It’s the end of the year, so here’s a little list of my favourite shows of 2019. 1. Sweeney Todd, Liverpool Everyman (April) Nick Bagnall’s modernised production of Sondheim’s demon barber was one where everything just clicked; inventive and engrossing with a superlative ensemble, Liam Tobin’s Sweeney and Kacey Ainsworth’s Mrs Lovett proved to be perfect partners in crime in a perfect Everyman show. 2. Tao of Glass, Manchester Royal Exchange (July) There’s always been too much happening on the doorstep to ever really get to grips with things on the other side of the M6 ..read more

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DIVISIONS, and distractions, seem to be everywhere. In the age of Brexit and cancel culture, the chance to find common ground and listen to other people can seem all too rare sometimes. And while perhaps not devised as an antidote to that per se, that is why Truth to Power Cafe is such a valuable piece of performance; a punchy, punky journey of human connection, and an oh-so timely reminder of the difference a little unity and empathy can make. The premise for this show is quite simple and pure. Performer Jeremy Goldstein begins proceedings with an autobiographical monologue, before handing t ..read more

CITY-BASED community theatre company What We Did Next are known and loved for their musicals – but next week they bring their first straight play to the stage with a revival of Nick Payne’s relationship drama Constellations. It’s a play about free will and friendship; it’s about quantum multiverse theory, love and honey. Meet Marianne and Roland. A couple destined to be together. And to be apart. To get back together. To never see each other again. To become soul mates. To become strangers. It is a powerful, intelligent play that invites the audience to explore one relationship with infinit ..read more

Picture This: 3 Plays Drawn from Liverpool Life is the debut show from Pique Niche Productions, coming to The Hope Street Theatre this month. Showcasing brand new works from Liverpool based writers, each play is inspired by art: “Whether that be landscapes of the city’s inimitable waterfront or an abstract painting of a woman with an iguana for a necklace,” they say. “The stories explore family life and relationships ranging from the romantic to the dysfunctional, and all told with a classic Scouse sense of humour.” Pique Niche is a new Liverpool theatre company supporting new writin ..read more

WHO has power over you? And what do you want to say to them? Step inside the Truth to Power Cafe, and you might just have a chance to share it with the world… A theatrical project that has crossed continents and been performed across the UK, Europe and Australia, Truth to Power Cafe begins with the experiences of performer Jeremy Goldstein before turning into something completely different for each show, by opening it up to the experience of (seemingly, at least) ordinary audience members. It is coming to Liverpool and Ormskirk’s Edge Hill Arts Centre this November, with a major loca ..read more

SOMETHING special has come to the Empire, you can tell. It’s in the atmosphere – the weight of expectation and genuine excitement as the audience settles in. We’re in a venue that certainly gives a grand old-school sense of occasion, and Les Misérables is nothing if not ultimate theatre. I’m a relatively recent Les Mis convert, and with 20 years passing since a touring version came this way, for many people this latest Cameron Macintosh production may provide the first opportunity to see it live. The anticipation on my visit was palpable. More than perhaps any other show of its kind, I’m alwa ..read more

KNEE Deep in Promises tells the story of a young man dealing with two bitter tragedies and struggling with pledges made. It’s a welcome return to the Liverpool stage for actor Lewis Bray as Dean, tormented in the hours following the loss of his mother as he ponders how to fulfil her last (unusual) wish – to be disposed of in an affordable and under-the-radar way of his choosing. A Weetabix box coffin, on stage throughout, Loot-style is one option, immediately hinting at the flashes of absurdist humour in everyday experience to be found running through writer Deborah Morgan’s script. Nosey nei ..read more

CHILEAN playwright Ariel Dorfman’s award-winning 1990 play Death and the Maiden is set for revival this week at the Hope Street Theatre.  Presented by EB Productions, performances will run from Wednesday to Saturday (September 11 – 14). Set in the aftermath of a dictatorship in an unnamed country, the Olivier Award- winning play explores the after-effects of totalitarian regimes.   Paulina Escobar (Emma Bird) is a housewife to prominent lawyer Gerado (Phil Perez). Following a chance meeting, charming stranger  Dr Miranda (Pete Cuffe) is invited to stay at the couple’s home by Gera ..read more

Prescot’s Imaginarium Theatre (formerly MATE Productions) returns for the summer with a bold and beautiful take on the ultimate tragic romance. Bursting with character and bringing forward welcome doses of warm humour alongside the all death and drama, their Romeo & Juliet is stunning, and certainly up there as one of their best shows to date. There is great chemistry between the lovers (Kieran McCarthy-Hoare and Patricia Hodgson), a couple the audience can really root for. Hodgson’s Juliet is sweet, smart and fully formed – a refreshing performance as director Gaynor La Rocca’s take on th ..read more