Event type: Theatre

Radical Joy Cabaret

Join us for a riotous evening to find celebration even in the darkest of times.

Joy can be a radical act of resistance in this time of austerity. Come along to find out how we can use joy to mobilise and fight back.

Performed by Collective Encounters’ Adult Theatre for Social Change group, the cabaret will weave a story of radical joy through songs, sketches and scenes, and will reflect on the world through the lens of our assets, not our deficits.

The Brink, Parr Street, L1 4JN: Saturday 23 May, 7pm

Tickets: pay what you can

Dear Zoo

Dear Zoo the timeless children’s classic book returns to the stage!

See our characters write to the Zoo. Who will be delivered? A cheeky monkey, a jumpy frog and of course a perfect puppy.

Help your children learn as the book leaps onto the stage and share a magical experience as the story unfolds with child-engaging puppets, music and lots of audience interaction.

Rod Campbell’s best-selling lift the flap book has delighted generations of young readers since it was first published in 1982. And has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide.

This production will delight all those who have read the book (both young and old) as it unfolds with child-engaging puppets, music and lots of audience interaction.

Join us at your local theatre to see what the zoo has sent: the perfect pet – in the end!

#DearZooLive

 

‘A must-see for fans of the book, and for any young child who likes animals!’

★★★★★ Whatsgoodtodo.co.uk

‘A superb theatrical production’

★★★★★ My Theatre Mates

‘This show is the perfect running time and there’s no interval, so momentum isn’t lost. If you’re looking for a family trip to the theatre, this is one of the best.’

★★★★★ Entertainmentviews.co.uk

Some Guys Have All The Luck: The Rod Stewart Story

Celebrating 10 years of swagger, showmanship and jam-packed energy – Some Guys Have All The Luck – The Rod Stewart Story is back for 2027! 

 Direct from the West End and officially endorsed by Rod Stewart’s own family, this electrifying live concert charts an unforgettable six-decade journey from humble beginnings to global superstardom. Fronted by the talented Paul Metcalfe, the show delivers Rod’s unmistakable sound with a sensational live band, authentic costumes and high-octane vocals that brings every era to life. 

 Audiences will be on their feet dancing to smash-hits including ‘Maggie May’, ‘Do Ya Think I’m Sexy’, ‘Baby Jane’, ‘Sailing’, ‘The First Cut Is The Deepest’, ‘Tonight’s The Night’, ‘Have I Told You Lately That I Love You’ and many more.   

Don’t miss your chance to relive the soundtrack of a generation in an unforgettable night of rock ‘n’ roll perfection.   

Unmissable. Unstoppable. Utterly iconic.  

 

Rita, Sue & Bob Too

The return of the sell-out stage version of the 80s cult classic

Get ready… Rita, Sue & Bob Too is back – bigger, bolder and funnier than ever. 

Following rave reviews and sold out runs, this outrageous comedy returns to the stage by popular demand. Packed with sharp wit, unforgettable characters and laugh-out-loud moments, it’s no wonder audiences and critics alike are calling it “Superb!” and “Roaringly hilarious.” 

Set in 1980s Yorkshire, this unapologetically cheeky story follows two teenagers and their tangled relationship with a married man – delivering a riotous night of comedy that’s as bold today as it was when it first shocked audiences. 

Not to be missed. Strictly 18+. 

WoWFEST: A Reason to Sing – The Popular Song Movement of 70s Chile

Join internationally acclaimed artist Francisco Carrasco for a powerful and deeply personal exploration of Nueva Canción Chilena, Chile’s revolutionary popular song movement of the 1960s and 70s. 

Blending traditional folk forms with urgent, socially conscious lyrics, Nueva Canción became the soundtrack of resistance. Artists including Violeta Parra, Víctor Jara, Inti-Illimani and Quilapayún gave voice to workers, challenged injustice and helped shape the cultural spirit of Salvador Allende’s Popular Unity government. 

After the 1973 military coup, many musicians were silenced, imprisoned or forced into exile — transforming the movement into a global symbol of resistance and solidarity. 

Arriving in the UK as a child refugee in 1975, Francisco Carrasco brings this history vividly to life through storytelling, live music and archival material. He reflects on how these songs sustained displaced communities including his own family who performed at solidarity events across Britain. 

Part cultural history, part lived testimony, this event is an invitation to explore exile, identity and the enduring power of music in times of struggle. 

Francisco Carrasco MA FRSA is a Chilean-born international artist, storyteller, world musician and cultural activist. Exiled to the UK in 1975, he has dedicated his life to using art as a platform for dialogue and social change. 

Based in Liverpool since 1983, he is the founder and Creative Director of LUMA CREATIONS and has led major cultural initiatives including LA FERIA International Festival of Latin American Arts & Culture and the Merseyside International Street Festival. 

In 2025, he received the LCR Award for International Reach. His forthcoming poetry collection, Oceans of Exile, continues his exploration of displacement, resilience and belonging. 

