The Secret Garden
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London
Cast: Theo Angel, Richard Clews, George Fletcher, Amanda Hadingue, Molly Hewitt-Richards, Jack Humphrey, Avita Jay, Hannah Khalique-Brown, Patrick Osborne, Sharan Phull, Archana Ramaswamy and Brydie Service 

Spoilt and abandoned, 10-year-old Mary Lennox is sent from India to Yorkshire, and put into the care of an Uncle she has never met. At Misselthwaite Manor, a broken-hearted house full of secrets and strange noises, Mary discovers a garden as lost and neglected as she is. If she can learn to make friends with robins, grumpy gardeners, and a boy who speaks to animals, Mary might be able to bring more than just the garden back to life.

The next interview in our stagey chat series is with Tegan Verheul, who's heading to Edinburgh Fringe this year from 31st July - 25th August with her show, Chokeslam. 

Mean Girls the Musical
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Savoy Theatre, London
Cast: Charlie Burn, Georgina Castle, Elèna Gyasi, Grace Mouat, Elena Skye, Tom Xander, Daniel Bravo, Lucca Chadwick-Patel, Ako Mitchell and Zoë Rainey

Meet The Plastics – Regina, Gretchen and Karen. They rule North Shore High and will burn anyone who gets in their way. Home-schooled Cady Heron may think she knows a thing or two about survival of the fittest thanks to her zoologist parents, but high school is a whole new level of savage. When Cady devises a plan to end Regina's reign, she learns the hard way that you can't cross a queen bee without getting stung.

Next to Normal
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Wyndham's Theatre
Cast: Caissie Levy, Jamie Parker, Jack Wolfe, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Trevor Dion Nicholas and Jack Ofrecio 

Last Thursday we were invited to the press call for the latest production of Next to Normal. Its return was highly anticipated, since the initial run at the Donmar Warehouse was completely sold out, even before it opened. The show is now running at Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End.

Find out more about this brilliant, mind blowing exploration of family, mental health and grief.

Bonnie & Clyde the Musical: Live
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Streamed online
Cast: Jeremy Jordan, Frances Mayli McCann, Natalie McQueen, George Maguire, Trevor Dion Nicholas and Liam Tamne 

Let's raise a little hell this summer. Starring Tony-Nominee Jeremy Jordan and Olivier-Nominee Frances Mayli McCann, this cult-favorite Broadway musical re-tells the unbelievable true story of America's most infamous couple, Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow. Captured in stunning, world-class quality, ain't no way you won't remember us.

JULIE: the Musical
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: The Other Palace, London
Cast: Sam Kearney-Edwardes, Melinda Orengo, Abey Bradbury and Zachary Pang 

Mrs Doubtfire
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Shaftesbury Theatre, London
Cast: Gabriel Vick, Laura Tebbutt, Charlotte Fleming, Cameron Blakely, Marcus Collins, Matthew Goodgame, Micha Richardson and Ross Dawes

Out-of-work actor Daniel will do anything for his kids. After losing custody in a messy divorce, he creates the alter ego of Scottish nanny Euphegenia Doubtfire in a desperate attempt to stay in their lives. As his new character takes on a life of its own, Mrs. Doubtfire teaches Daniel more than he bargained for about how to be a father.

House of Life
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Soho Theatre, London
Cast: Ben Welch and Lawrence Cole 

The next interview in our stagey chat series is with KT Marsh, who's currently in The Trials and Passions of Unfamous Women, playing at Brixton House as part of LIFT 2024.

Get yourself comfy and join us for the next segment of Stagey Chat!

Boys From the Blackstuff
Rating: ★★★★★

The next interview in our stagey chat series is with Katie Pritchard, who's currently preparing to take over Edinburgh Fringe with her role in A Jaffa Cake Musical and her own solo musical comedy show, "Katie Pritchard: I Kiss the Music".

