An ETT / Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse joint production

Argan, played by multi-talented Clive Francis (starred in and directed Three Men in a Boat, as well as adapting the recent stage production of Hound of the Baskervilles), is a perfectly healthy and wealthy gentleman, convinced that he is seriously ill. So obsessed is he with medicinal tinkerings and tonics that he is blind to the goings-on in his own household.
 
However, his most effective cure will not appear in a bottle or a bedpan, but in his sharp-tongued servant, who has a cunning plan to reveal the truth and open her master’s eyes.

Following last year’s critically acclaimed Tartuffe, Liverpool’s Poet Laureate, Roger McGough, dips his magic quill again to adapt another classic Molière comedy. The Hypochondriac was Molière’s last play and a scathingly funny lampoon on both hypochondria and the ‘quack’ medical profession.

Un tour de farce.

ETT presents potent, vivid and vital productions of new and classic plays. A powerhouse of touring theatre, ETT works with a rich mix of the country’s leading and emerging artists to stage thrilling and ambitious theatre.

Written by one of Britain’s favourite play-writing teams of the Sixties, Hugh and Margaret Williams, The Grass Is Greener proved to be a huge hit in London’s West End and went on to be adapted into an award-winning movie starring Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr, Robert Mitchum and Jean Simmons.

Heading the cast is Liza Goddard (Bergerac, Take Three Women, Yes, Honestly, Take Three Girls, The Brothers, Dr Who, Midsomer Murders). Liza is joined by Christopher Cazenove (The Regiment, The Duchess Of Duke Street, Dynasty, Judge John Deed). Jack Ellis (Bad Girls and Coronation Street) and Sophie Ward (Holby City and Heartbeat) complete the all-star cast.

When an impoverished English Earl opens his stately home to the public, he risks more than the loss of his privacy, as his wife falls madly in love with an irresistible American millionaire. In a desperate attempt to save his marriage, the Earl decides to host a house-party, enlisting the help of an old flame, with dangerous and hilarious consequences! Throw in a wily old butler, and you have one of the funniest, classic feel-good comedies of the era.

Written by Barry Took and Marty Feldman

With its ground-breaking mix of innuendo, camp caricature and word-play, Round The Horne captured a record-breaking regular listenership of more than 15 million and remains one of the best-loved programmes in radio history. Its unique blend of humour is even more infectious today as its bizarre collection of characters come to life on stage from the brilliantly inventive and often outrageous scripts, created by zany duo Barry Took and Marty Feldman.

Who can resist the charms of J. Peasemould Gruntfuttock, Rambling Syd Rumpo, the heart-stopping Dame Celia Molestrangler, fiendish mastermind Chou En Ginsberg M.A. (failed) and his common-as-muck concubine Lotus Blossom, those two ‘resting professionals’ Julian and Sandy, and many more…

Whether you are a fan of the original radio series or new to this special recipe of comedy, join the cast of eighteen and we guarantee that tears of laughter will be rolling down your cheeks with this brand new selection of material – Unseen and Uncut!

Following acclaimed stints at Lincoln Center in New York and the Sydney Opera House, Olivier and Tony Award winner Alan Cumming completes an international theatrical triangle, arriving in London’s West End to perform his one-man musical show Alan Cumming: I Bought a Blue Car Today at the Vaudeville Theatre for eight performances only from Tuesday 1 to Sunday 6 September 2009.

Returning to the West End musical stage for the first time in over fifteen years – he was last seen in Sam Mendes’ Donmar Warehouse revival of Cabaret – Alan Cumming will remind British audiences of the sheer versatility of his talent, ensuring this UK and European première of Alan Cumming: I Bought a Blue Car Today is the most hotly anticipated show of the autumn season.

Accompanied by his charismatic and multi-talented musical director, Lance Horne, Cumming unleashes his favourite tunes, belting out celebrated hits alongside little-known gems, whilst captivating his audience with poignant anecdotes from his colourful and fantastic past. A musical journey peppered with material by Frank Sinatra, Dory Previn, Kander & Ebb and Cyndi Lauper, to name only a few.

Alan Cumming: I Bought a Blue Car Today is a true moment in theatrical history. A fleeting glimpse at a truly rare species of entertainer. A one-off opportunity to experience the thrilling diversity of his talent. Unlike any other solo show to go before it. A refreshing mix of the old and the brilliantly new, fused together in an idiosyncratic cannonball of multiple musical meanderings.

A brand new stand-up show for 2009/2010!

Critically acclaimed BAFTA-winning comedian Lee Mack returns to the live stage with a hotly anticipated new show.  Lee will be bringing his trademark brand of high energy banter, well crafted gags and sharp one-liners to venues across the country on his biggest ever live stand-up tour.   

Lee is best known to BBC One viewers as the star of multi-award winning Not Going Out and as team captain on Would I Lie To You?

Pirate’s Dinner Adventure is acclaimed as “the world’s most unique interactive dinner show.” Guests are entertained with an astonishing display of special effects wizardry, aerial artistry, swashbuckling swordplay, dynamic duels and derring-do; a classic story of good vs. evil that offers the perfect blend of action, adventure, comedy and romance; the opportunity to interact in the adventure; and a sumptuous dining experience.

THE SETTING
An authentically replicated 18th-century Spanish galleon measuring 46 feet long, 18 feet wide with 40-foot masts is anchored in a 250,000-gallon indoor lagoon with night sky lighting. Surrounding the lagoon is a six-sided showroom of six additional “ships” where the audience is seated.

THE ADVENTURE
Voyagers on each of the six “ships” have their own fearless pirate “mascot” whom they cheer on as the adventure unfolds with a cast of a dozen actors, singers and stunt performers engaging in a bounty of action-packed exploits, accompanied by cannon blasts, pyrotechnics and a liberal dose of wit and wizardry. For one shining moment, the fantasies of would-be pirates of all ages become uncannily real in the interactive arena of Pirate’s Dinner Adventure.

