Hannah: The Soldier Diary was reviewed at the Spa Theatre, Scarborough. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ Tucked away in the vast complex that is the Scarborough Spa is a small theatre that is usually used for more intimate shows. Fascinating Aida played there a few weeks ago and I seem to remember Suggs performing his one-man show about his years with Madness. Imagine my surprise, then, to be propelled seamlessly through scenes using a hairdressing salon, a beach, a bedroom, Harrogate Railway Station and a seafront esplanade as locations. It is a big map that writer/producer Steve Wallis ..read more

Sunset Boulevard acting winners Tom Francis and Nicole Scherzinger. Pictures: Joanne Davidson The biggest winner of the night at this year’s Olivier Awards with Mastercard at London’s Royal Albert Hall was Sunset Boulevard with seven wins, while Mastercard Best New Musical was awarded to Operation Mincemeat. The winners were announced at a star-studded ceremony at London’s Royal Albert Hall, hosted by Hannah Waddingham. Sunset Boulevard’s awards included both Best Actor and Actress in a Musical for its leading duo Tom Francis and Nicole Scherzinger. Jamie Lloyd won the Sir Peter Hall Award f ..read more

Picture: Christie Goodwin Want to know more about the Olivier Awards 2024 ceremony on Sunday 14 April at London’s Royal Albert Hall? There will be performances from Mastercard Best New Musical nominees including The Little Big Things, Next to Normal, Operation Mincemeat and A Strange Loop, alongside Best Musical Revival nominees Guys & Dolls and Hadestown in addition to a special moment from Groundhog Day Australia. Presenter, Emmy winner and multi-Olivier nominee Hannah Waddingham will open the event performing with singer and pianist Joe Stilgoe. On the evening, awa ..read more

Picture: Shipwreck Productions The Mad Ones continues at the Old Joint Stock Theatre, Birmingham until 20 April 2024. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ We already know that Birmingham has a great theatre scene, with the Hippodrome and Alexandra Theatres showing the major touring shows and also the Repertory Theatre putting on a varied range of productions. -Perhaps not as well known is the Old Joint Stock Theatre, which boasts a commitment to delivering high-quality shows that you may not know so well, in its intimate performance space located above the pub beneath. Following its charmi ..read more

Picture: Marc Brenner Shrek was reviewed at the Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham where it runs until 14 April 2024. The tour continues until 4 May, followed by a London run at the Eventim Apollo from 19 July to 31 August. Star rating: four stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ✩ The Shrek franchise was DreamWorks’ subversive attempt to parody the clichés of the fairy tales that we all grew up with and became a massive success (somehow nearly 25 years ago). Following in Disney’s footsteps, a stage adaptation was inevitable, which hit Broadway in 2008 and later London’s West End in 2011. Remaining faithful to ..read more

Johannes Radebe and Dan Partridge have been cast in a new UK and Ireland tour of Kinky Boots. Picture: Ollie Rosser A brand-new Made at Curve production of the Olivier, Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical Kinky Boots The Musical will tour the UK and Ireland from 17 January 2025, directed by Curve’s artistic director Nikolai Foster and starring Strictly dance sensation and international champion Johannes Radebe as Lola and rising star Dan Partridge as Charlie Price. Featuring a score by Cyndi Lauper and a book by Harvey Fierstein, Kinky Boots The Musical was a Broadway a ..read more

Picture: Mark Senior Your Lie in April: The Musical in Concert at Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London. Star rating: five stars ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Like last year’s Death Note: The Musical, Your Lie in April has a long history in Japanese media and a dedicated fanbase. However, at its core is a beautiful love letter to the power of music that is universal and requires no prior fandom to enjoy. In fact, this performance’s attendees of dedicated manga fans and musical theatre connoisseurs were brought together beautifully, with both groups equally moved and delighted by this new adaptation. A lot of the tea ..read more

Bare The Musical was performed in concert at the London Palladium. Star rating: three stars ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩ Cult favourite musical Bare hit the London Palladium stage in a concert production celebrating the rock opera which turns 25 years old next year. The show is still little known in the UK, although previous Fringe productions in London have helped to grow a loyal fanbase. Having previously been reworked in the mid-2000s from the sung-through Bare: A Pop Opera to the more book-based Bare – The Musical, the concert delivered the original format, sung through by a stellar cast of West End ta ..read more

Hannah Chissick (Pack of Lies, Eugenius) will return to the Menier Chocolate Factory to direct a major revival of Jerry Herman and Larry Alford’s Jerry’s Girls next month. Due to begin preview performances at the prestigious London venue on 18 May ahead of an opening night on 22 May, the production which will be choreographed by Olivier Award-nominee Matt Cole (Fiddler on the Roof) with musical supervision and arrangements by Tony and Drama Desk Award-winner Sarah Travis (Sweeney Todd), will play a limited season until 29 June. Featuring an all-female band, the production’s cast and further c ..read more

The full cast and creative team have been unveiled for the eagerly anticipated West End debut of the Broadway hit Mean Girls this summer. Presented by Lorne Michaels, Sonia Friedman Productions and David Ian for Crossroads Live, the cast and creative announcement was accompanied by the news that the production’s debut run at the Savoy Theatre has already been extended over two months before the curtain is due to rise for the first time. Due to begin performances at the Savoy on 5 June 2024 ahead of a gala opening on 26 June, the production will star Charlie Burn (Les Misérables, Disney100) as ..read more