Circus Comedy Festivals Musicals Theatre ThisWeek In London

Threes To See 11-17 Jun: Calm Down Dear, Starting This Week, One Night Stands, More Things We’d Like To See This Week

By | Published on Friday 7 June 2019

THREE FROM CALM DOWN DEAR

Calm Down Dear: Baba’s Song | Camden People’s Theatre | 11-12 Jun
Camden People’s Theatre’s Calm Down Dear Festival is headed to its close this week, so I thought we’d have a Calm Down Dear section to mark that. Still lots of good stuff to see, including this, which immediately caught my eye because it’s described as a “wild roar in the woods and a panic attack in Mothercare” and I myself have definitely had a panic attack in Mothercare, though thankfully, my Mothercare times are now past. Anyway, it takes a look at the experience of becoming a mother, and why mothers’ voices often fail to be heard. See this page here for more.

Calm Down Dear: Hot Flushes | Camden People’s Theatre | 13-15 Jun
“It’s 2016. Lady Green is bronzing on her Super Yacht, Sir Phil Green is getting roasted by the Select Committee, and Sandra, who has worked 45 years for BHS, is burning from the loss of her pension. Croydon branch is closing but there’s no closure for Sandra, not even in the stoic lyrics of her favourite Country songs. That’s until a chance encounter in the ladies’ fitting rooms with Patsy, a member of the National Rifle Association.” A country and western musical about later life activism, and it sounds bloody brilliant. See the venue website here.

Calm Down Dear: Om Shanti F*ck & Doll Face | Camden People’s Theatre | 16 Jun (pictured)
This was on at BAC earlier in the year, but here’s another chance to see this great double bill of woman-centred plays. In ‘Om Shanti F*ck’ Ambika “questions the strange myths of Indian culture and the sexist taboos that have made her feel inadequate to be a woman all her life”, while ‘Doll Face’ is “a gut-wrenching but hopeful account of a single Indian female in an abortion clinic reflecting on her upbringing, culture, society and the reality of trying to have it all”. Details here.


THREE STARTING THIS WEEK

After Dark; Or A Drama Of London Life | Finborough Theatre | 12 Jun-6 Jul
“The new underground railway is a thing of wonder, the early Salvation Army shines a light on the grinding poverty of the East End, and high and low-lifes frequent gambling dens and revel in the illicit sex of the music halls. All the while Scotland Yard struggle to police increasingly sophisticated financial fraud and marauding bands of ex-soldiers lately discharged into destitution and a life of crime. Can love and honour prevail in such a world?” A west end hit in late Victorian London, this “sweeping melodrama” gets its first production in 120 years. Info right about here.

Strange Fruit | Bush Theatre | 12 Jun-27 Jul (pictured)
A great team are involved in this staging of acclaimed novelist and playwright Caryl Phillips’ 1980 play. “Alvin and Errol can’t picture much of a future for themselves. They’re young, Black and living in England in the 1980s, with an entire country and political system set against them. Instead they focus firmly on their past – the sunny Caribbean and heroic father they left behind when their mother brought them to England twenty years ago. But when Alvin returns home from his grandfather’s funeral a new version of their past emerges and the two brothers are caught in a desperate struggle to unearth the truth about their existence.” Details here.

Riot Act | Arcola Theatre | 16-30 Jun
Alexis Gregory created and performs this acclaimed solo piece, a verbatim exploration of the history of LGBTQ rights movement. It’s been put together from interviews with Michael-Anthony Nozzi, one of the only remaining Stonewall survivors; Lavinia Co-op, a 1970s London radical-drag artist; and Paul Burston, a prominent 1990s AIDS activist and covers six decades of queer history. Expect something “hard-hitting, hilarious and heart-warming”, performed in honour of the fiftieth anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. See the venue website here for info.


THREE ONE NIGHT STANDS

Emerge | The Bunker Theatre | 17 Jun
Yay, we love stuff like this, a night dedicated to emerging artists featuring four new plays accompanied by live music, presented by Flux Theatre. The works are as follows: ‘Bin Juice’ by Catherine Kolubayev, ‘Monstera’ by Laura Jayne Ayres, ‘Work’ by Jerusha Green and ‘Three Mothers In Search Of A Son’ by Henry Martin. Make sure you get along to this page here to book your tickets, because chances are they’ll be flying away like a big batch of those proverbial hot cakes.

The Wooden Meadow | Finborough Theatre | 17 Jun
The Finborough’s Vibrant 2019 festival has begun and here’s an early contender by Stewart Pringle for your attention: “Jim’s run this pub theatre for as long as anyone can remember. It might be held together with gaffer tape and hope, but then so is Jim. It’s got charm, anyway. It’s got history. Punters used to queue thirty deep at the box office. But while Jim’s been keeping the lights on, the world’s rolled on beneath him. Numbers are drying up and creditors are closing in. What Jim needs is one big hit to keep the wolf from the door, but the cupboard’s bare. Well, it’s almost bare…” Click here.

Sleeping Trees Comedy Garden | Battersea Arts Centre | 12 Jun
“Greetings friend, what seems to be the problem?” asks the blurb. “You’re in need of some big belly laughs? Well worry not dear companion, just grab those heavy duty boots, an assortment of seeds and your prized trowel and join us at the Sleeping Trees Comedy Garden!” It’s good advice, that, because these long term, absolute TW favourites are hosting a great line up for their latest comedy compilation show, and it includes  George Rigden, Jenny Bede, Seayoncé, and Zach Zucker. Head right a-this-way for all the details.


THREE MORE THINGS WE’D LIKE TO SEE THIS WEEK

Becoming The Invisible Woman | The Drayton Arms Theatre | 11-15 June
This sounds interesting: “A woman ‘awakens’ to find herself middle aged, stuck in a rut and confused – unsure of where she fits in, and feeling increasingly invisible and irrelevant in a youth-centric society. Perhaps middle age is a time to challenge the paradigm and subvert expectation; a time to lean in to life, explore and take risks?” Plus, there’s another show on at the venue on the same nights as this one, so you can make yourself a very reasonably priced double bill if you go to see this and ‘Everything Today Is The Same’. See this page here for the invisible woman show and this page here for the other one.

Pramkicker | The Hope Theatre | 16-17 Jun
“When Jude gets arrested for kicking a pram belonging to a yummy mummy in an ‘independent coffee emporium’ she finds herself being sent to Anger Management classes to avoid a criminal record. Her sister Susie comes along to keep Jude in check, and also takes the opportunity to reveal a secret which leaves both sisters closer in relationship but separate in ideologies.” A piece promising to be poignant yet funny, a bittersweet comedy looking at sisterhood and what it means to be a woman. See the venue website here for more.

Transit | Underbelly Festival | 27 May-7 Jul (pictured)
I missed the start of this run, which began towards the end of last month, because I am stupid. But never mind, its on until July so you still have lots of chances to see it. Anyway, if you’re a fan of circus you may be aware that super successful Canadian troupe Flip Fabrique are back at Udderbelly with their latest show ‘Transit’. If you don’t think you are a fan of circus, this is probably the sort of show that could change your mind, and who knows, even change your life. No guarantees on the changing your life thing, but I am prepared to guarantee a pretty good time. See this page here for more.



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