Shrek to take 'ogre' Southport Flower Show

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Liverpool Empire Theatre

Beloved ogre Shrek and the beautiful Princess Fiona will ‘swamp’ Southport Flower Show’s opening day on Thursday August 20

Shrek The Musical® plays at the Liverpool Empire from Wednesday November 25–Sunday December 6

The characters of Shrek The Musical® will be making appearances throughout the day as part of the celebrations of the opening of Southport’s annual flower show, ahead of the production’s triumphant return to the North West.

The flower show will feature a specially designed Shrek swamp, by award-winning gardeners, Mook Gardens LTD, giving visitors a chance to meet Shrek and Princess Fiona on their home turf.

Visitors to Southport Flower Show have the delight of exploring Shrek’s garden and his floral swamp house throughout the show (Thursday August 20–Sunday August 23) with the chance of bumping into the star couple on the opening day.

Shrek commented: "I confess a trip to the Southport Flower Show is a first for me, but of course when I heard there was going to be a recreation of my swamp I couldn’t resist. Fiona is really excited and hopes the flower show might inspire me into developing more of a gardening habit. I already have the green fingers so that’s a good start. We couldn’t resist visiting as the tour of Shrek The Musical will arrive in Liverpool in November/December time and has its very last date in February at the Lowry in Salford."

Ray Roukin, general manager at Southport Flower Show, added: "We're really pleased to be welcoming Shrek and his swamp garden to the show this year, it's going to be a unique attraction and should prove a big draw for young and old alike."

Shrek and his garden join a number of family attractions at this year's show, including free-flying birds of prey, dog displays and award-winning clowns Sonny and Rainbow. The show will also be having its first ever Super Kids Sunday which includes a dedicated Children's Marquee on the final day of show, with science workshops and fun, interactive activities.

Entry to the show-ground is free for children under 16, when accompanied by a paying adult, so there have never been more reasons to take the family to Southport.

Southport Flower Show runs from Thursday August 20-Sunday August 23. For more information, visit www.southportflowershow.co.uk or call 01704 547147. Southport Flower Show Tickets cost just £18 in advance, a 20% saving on the gate price.

Shrek The Musical® is coming direct from London, where it was seen live on stage by nearly a million people, and will run at Liverpool Empire Theatre from Wednesday November 25-Sunday December 6, and The Lowry from Wednesday February 2–Sunday February 20 2016.

Based on the Oscar® winning DreamWorks film and featuring all-new songs as well as cult Shrek anthem I’m a Believer, Shrek The Musical® brings the much-loved DreamWorks characters to life, live on stage, in an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza.

Tmesis Theatre Announce A Second Tour Of That’s Amore Including Five North-West Dates

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Tmesis Theatre

Tmesis Theatre have announced plans for a second tour for this Autumn of That’s Amore; it’s all about love: wanting it, having it, keeping it and losing it.

That’s Amore completed a successful UK tour earlier this year, and will now open in five venues across the North-West in Chester, Warrington (part of Warrington Contemporary Arts Festival), Northwich, Ulverston and Liverpool in October this year.

That’s Amore is a hilarious, fast-paced, passionate and emotional piece of physical theatre which explores the vast world and culture of romantic love, from chance encounters to hidden desires, and emotional extremes to the science of romance. The piece discovers the flesh and philosophy behind what makes our hearts beat faster.

Tmesis Theatre’s Elinor Randle will once again take the role of Director of the piece. This production is the first time in the company’s 10-year history that she has not performed in a Tmesis piece.

That’s Amore combines Tmesis’ trademark physicality and an ensemble of performers, with text from long-term collaborator and award-winning writer Chris Fittock, stunning visuals and a combination of popular and original music.

A Unity Commission, the play promises to be one which everyone can relate to. That’s Amore will feature a cast of four: Jennifer Essex, Adam Davies, Eleni Edipidi and Ross McCall.

Audiences can also look forward to the production talents of designer Lois Maskell, lighting designer Beccy Hillam, projection designer Sam Meech, and composer Meike Holzmann to set the scene and showcase the play’s musical and visual setting.