Date: Tuesday 19th MayTime: 6.30pmVenue: Victoria Gallery and Museum: Ashton Street, Liverpool, L69 3DRTickets: £5

Unity Scratch Night: May

7:30pm

The acclaimed series of work in progress nights at Unity continues into 2026 by popular demand with monthly instalments of never before seen work.

Over the last few years Unity has established itself as the go to venue for fresh, and innovative new work with a sell out series of work in progress evenings and unmissable variety nights.

 

The Line Up:

The Edge of Nothing

Work in progress – Fiona Scott (aka Sparrows Kneecaps)

Inspired by a shed, a garden and the odd wafting scarf…

A performer tries out different ways of playing Shakespeare’s Fools in search of that elusive breakthrough moment.

“When your mother is Dogberry and your father is Lear’s Fool… what hope was there?”

Then somewhere along the way, the Fools begin to answer back — carrying traces of music hall, vaudeville, and something passed down.

Developed through ongoing exploration with Nick Bagnall, with mentoring from Told by an Idiot.

Ernie 

By James Goodall

Following a tragic accident, Liverpool docker Ernie must decide between his health or job security in this heart-warming tale of pride, resilience and family. This one man mask show combines live foley, mime and music to transport us back to the 1960s to understand the harsh realities faced by the working man on the Liverpool docks.

Instagram: @talesfromaroundours

Friday Double Bill | LIF 2026

Andĕl Sudik & Rebecca MacMillan present – The Library of Forgotten Books

Breathe in. What do you smell? Paper. Dust. Leather bindings. Welcome to The Library of Forgotten Books – a place of ritual, where abandoned and neglected books are offered up and transformed into fleeting stories. In this dreamlike space of reverence and mischief, The Librarians examine forgotten volumes, channel their contents, and decide their fate: to be enshrined on the shelves of memory… or consigned to oblivion.

A mysterious, funny and moving improvised performance created by internationally acclaimed improvisers Anděl Sudik (The Second City, Boom Chicago) and Rebecca MacMillan (The Maydays, Closer Each Day), the show blends laughter, wonder, and the quiet thrill of transgression.

Audience members are invited to bring a book they’re ready to part with forever; these offerings may shape the night — or be ceremonially altered in the name of improv.

What will be remembered? And what will be forgotten?

Sam Marshall & Emily Rose present – Play It Again

Play It Again are immortal lounge performers, cursed to provide light entertainment forever! Give them your sultry suggestions, they’ll give you beautiful ballads and mesmerising musical pieces. Laugh and sing along as these eternal entertainers play it again, and again, and again…

here-elsewhere | LIF 2026

here-elsewhere, performed and directed by Empty Set, the duo of Rosalind Grégoire and Christianna Tsigkou is a one of a kind improvised performance where live drawing, projection and storytelling transform the space itself into a shifting, imaginative world. here-elsewhere is a performance where space itself becomes a performer. The artists transform the room through live drawing, projection, and storytelling, creating a layered world that shifts between the seen and the imagined. As we explore hidden corners and small details of the space, a scratch on the wall, a glint of light, a forgotten object, these are magnified and projected as living landscapes where new stories emerge.

The performers respond, building a visual and emotional map of the room’s echo; strange, delicate, and deeply human. Each performance is unique, shaped by the architecture, atmosphere, and presence of those watching, transforming overlooked spaces into vivid, imaginative worlds, where stories emerge not from a suggestion, but from the materiality of the room. Equal parts theatre, live art and visual improvisation, here-elsewhere invites audiences to rediscover the spaces they inhabit and the stories that live quietly within them.

Gricers | LIF 2026

Gricers is a new, spontaneous theatre show created to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the modern passenger railway.

Inspired by Francis Bourgeois’s book The Trainspotters Notebook and Tom Quinn’s Railways’ Strangest Journeys, this show is a bittersweet and profound reflection on male friendship and quiet obsession.Meet Mike and Mark. Their quest isn’t for fame or fortune.

It’s for the 4:32 from Manchester Piccadilly, the 11:05 to Carlisle, the one last engine number that will make their collection complete. They are ‘Gricers’, standing trackside in rain and shine, a passionate, uniquely British tribe. The real journey isn’t on the rails. It’s in the waiting. In the shared flasks of tea, the silences, the decades of friendship.

This is the story of what happens in between the arrivals and departures, a tale of two men driven by a passion to complete a collection and the hope that they can finally finish. ​

Performed by Mike Burton (Stupid, Atom Improv), Mark Smith (HOOF!, The Fly, A Wake and Taxi Tales) and Fergus Wynne this spontaneous theatre event is like no other. The show features compelling storytelling, a cavalcade of characters and live DJ’ing.

Improv Island Discs | LIF 2026

Hello Castaways! Imagine you’re shipwrecked on a desert island. What would be your ‘go-to’ song and your most treasured item? With these suggestions to inspire them, Absolute Onions will produce a fully improvised tale, drenched with drama, emotion, fun and laughter! So, let’s drift away on your ocean of dreams!