Avalon by Giffords Circus
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Chiswick House & Gardens 
Cast: Maximiliano Stia, Nell O’Hara, Tyler West, Nick Hodge Dylan, Asia Medini, Pat Clarrison, Pip Ashley, Latoya Donnert, Morgan Barbour, Victoria Sejr, Dany Rivelino, Sita Rivelino, Andriy Moskva, Nikita Ostrovskyi, Serhii Niemtsev, Volodymyr Potaychuk and Denise Denyer 

AVALON is a show that will immerse the audience in a colourful medieval world of pageantry and Arthurian legend, with lavish costumes, opulent set, and a live band all conjured up by award winning international acclaimed performance designer takis, whose innovative and diverse body of work encompasses West End and leading UK theatre.

A Night at the Movies
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: St John Smith's Square, London
Cast: Peter Michael Davison (Conductor) and Southbank Sinfonia

Return to the worlds of your favourite films in this epic concert from Southbank Sinfonia. An ebullient brass fanfare announces the arrival of John Williams’ theme for Star Wars, before the orchestra takes a journey through the works of Bernard Hermann, Ennio Morricone, Joe Hisaishi, and more.

Grab some popcorn, put your feet up, and enjoy.

Hole
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Old Red Lion Theatre, London
Cast: Matsume Kai

Meet Hole. She’s been told by a woman in a strip lighted, white-walled, disinfectant-smelling room that she has Binge Eating Disorder. It’s not a particularly sexy name, but it is what it says on the tin. Her mother, her teacher, they each try to help but only make things worse. She’s hollow, she’s hungry all the time and she doesn’t know why. And then from nowhere The Child appears. She doesn’t understand, but she knows she needs to follow The Child and go… down.

Babies the Musical
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: The Other Palace, Review
Cast: Ashley Goh, Bradley Riches, Grace Towning, Jaina Brock-Patel, Lauren Conroy, Lucy Carter, Max Mulrenan, Morgan Phillips, Nathan Johnston, Rowan Macpherson, Viola Maisey and Zoë Athena 

After a rise in pregnancies among the year above, the school’s sex education department are compelled to take action. Fuelled by a blistering pop-rock score, Babies follows nine classmates as they take on their most important school project yet: keeping a fake baby alive for an entire week. As the pressures of teenage life collide with the demands of parenting, the students are forced to ask themselves: what is it I really want? who is it I really want to be?

The next interview in our stagey chat series is with Matsume Kai, who's just opened in one-person show, Hole, currently running at the Old Red Lion Theatre until 22nd June.

Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder!
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Ambassador's Theatre, London
Cast: Bronté Barbé, Rebekah Hinds, Imelda Warren-Green, Elliot Broadfoot, Hannah-Jane Fox, Elliotte Williams-N'Dure, Ben Redfern, Jennifer Caldwell, Chelsea Hall and Sorelle Marsh 

BFFs Kathy and Stella host Hull’s least successful true crime podcast. When their favourite author is killed they are thrust into a thrilling whodunnit of their own!

Hailed as ‘comedy gold’, this big-hearted, laugh out loud musical follows the unlikely crime-fighting duo as they put their friendship on the line to become part of the story. Can they crack the case, (and become global podcast superstars) before the killer strikes again…?

Marie Curie the Musical
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Charing Cross Theatre, London
Cast: Ailsa Davidson, Chrissie Bhima, Thomas Josling, Richard Meek, Lucy Young, Isabel Snaas, Christopher Killik, Dean Makowski-Clayton, Maya Kristal Tenenbaum, Yujin Park and Rio Maye

Marie Skłodowska-Curie. Physicist. Pioneer. Parent. She discovers radium, a new chemical element, with her husband Pierre Curie, and she’s lauded with the Nobel Prize. But she is faced with an overwhelming moral dilemma. As Marie discovers the lifesaving potential of radium to cure cancer, factory workers handling the glowing substance are succumbing to the insidious grip of radium poisoning. As a woman with society against her, can she wrestle with both the potential and danger of her discovery – and what is she if radium’s dangers overshadow its possibilities?

Diva: Live From Hell! 
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: King's Head Theatre, London
Cast: Luke Bayer

Following a critically acclaimed, sell out run at the Turbine Theatre, Luke Bayer gives a tour-de-force performance in this blood-stained love letter to Broadway; a solo musical about rivalry, vengeance, and killer ambition.

