Event type: Theatre

Suspicious Minds

Three women, all at huge turning points in their lives whilst dealing with the death of their mum. Will their grief consume them or will it set them free? Standing at the edge of their futures, will they fall or will they fly?

Suspicious Minds explores the aftershocks of losing someone and how, over time, we grow around our grief. Moving between fractured memories, humour and heartbreak, the play explores how grief evolves, how we reinvent ourselves, and the strange ways the dead continue to accompany us.

Supported by Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse theatres, Suspicious Minds is written by Ella Greenhill and Directed by Chris Tomlinson. Ella and Chris met at University and within months of knowing each other their mums had both passed away. Suspicious Minds is a dedication to their memories and to friendship.

Beckett: Lieben 2026 – Play and Come and Go

Play (1962/63) was originally written by Samuel Beckett in English and was first performed (as Spiel) at Theater Ulm in June 1963. It was published in German in July of the same year.

The fate of three characters, who find themselves trapped in three urns with only their heads showing, is forever sealed by an affair in the past. Their constant remembering might indeed seem an understandable obsession were it not for the on/off light of the unseen interrogator – dictating who speaks, and when.

Come and Go is a short play described as a “dramaticule” on its title page, dedicated to publisher John Calder. It was written in English in January 1965 and was first performed in German at the Schiller Theater Werkstatt, Berlin in January 1966. Critics consider this one of Beckett’s most “perfect” plays.

Beckett himself proposed the pairing to director Walter D. Asmus in Germany and they presented the double-bill together at the Schiller Theater in West Berlin in 1977, with Beckett directing Play and Asmus directing Come and Go.

The Unreal Cities Lieben 2026 production is directed by Adrian Dunbar, featuring actors Clara Simpson, Anna Nygh, Orla Charlton, Frank McCusker, with lighting director Michael Cummins.

liverpool.ac.uk/humanities-and-social-sciences/research/beckett/

Picture credit: Renáta Sinclair

Pride & Prejudice* (*sort of)

After its triumph in the West End where it won the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Comedy and the Evening Standard Award, Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) is a unique and audacious retelling of Jane Austen’s most iconic love story.

Men, money and microphones will be fought over in this irreverent but affectionate adaptation where the stakes couldn’t be higher when it comes to romance. This multi-award-winning production features a string of pop classics including Young Hearts Run Free, Will You Love Me Tomorrow and You’re So Vain.

IT’S THE 1800S.

IT’S PARTY TIME.

LET THE RUTHLESS MATCHMAKING BEGIN.

The Haunting of Blaine Manor

The Haunting of Blaine Manor  

Winner of The Salford Star Best Play of the Year Award   

Written & Directed by Joe O’Byrne  

   

England, 1953. Renowned American parapsychologist Doctor Roy Earle, famous for discrediting hauntings and exposing fake mediums, is invited to attend a seance in Blaine Manor, said to be the most haunted building in England.  

 However, Earle’s arrival awakes something horrific within the manor’s walls. As a raging storm closes them off from the outside world, Earle and his companions find that what is waiting within the manor is not nearly as horrific as what has entered with them.  

  In the spirit of M R James, England’s most accomplished ghost story writer (‘Casting the Runes’, ‘Whistle and I’ll Come To You My Lad’, ‘The Haunted Doll’s House’) and with a nod to the classic black and white film classics of Columbia Pictures, Metro Goldwyn Mayor, Universal Pictures and 20th Century Fox.  

  O’Byrne’s award winning production is a love letter to both the Golden Age of Hollywood and the Hammer Horror era. An appreciation of the fabulous characters played by the likes of Vincent Price, Peter Cushing, Bette Davis, Peter Lorre and more. It’s a thrilling haunted house chiller set in a manor with a twisted history of madness, witchcraft, tragedy and death, it’s the new ‘The Woman in Black’.  

Reviews:  

“A horror masterclass from one of our very best and busiest writers” The Salford Star  

 ”Shocking reveals and really fantastic character work from the cast, The Haunting of Blaine Manor feels plucked out of the old BBC Ghost Stories for Christmas and is highly recommended” Bloody-Flicks.co.uk  

“A superbly crafted ghost story, with all the pace of a hard-boiled detective thriller, tinged with Hollywood glamour – and a good old dose of horror.” Lucy Wood, Grimsby Telegraph  

“We should not be surprised that O’Byrne has a knack for the classic ghost story”  The Manchester Theatre Awards  

 ”One of the best original ghost stories I’ve seen on stage in a long time. The atmosphere in the theatre was fantastic. Everything you’d expect from a strong piece of theatre rooted in Victorian gothic horror… a great piece of theatre” The Nantwich News  

 ”The Haunting of Blaine Manor served as a reminder why theatre is so important, particularly for genres like horror” The Theatre Talk  

 Ages 10+   

 

Shakespeare On Tour: Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet

The multi award winning A Place For Us Theatre Company are off on tour this Summer! See two faithfully abridged 70-minute versions of

Shakespeare’s iconic tragedies at stunning venues across the North West.

