Willy Russell News

Blood Brothers, at Hayes Theatre Co; commences performances this week on Friday 6 February.

One of the great comic stories of the last four decades, Educating Rita comes to the Mercury Theatre Colchester this February.

Multi-platinum selling artist and Wet Wet Wet front-man, Marti Pellow, returns to the Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield in Blood Brothers alongside Maureen Nolan (The Nolans) from Tuesday 13 - Saturday 24 January.

The penultimate column in our 2014 South African Theatre Retrospectives deals with musical theatre and opera. Today we celebrate 'six of the best' opera and musical theatre productions from around the country - with two honourable mentions for an outstanding cabaret and revue - having already looked at some of the best plays and dance productions of the year.

A major revival of Willy Russell's Educating Rita will open the Playhouse's 2015 Spring Season. The production, directed by Artistic Director Gemma Bodinetz, will mark the play's 35th anniversary and will star Leanne Best as Rita and Con O'Neill as Frank. Following a remarkable first year, the Everyman season will begin with Associate Director Nick Bagnall's fresh take on A Midsummer Night's Dream. The second half of the season is marked by two world premieres, both screen to stage adaptations; a never-before seen Arthur Miller screenplay The Hook at the Everyman and the first ever stage adaptation of a Coen Brothers' film will see The Hudsucker Proxy come to life on the Playhouse stage.

El Teatro Principal de Barcelona acogió en la noche del lunes la gala de los Premios Butaca de Teatro de Cataluña, que este año celebraban su 20ª edición. En el apartado de teatro musical, 'Germans de Sang', adaptación catalana del musical 'Blood Brothers' de Willy Russell, fue reconocido como el mejor montaje de este género.

Blood Brothers, which starts performances on 6 February, has quickly become the fastest-selling show at the Hayes Theatre Co since the venue opened its doors. Due to this phenomenal demand for tickets an extra week of performances has been added, as well as some mid-week matinees throughout the season. Blood Brothers will now play until Sunday 15 March 2015. It is the first time a production has extended its run at Hayes Theatre Co and no further extension is possible.

RSG and Lefra Productions will stage their second Oppiwater Arts Festival on the MSC Opera in March 2015. The first Oppiwater Arts Festival was sold out within six days and is a special and unique festival in that all of the productions are staged in venues aboard the the luxury MSC Opera: truly an arts festival on the water!

The season begins with a real treat for dance fans as Moscow City Ballet bring their breathtaking production of Swan Lake to the stage from Tuesday 6 - Saturday 10 January and Northern Ballet return to the Lyceum with their adaptation of Emily Bronte's romantic masterpiece Wuthering Heights (Wed 18 - Sat 21 March) with music by Claude-Michel Schonberg (Les Miserables).

The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is pleased to announce details for its 2014-15 Studio Series of opera, musical theatre, drama and dance productions.

Little Fish Theatre today announced the opening of EDUCATING RITA, the highly acclaimed and popular play about personal growth and the life-long nature of learning, written by British dramatist Willy Russell.

Did y'hear the story of the Johnstone Twins? With BLOOD BROTHERS coming to Sydney in February 2015, BroadwayWorld talks to the cast and creative team about this intimate new production of one of the greatest musicals of our time.

Enda Markey will produce Blood Brothers, one of the longest running musicals in theatre history at Hayes Theatre Co from February 6 for a strictly limited 4-week season.

Little Fish Theatre today announced the opening of EDUCATING RITA, the highly acclaimed and popular play about personal growth and the life-long nature of learning, written by British dramatist Willy Russell.

West End star and multi-platinum selling artist Marti Pellow reprises his role of Narrator in Blood Brothers exclusively for Glasgow audiences, starring alongside Maureen Nolan as Mrs Johnstone, November 3-15. Performances are: Mon - Sat eves 7.30pm, Wed & Sat mats 2.30pm.

The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM) is pleased to announce details for its 2014-15 Studio Series of opera, musical theatre, drama and dance productions.

Eugene O'Neill's DESIRE UNDER THE ELMS is the subject of a new adaptation, with the action transferred from 1840s New England to the Eastern Cape of the 1890s in an attempt to amplify the resonance that O'Neill's classic play has for the South African theatre audiences of today.

Shirley Valentine is back by popular demand for three nights only! Company of Fools presents this critically acclaimed Tony-nominated one-woman show starring Denise Simone August 7-9 at the Liberty Theatre in Hailey.

In an interview with BuzzFeed, Tom Felton (Harry Potter, Murder in the First) revealed he has his sights set on the stage.

When I first saw the film of Educating Rita in the early 80s I was captivated by Julie Walters. It made the Brit actress an international star. Now at Theatre 40 Willy Russell's play Educating Rita receives a handsome staging with another captivating beauty Murielle Zuker. It's a two-character play co-starring Adrian Neil and directed by Robert Mackenzie through June 23.