As president of the drama club and star of every school show, Desmond Channing spent most of his short life in the spotlight. When a rival student Evan Harris, a hotshot transfer from New York, challenges his throne, Desmond responds as any diva would, with lethal force...

No Love Songs
Rating: ★★★ ½
Venue: Southwark Playhouse Elephant
Cast: Anna Russell Martin and John McLarnon

Inspired by the real-life experiences of Kyle Falconer (from Scottish indie-rock sensation The View) and Laura Wilde, this powerful story follows two new parents grappling with the challenges of parenthood. Songs taken from Kyle’s hit second solo album are reimagined live on stage, and through a sublime blend of music and storytelling, the audience is taken on a heartfelt journey through tears and laughter as the young couple navigate the ups and downs of their new life together.

The next interview is with Chris Marney, Artistic Director of London City Ballet. After a 30 year hiatus, Chris is reviving the London City Ballet with an 18-venue international tour. Current tour destinations include the UK, China, USA, Qatar and Portugal.

Get yourself comfy and join us for the next segment of Stagey Chat!

The Finellis Musical
Venue: Wonderville, London
Cast: Mike Sterling, Lisa Gorgin, Mark Janicello, Michael Cristopher, Colette Kelly, Anna María, Pippa Juliet, Chiara de Palo, Franz-Xaver Zeller, Jake Pollicino and Markie Thompson 

Based on the Award-Winning Comedy, The Finellis Musical tells the story of eternal optimist Tony Finelli, a New York Italian-American, whose journey goes from stardom to jail…and back again. At the height of his singing career, Tony and his manager Juergen take the fall for Mafia boss Mr. Big and spend 15 years in a Berlin prison to save their families. Upon their release, Tony returns home to find that his children hardly remember him, his wife Tina has divorced him, and his mansion is now a Bed & Breakfast. To stay close to his family and win them back, Tony becomes the janitor in Tina's BnB.

The Land Acknowledgement, or As You Like It
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, London

Called 'the Canadian arts surprise of the year' by The Globe and Mail, Cardinal's brilliant play, The Land Acknowledgement or As You Like It, offers us the unvarnished truth of the state of the reconciliation process between Indigenous communities and colonial settlers in Canada. When the curtains rise, you can be certain that it’s Shakespeare as you’ve never seen it before and certainly never will again.

Closer to Heaven
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: Turbine Theatre, London
Cast: Frances Ruffelle, Courtney Bowman, Glenn Adamson, Connor Carson, Kurt Kansley, David Muscat, Lewis James, Beth Curnock, Cian Hughes and Jamie Tait

Let us take you back to the Millennium for the night of your life. Suddenly what was wrong seems right. The Turbine Theatre is proud to present a new production of this adored club musical.

With a book by one of Britain’s most celebrated writers, Jonathan Harvey and the iconic sounds of Pet Shops Boys this promises to be anything but old fashioned.

The Bleeding Tree
Rating: ★★★★★
Venue: Southwark Playhouse, London
Cast: Elizabeth Dulau, Mariah Gale and Alexandra Jensen

In a small town with a big sky, a gunshot rings out. Three women stand over the body of a man. Rumours say he was drunk when he left the bar. Maybe he fell over and pissed himself, or perhaps he got lost in the night. What if the end of his story is the beginning of someone else’s?

Daring, intimate and darkly funny, The Bleeding Tree is the story of a mother and two daughters, determined to survive, and a community who take justice into their own hands. A gripping revenge drama about complicity, secrecy and resilience from acclaimed Australian playwright Angus Cerini.

Punchdrunk: Viola's Room
Rating: ★★★★
Venue: The Carriageworks, London

An audio-driven journey through a moonlit fever dream. 

Barefoot and wearing headphones, audiences feel their way through a labyrinthine installation as an unseen narrator reveals a story of innocence lost and obsession unleashed.

Written by Booker Prize-shortlisted Daisy Johnson, and narrated by Helena Bonham Carter, Viola’s Room reimagines a classic gothic mystery for a new audience. It distils two decades of Punchdrunk’s immersive practice into an intimate sensory adventure that promises to infuse the dreams of anyone who dares to follow the light.

Get yourself comfy and join us for the next segment of Stagey Chat!