TheatreBloodsport: After Helen of Troy<\/p>\n
Ava Pickett has an impressive track record of imaginative historical dramas, including her award-winning Tudor-era play 1536<\/a>, which had a West End run this year. Alongside co-writing a film about Joan of Arc with Baz Luhrmann, she has reconceived this ancient epic, with Michelle Dockery playing Helen returning to war-ravaged Troy. Man to Man<\/p>\n At the Edinburgh festival in 1987, Tilda Swinton played a German widow who takes on the identity of her dead husband in a prose poem by the Berliner Ensemble\u2019s Manfred Karge. Almost 40 years later, she returns to the role of Ella\/Max in a revised version, again directed by Stephen Unwin. The Standard of LivingPriceless \u2026 Thomas Flynn, Rory Kinnear and Natalia Osipova star in The Standard of Living<\/p>\n What greater \u201cevent theatre\u201d than a new James Graham play? This one brings a twist to Keynesian economics. Directed by Nicholas Hytner, it stars Rory Kinnear as John Maynard Keynes and explores his relationship with the Bloomsbury group and his impact on arts funding. Royal Ballet principal Natalia Osipova co-stars, making her West End debut. Who\u2019s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?<\/p>\n The celebrification of the West End continues apace with this version of Edward Albee\u2019s 1962 play, bringing two starry screen talents together, although both Gillian Anderson and Billy Crudup have proved themselves on stage before now. Directed by Marianne Elliott, they will engage in toxic slanging matches, psychological warfare and marital meltdown. I\u2019ll Be Seeing YouRhinestones guaranteed \u2026 Simon Russell Beale in rehearsals for I’ll Be Seeing You. Photograph: Olivia Attwooll-Keith<\/p>\n There is much to excite about this world premiere \u2013 a meta Martin Sherman play about the flamboyant pianist Liberace, with Simon Russell Beale taking the lead role. Fra Fee co-stars in the production directed by Alan Cumming and Ben Occhipinti. It promises rhinestones aplenty. As You Like It<\/p>\n An all-male production of Shakespeare\u2019s pastoral comedy comes amid some striking gender reversals at the RSC \u2013 Harriet Walter is also reprising her Brutus in Phyllida Lloyd\u2019s all-female Julius Caesar<\/a>. This show, directed by Daniel Evans, features Tony award-winner Jonathan Groff as Rosalind and the talented Fisayo Akinade as Celia. Eagerly awaited \u2026 Inua Ellams. Photograph: Dave Benett\/Getty ImagesOnce Upon a Time in Sokoto<\/p>\n Poet-playwright Inua Ellams earned enormous praise for Barber Shop Chronicles<\/a> and his adaptation of Chekhov\u2019s Three Sisters<\/a>. His Alfred Fagon award-winning drama sounds promising, with the exploration of an unlikely friendship between an enslaved woman and her former master in the lead-up to the formation of Nigeria. King LearDavid Threlfall will perform as King Lear at the Royal Exchange, Manchester. Illustration: David Stewart<\/p>\n There is more than one big-name Lear in store this autumn. Ian McKellen takes on the role (again!) in Simon Stephens\u2019s radically re-spun production at the Yard in east London, opening in November<\/a>, while David Threlfall returns to Manchester\u2019s Royal Exchange after almost three decades in director Matthew Dunster\u2019s reimagined adaptation for the theatre\u2019s 50th anniversary. Balloon Girl<\/p>\n Louisa Maud Evans, otherwise known as Mademoiselle Albertina, was a young Welsh firebrand who died while parachuting during a balloon flight at the Cardiff Exhibition of 1896. Writer-director Hannah McPake creates an upbeat adventure that honours her spirit of curiosity and endeavour. The Lives of OthersHigh stakes \u2026 Stephen Dillane, Keira Knightley and Luke Thompson in The Lives of Others. Photograph: Oliver Rosser, Feast Creative<\/p>\n Keira Knightley and Stephen Dillane star in an adaptation of Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck\u2019s 2006 film, a high-stakes love story set in Stasi-era east Germany. It may follow the trend for transposing hit films to the stage but is helmed by Robert Icke, who at his best makes old stories blazingly new. ComedySam Campbell<\/p>\n The success of Channel 4\u2019s oddball mockumentary Make That Movie<\/a>, and his stint on Amazon hit Last One Laughing, broadcast more widely what insiders have long known: Aussie act Sam Campbell is one of comedy\u2019s most unpredictable talents. Touring set Kid Giblet offers new fans a glimpse of the indelible live experience. Kevin Bridges<\/p>\n Having unfussily built a reputation as one of the UK\u2019s greatest live standups, and off the back of his acclaimed World Cup curtain-raiser on the telly, In Search of the Beautiful Game, Glasgow\u2019s heir to Billy Connolly returns with his keenly awaited new tour, Here If You Need Me. Flo & JoanKeyed up \u2026 Flo and Joan<\/p>\n Not many comedy acts ascend to the next level by absenting themselves from the stage. Musical duo Flo & Joan (AKA Rosie and Nicola Dempsey) managed it with One Man Musical, their for-the-ages bio show about a certain West End composer<\/a>. In With Feeling, a new suite of comic songs, the pair return to their own