THE FEAST
Served during the show, the Port of Call Feast is truly that – a feast that says you’ve arrived at a great place. An appetizer selection and fresh garden salad introduce the delicious journey. The main course is a choice of a medley of marinated chicken with finely roasted and seasoned beef or marinated chicken with seafood (shrimp and scallops); a choice of roasted potatoes or West Indies yellow rice with Caribbean seasonings and steamed fresh vegetables. The dining finale is warm apple cobbler a la mode. Beer, soft drinks and coffee are included. In addition, vegetarian and “Captain Kid’s” meals are available upon request.

THE FINALE
After dinner and a climactic pirate battle, every guest is invited to “get up close and personal” with the stars of the show through photo opportunities and autographs.

Availability: Show times vary based on the season. Please call ahead to reserve your preferred time and date.

Doors open 90 minutes prior to the show for pre-show appetizers. Showroom doors open 15 minutes prior to performance and seating begins. Show is approximately 90 minutes in duration and is followed by autographs and photos with cast. For guests that want to boogie the night away, the Buccaneer Bash commences immediately following the last performance and features dancing to the disco sounds of the 70s and 80s.

LOL!! Live Comedy at the Jazz Cafe.
After selling out their last 4 shows in Wembley the LOL Variety SHOW is on its way to the Jazz Cafe starting August 16th for their 3rd season.  A monthly new exciting variety show which will contain comedy, live music, fashion lines, game shows and a range of exciting performances not forgetting a fantastic After Party.

The LOL show has featured some of the biggest names in UK and US comedy such as Richard Blackwood, Kojo, Paul Choudry, Rudi Lickwood as well top US comedians Will E Robo, Nema Williams, Gaylor Johnson and Carlos Hernandez
 
Doors Open @7pm
 
Show Starts @8pm

It’s 1981.  The world watches the Duchess, young, iconic and recently widowed.  The Press see her as public property; her brother thinks her life belongs to him.  Secretly marrying a second time, she hides a life of her own behind closed doors.  But her twin’s jealousy will prove her undoing.

This spare, tender adaptation of Webster’s classic tragedy, by exciting new playwright BRYONY MARKWICK, explores the gap between the twentieth century’s apparent civilisation and the old cruelties buried beneath the surface.

Directed by Imogen Russell Williams
Set and Lighting design by Catherine DiGirolamo
Cast: Katharine Gwen Pons, Damian Christian-Howard, Alan Mirren, Tim Macavoy, Debbie Waldon, Rosalind Parker, David Spence

HAVE YOUR CAKE THEATRE are a new company who intend to produce new versions of classical and Renaissance texts, hoping to shed fresh light on underperformed originals and demonstrate that the big themes have never gone away.

DAMIAN CHRISTIAN-HOWARD has won two Best Actor awards for his leading role in the short film Save the World. He is currently appearing as Benedick in the Bridewell Theatre's lunchtime show, Much Ado About Nothing.

KATHARINE GWEN PONS recently played the eponymous lead in Anouilh's Antigone at Vienna's English Theatre. 

Director IMOGEN RUSSELL WILLIAMS finished a Master's degree in Text and Performance at RADA last year and has been directing since she was at school.  The Oxford DAILY INFO described her ‘Tis Pity She's a Whore as ‘a most satisfying and entertaining production of a sometimes troubling play'.

FOLLOWING its UK premiere season at the Edinburgh Festival, Catwalk Confidential, the memoir of former model Robyn Peterson, will run for a limited season – from September 9 (previews from September 4) to October 3, 2009 – at the Arts Theatre.

A one-woman show, Catwalk Confidential is written by and stars Robyn Peterson, who was spotted by Valentino on a Florida beach as a teenager and went on to make her name modelling for designers such as Karl Lagerfeld, Yves Saint Laurent and Kenzo during the 1970s. Her face appeared on the covers of Vogue, Elle and Marie Claire.

Part fairytale, part memoir, part romance, Catwalk Confidential tells the story of 16-year-old Robyn, fresh from Miami, who gets caught up in the world of high fashion in Paris in the early 1970s. In a whirlwind life of glamour, sex and drugs, Robyn discovers there is one thing to fear above all else – age. There is always a younger girl waiting to step into your shoes.

Tickets to Scots funnyman Frankie Boyle's latest live show 'I Would Happily Punch Every One Of You In The Face' at the HMV Apollo Hammersmith in west London.

Following his epic record-breaking tour in 2008, Frankie Boyle, star of BBC2’s Mock the Week and one of the hottest and most controversial comedians of the moment, is back on the road in 2010 with an all new live show entitled I Would Happily Punch Every One of You in the Face.

In the last four years, Frankie has propelled himself into the premiere league with a host of brilliant performances, both on stage and screen, including every episode of Mock the Week and 8 out of 10 Cats, Live at the Apollo and Would I Lie to You to name but a few.

Alongside his work in front of the camera, Frankie is also a highly-regarded writer. He has written for several series including 8 out of 10 Cats and his highly anticipated autobiography, My Shit Life So Far, will be released in October 2009.

Through the facets of Frankie’s career, his live performances stand strong. His last tour, Frankie Boyle Live sold over 125,000 tickets and played to packed houses across the country and the DVD recording of the show was one of the biggest selling comedy DVDs of 2008.

“This is meat-and-potatoes stand-up, but the sauce is tart, the meat's bleeding and the spuds are hard as rock” - The Guardian

“You can forgive Frankie Boyle's confidence and his apparent belief that he is really that good. That is simply, because he is” - Edinburgh Evening News