Peter James' Looking Good Dead

Immersed in an addictive world of front-row fashion shows, private views, and endless parties, Anna and Ariel find themselves struggling to keep up with New York’s dazzling social elite. How far will two outsiders go to construct the identities they want? And at what price?

Golden Globe Award-winner Emma Corrin and Royal Television Society’s 2019 Breakthrough star Nabhaan Rizwan star in this searing tale of self-invention, determination, and deceit.

ANNA X is a new play by Joseph Charlton, directed by Daniel Raggett, coming to the Lowry in Salford for one week only.

Kenny Wax Ltd & Stage Presence Ltd present A Mischief Theatre Production

The Play That Goes Wrong

RETURNING FOR YET ANOTHER CALAMITOUS RUN!
We can’t believe it either!

Mischief Theatre’s multi award-winning international smash hit comedy The Play That Goes Wrong is returning to The Lowry, following its sell-out success in 2017.

The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society are putting on a 1920s murder mystery, but as the title suggests, everything that can go wrong… does!  As the accident prone thesps battle on against all the odds to reach their final curtain call, hilarious results ensue!

Hailed “a gut-busting hit” by the New York Times, The Play That Goes Wrong, now in its sixth year in the West End, has won a host of celebrity endorsements from the likes of Joanna Lumley “We laughed until the tears ran down our faces, it has to be seen” to Ant & Dec “The funniest show we’ve seen! If you can get a ticket, go!”

Don’t miss this brilliantly funny comedy that’s guaranteed to leave you aching with laughter!

★★★★★
‘I FEARED I WAS GOING TO HYPERVENTILATE’
The Daily Mail
★★★★
‘GENUINELY HILARIOUS.
BOY, DOES IT HIT THE FUNNY BONE’
The Daily Telegraph
★★★★
‘RIDICULOUSLY FUNNY’
The Times
★★★★
‘EXQUISITELY CHOREOGRAPHED MAYHEM’
Independent
★★★★
‘A TRIUMPH OF SPLIT-SECOND TIMING’
Metro

David Pugh, Told by an Idiot and Theatre Royal Bath Productions present
CHARLIE AND STAN
Written and Directed by Paul Hunter
 
In 1910, the then unknown  Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel set sail onboard a tramp steamer from Liverpool to New York as part of Fred Karno’s famous music hall troupe. On the voyage, they shared a cabin, they shared comedy routines and they shared laughter but by the end of the journey they had drifted apart...yet they would both go on to become the biggest stars of the age.

Inspired by real life events, Told by an Idiot’s acclaimed production of Charlie and Stan is the remarkable story of the greatest comedy double act that nearly was. With an original piano score played live every night, Charlie and Stan is a hilarious and deeply moving homage to two men who changed the world of comedy forever.
 
Told by an Idiot have garnered critical acclaim and devoted audiences worldwide for their wonderfully theatrical shows. With Charlie and Stan they have uncovered a hidden and poignant chapter of comedy history shining an unusual light on a pair of show business legends.

This “blissful entertainment” (Daily Telegraph) is coming to CITY prior to London’s glittering West End. 
 
“Invention stuffed and music crammed.
A glimpse of the double that could have been in this silly, sublime treat”
Daily Telegraph

 “Seldom less than magical”
The Guardian

“Hilarious.
A riotous masterclass in storytelling”
Whatsonstage 

Originally produced by Told by an Idiot and Theatre Royal Plymouth, in association with Royal and Derngate Northampton and Unity Theatre Liverpool

The story of one woman’s struggle to break the ‘Chains of love’ It is Christmas Eve and 'Rose,' a woman in a red dress, awakes to find that she has no memory of who or where she is. As she gradually weaves the threads of memory together, a dark and violent picture begins to emerge. Compelled to leave for fear of her life Rose begins to pack... but it's dark outside and the house is full of strange noises. Will she escape, before her attacker returns? Or is he still in the House?

