EVENTS Diary

Otterbourne Theatre Company; No performances Monday - Thursday; Performance times: Fridays - 7.30pm, Saturdays - 2.30pm & 7.30pm, Sundays - 2.30pm; Relaxed performance Sunday 12 January @ 11am; Tickets £9; Tickets available from www.otterbournevillagehall.org.uk or www.facebook.com/pg/Otterbournetheatrecompany/events

Romsey Amateur Operatic & Dramatic Society (RAODS); No performances Mondays - Thursdays; Performance times: Fridays - 7.30pm, Saturdays - 2pm & 6pm, Sunday 12 & 19 - 2.30pm, Sunday 26 - 11am; Relaxed performance - Sunday 19 January @ 11am; Box Office: 01794 512987

Highcliffe Charity Players; Sat 18 Jan - 11am & 3pm, Sun 19 Jan - 3pm, Mon 20 Jan - 7.30pm, Tue 21 Jan - 5.30pm (Meet the Cast), Wed 22 Jan - 7.30pm, Thur 23 Jan - 7.30pm, Fri 24 Jan - 7.30pm & Sat 25 Jan - 2pm & 6pm; Tickets: £13.50 / £12.50 / concessions / £11.50 child; Box Office: (01202) 499199

Ferndown Drama; Tickets: £9; Box Office: 01202 894858 or via www.ticketsource.co.uk/ferndown-drama

Award-winning SUP Theatre Company is bringing E Nesbit’s delightful family favourite to the Nuffield Southampton Theatres stage from 22 – 25 January 2020

The classic story follows an Edwardian family that is forced to relocate from London to a house near the railway line in Yorkshire after the father, a high ranking civil servant at the Foreign Office, is accused of spying and sent to prison. It follows the central trio of children Bobbie (Roberta), Peter and Phil (Phyllis) and their adventures with the wonderful characters they meet in and around the railway.

Tickets start at just £10, and shows include a special matinee performance on Saturday 25 January at 2.30pm.

Paul Green, director: “We wanted to bring this much-loved story to a new audience in Southampton, for all ages, while doing something exciting and a little different. We have quite a few surprises up our sleeve, as we plan to recreate the Steam Age on the NST stage with an immersive experience. The writing makes this Olivier Award-winning adaptation really special: it’s fast moving and funny.”

2020 is the 50th anniversary of the classic 1970 film version starring Jenny Agutter and Bernard Cribbins. In what has become a festive tradition, the BBC is showing the film on New Year’s Eve – but nothing can match the experience of seeing the story live onstage.

This show follows another successful year for not-for-profit community theatre group SUP. This includes its January 2019 production of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, which played to packed houses at NST Campus, and winning more acting and technical achievement awards at the Totton Festival of Drama.

Tickets: call the Box Office on 02380 671 771 or visit  www.nstheatres.co.uk/whats-on/the-railway-children

Bishopstoke Players; Tickets: £8 (£6 aged 16 or under); Box Office: www.bishopstokeplayers.uk/buy-tickets or email boxoffice@bishopstokeplayers.uk or Tel 07871 006551

Gantry Youth Theatre; Tickets: £8 / £5 (under 18); Box Office: 023 8067 6164 or www.ticketsource.co.uk/the-gantry-youth-theatre

Performance dates: Friday 24, Saturday 25, Friday 31 January and Saturday 1 February (no performances Monday - Thursday)

For something completely different, Castle Players will be staging the absolutely bonkers Macbeth – The Pantomime at Lytchett Matravers Village Hall on 24th, 25th and 31st of January and 1st February 2020, including 2 matinees.

Linsey O’Neill, who wrote and directed the fabulous Peter Pan and also the brilliant Cinderella, has come up with an even crazier, funnier script this time. Macbeth – The Pantomime; The Bard meets X-Factor. The concept is inspired; completely insane, but inspired. They say there’s a fine line between genius and insanity.

Duncan Blue is the King of Karaoke. But when Dave Macbeth bumps into some mysterious creatures who foretell his future, he and his wife Laydee will stop at nothing to win the Crown. Can young Marty Macduff and his mother stop them? Who will win Lytchett’s Got The Strictly Voice Pop Star on Love Island
Factor? Why is Spot the Dog there?

