When asking friends what their favourite movies are, you can be assured that somebody will wax lyrically about The Shawshank Redemption. Based on the story by Stephen King, the 1994 film regularly finds itself topping the lists of the most popular movies of all time. This season, a theatrical adaptation arrives at Leeds Grand Theatre as part of a national tour. Following a film held in such public affection, how does a new imagining for stage stand up to scrutiny?
Andy DeFresne (Ian Kelsey) finds himself incarcerated at Shawshank State Penitentiary with two life sentences for the murder of his wife and her lover. Befriended by Ellis 'Red' Redding (Patrick Robinson), Andy is inducted into prison life but inevitably succumbs to abuse and torment. It's the 1940s and corruption is rife throughout the prison system; by using his tact and illelect, Andy makes long-term plans for the perfect escape.
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And Then There Were None comes to Leeds Grand Theatre this week as part of a national tour. Based on the record-breaking murder mystery novel by Agatha Christie, the play introduces ten individuals as they are lured to an island retreat and played a recorded message. The voice threatens to make them pay for a series of unspeakable crimes, assuring them that nobody will survive the duration of their stay. Soon the party realise that the killings in the house are being conducted by somebody within the group. The race is on to expose the murderer.
The modern recipe for a winning musical often features a classic film as its inspiration, with the addition of catchy musical numbers and preferably an all star cast. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels The Musical contains just these ingredients and stops off at Leeds Grand Theatre this month as part of a national tour.
Lawrence Jameson is a sophisticated confidence trickster, forging a living from the rich and gullible. When Freddy Benson arrives on the French Riviera, the duo briefly become partners in crime before the wealthy Christine Colgate checks in. In a battle to secure her assets, Lawrence and Freddy go head-to-head in a hustle of ever-growing proportions. Sixties rock 'n roll musical Dreamboats and Miniskirts arrives at Leeds Grand Theatre this week. Continuing the story from Dreamboats and Petticoats, the show follows Laura and Bobby after their brief success on the hit parade. As The Beatles cause a sensation throughout Liverpool, Bobby and The Conquests attempt to cut a record and become part of the touring action; but a bad decision sends Bobby and Laura spinning in different directions with a hit single which may break them apart entirely.
Bill Kenwright brings Jesus Christ Superstar, the musical based on the progressive rock album by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, to Leeds Grand Theatre this week. A production which has ignited passion and fury in equal measure, the show arrives with a guarantee of provocation.
The musical follows the final days of Jesus Christ, who is betrayed by disciple Judas Iscariot and subsequently crucified under the Roman Empire. Loosely inspired by biblical texts and developed from a sensational album, the show offers an audacious interpretation of an ancient story told through progressive symphonic rock. Cast: Laurence Pears, Cornelius Booth, Matt Cavendish, Leonie Hill, James Marlow, Chris Leask, Harry Kershaw, Naomi Sheldon, Alex Bartram, Rosie Abraham
Director: Adam Meggido Writer: Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields. Theatre: Leeds Grand Theatre Duration: 120 minutes Start Date: June 17, 2015 Following Mischief Theatre's smash hit comedy The Play That Goes Wrong, the company present a second outing of theatrical disaster when Peter Pan Goes Wrong at the Leeds Grand Theatre this week. Promising perilously violent stunts, gloriously destructive sets and general calamity on stage, it offers a version of Peter Pan which audiences are never likely to forget. When the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society pulls into town it is guaranteed something will go wrong. This year's Christmas production of Peter Pan (opening in the Summer due to a booking error) is touted as the most expensive production from the company yet. Starting with noble and ambitions intentions, the show begins to fracture as actors drop out, scenery falls apart and lighting and sound runs wild. Famous for featuring a flying boy who didn't grow up, Peter Pan Goes Wrong is a downward tailspin of chaos, calamity and courage. As ever, the show must go on... Cast: Cory English, Jason Manford, Ross Noble, David Bedella, Tiffany Graves, Stephane Anelli
