Joan Littlewood News

Fun Palaces is both an ongoing campaign for culture at the heart of every community, and an annual weekend of action - arts, science, craft, tech, digital, heritage and sports events and activities - run by, for and with local communities. Fun Palaces weekend is the first weekend of October every year. They are always free, local, inclusive, hands-on, and YOURS!

Charity Wakefield, currently appearing in Morgan Lloyd Malcolm's all-female Emilia, is the first woman to play William Shakespeare on the Globe stage.

Fun Palaces have announced their first LGBT+ Fun Palace - an absolutely open and inclusive space for all people; gay, lesbian, bisexual, trans, queer, non-binary, straight and beyond. You don't have to be LGBT+ to attend, or participate in creating it, but it will by and large be a space opened and held by the LGBT+ community.

United Solo will host Penny Cherns, Director of the MA in Classical Acting at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), to teach a Master Class as part of the United Solo Professional Training Program on Monday, August 13, 2018 at Theatre Row in New York City. This class, "Trusting the Text," investigates the ways in which the actor can mine, analyze, and explore the text to find a variety of personal resonance and character journeys.

Theatre Royal Stratford East is pleased to announce the full cast for the world premiere of The Village, a new adaptation by April De Angelis of Lope de Vega's Fuenteovejuna and the first production in Nadia Fall's inaugural season as Artistic Director. The Village stars Anya Chalotra as Jyoti and Art Malik as The Inspector, they will be joined by Harki Bhambra, Sudha Bhuchar, Ameet Chana, Neil D'Souza, Souad Faress, Rina Fatania, Naeem Hayat, Scott Karim, Arian Nik, Humera Syed and Ragevan Vasan. Musicians include Nawazish Ali-Khan (Vocals, violin and harmonium), Robinkumar R Christian (Bansuri) and Keval Joshi (Percussion).

Niagara-on-the-Lake's World War I connections - from residents who enlisted to the garrisoned troops being entertained in the Royal George Theatre - are highlighted in director Peter Hinton's re-improvised Oh What a Lovely War. With music direction by Paul Sportelli and movement direction by Alexis Milligan, this provocative production about the theatre of war begins previews at the Royal George Theatre on July 14.

Miss Littlewood pays tribute to a pioneer of British theatre whose work either side of the Second World War did more for what is called outreach these days, than any other figure before or since.

The 5th annual Fun Palaces weekend of UK wide and international events where culture is made by, for, and with people just like you and me.

Artistic Director of Theatre Royal Stratford East, Nadia Fall, today announces her inaugural season, beginning this September.

Carol Harrison is probably best known for playing Louise Raymond in EastEnders. Her other screen work includes Brushstrokes, Get Back and London's Burning. Carol also works regularly in the theatre and has written, directed, produced the musical All or Nothing, which she also stars in. After three hugely successful tours, the show lands in the West End for the first time, this February.

Artistic Director Tim Carroll announces the Shaw Festival's 2018 ensemble. This season's 56 actors will take to the stage in 14 productions, plus numerous Secret Theatre experiences.

RSC Artistic Director, Gregory Doran, today announced the Summer 2018 season in Stratford-upon-Avon, and launched the fundraising campaign Stitch In Time for the restoration and redevelopment of the company's historic Costume Workshop.

Artistic Director Tim Carroll and the Shaw Festival reveal the complete playbill for the 2018 season. Having introduced Festival patrons to Two-Way Theatre in 2017, the Shaw Festival will continue to invite the audience into the creative process, giving them a real voice in the theatre experience.

Mike Shepherd is an actor, director, teacher and the Artistic Director of Kneehigh. He started Kneehigh in 1980 and has worked almost exclusively for the company ever since. He is currently playing King Mark in their acclaimed production of Tristan & Yseult and is about to direct a new production of The Tin Drum. We met in the surrounds of the Bristol Old Vic Backstage Bar to talk.

Theatre Royal Stratford East today announce the appointment of Nadia Fall as their new Artistic Director. Fall takes up the role full time from 1 January 2018, taking over from Kerry Michael.

Now in his 90s, innovative and influential director Peter Brook is still making theater. 30 years ago, he staged a 9 hour marathon depicting portions of the great Hindu epic THE MAHABARATA to wide acclaim and some controversy. With BATTLEFIELD, he and his collaborator Marie-Helene Estienne return to that source material for an elegiac and stripped down 70 minute meditation on life, death, and how to resist despair.

NEW SONGS 4 NEW SHOWS is just that, the first opportunity to enjoy a sneak preview of four exciting new musicals that will go into full production from 2017 onwards, hearing their songs for the first time in this fully staged concert production.

The Great British Bake Off host MEL GIEDROYC joins a star studded cast of NEW SONGS 4 NEW SHOWS giving the West End a unique experience of seeing star performances of songs from four new musicals, in this one off Gala Concert at the Lyric Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue.

The Great British Bake Off host MEL GIEDROYC joins the star studded cast of NEW SONGS 4 NEW SHOWS giving the West End a unique experience of seeing star performances of songs from four new musicals, in this one off Gala Concert at the Lyric Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue on MONDAY 28 NOVEMBER at 7.30pm produced by musical theatre production company The Stable. 

David Birrell's extensive stage work ranges from An Enemy of the People at Octagon Theatre, Bolton, to Spamalot in the West End, as well as several years with the RSC. He's currently playing Badger in the highly anticipated new musical version of The Wind in the Willows, which features a book by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowees and an original score by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe. The production begins previews at Theatre Royal, Plymouth on 8 October.