Performance - Uncover Liverpool

Tom Davis: Underdog

Sweet sweet soul Tom Davis is best known for hit shows King Gary, The Curse, Murder In Successville, Live At The Apollo and his hugely popular podcast Wolf and Owl with Romesh Ranganathan.

Embarking on his biggest tour to date with his brand-new show, ‘Underdog’, Tom will be exploring life as the longshot. From leaving school with no qualifications to years working on building sites, all the way to the difficult road to fatherhood, acting in blockbuster films and yet still being told he’s punching by a waiter.

Big Tom Davis’ return to stand up should not be missed.

Sir Tim Rice, My Life in Musicals: I K...

Sir Tim Rice, the multi-award winning, internationally renowned lyricist, will return to theatre stages across the UK in 2024 with a very special live musical theatre event – My Life In Musicals – I Know Him So Well.

The show will see Tim Rice reflect on his illustrious career at the heart of musical theatre, sharing anecdotes behind the songs – the hits and the misses along with stories of his life and live performances from the wonderful catalogue of songs that are synonymous with his name and that of his collaborators. Musical accompaniment will be from an array of some of the UK’s leading West End singers and musicians led by Musical Director Duncan Waugh.

Tim is associated with writing the lyrics for so many of the world’s much-loved hit musicals – Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar, Evita, Chess and the Disney productions The Lion King, Aladdin and Beauty and the Beast. His work has not been limited to musical theatre alone with Evita transferring to the big screen and theme music for the James Bond movie Octopussy.

With the show packed full of songs including ‘Don’t Cry For Me Argentina’, ‘Any Dream Will Do’, ‘A Whole New World’, ‘Can You Feel The Love Tonight’, ‘I Don’t Know How To Love Him’, ‘Circle of Life’, ‘Chess’, ‘Hakuna Matata’, ‘Another Suitcase in Another Hall’, ‘I Know Him So Well’, ‘All Time High’, ‘Must Love Me’, ‘A Night In Bangkok’. My Life In Musicals is an absolute must for fans of musical theatre and brilliant music.

Regarded by many as one of the world’s greatest lyricists Tim Rice commented “My Life in Musicals is a show in which I reveal all (well, nearly all) of the secrets behind the creation of some of the best-known songs featuring my lyrics. I have had the good fortune to work with some of the greatest composers of our time, including Andrew Lloyd Webber, Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson, Elton John and Alan Menken, without whose wonderful melodies I’d be at home watching television.

You’ll probably know quite a few of the songs – and will therefore be relieved to hear I won’t be singing them. All musical aspects of the show I hand over to the outstanding Duncan Waugh Band and West End Singers. There will be plenty of stops in between the hits during which I’ll tell you how they happened and, in some cases, nearly didn’t. Actually, I might sing a little – but not Don’t Cry For Me Argentina.”

Griff Rhys Jones: The Cat’s Pyjamas

Griff Rhys Jones is back on the road with his much-anticipated brand new stand-up tour for 2024. Join Griff as he shares more funny observations and comic stories.

The show always varies as Griff rambles on the developing national permacrisis. Age. Family. Fraud. Nostalgia. The Tik Tok generation. Crocodile smuggling and noodling in Australia. Travel, dogs, hotels, drink and midnight trains. He takes questions from the audience and lets rip as his associations wander.

The Cat’s Pyjmas follows Griff’s last hugely successful international tour, All Over The Place, which saw him play to capacity crowds across the UK, Australia and New Zealand. Away from the stage, Griff is best known for his countless TV appearances, including as the star of ten series of Smith & Jones and one quarter of the ground breaking Not The Nine O’Clock News, whilst his multiple documentary series – most recently Griff’s Canadian Adventure (Channel 4) – have been critically acclaimed ratings hits.

Rosie Jones: Triple Threat

Rosie Jones is on the road for a UK tour and, boy, she is EXCITED.

Join Rosie as she ponders whether she is a national treasure, a little prick, or somewhere in between! This show is guaranteed to be full of unapologetic cheekiness, nonsensical fun and unadulterated JOY from the triple threat herself.

Best known for her hit travel series’ Trip Hazard and Mission: Accessible, and for numerous appearances on shows The Last Leg, 8 Out of 10 Cats, Cats Does Countdown, Hypothetical, Mock the Week, The Ranganation and Joe Lycett’s Got Your Back to name just a few!

Shen Yun

Be transported to heavenly realms through elegant classical Chinese dance, original orchestral works, and patented interactive backdrops.

Enter a world where maidens danced with ethereal grace and warriors trained with explosive vigour, where timeless tales of valour, virtue, and humour were born. Revisit a time when divine beings walked upon the earth to inspire humanity. Witness timeless legends and traditions all spring to life on stage.

With every moment so breathtaking, Shen Yun’s positive energy will resonate with you long after the final curtain.

It is more than just a performance; it is an experience that awakens the soul.

Join us for a night filled with courage and wisdom, light and hope.

