The Play’s the Thing

Operatic chiller for Ustinov

THERE is little in the way of festive cheer in Benjamin Britten’s opera The Turn of the Screw, but it is a brilliant and thrilling stage version of Henry James’ famous novella – and we all love a good ghost story at Christmas, don’t we! A new production opens at Bath Theatre Royal’s Ustinov Studio…

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No more seats at the Frome Christmas shows

FROME is certainly a buzzy place these days, and alongside its vibrant and varied food scene, increasing numbers of book and vintage shops and general feeling of community spirit, the theatre scene continues to thrive. This Christmas, the Merlin Theatre’s traditional seasonal show, Elf – The Musical, sold out almost before the booking opened, and…

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BOVTS students go Into the Woods for Christmas

STUDENTS from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School are turning their backs on the traditional Christmas theatre fare and heading Into the Woods at the Redgrave Theatre with Stephen Sondheim from 28th November to 7th December. Atri Banerjee directs the show, with musical direction by Jon Beales. Sondheim’s brilliant show conflates familiar fairytales as he takes…

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Dominic West at Bath

DOMINIC West, one of the country’s finest and most versatile actors, is coming to Bath Theatre Royal’s Ustinov Studio in February, starring in a new production of Arthur Miller’s A View From The Bridge, directed by Lindsay Posner. Miller’s 1956 drama is set in the close-knit Italian-American community in 1950s New York. Eddie Carbone is…

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Dallas star in Twelve Angry Men at Bath

PATRICK Duffy, who famously played Bobby Ewing in all 14 seasons of Dallas, takes on one of the great stage roles in Reginald Rose’s gripping courtroom drama, Twelve Angry Men, coming to Bath Theatre Royal from Monday 27th November to Saturday 2nd December. He stars as Juror number 8, the part played by Henry Fonda…

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A twisted Christmas with Owdyado

CORNISH theatre company Owdyado Theatre comes to Dorset and Devon with Twisted Christmas, a series of darkly comic tales, With Artsreach in Dorset from 1st to 3rd December, the show is also at Stockland village hall in Devon on Sunday 17th December. The show is a series of macabre mini plays, all with a festive…

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Famous chiller comes to Poole

ONE of the greatest thrillers of all time, Susan Hill’s blood-chilling The Woman in Black, comes to Poole’s lighthouse arts centre for the week to Saturday 27th November, with Malcolm James as Arthur Kipps and Mark Hawkins as the Actor. The Woman in Black, which never loses its power to shock, has been seen by…

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Hurricanoes and pelican daughters – a new take on Lear

ACCLAIMED performer Paul Morel comes to Buckland Newton village hall on Friday 24th November and Powerstock Hut on Saturday 25th with a new solo version of Shakespeare’s great tragedy, King Lear, by the inventive Oddbodies theatre company. Armed with only a drum, a guitar, a knife and a chair, Morel follow the tragic trajectory of…

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Howard Coggins

THE hilariously funny, cuddly, wry and inspired Howard Coggins, best known in the south west as co-founder of Living Spit and nationally for his Lottery adverts, has died at the age of 52. He was diagnosed with cancer late in 2022. Frustrated with playing bit parts in other people’s shows, Howard and Stu McLoughlin started…

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The great Quiz scam – on stage

AWARD-winning playwright James Graham’s hit play Quiz tours to Bath Theatre Royal from Monday 20thj to Saturday 25th November, with the great Rory Bremner, actor and master impressionist, as the Who Wants to be a Millionaire? Quizmaster, Chris Tarrant. Bremner leads a star cast in this compelling drama which focuses on the infamous Coughing Major scandal,…

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