Event type: Theatre

In celebration of the 400th anniversary of the first publication of Shakespeare’s plays, The Rubbish Shakespeare Company and Wing It Impro have joined forces to present The Incomplete Works, a totally improvised Shakespeare play.

This spontaneous, family-friendly show is bound to delight children and parents alike, and act as a fantastic introduction to Shakespeare and the world of impro!

When William Shakespeare fails to turn up with the script for his new play, his long-suffering cast are forced to Wing It and make it up, live, on the spot! After a few suggestions from the audience, we’re off! What follows next is a whirlwind of creative chaos, costume changes, bizarre characters, timeless Tudor dancing and an inventive use of household props. The show has been compared to Blackadder, Monty Python and The Mighty Boosh, and no wonder, it’s an onslaught of clowning, physical theatre, mime and storytelling, all accompanied by live music from award-winning musician Danny Bradley.

Rubbish Shakespeare are a celebrated theatre company who make Shakespeare accessible and fun for all, regardless of age or background. Returning back to Shakespeare North Playhouse once again, their Artistic Director, Lee Hithersay, says, “We’ve loved teaming up with Mark from Wing It – Impro, he’s like Master Splinter from The Turtles – he knows everything there is to know about spontaneous theatre! Due to popular demand, the show has grown and grown, and what was once four performers taking a punt on an idea for Shakespeare North Playhouse’s opening season, is now a full tour show with a rotating cast of twelve and a resident musician!”

The director of the piece, Mark Smith of Wing It – Impro, is no stranger to improv. Founder and former Artistic Director of Spike Theatre, Mark conceived the critically-acclaimed improv spectacle Hoof!. “It’s been brilliant working with RubSC for this special 400th anniversary,” says Mark. “I thought creating a fully improvised Shakespeare show would be the biggest achievement, but what’s been even more rewarding is watching families experience spontaneous theatre together, for the first time, and opening their eyes to a new way of telling stories. The children really love the fact we’re playing, just like they do on the playground.”

No two shows are alike, adding real stakes, and real pathos; at the play’s end, an audience member playing King James decides the cast’s fate — with a jubilant thumbs up or a damning thumbs down! And herein lies the real thrill: being a part of the mammoth task of making up an entire Shakespeare play and celebrating with a multi-talented cast of fools when they pull it off. Spectators are players in this performance from curtain up, so don’t be surprised to find yourself in a full-blown dance off, or on stage for the final bows!

Coming soon…They All Came Tumbling Down, the story of the notorious Netherley flats. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Urban Renewal Strategy for Liverpool saw the construction of 32,000 new houses in central and outlying areas like Netherley.

It was a time of hope for many working-class families, looking forward to their first new home. The dream soon turned sour, however, for those allocated a place in the soon-to-be-notorious Netherley flats. They became known as Alactraz to the families who had to live with their uninspiring concrete architecture and poor design.

The “Corpie” were reluctant to do anything about the many complaints they received about conditions there but if they thought the residents would take it all lying down, they were to be disappointed.

Inspired by the Flat Dwellers Action Group, their campaign of direct action forced the authorities to think again and eventually led to the demolition of the flats and re-allocation of the families there.

“They All Came Tumbling Down” tells the story of the campaign and is brought to the Valley Community Theatre with support from Liverpool City Council’s Mayoral fund.

Performances – Sat & Sun, 5th & 6th August, 7.30pm (doors open 7pm) Tickets £7/£5 frpm www.valleytheatre.co.uk or phone: 07746 697 263. Cafe/bar available

Valley Community Theatre, Childwall Valley Road, Liverpool L27 3YA

Join one of the UK’s premier open air touring theatre companies – The Lord Chamberlain’s Men – in the Garden Theatre at Calderstones Park this summer for the timeless and classic love story, Romeo and Juliet.

With a history stretching back to William Shakespeare himself, they present this great play as he first saw it, in the open air, with an all-male cast and Elizabethan costumes, music and dance.

Serving up classic tales with an untraditional twist, Slapstick Picnic comes to you from the mad minds that created the award winning touring company, The HandleBards.

Join them in Calderstones Park for a theatrical treat like no other as they whip up a three hander version of JM Barrie’s classic play Peter Pan.