Director: Matthew White Writer: Mel Brooks & Thomas Meehan Theatre: Leeds Grand Theatre Duration: 150 minutes Start Date: June 8, 2015 In 2001 Mel Brooks adapted his hit comedy film The Producers into a hit Broadway musical. This week the Tony award-winning show arrives at Leeds Grand Theatre. The Producers is the story of Max Bialystock (Cory English), a theatre producer with a string of Broadway stinkers to his name. When accountant Leo Bloom (Jason Manford) reveals that more money can be made from a failure than a success, Bialystock sources a hideous script to be realised by an incapable director, in the hope of creating a guaranteed flop. With plans to escape with the show's investments to Brazil, the duo's hopes are dashed when Springtime For Hitler becomes an unexpected hit. Cast: Robert Webb, Jason Thorpe, Chris Ryan Director: Sean Foley
Writer: The Goodale Brothers Theatre: Leeds Grand Theatre Duration: 125 minutes Start Date: June 1, 2015 P.G. Wodehouse's celebrated creations Jeeves and Wooster show up at Leeds Grand Theatre this week in Perfect Nonsense, a West End transfer from the pens of The Goodale Brothers. Perfect Nonsense establishes the façade of an amateur one-man show, fronted by Bertie Wooster as he attempts to re-enact the events of a purloined creamer (in the shape of a cow) whilst being seduced by his friend's soppy fiancé. Struggling to play all of the diverse roles alone, Bertie ropes in his ever faithful butler Jeeves and the long-suffering Steppings, a doddery manservant. Cast: Emma Barton, Derek Elroy, Norman Pace, Jasmyn Banks, David Verrey, Edward Hancock, Gavin Spokes, Alicia Davies, Patrick Warner, Elliot Harper, Michael Dylan.
Director: Adam Penford Writer: Richard Bean Theatre: Leeds Grand Theatre Duration: 150 minutes Start Date: November 4, 2014 End Date: November 8, 2014 The National Theatre’s critically acclaimed One Man Two Guvnors transfers to Leeds Grand Theatre this week as part of a national tour. Based on 18th century comedy The Servant of Two Masters by Carlo Goldoni, One Man Two Guvnors follows the plight of Francis Henshall, a dumpling-like lackey who tries to maintain two jobs with two governors in the wake of a gangster killing and arranged marriage. When Henshall’s two bosses eventually collide, his world explodes into torment and chaos – all whilst trying to gain a date and stave off hunger for chips and warm ale. Cast: Gareth Bailey, Roseanna Frascona, Claire Rogers, Colin Charles, James Coombes, Mark Faith, Julia J. Nagle, Michael Remick, Wayne Smith, Alexander Wolfe, Jessie-Lou Yates, James Bennett, Sarah Cortez, Lizzi Franklin, Francis Haugen, Antony Hewitt, Verity Jones, Lewis Kirk, Robin Lake, Garry Lee, Carly Miles, Carlie Milner, Simone Mistry-Palmer, Marlon Moore, Brandon Lee Sears, Natalie Winsor.
Director: Sarah Tipple Writer: Eleanor Bergstein Theatre: Leeds Grand Theatre Duration: 150 minutes Start Date: November 11, 2014 End Date: December 6, 2014 Leeds Grand Theatre offers a parting sprinkle of summertime ahead of the festive season with Dirty Dancing, the musical based on the cult Eighties motion picture. A nostalgic romantic drama showcasing dance, drama and song, the show provides an expanded book by Eleanor Bergstein with over two dozen musical numbers, underscoring a coming-of-age love story between Frances “Baby” Houseman and holiday resort dancer Johnny Castle. A struggle between identity, revolution, and a generation gap, Dirty Dancing tells a tale beyond the romanticism of dance. Bergstein’s adaptation of her film script is tautly structured, densely factoring in contemporary musical hits and political overtones from the Sixties, giving the production a vivid sense of time and place. Capturing the zeitgeist of the era, the book acknowledges the shift in racial and gender equality, placing ethnic diversity, premarital sex and the politics of abortion at the forefront of an otherwise idealised romance. |
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