Comedy Festivals Music Theatre ThisWeek In London

Threes To See 5-11 Mar: Opening this week, Festival Of Rest & Resistance, One nighters, Vault Festival picks

By | Published on Friday 1 March 2019

THREE OPENING THIS WEEK

Circa | Old Red Lion | 5-30 Mar
“The twenty-first century. Being gay is supposedly more integrated than ever. Marriage is legal, parenthood is possible and #LoveWins is trending on twitter. The time has arrived to settle down with the man you love for a life of lasting companionship. But in a world where sex is readily available, and with a history of sexual freedom; what does it mean to be in a gay relationship in the modern age? And why are so many gay men still lonely?” Tom Ratcliffe’s acclaimed debut play returns to London after its 2016 premiere. See this page here for more.

The Lady Of The Camellias | Waterloo East Theatre | 7-24 Mar
A new adaptation of Alexandre Dumas fils’ 1848 novel ‘La Dame aux Camélias’, more commonly known in English as ‘Camille’, and as the basis for Verdi’s ‘La Traviata’. If you’re not aware of it, it tells the story of  Parisian courtesan, Marguerite Gautier, known as the Lady of the Camellias because of her tendency to wear said flowers to signal her availability, who turns her back on a glamorous lifestyle to pursue a love that ends in tragedy. Wah. Don’t be sad though, go see it. See the venue website here.

Angry Alan | Soho Theatre | 5-30 Mar
“Looking out over the country, this country, where I was born and raised, I wonder what’s going to become of us. Because this can’t be the future, can it? Everyone just… changing the rules?” Roger thinks the world’s gone mad. He hates his job, his ex-wife torments him and to top it all, his girlfriend just discovered feminism. Roger’s about to lose his shit. Until he discovers Angry Alan: online activist and ‘voice of reason’…” This one won a ton of acclaim and a Fringe First in Edinburgh and you’d basically be mad not to see it if you have the chance. Click here.


THREE AT THE FESTIVAL OF REST & RESISTANCE

Future Perfect | Battersea Arts Centre | 6 Mar
The Festival of Rest & Resistance, curated by Jess Thom of Touretteshero and taking place at Battersea Arts Centre over the next couple of weeks, showcases a range of events from the disability arts scene, and everyone is welcome. Hurrah. So, we’ve selected three of said events to tip and this one’s the first, a reading of Matilda Ibini’s play ‘A.I.D.A.N’ – which explores the idea of a world where human carers are replaced with intelligent androids – followed by a panel discussion with experts in AI and technology. See the venue website here.

Mental | Battersea Arts Centre | 7-9 Mar
Next up: this autobiographical piece for small audiences, performed in a bedroom. “The Metropolitan Police call him a Domestic Extremist. The NHS have described him as ‘highly disturbed’ and labelled him with Borderline Personality Disorder. ‘A real and present threat to the safe running of our lawful business’ is how E.ON described him at the Royal Courts of Justice. He prefers the term Mental. After 15 years of being an outlaw and inpatient, artist activist ‘the vacuum cleaner’ presents an autobiographical performance told through his psychiatric records, police intelligence files and corporate injunctions collected through the Data Protection Act.” Details here.

Comedy Without Victims | Battersea Arts Centre | 9 Mar
Our final pick is this excellent looking comedy night that really sells itself with its fab line up: Laurence Clark, Evelyn Mok, Jess Thom, comedy storyteller Captain Hotknives, writer-performer Annalisa Dinnella, and comedy double act EGG. But it also sounds like it will have a very comfortable atmosphere: “Are you someone who loves stand-up but hates going to gigs? Live comedy can make for an edgy and unpredictable experience, but does this always need to be at someone else’s expense, possibly yours? We don’t think so!” Head this way for more. Oh, and for a listing of all the other events happening in the Festival of Rest & Resistance, see this link here.


THREE ONE NIGHTERS

Who Run The World | Old Red Lion Theatre | 11 Mar
I love showcases, and lots of people I know love showcases too. I also like ones that focus on women, being an angry feminist and all that. So this looks rather good to me, a collection of new work from “some of Wales’ most exciting, female writing talent”, all members of  Chippy Lane’s Welsh Female Writer’s Group. It’s all work in progress stuff, but I think it will be great to be in on the burgeoning of all that potential. See this page here for more.

Sarah Keyworth – Dark Horse | Soho Theatre | 11 Mar (pictured)
“Join Sarah as she tells you about her life with an important little girl and her battle against every expectation of what being a girl means. Think Girls Just Wanna Have Fun but British, deadpan and in no way similar.” This is written in the listing and I endorse this message. Keyworth has had huge acclaim up at Edfringe, winning a Herald Angel and an Edinburgh Comedy Award nomination. A good use of your time, head this way for info.

Stand Up Philosophy | The Bill Murray | 5 Mar
Looks like this might be a regular thing that I just haven’t picked up on previously, oops, but yay for the fact it exists. And what exactly is it, you might ask? Over to the bluurrrrb: “Stand-up Philosophy is like stand-up comedy, except that instead of just being funny, it’s also philosophical. Comedy’s most thoughtful stand-ups join academic philosophers to take on the big problems of meaning and value – and you get to ask questions. It’s like a cross between a stand-up night and philosophical TED talks, only more fun. And there’s a bar.” More information right about here.


THREE VAULT FESTIVAL PICKS

Blue Thunder | Vault Festival | 27 Feb-17 Mar (pictured)
Hurrah, back to Vault Festival, where I discovered many more than three shows I’d like to see this week, but managed to whittle it down. First up is ‘Blue Thunder’, an immersive piece performed in a minibus: “It’s 3am in small-town Ireland. The nightclub is closed and Brian’s not taking any more fares until tomorrow. But, when his drunk sons show up demanding a lift home, it becomes clear that the night is only just getting started…” Details here.

Bobby & Amy | Vault Festival | 6-10 Mar
“It’s the late nineties, Take That, Tamagotchis, Dib Dabs, and PogSwaps. When 13 year old Bobby and Amy meet, hundreds of cows dot across the fields and the sun always shines. But when the cows begin to burn, Bobby and Amy’s sleepy Cotswold town faces a catastrophe that will change their home forever.” A few years back at the Edinburgh Fringe we saw and absolutely loved ‘Rainbow’, a previous play by the award winning writer of this show so we are expecting good things from this new piece. Click here for info.

The Myth Of The Singular Moment | Vault Festival | 6-10 Mar
This sounds intriguing and brilliant, and is the work of a real talent, award winning writer and musician Jim Harbourne. “Two musician-performers take us on a fantastical journey that links four characters in interconnecting tales across the multiverse, in a story that explores an existential conundrum of belief. Somewhere out there, has another version of you followed a better path?” Head this way for all the details.



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