Will Will be spinning in his grave?

The stage is set for a full line-up of baddies, witches and ghosts, dames, lovers and hapless idiots. The story is full of laughs, groans and plenty of audience participation.

Tickets are just £10 (£5 for under 12’s) and are available on our website www.castleplayers.com or by calling 01202 912351.

Burley Players; No performances Monday - Tuesday (update - Saturday 25 January performance at 7.30pm has been cancelled); Performance Times: 7.30pm (Saturdays, Wednesday - Friday), 2.00pm (Saturdays & Sunday); Tickets: £8.50 and £8.00, Children under 16 - £7.50

Ghosts
​By Henrik Ibsen
Adapted by Richard Eyre
Directed by Peter Andrews

An exciting new adaptation of Ibsen’s masterpiece.

Suspended in an emotional void after the death of her cruel but outwardly charming husband, Helene Alving is determined to escape the ghosts of her past by telling her son the truth about his father; but is it already too late?

A play that shocked 19th-century audiences, this contemporary production gives it enormous freshness and power.

Tickets: £14 adults / £10 student or under 18; Box Office: www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/winchester/chesil-theatre/ghosts

Southampton Operatic Society (SOS); Musical; Performance times: Wednesday - Friday - 7.30pm, Saturday - 11am & 4pm; Tickets from £10 - £19 (concessions available); Box Office: 023 8067 1771

SUSU Theatre Group

Lyndhurst Drama & Musical Society; Performances: 6.00pm Saturday, 2.30pm Sunday; Tickets: £10 adult / £7 children (16 years and under); Box Office: 023 8028 2729

Maskers Theatre Company; Tickets: £11; Box Office: 0333 666 3366 or www.ticketsource.co.uk/maskerstheatrecompany

Lymington Players; Tickets: £9 (Mon - Tues) / £10 (Wed - Sat); Box Office: 01590 672337

SUSU Showstoppers; Tickets: £10 adults / £7 student / £5 Performing Arts; Ticket reservations online: http://showstoppers-soton.co.uk/book/72

Glamorous. Controversial. Commanding. Drop-dead funny. The world’s most celebrated diva dares the next generation to rise to her heights.

Based on her real-life masterclasses at Juilliard and featuring live grand opera, Merilee Brunet is Maria Callas in this outstanding play, which won the Tony Award for Best Play and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding New Play in 1996. Featuring professional opera singers and actors with an encore sure to make you leap to your feet, don’t miss your chance to see Callas brought to life once again.

“Rich, vivid, satisfying theater. An involving meditation on Callas’ life and the nature of her art.” – The New York Times

Relaxed performance at 6.00pm on Wednesday 5 February. All other performances are at 7:30pm. Tickets available from www.questavoce.com or from the Shelley Theatre Box Office: 01202 413600.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9etZ1Iow2dY

Lyndhurst Drama & Musical Society; Performances: 6.00pm Saturday, 2.30pm Sunday; Tickets: £10 adult / £7 children (16 years and under); Box Office: 023 8028 2729

Romsey Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society (RAODS); Green Room Production; Tickets: £10; Tickets available online: www.ticketsource.co.uk/plazatheatre

Bournemouth Little Theatre; Tickets £12 / £9 concessions; Box Office: 01202 513361

Written by: William Shakespeare
Directed by: Don Cherrett

Monday 10 – Saturday 15 February 2020

Timon is a rich Athenian loved by everyone as he is so generous with his wealth. People flock around him, flattering him and taking advantage of his good nature. However, when the money runs out no-one wants to know him and he leaves Athens to become a recluse living in a cave. When news reaches the ears of the Athenians that Timon has discovered gold, they seek him out again but find he is no longer the friendly, stable character that he was!

Shakespeare’s least known tragedy is in fact full of wit and moves along at an entertaining pace. With a mix of interesting characters and a text which is easy to follow, this production of Timon will be played in a modern setting with the emphasis on the comedic elements of the play.