Most venues offer a ‘Double Bill’ option at a discounted rate. So why not enjoy a picnic and a glass of something celebratory during the interval between these two incredible performances. Tickets for individual shows are also available at most venues. See below for more details.

‘…The torment is real, the hideous crimes authentic, the anguish and grief tangible – each scene, each actor, each movement, played with passion and credence. It was superb…(***** Northwest End Review) 

Romeo & Juliet

Building on previous years of sold-out outdoor Shakespeare productions, this hard-hitting 70 minute adaptation, immerses audiences in the passion, violence and urgency of Shakespeare’s iconic tragedy. Prepare for an unforgettable theatrical experience from multi award winning ‘A Place for Us Theatre’.

“Never Was A Story Of More Woe”

Hamlet

Step into the world of Hamlet, Shakespeare’s masterpiece of revenge, betrayal, and ambition. This five-star acclaimed 70 minute accessible visceral version of Shakespeare’s chilling play from multi-award-winning theatre company ‘A Place for Us’ comes to venues across the country for limited performances only.

“The Rest Is Silence…”

Venues, Dates & Booking – More info and booking at 

Norton Priory Woodland Theatre Runcorn: 26h & 27th June 2026. Performances at 5:30pm & 7:30pm (27th only) – Hamlet

Croxteth Hall and Country Park, Liverpool: 12th July 2026  – Performances at 6pm – Romeo & Juliet & 7:45pm – Hamlet

Shakespeare North Playhouse, Prescot: 16th – 18th July 2026. Performances at 2pm (18th July) and 6:30pm (24th – 26th July) – Hamlet

Reynolds Park, Woolton, Liverpool: 8th & 9th August 2026. Performances at 5pm – Romeo & Juliet & 6:45pm – Hamlet

After Party

A relaxed, immersive baby-friendly show where wriggling is welcome, noise is encouraged, and your little one is part of the action. Drop in, chill out, and enjoy something actually designed for the chaos of family life.

The arrival of a new baby is the beginning of a long, beautiful and messy journey. Join us at the After Party, a place of joy, rest, solidarity and festivity as we support and celebrate each other through the long and transformative journey of parenthood.

Combining the beautiful and uplifting vocal music of the HurlyBurly ensemble with a playful and immersive multi-sensory world, this experience offers new families time and space to relax together whilst the interactive performance ebbs and flows around them. 

Inspired by the intuitive freedom and curiosity of the very young and their talent for turning the world upside down, After Party invites parents to embrace the chaos of the early years and follow their children into a world of transformation and wonder where every gurgle, tumble, and reach becomes part of the performance.

After Party is a durational performance for 0-2s where everyone is free to come as they are and stay as long as they like.

Audience Feedback

Coming through the gold curtain was like entering another world, it felt like a festival.

No strict rules – kids allowed to be kids.

It was magical!

It was perfect for our family and our son.

PERFECT!

A beautiful morning spent with our daughter – forgetting the outside world and just focusing on us.

Such a unique concept.

Joyful, relaxing, wonderful.

A sense of belonging in a group of strangers. 

Baby Bards

Join our Learning & Engagement Team for a Baby Bards early years story and language session for pre school children aged 18 months to 4 years old.

Pressure | 20 Stories High

7:00pm

Join us this summer for our 20 Stories High annual Youth Theatre Summer Show!
The Youth Theatre will be taking centre stage with a brand-new show inspired by the voices of young people as they explore what is good and what’s hard about being a young person in 2026: the pressures, the joys, the chaos, and the hope.
 
It’s their 20th Birthday and 20 Stories High Youth Theatre are taking it back to their roots. Expect a mash-up of hip hop, grime, rap and street dance!
 

Performances:
23rd–25th July 2026 (Thu–Sat)

Pull up for 3 nights only with curtain raisers from RAWD and 20SH Nu Noize participants with a Post Show Jam on Friday 24th July 2026
 

Access:
One night will be BSL interpreted (we’ll confirm which date soon).

Come celebrate our amazing Youth Theatre and 20th birthday with us! Check out our socials for exciting updates coming soon @20storieshigh

Best Practice

 

Best Practice is a show for anyone who’s ever tried to make something work: policy makers and civic planners, educators and creatives, social entrepreneurs and business owners.

It’s a comical look at how regeneration schemes might fail in any given place, at any given time and how mistakes of the past might help us to get over the stumbling blocks.