Children's Shows Comedy Dance & Physical Festivals Musicals Opera Theatre ThisWeek In London

Three To See and Stream 4-10 Oct: Children’s Things, Festival Things, Musical Things, Theatrical things

By | Published on Friday 30 September 2022

CHILDREN’S THINGS

The Nosy little Troll | Lyric Hammersmith Studio | 8 Oct
As the days get a bit darker and the possibility of pouring rain stopping play gets higher, I feel it’s probably time to give some serious consideration to entertainment options for the kids. Let’s start with this offering from Garlic Theatre, which tells the story of a Norwegian forest troll on a mission to discover the source of a mysterious smell using her fabulously sensitive nose. Suitable for ages three to eight, click here.

Baby Show | Unicorn Theatre | 4 Oct-16 Apr
This month sees the return of Unicorn Theatre’s rather popular ‘Baby Show’, which has entertained more than 5000 tiny people since the start of its first run back in 2016. The show is for babies aged six to eighteen months, and is a sensory performance set in a garden and expertly created to appeal to its demographic through compelling imagery and sounds. Head to the venue website here for more information and to book.

Grandad Anansi | Half Moon Theatre | 7-8 Oct (pictured)
Next up is ‘Grandad Anansi’, which celebrates Black History Month, and is an inter-generational adventure story for children aged four and up. “Abi and her Grandad tell each other Anansi folktales. They play games as they work together in the garden among the beautiful flowers and tasty vegetables. As they plant memories, they share secrets and develop a bond that nothing can break”. More here.

FESTIVAL THINGS

Dance Umbrella Festival 2022 | 7-23 Oct
Time for some festival stuff, and first up it’s the ever reliable Dance Umbrella Festival for all you fans of the physical stuff. There are live performances – like Georgia Tegou and Michalis Theophanous’s ‘Reverie’ at The Place this week – and over the next few weeks there are more live events and panel discussions, but also there’s loads of on-demand digital content to get stuck into. Peruse all the events on the festival website here.

Roundhouse Rising Festival | Roundhouse | 4-8 Oct
And on to a much shorter festival, but a festival nonetheless, returning in 2022 to showcase more diverse talent and early career artists from the music sector. The flagship event of the line up is the BBC Music Introducing curated night featuring Deaf Rave and Flaneuse, the project of Roundhouse resident artist Miriam Briggs, but there are loads of great acts lined up elsewhere so check out the listings here.

Flat Pack Furnished Flat | Pleasance Theatre | 10-15 Oct (pictured)
This is not a festival, it’s true, but we’re still on a festival theme here, for this is one of the many plays and acts who’ve been to edfringe this year and who are doing post-edfringe dates in London. Written by emerging playwright Emyr Cooper, it deals with generational conflict between a mother and daughter, and promises to be a warm and funny yet provoking – even shocking – drama. Click here.

MUSICAL THINGS

English National Opera at Tara Theatre | 6 Oct
“We question the historic imperial perspective, the ideas of diversity and the challenge of an artform which inherently was written by white men”. An evening of arias from both well-known and less famous operas, exploring how we can create change and reimagine existing work, hosted by composer Nitin Sawhney and featuring music by the likes of Bizet, Delibes and Holst, performed by ENO singers. Details here.

Stranger Sings! | The Vaults | 5 Oct-15 Jan (pictured)
One for all the ‘Stranger Things’ fans out there, unless perhaps you don’t have a sense of humour about it, for this is a parody that promises a “wild, irreverent twist” on the well loved Netflix series. Oh, and it’s a musical, of course, which may not appeal to all, I guess, but it definitely looks hilarious and if you were vexed about what happened to Barb, I reckon you will love it. Read about it here.

Fame Whore | King’s Head Theatre | 5-29 Oct
“When drag artist Becky Biro is told they need a larger following to be considered for international TV hit ‘The Drag Factor’, Becky can smell success. She will do whatever it takes to get there, then reap the rewards of her inevitable stardom. Well that’s the plan, at least. What could possibly go wrong?” By Tom Ratcliffe and performed by Gig Zahir, this is a dark comedy with cabaret songs. More here.

THEATRICAL THINGS

Ruckus | Southwark Playhouse | 5-29 Oct
And now for a theatre section, beginning with a stop at the Southwark Playhouse for ‘Ruckus’ by Jenna Fincken, a play that did rather well in Edinburgh this summer. So yes, you are right, this could have been in the Festival section but there wasn’t room. Anyway, this is a one woman thriller that explores coercive control and is inspired by real woman, and their true stories and experiences of it. Find out about it here.

Guinea Pigs | The Space | 4-8 Oct (pictured)
“It’s the 1980s. Coral O’Malley is discovering feminism, pacifism and Duran Duran. She’s a chip off the old block of her beloved dad, Gerry. Only he’s fighting a battle of his own with the British government over that time they dropped a nuclear bomb on him”. A semi autobiographical comedy/drama by Elin Doyle, it’s a coming of age story, but also highlights the plight of Britain’s forgotten nuclear test veterans. And you can also see it via livestream, yay! Click here.

Dark Matter | Theatre Peckham | 7-9 Oct
I know I mentioned the whole of the Young, Gifted And Black strand at Theatre Peckham last week, and encouraged you to look at all the listings, but I just wanted to re-draw your attention to it all. Plus tell you a bit about this really interesting production from it, which sees south London based Takura grieving the loss of her grandmother, and researching Zimbabwean burial rites to make her own ‘home-bringing’ ritual for her grandma’s spirit. More here.

MORE GREAT THINGS

Holm | Jacksons Lane | 5-7 Oct
And finally, a final mixed genre section that really is quite mixed. We’re starting with something that I think probably falls into the category of ‘physical theatre’, and it looks really interesting. It’s inspired by how we have the urge to move away from our home, our beginnings, but often fail to realise the impact of those places on our lives. Which possibly sounds a bit vague, so I urge you to head this way to understand more.

Marcel Lucont’s Cabaret Fantastique | Crazy Coqs at Zedel | 7 Oct
I am not sure Marcel Lucont will need much introduction here, will he? Many of our readers will surely have run into this special character at some edfringe or other? And, if that’s the case, you know why we’re recommending his show to you. This is the first of two upcoming events at Crazy Coqs (the next is in December), and this one features guests Myra Dubois, Oriana Curls and Sammy Dineen. More here.

About Bill | The Other Palace Studio | 7-9 Oct (pictured)
A one-woman musical about the life of a fictional jazz trumpeter, whose life story is told from the perspective of the women in his life, all of whom are portrayed by star of the show Kim Ismay. First performed back in 2011, the show’s music and lyrics were written by Matthew Strachan, who died in 2021, and this revival is being staged in his memory. Read more about it on the venue website here.

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