Artistic Director Elinor Randle commented: “After a brilliant reception to the first stage of the tour from audiences everywhere, I'm really excited to take That's Amore out to more national venues. I'm working with four hugely talented performers and a bigger and more visual new direction. The show has an amazing creative team and is a crazy, funny, emotional rollercoaster of a piece, which explores what we all want in the end, to be loved.

“We want audiences to be caught up in the moment, swept away with the excitement, confusion and agony of romance. To recognise how love strips us of our dignity and just how funny it all really is.”

The production will feature songs familiar to most audiences who have been struck by Cupid’s arrow, such as Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart; A-ha’s Take On Me; Sinead O’Connor’s Nothing Compares To You; George Michael’s Careless Whisper, Leonard Cohen’s Take This Waltz and, of course, the title name, That’s Amore by Dean Martin.

The newest addition to Tmesis Theatre’s impressive production repertoire, That’s Amore, joins the list of successful European toured shows, following Tmesis, Memento Mori and Anima, their trilogy on life’s journey, The Dreadful Hours and Wolf Red.

View the That’s Amore promo video at http://tmesistheatre.com/performances/thats-amore/.

West End and Broadway show opens in Liverpool to rave reactions

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Liverpool Empire Theatre

The National Theatre’s multi award-winning production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time opened at Liverpool’s Empire Theatre last night, and brought the entire auditorium to its feet receiving a roaring standing ovation.

The production showing in Liverpool until Saturday July 25 as part of a nationwide tour of UK and Ireland, saw a host of celebrity guests at the opening which included Hollyoaks stars Jessica Fox (Nancy Osborne), Nicole Barber-Lane (Myra McQueen) and Cameron Moore (Cameron Campbell). Liverpool gymnast Beth Tweddle, presenter Nikki Dean, Britain’s Got Talent’s Becky O’Brien and actor Kris Mochrie were also in attendance.

The entire cast of Curious Incident were thrilled with the audience reaction and are looking forward to seeing the sights in Liverpool during their week in the City.  Joshua Jenkins, who plays Christopher, and is a huge fan of the Beatles has already been in a Magical Mystery tour of Liverpool with fellow company members.

Lucas Hare, who writes a blog called The Blog in the Night-Time about the Curious Incident tour has just completed an entry about their first night in Liverpool. The blog includes an interview with Joshua Jenkins as his character Christopher Boone talking about his impressions of Liverpool. You can read it at http://thebloginthenighttime.blogspot.co.uk/.

Simon Stephens’ adaptation of Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel, which received seven Olivier Awards in 2013, including Best New Play, Best Director, Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design, opened to rave reviews which all praise the spectacular performances from the cast including Joshua Jenkins who plays the central role of Christopher.

The New York production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time has also been nominated for six prestigious Tony Awards, including Best New Play, Best Direction of a Play and Best Scenic Design of a Play.

The show tells the story of 15-year-old Christopher Boone. He stands beside Mrs Shears’ dead dog, which has been speared with a garden fork, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion. He records each fact in a book he is writing to solve the mystery of who murdered Wellington. He has an extraordinary brain, and is exceptional at maths while ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched and distrusts strangers. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a frightening journey that upturns his world.

The central role of Christopher is played by Joshua Jenkins with Geraldine Alexander as his teacher Siobhan, Roberta Kerr as Mrs Alexander, Stuart Laing as his father Ed, Gina Isaacs as Judy, and Clare Perkins as Mrs Shears.

The cast is completed by Chris Ashby (alternate Christopher), Emmanuella Cole (Punk Girl), Edward Grace (Mr Thompson), Lucas Hare (Roger Shears), John McAndrew (Reverend Peters) with Kieran Garland, Ann Marcuson, Paul Sockett and Jessica Williams in the ensemble.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is directed by Marianne Elliott, who co-directed the National Theatre’s record-breaking production of War Horse. The production is designed by Bunny Christie, with lighting by Paule Constable, video design by Finn Ross, movement by Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett for Frantic Assembly, music by Adrian Sutton and sound by Ian Dickinson for Autograph.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is open now at Liverpool Empire Theatre until Saturday July 25.