LADY IN RED is a mesmerising and powerful, award-winning drama that has stunned and moved audiences, nation-wide. Combining superb dialogue, a compelling plot, inspired performance and evocative colours to create an unforgettable experience - a journey through one woman's attempts to leave an abusive relationship. (Contains strong language and themes. 15+)

Eastern Angles and Matthew Linley Creative Projects in association with the Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough
 
THE BALLAD OF MARIA MARTEN
By Beth Flintoff
Directed by Hal Chambers

A thrilling retelling of a real-life murder mystery…

(for East Anglian venues - A thrilling retelling of Suffolk’s real-life murder mystery…)

Summer, 1827. In a red barn Maria Marten awaits her lover. A year later her body is found under the floor of the barn in a grain sack, barely identifiable, and the manhunt begins.

Maria’s story sent shock waves throughout the country. The Red Barn Murder (as it became known) was national news, inspiring writers and filmmakers down the ages. The sort of gruesome tale that had all the hallmarks of a classic crime drama – a missing body, a country location, a disreputable squire and a village stuck in its age-old traditions.

But in all this hysteria Maria’s own story gets lost. Until now. Hal Chambers and Beth Flintoff’s spine-tingling retelling rediscovers her story, bringing it back to vivid, urgent life.

'Rich and transporting' ★★★★ The Stage

‘Flintoff restores dignity to Maria…unexpectedly joyous’ ★★★★ The Guardian

‘It is vital, layered and empowered, a beautiful piece of theatre’ ★★★★ A Younger Theatre

‘Superbly staged’ British Theatre Guide

‘A thrilling and poignant retelling’ Grapevine Live

‘Extraordinary, brilliant and powerful’ ★★★★★ Charles Hutch Press

‘One of the best theatre experiences of the year.’ East Anglian Daily Times

‘Maria Marten is reborn in stunning show’ Ipswich Star

‘Barnstorming’ Yorkshire Times

‘This is a gem of a production’ On Yorkshire Magazine

Age guidance 12+

Meadow Rain would like to say sorry.
Sorry for disappearing.
Sorry for being a bad friend.
And sorry for calling her best friend a rude word.

She’s also sorry for keeping secrets. Secrets about Terry. Secrets she is now ready to reveal… 

This funny 'subtle sucker-punch of a show' (4*s The List) seeks to change perceptions of what coercive control is and what a victim can look like. It is brought to you by award-winning creators of fringe sell-out show 'So It Goes' and made with support from Shoreditch Town Hall, Blue Elephant Theatre and is partnered with UK SAYS NO MORE, a campaign to change the societal narrative towards Domestic Abuse.

5*s Edinburgh Festival Magazine

4*s The List

4*s Wee Review
'This production blew me away...moving, intimate and expertly performed' Scottish Women's Aid

Belgian detective extraordinaire, Artemis Arinae, is set to enjoy a holiday cruise along the river Nile when tragedy strikes. All the passengers and staff aboard are suspects, and the murder count is growing, will Arinae’s little grey cells identify the murderer in time?

A versatile cast of just four, brings to life lascivious lawyers, crocked captains, fastidious physicians, ardently amorous authors, feuding femme fatales, plodding paramours, friendly first mates and attractive Americans, in this romp inspired by Christie, Coward and Wodehouse.

PULSE RECORDS LIMITED in association with BILL ELMS presents

 “A big sweeping story of real emotion!”

THE STAGE

THE UK PREMIERE TOUR OF

HELEN FORRESTER’S

BY THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL

Adapted by ROB FENNAH / Directed by GARETH TUDOR PRICE

FEATURING ASTAR-STUDDED CAST FROM STAGE AND SCREEN

Mark Moraghan, SianReeves, Parry Glasspool, Lucy Dixon & Eric Potts

join Lynn Francis, Danny O'Brien, Roy Carruthers and Chloe McDonald.

Adapted from Helen Forrester’s million-selling book, By The Waters Of Liverpool is a stunning period drama set in the 1930s. The story opens in 1935. Helen is sixteen years old and fighting a bitter battle with her parents for the right to educate herself and go out to work. During the Great Depression, Helen’s father lost his fortune when the stock market crashed and the family were suddenly thrown into poverty. Leaving behind the nannies, servants and comfortable middle-class life in the South West of England, the Forrester’s chose Liverpool as the place to start over. They were in for a terrible shock. Taken out of school to care for her younger brothers and sisters while her parents struggled to re-build their shattered lives, Helen is treated as an unpaid slave and desperate to escape. By 1939, now aged twenty and with Britain on the brink of war, she has still never been kissed by a man. But things start looking up for Helen when she meets a tall strong seaman and falls in love.

