On the Wire

Robert Harling's romantic comedy Steel Magnolias will be playing at the Rose Theatre from the 6th-23rd May 2020. 

Directed by Anthony Banks, the production will star Kara Tointon in the role of Shelby. 

Further casting to be announced. 

Adapted by The Wardrobe Ensemble, Judith Kerr's Mog The Forgetful Cat will have its world premiere at Nuffield Southhampton Theatres from the 16th-25th July 2020. The production will then go on to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, where it will play from the 5th-30th August.

Further dates and casting to be announced. 

Written by Andy Walker, Delivery will be playing at the Chiswick Playhouse from the 12th March-4th April 2020. Inspired by the life of paratrooper Stuart Cardy (who served at the time of The Falklands War), this is the tale of one man's journey to the brink.

Lesley Manning directs Lizzie Aaryn-Stanton (Angela), Emilio Iannucci (Fruitfly/Sheep/Argentinian Soldier), Gordon Peaston (Sergeant Major/Padre/Slug) and Alex Walton (Joe).

Grammy Award-winner Sara Bareilles and Olivier and Tony Award-winner Gavin Creel have extended their West End run as Jenna and Dr Pomatter in Waitress, with the pair now playing for an additional two weeks through to the 21^st March 2020.

Carrie Hope Fletcher will be playing the title role in Andrew Lloyd Webber's highly-anticipated adaptation of Cinderella, which is due to run at the Gillian Lynne Theatre from the 28th August-12th December 2020.

Ahead of the 2020 Olivier Awards, five individuals have been recognised for their outstanding contribution to the industry. Each of the following will recieve a Special Recognition Award: Jo Hawes CDG, Thelma Holt, Stephen Jameson, Sarah Preece and Peter Roberts. 

After having opened at the Richmond Theatre on the 14th of January 2020, new adaptation of the classic thriller Dial M For Murder is set to embark on a tour of the UK.

From the 14th of April, Samantha Womack will be taking over the role of Margot from Sally Bretton during the play's run in Milton Keynes, from which point she will tour with the company until the 27th of June.

Will Eno's award-winning Broadway hit The Realistic Joneses is due to have its UK premiere at the Theatre Royal Bath's Ustinov Studio. Playing until the 7th of March 2020, the full cast includes Corey Johnson as Bob, Sharon Small as Jennifer, Jack Laskey as John and Clare Foster as Pony, with direction by Simon Evans.

For one night only, Frances Hodgson Burnett's The Secret Garden will play in concert form at The London Palladium.

With book and lyrics by Marsha Norman and music by Lucy Simon, the full company includes: Lucie Jones, Ramin Karimloo, and Jac Yarrow are Sarah Bakker (Rose), Bianca Baykara (Alice), Adam J Bernard (Ben Weatherstaff), Lucy Drever (Narrator), Louise Ellard-Turnbull (Mrs Winthrop), Ben Forster (Neville Craven), Sejal Keshwala (Ayah), Melanie La Barrie (Mrs Medlock), Johndeep More (Fakir), Michael Riseley (Captain Albert Lennox), Celinde Schoenmaker (Lily), and sharing the roles of Colin Craven are Finley Glasgow and Isaac Lancel Watkinson, and of Mary are Aoife Hughes and Darcy Jacobs, with Trinity Laban Musical Theatre forming the ensemble.

The Secret Garden will play on the 4th of April 2020, with performances at 3pm and 7:30pm.

Those returning to the West End transfer of Robert Icke's The Doctor alongside the previously announced Juliet Stevenson are: Mariah Louca, Daniel Rabin, Joy Richardson, Naomi Wirthner and Hannah Ledwidge on drums. New cast members include: Chris Colquhoun, Shelley Conn, Anni Domingo, Liv Hill, Jamie Parker and Millicent Wong. 

The Doctor will run at the Duke of York's Theatre from the 18th April-18th July 2020.

After just completing a sold-out run at London's Park Theatre, the company of Rags The Musical will be releasing a cast recording. It will be the first since Sony's 1991 Broadway album.

This new album will be released by Ghostlight/Sh-K-Boom Records with Stephen Schwartz as Executive Producer, Nick Barstow as Music Producer and Orchestrator and Joe Bunker as Musical Director. It will also be recorded, mixed & mastered by Joe & Nikki Davison at Auburn Jam Music.

