- Cabaret starring Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne
The West End’s Playhouse Theatre is being repurposed as the Kit Kat Club to stage director Rebecca Frecknall’s (Summer And Smoke, Almeida and West End) vision of this musical and movie classic with film stars Redmayne and Buckley (Romeo and Juliet, Sky Arts). Runs from 15 November 2021 and is currently booking to 16 April 2022. Tickets 1st preview review
- Read on for reasons including new ABBA album, Dadi Freyr tour, Beverley Knight musical and Rina Sawayama gig
2. 1st ABBA album for 30-plus years
ABBA released 8 studio albums between 1973 and 1981. In September new songs I Still Have Faith In You and Don’t Shut Me Down were premiered from 1st album in 40 years, Voyage. Little Boots is part of the band that plays at the 2022 ABBA shows in east London that will not feature the Swedish supergroup in person. Tickets
3. New Greenwich Theatre pantomime The Queen Of Hearts
2020 was the 1st Christmas since 2014 where – because of Covid-19 – we hadn’t seen Greenwich Theatre’s annual pantomime written by and starring the genius-like Andrew Pollard. 2021’s pantomime is The Queen Of Hearts which runs from 19 November to 2 January 2022. Pollard stars, writes and directs and will appear alongside fellow regular Anthony Spargo. Tickets
4. New Steps’ tour reaches The 02
We last saw Steps at Greenwich Music Time in July 2018 and said then: ‘The band’s love of their audience and enthusiasm for what they do is matched by the crowd and the gig rarely sags as it hits the heights of its inevitable Bee Gees-based conclusion.’ What The Future Holds was an album of the month for us in 2020 and we join 1 of our favourite bands in The 02 for 1 of 2 gigs there on an 18-date UK tour. The divine Sophie Ellis Bextor supports. Tickets
5. Dadi Freyr on tour
Iceland’s 2021 Eurovision entry with 10 Years was the song we thought most likely to win pre-Contest and Freyr should be proud to have placed 4th not least because Covid-19 meant he could not perform live. Freyr’s sold out a 7-date UK tour this month and we join him at 02 Kentish Forum. Tickets
6. The Drifters’ Girl starring Beverley Knight opens
Knight is 1 of the West End’s most impressive performers and we last saw her in Pantoland at the Palladium shortly before its premature closure because of Covid-19 lockdown. The Drifters’ Girl is a new musical about the band’s manager that has been previewing in Newcastle and also includes in its cast Matt Henry (Kinky Boots, Adelphi) and Adam J Bernard (Dreamgirls, Savoy). Runs at the Garrick Theatre 4 November to 26 March 2022. Tickets Preview review
7. Rina Sawayama plays Brixton
We 1st saw Sawayama support Charli XCX in 02 Brixton Academy on Halloween 2019 and her self-titled debut album SAWAYAMA won our Best Album monsta a year later. Little did we know then how much acclaim and even an Elton John duet would follow. This date at Electric has been much rearranged and Sawayama also plays Camden’s Roundhouse this month before a world tour into 2022. Tickets
8. Death Of England: Face to Face on Sky Arts
Clint Dyer (Get Up, Stand Up!, Lyric Theatre) and Roy Williams won monstas for plays Death Of England and Death Of England: Delroy at the National last year and here follow them up with a confrontation of the main characters starring Giles Terera for Sky Arts which airs 25 November. Details
9. Adele releases new 30 album
Arguably the UK’s most successful female solo artist is now 33 but her new album is aimed to explain her divorce at that titular age of 30 to her child. Debut single Easy On Me is strong although not amongst her finest work which we consider to be Rolling In The Deep, Someone Like Me and Rumour Has It. We wouldn’t be surprised if some live dates perhaps including Wembley Stadium aren’t announced soon. Tickets
monstagigz 
One comment