“By The Waters Of Liverpool also features flashbacks to Helen’s earlier books Liverpool Miss and Twopence To Cross The Mersey. I’ve even weaved in a storyline from Helen’s fourth autobiography, Lime Street At Two. That way those unfamiliar with Helen’s work still get a complete picture of her life”.

Rob Fennah ~ Playwright and friend of Helen Forrester.

Fully authorised by the Helen Forrester estate.

(Cast subject to change)

Nunkie Theatre Company presents
Count Magnus – Two Ghost Stories by M R James.

“At first they hear nothing at all. Then they hear someone scream, just as if the most inside part of his soul was twisted out of him.”

The ghost stories of M R James amuse and terrify as powerfully today as when they were first written over a century ago. Nunkie Theatre Company brings two of these classic spinechillers to life, in this thrilling one-man show.

In Count Magnus a travel-writer’s over-inquisitiveness leads to a diabolical chase from darkest Sweden to rural Essex. Denmark is the setting for Number 13, where a hotel room with the famously unlucky number, conceals a ghastly, baffling secret.

***** Riveting… The Daily Mail

www.nunkie.co.uk

THE GENRE-DEFINING THRILLER FOR ALL TIME.

Can you ever get away with the perfect crime?

A brand-new production of the blueprint for the modern thriller, Dial M for Murder is back.

TV and Stage favourite, Tom Chambers, (Top Hat, Strictly) stars as the charismatic and manipulative Tony Wendice, a jaded ex-tennis pro who has given it all up for his wife Sheila. When he discovers she has been unfaithful his mind turns to revenge and the pursuit of the ‘perfect crime’.
Made famous by Alfred Hitchcock’s world-renowned film of 1950, the iconic Dial M for Murder will leave you spellbound as Tony becomes more tangled in the web of his own making. The ultimate masterclass in suspense is guaranteed to entwine you with its spine-chilling twists and turns.
Dial M for Murder is the definitive seat gripping drama that is not the be missed!

Ian Ashpitel & Jonty Stephens as
Eric & Ern at Christmas

FROM THE OLIVIER NOMINATED DUO BEHIND THE HUGELY CELEBRATED & CRITICALLY ACCLAIMED WEST END HIT
ERIC & LITTLE ERN

This is a show for all the family from 8 to 108! A brilliant homage crammed full Morecambe & Wise's most loved routines, songs and sketches and, of course, a musical guest. This wonderful show, evokes memories of times when whole families would huddle together around the telly to watch those fantastic Christmas specials.

As seen on The One show BBC1 and The Alan Titchmarsh Show ITV

“Bring the kids - they’ll love it just as much as we did”
Dominic Holland

“I never thought I’d see Morecambe & Wise live - I think I just have!”
Ben Elton

“I laughed until I cried!”
Twiggy

“You have the giddy out of time illusion that you are
 watching the legendary double-act live.”
 Independent

The Children’s Theatre Partnership presents
Animal Farm
By George Orwell
Adapted and directed by Robert Icke
 
The animals of Manor Farm drive out the farmer and run the farm themselves. A revolution. And then what? Then freedom. Every animal will be free.

Old Major, the prize boar, calls the animals of Manor Farm together. He has had a strange dream of a better future.
 
George Orwell’s world-famous fable tells the story of a revolution and its aftermath. Re-imagined by an award-winning creative team, Animal Farm is a dynamic, daring and contemporary take on a timeless story.

Animal Farm is directed by Robert Icke, whose version of 1984 (co-adapted and directed with Duncan Macmillan) was a smash-hit in the West End and on Broadway; features puppetry designed by Toby Olie (whose credits include War Horse) and designed by four-time Olivier award-winner Bunny Christie.
 
The Children’s Theatre Partnership creates bold and imaginative theatre for young people, engaging new audiences and aiming to inspire a life-long love of theatre.

Age Guidance: 12+