WORTH A LOOK?: ***
WHERE: Middle Temple Hall
WHEN: 5/4, closes 6/4, tours UK throughout April
Middle Temple Hall is the London venue where Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night was first performed 400 years ago.
WORTH A LOOK?: *****
WHERE: Old Vic
WHEN: 2/4, runs to 14/5
It’s 19 years since star Timothy Spall last acted on stage and just over one since his tremendous grumbling titular turn in Mike Leigh’s biopic Mr Turner inexplicably failed to earn him a best actor Oscar nomination.
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHERE: Coliseum
WHEN: 1/4, runs to 7/5
The home of the English National Opera bursts into a round of spontaneous applause as the biggest star in the West End takes to the stage.
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
OUT: 1/4
TRACKLIST: Happiness; The Pop Kids; Twenty-Something; Groovy; The Dictator Decides; Pazzo!; Inner Sanctum; Undertow; Sad Robot World; Say It To Me; Burn; Into Thin Air.
30 years ago Pet Shop Boys’ debut hit (not their 1st single, actually) went to number 1 in the UK, US, Canada, Finland, Hong Kong, Lebanon, Israel, New Zealand and Norway.
WORTH A LOOK?: *****
WHERE: The O2
WHEN: 27/3 (matinee), UK tour runs to 23/4, international tour finishes 27/8
SETLIST: Grown; Hair; Change Your Life; A.D.I.D.A.S; Wings; Lightning; DNA; Secret Love Song (Part 2); OMG; Crazy In Love medley; Salute; Little Me; Move; How Ya Doin; I Won’t; Love Me Like You; Weird People; The End; Black Magic
Welcome to the UK’s longest-running arena tour of 2016, a phenomenal 37 dates.
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHERE: The O2
WHEN: 26/3, tour runs to 7/5
SETLIST: I’ve Been Losing You; Cry Wolf; Move To Memphis; Stay On These Roads; The Swing Of Things; Cast In Steel; Crying In The Rain; Mother Nature Goes To Heaven; We’re Looking For The Whales; Velvet; Lifelines; Here I Stand & Face The Rain; Sycamore Leaves; She’s Humming A Tune; Foot Of the Mountain; Hunting High and Low; Scoundrel Days; Sun Always Shines On TV; Under The MakeUp; Living Daylights; Take On Me.
We last saw a-ha six years ago on their farewell tour at Wembley Arena but in 2015 they released their fine new Cast In Steel album which they’ve taken on an international jaunt.
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHERE: The O2
WHEN: 22/3, tour runs to 15/11
SETLIST: Hello; Hometown Glory; One and Only; Rumour Has It; Water Under The Bridge; I Miss You; Million Years Ago; Skyfall; Don’t You Remember; Send My Love; Make You Feel My Love; Sweetest Devotion; Chasing Pavements; Someone Like You; Set Fire To The Rain; All I Ask; When We Were Young; Rolling In The Deep.
She’s arguably the world’s biggest pop star at the moment and could’ve easily played stadiums rather than arenas on this tour.
WORTH A LOOK?: *****
WHERE: Phoenix Theatre
WHEN: 20/3, runs to 30/10
This Chichester Theatre production is up for six Olivier Awards on 3/4 and we gave it 5* when it opened at the Savoy in December.
Q: Who is the most nominated actor still living never to win an Oscar? A: Glenn Close (The World According To Garp, The Big Chill, The Natural (supporting nods), Fatal Attraction, Dangerous Liaisons, Albert Nobbs (lead nods)). She brings a touch of Hollywood glamour to the Coliseum and we’re at the 1/4 first preview as this runs to 7/5. Tickets here. Picture via Facebook courtesy English National Opera.
WORTH A LOOK?: ***
WHERE: Dominion Theatre
WHEN: 29/2, runs to 30/4
The cast for this stadium-sized show which has found its way to the Dominion Theatre is as varied as it is star-studded and features, deep breath, David Essex, Michael Praed, Jimmy Nail, Daniel Bedingfield and Heidi from the Sugababes.