Schwartz said of the recording: “I could not be more pleased that this beautifully sung production of Rags is being recorded by this group of terrific actors and musicians. I and my fellow authors consider ourselves lucky indeed!"

On the 12th of May 2020, there will be a special sing-a-long performance of the acclaimed & Juliet at London's Shaftesbury Theatre.

Complete with screens displaying the lyrics to every song, this is the perfect opportunity for fans of the show to fully immerse themsleves in the production.

Zubin Varla and Robert Tripolino will complete the cast of Zorro in Concert at the Cadogan Hall on the 23rd of February 2020. They join previously announced company members: Ricardo Afonso (Jesus Christ Superstar, We Will Rock You) in the titular role and Diego, Olivier Award-winning actress Lesli Margherita (Matilda on Broadway, Dames At Sea on Broadway, Zorro original West End cast) reprising the role of Inez, and four-time Olivier-nominated actress Emma Williams (Half A Sixpence, Mrs Henderson Presents, Zorro original West End cast) who will also reprise her role as Luisa.

Today, Jamie Lloyd announces the full casting for Anya Reiss' adaptation of Chekhov's The Seagull. Joining the previously announced Emilia Clarke (Nina) are Danny Ashok (Medvedenko),Robert Glenister (Sorin), Tom Rhys Harries (Trigorin), Daniel Monks (Konstantin), Tamzin Outhwaite (Polina), Patrick Robinson (Dorn), Seun Shote (Shamrayev), Indira Varma (Arkadina), and Sophie Wu (Masha).

The production opens at The Playhouse Theatre on the 19th March and runs until the 30th of May 2020.

Following a highly successful premiere tour in 2017, musical comedy The Addams Family is set to embark on a new UK & Ireland Tour. The production opens at the Newcastle Theatre Royal on the 30th of July 2020 and will conclude on the 14th of November at New Theatre, Oxford.

Samantha Womack and Cameron Blakely will be reviving their roles as Morticia and Gomez Addams, with further casting to be announced.

Iris Theatre's 2020 Summer Season Escape To The Forest will include: A Midsummer Night's Dream (17th June-18th July) and Tessa Burns' adaptation of Robin Hood (23rd July-30th August), along with two arts initiatives: Platform (which will be showcasing the talent of Dylan Wynford on the 14th of March) and Start, a development scheme centred around direction and design.

Cordelia O'Neill's Anything Is Possible If You Think About It Hard Enough will enjoy its world premiere at the Southwark Playhouse from the 1st-25th April 2020.

Kate Budgen directs Gemma Lawrence (Alex) and Huw Parmenter (Rupert).

Following a world-premiere in Stratford-Upon-Avon, Museum In Baghdad will be running at London's Kiln Theatre from 22nd April-3rd May 2020.

Full cast as follows: David Birrell (Professor Leonard Woolley), Houda Echouafni (Layla Hassan), Emma Fielding (Gertrude Bell), Ali Gadema (Kidnapper, Prime Minister), Rendah Heywood (Ghalia Hussein), Zed Josef (Salim), Nadi Kemp-Sayfi (Nasiya), Debbie Korley (Sam York), Riad Richie (Mohammed Abdullah), and Rasoul Saghir (Abu Zaman).

A new programming iniative by The Kings Head Theatre, Opera Undone: Tosca & La Boheme, opens at the Trafalgar Studios 2 this week, running from the 5th of February-11th March 2020. 

The Hampstead Theatre will mark its 60th anniversary with their 2020 Spring/Summer Programme, Hampstead Classics. This comprises of four plays: Harold Pinter's The Dumb Waiter, Tennesse Williams' The Two Character Play, Alfred Fagon's The Death Of A Black Man, and Marsha Norman's 'Night, Mother.

Today, Theatre Royal Bath announce the appointment of internationally acclaimed, multi award-winning theatre and opera director Deborah Warner as the new Artistic Director of their Ustinov Studio. 

Warner said: “I am delighted to be joining the team in Bath and very excited to be working on a small and intimate scale once more. The Ustinov Studio has become a major force in British theatre and I look forward to the opportunity to present challenging and questioning theatre in all its many forms as we enter this new decade.”

Her inaugural season will begin in Autumn 2020, with full details and programming to be announced.