Mudlarks Theatre; Performances Thursday 13 February at 8.00pm & Friday 14 February at 6.30pm; Studio production - part of Make It SO 2020; Running time: 60mins; Tickets £5; Box Office: 023 8067 1771

Chesil Youth Theatre; Tickets £10 adult / £8 child; Tickets available via www.ticketsource.co.uk/booking/venueplan/uNtVfIZRSUAD

Studio Youth Theatre; Tickets: £12 adult / £8 child (16 and under); Box Office: 01722 342860

Broadstone Players; Email honsec@broadstoneplayers.co.uk to reserve your seats

New Forest Players; Tickets: £12 adult / £10 concessions; Box Office: 01425 542414

Intent to Murder – 19 February - 22 February 2020
Written by Leslie Sands and directed by Wendy Beaumont

Within minutes of the opening of this play, we are plunged into the middle of an explosive situation. Janet Preston, a well-known authoress who lives alone in a remote cottage on the Yorkshire Moors, has killed her husband, a complete rogue and criminal on the run. Before she can get rid of the body, she is confronted by his accomplice George, who blackmails her into agreeing to pass him off as the dead man until such time as he can make a getaway. The events that follow are full of twists and excitement and the unexpected denouement skilfully reconciles the audience’s sympathies and sense of involvement with a demand for justice.

This amateur production  is presented by arrangement with Josef Weinberger Ltd.

Centrestage Productions Youth Theatre (CPYT); Tickets £14 - £16 (concessions available); Box Office: 023 8065 2333

This February, Poulner Players invites you to our latest theatrical production: Henry The Tudor Dude, a musical play by Kjartan Poskitt.

Henry VIII believes in the Divine Right of Kings - he looks Divine and he's always Right! His first wife fails to bear him a son and he cannot divorce her in Roman Catholic law, so he creates the Church of England, divorces his wife, and tries again – five times!

Henry The Tudor Dude has hilarious dialogue, witty songs and more than a touch of playful cynicism. History has never been such fun!

The production is directed by Harriet Cairnes and Julie Sturmey with Jono Spratt in charge of the music.

The show opens at the 1st Poulner Scout Hall on Wednesday 19 February with 7.30pm nightly performances until Saturday 22 February, and 2.30pm matinee performances on Thursday 20 and Saturday 22 February.

Ticket information: info@poulnerplayers.com

A slice of the Big Apple will be served up at the Tivoli Theatre in February, when Wimborne Drama Productions presents Neil Simon’s romantic comedy Barefoot In The Park.

Set in 1960s New York, and made famous by Robert Redford and Jane Fonda in the 1967 film version, Barefoot In The Park is about newly-weds Corie and Paul who have just moved into a tiny, 5th-floor apartment in a Manhattan brownstone.

Paul is a strait-laced attorney; Corie is free-spirited and impulsive. The young couple have to contend with bad plumbing, a broken skylight, several long flights of stairs and oddball neighbour Victor Velasco. When Corie tries to set Victor up with her lonely mother she learns, through a series of domestic disasters, that real marriage requires more than being willing to run ‘barefoot in the park’.

The cast is led by Jemma Cable as Corie and David Beddard as Paul, with support from Tracie Billington-Beardsley, Richard Neal, Colin Pile and Simon Jackson. The director is Rob Cording-Cook.

Barefoot In The Park runs from 20 – 22 February at the Tivoli Theatre, Wimborne: Evenings at 7.30pm, £14; Saturday matinee at 2.30pm, £12. For tickets telephone the Tivoli Box Office on 01202 885566 or book online at http://bit.ly/2khDcjC

ENCORE Youth Theatre; Matinees Thursday & Saturday; Tickets £19 / £14 concessions; Box Office: 01962 840440

Winchester Musical & Operatic Society; Concert - one night per venue; Tickets £10, available from www.wmos.org.uk

Poole & Parkstone Productions (P&P); Tickets: £10; Box Office: 01202 894898 or www.ticketsource.co.uk/barringtontheatre

Winchester Musical & Operatic Society; Concert - one night per venue; Tickets £10, available from www.wmos.org.uk

Winchester Musical & Operatic Society; Concert - one night per venue; Tickets £10, available from www.wmos.org.uk