TQS StaffOur Theatre Editor, Kirsty Hulse, takes us through March’s key openings in Leeds. Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming reviews.
The Grand Theatre
Madame Butterfly
29th February – 10th March 2012
After a hiatus of ten years, The Grand Theatre plays host to Northern Ballet’s acclaimed Madame Butterfly. The Leeds stage will be graced again with the intricate set of a Japanese villa in this story of true love, beauty and betrayal. Puccini’s score sets the perfect backdrop to this timeless mix of classic and Japanese style dancing.
Chess
13th March – 17th March 2012
Following the successful production of Beauty and the Beast, LAOS (who have performed at the Grand for over 100 years!) are proud to return to Leeds Grand Theatre to perform the rock musical ‘Chess’. With music by ABBA’s Bjorn Uluveas and Benny Anderson and lyrics by Tim Rice, if you’ve never seen this contemporary classic before, now is the time.
Travelling Light – Editor’s Pick (Image above)
20th March – 24th March 2012
Led by Antony Sher and starring Being Human’s Damien Molony, Wright’s new play is a humorous tribute to Eastern European immigrants who became major players in Hollywood’s golden age.
In a remote village in Eastern Europe, around 1900, the young Motl Mendl is entranced by the flickering silent images on his father’s cinematograph. Bankrolled by Jacob, the ebullient local timber merchant, and inspired by Anna, the girl sent to help him make moving pictures of their village, he stumbles on a revolutionary way of story-telling. Forty years on, Motl – now a famed American film director – looks back on his early life and confronts the cost of fulfilling his dreams.
The Calendar Girls
26th March 2012 – 31st March 2012
The acclaimed Calendar Girls is set to make a comeback after an award winning West End tour and a recording breaking, sell-out week in Leeds last year. Original cast member Lynda Bellingham returns to tell this funny, charming and touching tribute to the fundraising efforts of some extraordinary women.
West Yorkshire Playhouse
Top Girls
28th February to 10th March 2012
Ambitious and hard faced business woman Marlene is hosting a dinner party to celebrate a promotion. Her guests, all powerful women from myth and history, make for an extraordinary gathering.
Written at the rise of Thatcherism, Top Girls is a play of success and failure written with razor sharp wit and a social poignancy that is still striking today.
Top Girls at WYP
Mary Shelley
16th March to 07th April 2012
Directed by celebrated Artistic Director Polly Teale, Shared Experience brings to life the astonishing tale of Mary Shelley and how at just 19 she came to write one of the greatest stories ever told.
This powerful play explores Shelley’s remarkable life from her controversial philosopher father, her scandalous elopement at 16 and how she wrote a novel so radical in its ideology that she changed the literary landscape forever.
Vamps, Vixens and Feminists … In The North
02 March 2012
After proving to be a huge success at the Olivier Theatre in 2009, Sphinx Theatre Company presents the fourth Vamps, Vixens and Feminists conference, examining the role of women in the performing arts.
The day-long conference will include debate, workshops and networking opportunities for everyone working in, or interested in women’s roles in the performing arts.
City Varities
The Good Old Days
Friday 16th – Saturday 17th March 2012
City Varities once again salutes its heritage with The Good Old Days, an evening of light hearted variety entertainment with performers from across the globe. Take your seats for a trip back to the days of the music halls with Chairman Mr Johnny Dennis and Barney’s Players plus The City Varieties Orchestra under the direction of Mr David Smith.
The Carriageworks
Lolanthe
Sun 4th March – Sat 10 March 2012
Lolanthe gives all of the satire, melodies and drama one has come to expect from Gilbert & Sullivan. This classic tale of unrequited love and family feuds is imbued with a magical twist for the Carriageworks stage.
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