up of his West End Political Party fortnightly residency at The Duchess Theatre, while the Christmas special with Jacob Rees-Mogg and Rosena Allin-Khan has been rescheduled for the 11th April.

The Frost Opera Theater in tandem with the Frost Symphony Orchestra are set to present the world premiere of The Leopard. The show is an opera in two acts with music by Michael Dellaira and a libretto by J. D. McClatchy.

The Frost School of Music at the University of Miami has announced the line-up for the Frost Music Live critically acclaimed Signature Series. 

The Frost School of Music at the University of Miami has announced the line-up for the Frost Music Live critically acclaimed Signature Series.  Beginning on Valentine's Day the 2022 line-up offers music for everyone in the family from classical to jazz, from multi GRAMMY Award winners, NEA Jazz Masters and MacArthur Fellows, to the brightest most innovative new artists performing in music today.

The Leopard, by Michael Dellaira and J.D. McClatchy, an opera based on the acclaimed 1958 novel Il Gattopardo by Giuseppi Tomasi di Lampedusa, will be presented in its world premiere on Saturday, March 5, 2022 at 3pm by the Frost Opera Theater and The Frost Symphony Orchestra. 

It was announced today, 21st December, that the UK's leading political comedian Matt Forde (Spitting Image, Have I Got News For You, The Last Leg, The Royal Variety Performance) is set to embark on his biggest tour to date with a brand-new stand-up show Clowns To The Left Of Me, Jokers To The Right from 8th February 2022 through to 15th May.

It was announced today, 20th December, that Matt Forde is rescheduling tonight's Political Party Christmas Special with Jacob Rees-Mogg and Rosena Allin-Khan at the West End's Duchess Theatre due to Covid.

It was announced today, 13th September, that Matt Forde has added Jeremy Hunt, Anthony Scaramucci, Penny Mordaunt and Anas Sarwar to the upcoming guest line-up for his West End Political Party fortnightly residency, starting with Andy Burnham at The Duchess Theatre on the 27th of September.

Since 2013, Forde has interviewed political figures including Keir Starmer, Nicola Sturgeon, Sadiq Khan, Jacob Rees-Mogg, Tony Blair, Caroline Lucas, Nigel Farage, Tessa Jowell, Alan Johnson, Michael Heseltine, William Hague and George Osborne.

Henley Literary Festival moves online for the first time from this weekend, with speakers including John Grisham, Candice Brathwaite, Graham Norton, Joanna Trollope and Michael Morpurgo.

Director and choreographer Michael Pereira has announced the launch of Broadway Chez Vous, a virtual performing arts school dedicated to advancing musical theater training for artists around the world. This innovative membership program grants students of all ages access to dance and voice classes on-demand, a monthly LIVE Zoom class and Q & A with Michael. Classes and choreography are added on a monthly basis.

Stars in The House, benefiting The Actors Fund, continued Saturday night (8pm) for An Evening with Chita Rivera and Friends.

Virginia Arts Festival will present the world premiere performances of two new one-act operas at Norfolk's Attucks Theatre. Both will be presented on Friday, June 12 at 7:30pm and Saturday, June 13 at 7:30pm. The operas were developed through the Festival's John Duffy Institute for New Opera, which seeks out and supports the work of opera composer/librettist teams by providing professional mentorship and a professional process for the development of their new work. The Institute is named for the late composer and founder of Meet The Composer, John Duffy. Duffy himself was a prolific composer of more than 300 works, including Emmy Award-winning television scores and music for opera, film, and theater. The Duffy Institute is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Friedrich Ludwig Diehn Fund of the Hampton Roads Community Foundation and the Aaron Copland Fund for Music, and receives the support of Old Dominion University's F. Ludwig Diehn Composers Room.

On Wednesday 5 June at 7.30pm, respected politician and now best-selling author, ALAN JOHNSON is on the Albany stage to chat about In My Life. With the promise of rare insight, wry humour and great music, he'll be sharing excerpts from his latest memoir, full of deeply personal, often hilarious stories with the help of some of the music forming the soundtrack of his life. From growing up as an orphan in a 1950s West London slum to becoming a postman before rising through the Labour Party ranks to hold several cabinet posts he recounts a world of Dansettes and jukeboxes, of heartfelt love songs and heart-broken ballads, of smoky coffee shops and dingy dance halls.

International Sound Artist John Sully teams up with XIX Collective and MojoVideoTech to present, META-7 (an alchemic opera).

As we enter the New Year with Britain's impending departure from the European Union creeping closer, leading political comedian Matt Forde will further render the complexities of our tumultuous times with four additional London performances of his critically acclaimed and continually evolving stand-up show, Brexit Through The Gift Shop. Following two raucous performances at The Southbank Centre which kick started his 25 date nationwide tour in December 2018, Matt returns to this venue on the 7th and 12th March and will play Westminster's The Other Palace on the 28th January and the 19th March.  

Produced and Presented by Cheryl Baxter-Ratliff and Allen Walls, in association with Break The Floor and held at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, CA, there was an overwhelming turnout within the Dance Community to this event. There were reportedly 1,400 people attending. It was a spectacular evening! The all -inclusive 8th Annual WORLD CHOREOGRAPHY AWARDS. Because this is the 8th Annual Awards Ceremony, I feel a change has evolved regarding categories up for Awards. Wider acceptance of all forms of Dance, Interpretive Movement, new forms of technology and genres not considered previously. All-Inclusive is a modern term, but it's great to see that the WCA is embracing and incorporating so many more possibilities that qualify for our consideration.