The 2020 UK Tour of Some Mothers Do ‘Ave ‘Em begins at Churchill Theatre, Bromley on Wednesday 26 February 2020, before playing at Theatre Royal Windsor (24 – 28 March), The Beck Theatre Hayes (31 March – 4 April), Stoke Regent Theatre (14 – 18 April), Aylesbury Waterside Theatre (28 April – 2 May), The Gordon Craig Theatre Stevenage (5 – 9 May), Swansea Grand Theatre (9 – 13 June), Leeds Grand Theatre (23 – 27 June) and Kings Theatre Portsmouth (30 June – 4 July).

Full cast includes: Moray Treadwell, David Shaw-Parker, Ben Watson, Joe Pasquale, Sarah Earnshaw, Susie Blake, Peter F Gardiner and Jayne Ashley. 

Brian Cox is set to direct the UK premiere of Joshua Sobol's Sinners - The English Professor. Running from the 25th February-14th March 2020 at The Playground Theatre, the piece will star Nicole Ansari (as Layla) and Adam Sina (Nur).

On the 5th of April, Jason Manford will be hosting the 2020 Olivier Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall. Public tickets are now on sale for Mastercard cardholders via Priceless.com.

Further announcements to be made soon. 

THE COMEDY ABOUT A BANK ROBBERY will be closing early on Sunday 3rd May 2020.

The full cast has now been announced for Jonathan Maitland's The Last Temptation of Boris Johnson, which is set to embark on a national tour from 22nd January-14th March 2020.

Cast list as follows: Will Barton returns to lead the cast as Boris Johnson, with Bill Champion as Michael Gove / Winston Churchill, Emma Davies as Margaret Thatcher / Sarah Vine / Chief Whip, Claire Lichie as Marina Wheeler / Boris’s Girlfriend, along with Tim Wallers, who returns to the roles of Evgeny Lebedev / Tony Blair / Huw Edwards.

Direct from its run on the West End in 2018, James Graham's hit comedy Quiz is set to embark on a 20-week tour of the UK and Ireland from August 2020.

Tour venues and dates to be announced. 

Today, it is announced that Samuel Bailey's Shook will transfer to London's West End. Following a record-breaking run at the Southwark Playhouse and a national tour in 2019, the production will play at the Trafalgar Studios from 14th April-9th May. 

Following a sold-out run at the Scottish Mental Health Arts & Film Festival, New Voices Theatre will be perfroming Cirque: Voila for one night only at Jackson's Lane, on the 15th of February 2020 at 7:30pm. 

Adapted for the stage by Joseph O'Connor, Theatre Royal Bath's production of Daphne du Maurier's My Cousin Rachel is to continue its tour of the UK.

Currently playing at the Sheffield Lyceum until the 5th of January, the play will run at the Chichester Festival Theatre from the 28th of January-1st of February, before opening at London's Richmond Theatre on the 4th of February 2020. 

From the makers of Thor and Loki and We Can Make You Happy, comes a brand-new musical about anxiety. Everything is Absolutley Fine will play at the Camden People's Theatre from the 7th-11th of April, before embarking on a UK Tour until the 18th.

Tour Venues as follows: Cast, Doncaster (14th April), EM Forster Theatre, Tonbridge (16th April), Theatre Clwyd, Mold (17th-18th April). 

Nick Afoa is set to join the touring production of The Lion King as the character of Simba from the 30th of April. Afoa is currently starring in London’s West End production, where he has performed as Simba for three years.

Comedian, actor and singer Jason Manford has been announced as the host of the Olivier Awards 2020 with Mastercard. It will be Manford's third time hosting this most prestigious of ceremonies, celebrating the best of London’s world-leading theatre.

The event will take place at the Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 5 April.

The UK's leading showcase for new British musical theatre writing, BEAM2020, will run from the 26th-27th March 2020 at the Royal & Derngate, Northhampton. 

BEAM2020 is the largest marketplace of its kind - bringing together key industry figures and talent. Alongside presentations of 41 new musicals in development, BEAM will include masterclasses, networking opportunities, panel discussions and an evening, public-facing showcase in association with ALP’s Signal on Thursday 26th March.

Full information on this years line-up can be found on the theatre's website. 

Olivier award-winning musical Come From Away enters its second year in the West End, welcoming new cast members from the 10th of Febuary 2020. 

These include: Tarinn Callender, James Doherty, Alice Fearn, Kate Graham, and Alasdair Harvey, with Ricardo Castro, Stuart Hickey, Sorelle Marsh, Micha Richardson and Matthew Whennell-Clark.

