Ensemble Theatre Group

westendtheatre.com rounds up what looks hot in London theatre in 2009

If theatre mirrors life then you would expect 2009 to be a bad year for the performing arts in London: economic downturns and credit crunches sound like gloomy news for our discretionary entertainment spending. But West End theatre box office figures have kept on going up in recent years, and the huge number of new productions sailing into town during 2009 could mean that Theatreland manages to buck the trend.

THE GREAT REVIVAL

The RSC, National Theatre, Donmar and Old Vic dominated straight drama in the West End in 2008, and they haven’t finished yet. Big hitters coming to town include Judi Dench in the Donmar in the West End’s Madame de Sade at the Wyndhams; Jude Law offering us his, hopefully fighting fit, Hamlet; Gillian Anderson in Ibsen’s A Doll’s House at the Donmar Warehouse; and a number of crowd-pleasing revivals at the Old Vic, no more so than Dancing at Lughnasa, Brian Friel’s hugely successful play starring Andrea Corr, and Sam Mendes directing Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard and Shakespeare’s A Winter’s Tale, both featuring Simon Russell Beale and Sinead Cusack.

STAR POWER

Other stars shimmying into town include Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart in Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot at the Haymarket, Ken Stott in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge at the Duke of York’s, heavy-hitter Pete Postlethwaite as King Lear at the Young Vic, and Antony Sher giving us his Prospero in the RSC’s The Tempest. The Gavin and Stacey phenomenon continues to roll on, as we see Joe Orton’s delicious romp Entertaining Mr Sloane at the Trafalgar Studios starring Gavin himself, Matthew Horne, alongside Imelda Staunton; whilst Gavin’s onscreen Mum Alison Steadman plays a barking Leeds housewife in Alan Bennett’s Enjoy at the Gielgud Theatre.

NEW PLAYS

The sharp eyed amongst you will notice that all of these plays are revivals rather than new work, keeping audiences firmly in their comfort zones. That said, new plays may be thin on the ground but not absent all together, with the National offering up Richard Bean’s England People Very Nice, following two lovers across four centuries, and Samuel Adamson’s Mrs Affleck set in the 1950s. Jez Butterworth has two new plays in pre-production, with comedy Parlour Song at the Almeida and Jerusalem at the Royal Court. Also at the Royal Court, Mark Ravenhill will bring his new play Over There. Plus Hollywood man of the moment James McAvoy is to star in Richard Greenberg’s acclaimed play Three Days of Rain at the Apollo, and at The Old Vic Richard Dreyfuss headlines the world premiere of American playwright Joe Sutton’s new play Complicit, directed by Kevin Spacey.

“BASED ON A FILM”

In musical theatre, 2009 promises to be a year of great big fabulous and familiar shows, surely enough to see us through the dark times? And it’s no coincidence that many of them are based on hugely successful films.

Oliver! will be well and truly steaming ahead through 2009 at the Drury Lane Theatre Royal with Rowan Atkinson and Jodie Prenger; La Cage Aux Folles will continue camping it up at the Playhouse but with Graham Norton taking over from Douglas Hodge; and at the Adelphi Theatre Lee Mead will bow out of Joseph to be replaced by Gareth Gates.

Jason Donovan will be donning the wigs and lip gloss to take us on an Australian power-mince in Priscilla Queen of the Desert at the Palace Theatre. And Sister Act at the London Palladium will be doing its best to recreate the fun of the film, helped along by Whoopi Goldberg as co-producer. And not quite a musical but as good as, Calendar Girls the stage play will up the naked flesh quotient in the West End, starring Patricia Hodge and Lynda Bellingham at the Noel Coward Theatre.

KIDS RULE

Kids should also see a good year in 2009 with an enormous live theatrical production of Walking with Dinosaurs coming to a stadium near you, and War Horse transfers from its successful run at the National Theatre to the New London Theatre.

Book these shows here

If you fancy a short trip away that offers plenty of culture then a theatre break could be the ideal solution. Here you simply book the hotel and theatre show as a package in order to benefit from discounted rates – this saves time and money when compared to searching for and booking the different activities separately. Therefore, you can take in a theatre show and have a break in the capital city of Britain, all at the same time.

By booking one of London’s top shows and combining it with a stay in a well located London hotel, you get to see a high quality production as well as being able to access and explore some of the capital city’s most popular attractions.

The West End is the largest theatre district in the world and at the centre of Britain’s commercial theatre scene. The West End name originally came from the fact that it was situated to the West of the city of London.

A vast majority of London’s West End theatres are easily identified due to their location in the area commonly known as Theatreland. Theatreland is bordered by The Strand, Oxford Street, Regent Street and Kingsway, whilst Shaftesbury Avenue is considered to be at the heart of all the theatre activity. A few theatres fall outside of these boundaries but are still considered to be in the West End; the Victoria Palace, the Apollo Victoria, the Old Vic and the National Theatre all fall into this category.

Once you’ve had your trip to the theatre you certainly won’t be spoilt for choices of things to see and do in one of Europe’s most popular cities.

A trip to Chinatown is an authentic experience where you can enjoy some traditional delicacies and wander through the paper lantern lined streets. Bordering Chinatown you can find Soho, which is a busy and bustling district.

If you wish to experience more culture then you could visit the city’s many museums or art and photography galleries. The Southbank has an exploding arts scene, nice walking paths along the riverside and famous landmarks such as the Oxo Tower and London Eye. St Paul’s Cathedral is another great sight to behold and the nearby East End is an interesting area to explore whether for the renowned curries of Brick Lane or the legacy of Jack the Ripper.

If you fancy making the most of your time then you could take a guided tour by foot, bus or river. Furthermore, a day in one of London’s many parks offer a welcome solace from the hustle and bustle of the city streets.

So, London theatre breaks not only offer a chance to catch some high quality shows but also to sample some of the other top attractions London has to offer.