spotlight. Ahir Shah<\/p>\n After winning the Edinburgh comedy award three summers ago, then conquering Netflix, with a counterintuitive and feelgood show about multicultural Britain and his family history, the Londoner now takes to the road with its follow-up, Golden, inspired (in typical boffinish fashion) by Nietzsche and Gerard Manley Hopkins. Unlike anyone else \u2026 Frankie Thompson: Horrible Things. Photograph: Murdo MacLeod\/The GuardianFrankie Thompson<\/p>\n \u201cIf you laugh, it\u2019s comedy; if you don\u2019t, it\u2019s live art\u201d: so the cult clown-comic (and live artist!) Frankie Thompson describes her new set, Horrible Things. If we can credit her previous, unlike-anyone-else offerings at the Edinburgh fringe and beyond, expect another heart-and-funny-bone-teasing hour of uncategorisable performance. DanceLondon City Ballet<\/p>\n A mix of revivals, forgotten gems and brand-new choreography is the signature of London City Ballet. Its autumn tour programme differs at each venue, but all shows include a revival of Glen Tetley\u2019s Firebird, marking Tetley\u2019s centenary \u2013 his version is about a young woman breaking free from the constraints of her family. Jess & Morgs: Deepfake<\/p>\n The creators of Scottish Ballet\u2019s award-winning Copp\u00e9lia \u2013 which set the classic ballet in an era of AI \u2013 return with a new work exploring the possibilities and pitfalls of technology. Using cutting edge tech, the set-up is an interview between a politician and a journalist. The question is: can you tell what\u2019s really real? English National Ballet: Romeo & JulietAction-packed ballet \u2026 Isaac Hern\u00e1ndez as Romeo and Erina Takahashi as Juliet. Photograph: Laurent Liotardo<\/p>\n Almost 50 years have passed since Rudolf Nureyev created his ballet of Romeo & Juliet, a version less often seen in the UK than Kenneth MacMillan\u2019s but just as powerful. It\u2019s a ballet packed with fast-paced steps and heightened drama from the two feuding families plus Prokofiev\u2019s sumptuous, stirring score. Meet the Hatter<\/p>\n Just one dancer and a stageful of magical projections is enough to create a wonderland in this multimedia family show from Joss Arnott Dance. Arnott\u2019s take on one of Lewis Carroll\u2019s best-loved characters sees the Mad Hatter turn up for a tea party \u2013 but there\u2019s no one there, so his imagination takes over. The Last Hamlet<\/p>\n Paris\u2019s Th\u00e9\u00e2tre de la Ville is dedicating a whole season this autumn to dance-theatre maker Ben Duke, AKA Lost Dog \u2013 quite the honour. On home soil, you can see his new work The Last Hamlet, musing on the idea of Hamlet\u2019s last-ever performance, deconstructing Shakespeare\u2019s tragic hero with characteristic wit.
Theatre Royal Stratford East, London, 3 September-10 October<\/a><\/p>\n
Royal Court theatre, London, 5 September-24 October.<\/a> Traverse theatre, Edinburgh, 29 October-7 November<\/a><\/p>\n
Theatre Royal Haymarket, London, 21 September-12 December<\/a><\/p>\n
@sohoplace, London, 21 September-19 December<\/a><\/p>\n
Pitlochry Festival theatre, 22 September-11 October<\/a><\/p>\n
Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, 26 September-7 November<\/a><\/p>\n
Royal & Derngate, Northampton, 28 September-10 October.<\/a> Touring until 13 February<\/a><\/p>\n
Royal Exchange theatre, Manchester, 2 October-15 November<\/a><\/p>\n
Sherman theatre, Cardiff, 9-24 October<\/a><\/p>\n
Adelphi theatre, London, 14 October-9 January<\/a><\/p>\n
Bristol Beacon, 31 August. Touring until 1 December<\/a><\/p>\n
Eventim Apollo, London, 1-3 September. Touring until 20 February<\/a><\/p>\n
Gala theatre, Durham, 19 September. Touring until 12 December<\/a><\/p>\n
Soho theatre, London, 5-17 October.<\/a> Touring until 14 March<\/a><\/p>\n
Soho theatre, London, 12-24 October<\/a><\/p>\n
York Theatre Royal, 18-19 September. Touring until 24 October<\/a><\/p>\n
Jerwood DanceHouse, Ipswich, 25 September.<\/a> Sadler\u2019s Wells East, London, 1-3 October<\/a><\/p>\n
Liverpool Empire, 15-17 October. Touring until 24 January<\/a><\/p>\n
Pavilion Dance South West, Bournemouth, 24 October. Touring until 26 June<\/a><\/p>\n
Sadler\u2019s Wells East, London, 4-7 November<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TheatreBloodsport: After Helen of Troy Ava Pickett has an impressive track record of imaginative historical dramas, including her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":601268,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[458,146,85,46],"class_list":["post-601267","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-celebrities","tag-celebrities","tag-entertainment","tag-il","tag-israel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601267","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=601267"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601267\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/601268"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=601267"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=601267"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=601267"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}