Countdown is on as West End show heads to Liverpool

Written By: Mark Armstrong

Provided By: Liverpool Empire Theatre

The countdown is on until the National Theatre’s multi award-winning production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time arrives in the city for its Liverpool premiere.

The show opens at Liverpool’s Empire Theatre next month as part of a nationwide tour of the UK and Ireland. The play is also running concurrently at the Gielgud Theatre in London and at the Barrymore Theatre on Broadway.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time will run at the Liverpool Empire from Tuesday July 21-Saturday July 25.

Simon Stephens’ adaptation of Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time received seven Olivier Awards in 2013, including Best New Play, Best Director, Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design.

The New York production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was the winner of  five prestigious Tony Awards, including Best New Play for Simon Stephens, Best Direction of a Play for Marianne Elliott and Best Scenic Design of a Play for Bunny Christie and Finn Ross.

The show tells the story of 15-year-old Christopher Boone. He stands beside Mrs Shears’ dead dog, which has been speared with a garden fork, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion. He records each fact in a book he is writing to solve the mystery of who murdered Wellington. He has an extraordinary brain, and is exceptional at maths while ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched and distrusts strangers. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a frightening journey that upturns his world.

Playwright Simon Stephens said about adapting Haddon’s novel for the stage: “The adaptation was a really joyful experience. I knew two things in adapting the play. I knew that the key to it was the relationship between Christopher and his teacher. Although it’s not that central in the novel, what struck me was that everybody in life has a favourite teacher. Even people who hated school, even people who found school a miserable experience, had one teacher who they loved more than others and thought got them in a way that other teachers didn’t. I knew that if I could get that relationship right, then we could create an evening in the theatre that people could recognise themselves in.

“The other thing I knew was that Marianne Elliott had to direct it. I think she’s a visionary director, I think she’s a director of extraordinary imagination, but she’s also a very democratic director. This can’t be a piece of theatre that alienates people. It has to be a piece of theatre that you can come to if you’re 10-years-old or if you’re 90-years-old. It needs to appeal to people that have very high art taste in theatre, but also it’s got to be a family night out, and I thought that Marianne could release that really beautifully and really perfectly. Everybody working on it, the entire creative team, were united in wanting to tell Christopher’s story as honestly and properly as possible.

“All I ever wanted to do was to make Mark Haddon happy. He came to see rehearsals and the previews and the show at the National and in the West End and Broadway and he fell back in love with Curious Incident all over again. That makes me as proud as anything.”

Author Mark Haddon added: “When I wrote Curious Incident I was absolutely convinced that it couldn’t be adapted for film or stage. The novel is one person’s very insulated and sometimes profoundly mistaken view of the world. We’re stuck inside Christopher’s head from cover to cover. We see the world the way he sees the world. And there’s the problem. Or so it seemed to me. Theatre is radically third person. You can infer what people are thinking but you can do so only from what they say and what they do. I simply couldn’t imagine how Christopher’s story could be told with any integrity in this way. Simon’s genius was to recognise that I was completely and utterly wrong.”

The central role of Christopher is played by Joshua Jenkins with Geraldine Alexander as his teacher Siobhan, Roberta Kerr as Mrs Alexander, Stuart Laing as his father Ed, Gina Isaacs as Judy, and Clare Perkins as Mrs Shears.

The cast is completed by Chris Ashby (alternate Christopher), Emmanuella Cole (Punk Girl), Edward Grace (Mr Thompson), Lucas Hare (Roger Shears), John McAndrew (Reverend Peters) with Kieran Garland, Ann Marcuson, Paul Sockett and Jessica Williams in the ensemble.

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is directed by Marianne Elliott, who co-directed the National Theatre’s record-breaking production of War Horse. The production is designed by Bunny Christie, with lighting by Paule Constable, video design by Finn Ross, movement by Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett for Frantic Assembly, music by Adrian Sutton and sound by Ian Dickinson for Autograph.