Varna International Ballet and Orchest...

Raymond Gubbay Limited is pleased to announce that Varna International Ballet and Orchestra will return to UK after a hugely successful debut in 2023. This season they will bring much-loved classical ballets The Nutcracker, Swan Lake and Sleeping Beauty coming to Liverpool Empire 09 -11 January 2024.

British dancer Luc Burns will perform alongside Italy’s Mara Salvaggio, Martina Prefetto, Giovanni Pompei, Agnese Di Dio Masa, Andrea Conforti, Mirko Andreutti, Giacomo Ammazzini and Vittorio Scolé, France’s Pauline Clémence Faget, Spain’s Mónica Alegre and Yael Delgado, and Brazil’s Wellson Felipio.

The Nutcracker and Sleeping Beauty will be classical versions of the original, including sumptuous costumes and familiar choreography and settings.

Swan Lake will be a recreation of Tchaikovsky’s original production, that was created for the Bolshoi Ballet in 1877. Modern audiences are more familiar with the 1895 version that included musical and chorographical changes to the original by Marius Petipa and Riccardo Drigo, which was presented at the Mariinsky Theatre in 1895, two years after Tchaikovsky’s death. The producers of Varna International Ballet went back into the archives in order to return to the original score, orchestration and libretto, above all to preserve the original meanings that were at the bottom of the musical dramaturgy of the ballet.

The Chosen Haram

A heady mix of love, drugs and Islam – The Chosen Haram is a unique and complex take on circus, coming to Liverpool as part of the Homotopia festival on Thursday 16 November 2023.

Performed entirely on two Chinese Poles, The Chosen Haram tells the story of two gay men and their chance meeting through a dating app. It details the highs and lows of their relationship and the social and cultural barriers they must overcome to find happiness and personal fulfillment – the word “Haram” refers to something that is forbidden in Islam.

Taking over Invisible Wind Factory with gravity-defying tricks and extraordinary movement, the show explores sexuality, faith, addiction and connection – an exploration into the personal struggles faced by many people whose upbringing contradicts their personal truths. The Chosen Haram is based on a combination of lead artist Sadiq Ali’s personal experience, as well as interviews with members of the LGBTQ+ community who identify as (ex) Muslim.

Alice Holland, Festival Programmer, said: “The Chosen Haram is outstanding as an extremely skilled piece of circus theatre, and as a truly moving story that speaks to body, heart and soul. The play is thoughtful, impressive, romantic, inventive and sexy, and a real treat for audiences in Liverpool.”

The shows forms part of an exciting and varied programme of events for the 2023 Homotopia Festival, which is celebrating its 20th year at the forefront of Queer art and activism.

The festival kicks off with a show-stopping evening of drag cabaret and pro-wrestling on 11 November in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle. Other highlights include The Ten Commandments, a new show by Queer legend and performance artist David Hoyle, music and spoken word by Liv Wynter, and a range of visual art and performances from 11 November until 2 December.

A full list of events is available at homotopia.net.

How To Catch A Pig

How To Catch A Pig, is a sell out night created by artist and activist Liv Wynter as a celebration of creatives who also organise against the state, with a focus on queer and trans performers. Their band press.release are residents, alongside resident artists Toby and Aidy Evans Jesra, and DJ’s Sad Queers Club and Basura.

Liv Wynter is a trans and working class grassroots organiser and performer, who has just launched their new self titled solo project ft music from Piglet. They have a published poetry collection, ‘Don’t Let It Go To Your Head’, and have 2 sold out theatre production runs (‘Rise of the Refrain’ 2021 Stanley Arts, ‘And So The Choir Gathers’ 2019 The Bunker).

They are gay bar and festival regulars with DJ MC double act Dance Mums, and spent 2022 touring stadiums with Queer House Party, playing Secret Garden Party, Boomtown, Wilderness, Latitude and Sziget, and being banned from the Southbank Centre for decapitating the queen. Liv is a dedicated abolitionist organiser, and stands in solidarity with all collectives organising against any systemic oppression.

Part of Homotopia 2023

Aladdin Love

Step into a whole new world of enchantment and laughter with Young Homotopia’s dazzling twist on the classic pantomime, Aladdin.

Prepare to be spellbound as we take you on a journey through the bustling streets of Agrabah, where love knows no boundaries and the power of self-acceptance reigns supreme.

Ten Commandments

The living legend, queer icon, and performance art maestro David Hoyle brings his critically-acclaimed live show ‘The Ten Commandments’ to Liverpool for a one-night-only performance at The Unity for Homotopia Festival.

Survivor of a shame-inducing religious upbringing, David revisits his Biblical initiation with his very own version of The Ten Commandments designed to spark a revolution in human consciousness. This is a live experience that will wash all of your sins away and then some. Dark comedy meets righteous anger meets queer revolution as only David Hoyle themselves can conjure…

They welcome the congregation to liberate themselves and others in a thermonuclear explosion of love and also hope for what remains of the 21st century.