Pub Opera Returns in Rep at King's Head Theatre

After a bombastic, exciting and innovative 45th year, the King's Head continues its new artistic policy of being a crucible of new writing and critical rediscoveries, whilst also welcoming the much-anticipated return of pub opera, with the aim of being the best pub theatre in London.

Artistic director Adam Spreadbury-Maher originated pub opera in his first season at the King's Head in 2010, and we're now proud to relaunch that tradition at its original home with a stylish new production of Mozart's classic opera Cosi fan tutte in March, directed by international opera director Paul Higgins. This return to pub opera will play in rep alongside Louis Nowra's play by the same name, Cosi, where patients in a mental asylum perform Mozart's piece whilst questioning madness in the face of the Vietnam War, which is directed by ex-Sydney Theatre Company artistic director Wayne Harrison. Adam says "Two Cosis at the same time?! If a large funded arts centre said they were going to do this, it would raise an eyebrow - the fact that an unfunded pub theatre is doing it is completely bonkers".

Before that, in February, we welcome the return of smash success Trainspotting after a sell-out Edinburgh Fringe 2015 run, which plays with us for a month before heading on a national tour. Tickets were tough to come by for this critically acclaimed, anarchic take on Irvine Welsh's classic novel-then-film in both London and Edinburgh - we received a sell-out show laurel for 58 performances at the Fringe!

We will also present a wealth of new writing this season: January offers new plays The Long Road South, by Paul Minx, focusing on the civil rights movement in the 1960s, and Big Brother Blitzkrieg, by Hew Rous Eyre & Max Elton, which sees Hitler enter the Big Brother House! April features work exclusively by female playwrights with Adrian Pagan Award winner and insightful new play about female relationships Russian Dolls, by Kate Lock, alongside Edinburgh transfer To Kill a Machine, by Catrin Fflur Huws, which delves into the sexuality and chemical castration of Alan Turing. We also have new British musical Something Something Lazarus joining us in March, performed in a ground-breaking "broken cabaret" style, by John Myatt and Simon Arrowsmith.

We're proud that our new writing offerings this season champion female and international playwrights alongside our continued support for new work with the continuation of #Festival45, #Festival46, in July, featuring work from our 4 trainee resident directors, who will be graduating from our Queen's Jubilee Award winning scheme this Summer.

With an unashamedly broad church of programming including theatre, musical theatre and opera, transfers to and from the biggest arts festivals in the world, and a trail-blazing policy of ethical employment on the fringe, we are continuing with the big changes from our first year under our new artistic policy, as well as recommitting ourselves to being the most diverse and the best pub theatre in London - if it's on here, you won't see it anywhere else. Come and see for yourself this Spring!

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