Kevin Elyot's Coming Clean - a meditation on gay relationships, revived at the Kings Head Theatre in 2017 - begins its West End transfer this month at the Trafalgar Studios, running until the 1st of February 2020.

Starring Lee Knight as Tony, Elliot Hadley as William/Jurgen, Stanton Plummer-Cambridge as Greg and Jonah Rzeskiewicz as Robert. 

Ali Milles' The Croft opens at the Everyman Theatre in Cheltenham on the 22nd of January, before touring the UK until the 18th of April, 2020. 

Directed by the award-winning director Philip Franks and produced by The Original Theatre Company, The Croft will star Gwen Taylor, Caroline Harker, Drew Cain, Lucy Doyle and Simon Roberts.

From the 2nd-11th of April 2020, Cheltenham's Everyman Theatre will play host to The Birthday Party - a new adaptation starring Michelle Collins, Tristan Gemmill and Paul Hickey - ahead of a UK Tour. 

Full tour dates as follows: The Lowry Quays (14-18 April), Oxford Playhouse (21- 25 April), Guildford Yvonne Arnaud (28 April – 2 May), Edinburgh Kings (5-9 May), Norwich Theatre Royal (12-16 May), Cardiff New (26–30 May), Richmond Theatre (2-6 June) and Milton Keynes Theatre (9- 13 June).

New dates have been added to the run of THE BOOK OF MORMON at the Prince of Wales Theatre.: 6th April – 2nd May are now on sale.

MARY POPPINS at The Prince Edward Theatre has been extended. The extension dates are: Monday 8 June 2020 to Sunday 26 July 2020.

The East Midlands touring company New Perspectives announce Co-founder of Ambassador’s Theatre Group, Dame Rosemary Squire, as their first patron.

Nottingham-born Squire, most notable perhaps for co-founding ATG along with her husband, Howard Panter, is largely considered to be one of the most influential people in British theatre. 

Accompanied by the 22-piece London Musical Theatre Orchestra, musical theatre sensation Lucie Jones, star of hit musical Waitress, will perform her first West End solo concert: Lucie Jones Live at the Adelphi at the Adelphi Theatre on Sunday 16 February 2020 at 7pm. 

Tickets on sale from Wednesday the 18th of December. 

Darren Day is set to star alongside Tracie Bennett and Harriet Thorpe in the first UK revival of Jerry Herman's musical, MAME. The production opened to rave reviews at the Hope Mill in Manchester earlier this year, and will play at the Royal & Derngate from the 7th-11th of January 2020 and the Salisbury Playhouse from the 21st-25th January 2020.

Immersive production, The Wolf Of Wall Street, will be hosting an a celebratory New Years Eve after-show party, with plans to see in 2020 in true Jordan Belfort style. 

It will take place from 10:30pm-2:30am, with tickets available to book individually, or as a show and party package. 

The Book Of Mormon has extended its run at the Prince of Wales theatre due to popular demand. The production will now be running until Saturday 19th September, 2020. 

Based on the film of the same name, My Best Friend's Wedding - The Musical is set to premiere at Plymouth Theatre Royal from the 16th-26th of September 2020 ahead of a UK and Ireland tour.

The show will star Alexandra Burke in the title role of Julianne Potter, with further cast announcements expected soon. Rachel Kavanaugh directs; book by Ronald Bass and Jonathan Harvey.

Award-winning Bat Out Of Hell – The Musical, will be returning to tour the UK, with performances beginning at Manchester Opera House from 10–26 September 2020. Other tour dates include The Alexandra Birmingham from 29 September–10 October, New Wimbledon Theatre from 13–24 October, New Theatre Oxford from 27 October–7 November, Glasgow King’s Theatre from 10–21 November and Liverpool Empire from 8 December–2 January 2021. Further dates and casting to be announced.

Tickets go on sale Monday 9th December. 

Running from the 29th of November to the 11th of January 2020 at the Kings Head Theatre, Charles Court Opera's The Nativity Panto - A Not-So Silent Night will star Emily Cairns, Meriel Cunningham, Jennie Jacobs, Matthew Kellett and Catrine Kirkman.

The Nativity Panto is written and directed by John Savournin with original music and lyrics by David Eaton, choreography by Damian Czarnecki, and set design by Rachel Szmukler, with lighting design by Ben Pickersgill, and costume design by Mia Wallden and Catrin Short Thyrsson.

Two extra performances of CINDERELLA at Trafalgar Studios have been added on Sunday 5th January – 16:30 & 20:30.