Let your imagination soar as we dish out this timeless tale of hapless pirates, feral children and a particularly punctual reptile. This show isn’t just for kids, our brilliant buffoonery will have picnickers of all ages cackling into their coleslaw. Trust them, this is one flight of fancy you don’t want to miss.

Join the HandleBards at The Reader for a hilarious, high-octane production of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Four young lovers find themselves lost in a magical forest, where the Fairy King and Queen are fighting for the possession of a changeling boy. A group of amateur actors head to the same forest to rehearse for a play. Humans and fairies collide and hilarity ensues.

Local touring theatre company, ArtsGroupie CIC, returns to Calderstones Park after its recent sold out performance of ‘Kitty from the Washhouse’.

‘The Liver Bird’ is a magical outdoor interactive family theatrical experience combining classic storytelling and puppetry, featuring Calderstones Park’s very old Allerton Oak. Charlie J has heard all about Liverpool’s famous Liver Birds from his Grandma Bailey’s stories. He is fascinated by them. And just when things start to get difficult at school, and just when he needs it most, Charlie J is visited by a very special creature…

Dive into this glorious, modern day fairy tale, shared with the magic of puppets and storytelling. And keep your eyes to the skies!

The fourth annual Liverpool Theatre Festival opens on Thursday 20th July 2023.

The 11-day programme features 18 productions, some of which are being premiered at the festival, while others are coming to Liverpool for the very first time, some shows will feature prior to their Edinburgh Fringe run and they also have their biggest family programme to date.

The line-up includes comedy, drama, musicals, drag, family shows, LGBTQ, and opera.

Liverpool Theatre Festival 2023 runs between Thursday 20 – Sunday 30 July 2023. The live outdoor event is once again staged at St Luke’s Bombed Out Church in the heart of the city centre.

For more details, see here

Peppa Pig is back in her oinktastic brand new live show, Fun Day Out!

Join Peppa, along with her family and friends as they go to the zoo and also the beach for a special party- it’s going to be an exciting and fun packed day.

Prepare to sing and dance with colourful scarecrows, feed the penguins, build big sandcastles, and even swim in the sea!

Packed full of songs, dance and muddy puddles, Peppa’s Fun Day Out guarantees giggles and snorts for all Peppa fans, and a perfect introduction to theatre.

Tickets

Adults £20.00 to £25.00. Children, aged 1 to 15 £18.00 to £23.00, ages 6 to 12 months £14.00 and family of four £73.00 (Band A seats only)

www.peppapiglive.com

1 hr 15 mins including interval

Bus Regulation: The Musical by Ellie Harrison is back by popular demand to coincide with Liverpool City Region’s ‘Moving Buses Forward’ public consultation this summer.

Inspired by the 1980s hit musical ‘Starlight Express’, Bus Regulation: The Musical features performers on roller skates to re-enact the history of public transport provision in the Merseyside region from the post-war period to the present day.

Beginning with the municipal ownership of buses in the 1960s, through the 1968 Transport Act which created the Merseyside PTE and the coordination of public transport across the whole region in the 1970s, Bus Regulation: The Musical takes you into the chaos caused by bus de-regulation in 1986, the numerous mergers & takeovers of the 1990s that followed, right up to the fragmented and expensive system we’re left with as a result. The Musical concludes with a celebration of Liverpool City Region’s proposals to re-regulate our region’s buses in order to create a world-class, fully-integrated and affordable public transport network fit for the 21st century.

Bus Regulation: The Musical (Merseyside) was developed with funding from Arts Council England and premiered at the Bluecoat in November 2022.

This new production at The Black-E is produced in collaboration with the Better Buses for Merseyside campaign to coincide this summer’s important public consultation, which closes on 3 August 2023.

It is funded by the Foundation for Integrated Transport, local UNISON North West branches and We Own It and features local roller skaters from Liverpool Roller Birds and Wirral Roller Derby.

The Merseyside Musical builds on the success of the Greater Manchester and Strathclyde Musicals, and is the final part of Harrison’s award-winning Trilogy exploring the relationship between public transport policy and population health in these three post-industrial city regions.

In March 2021, Greater Manchester became the first UK city region to commit to re-regulating its bus network since 1986. This summer’s important public consultation offers Liverpool City Region the opportunity to be the second.