Brightest Lights
Showbiz kicks up a notch as the key autumn-winter season gets underway in the run-up to Christmas. Bridget Rowan looks at a choice selection of what’s on offer
From family fun and one-night shows to adult humour, tribute acts and some of the hottest sounds around.
Whatever floats your boat Lancashire theatres have it nailed. Classic ballets, fabulous shows and magical treats for the kids top the autumn and winter bills, so make merry in the run-up to the annual funfest that is Christmas with a chocolate-box selection from theatres across the region.
As the anticipation starts to ramp up and the excitement rises, where would we be without that festive perennial, the panto? There are several to choose from with virtually every theatre in the county staging at least one family show.
Grade II-listed former Victorian cinema The Grand in Clitheroe has a couple coming up, starting with its annual rock’n’roll pantomime. Music and dance extravaganza Puss in Boots of Clitheroe Castle sees the canny cat outwitting villains and solving mysteries to save Christmas. And in a modern take on a classic tale, Saltmine: Red Riding Hood sees our heroine confronting her fears in the deep dark forest.
Heartwarming musical Annie is on at the Mechanics Theatre in Burnley followed by Peter Pan the Panto in January. Join the Milkshake! train at King George’s Hall, Blackburn to meet all the kids’ TV favourites, including Chase and Marshall, Pip and Posy and Blue in Milkshake! Live On Holiday, or have a ball with Cinders and Prince Charming in the magical fantasy Cinderella.
Then it’s ruby slippers at the ready for a trip down the yellow brick road with Dorothy, Lion, Tinman and Scarecrow when The Wizard Of Oz takes to Colne’s Muni Theatre stage and Blackburn Empire Theatre. January sees the magical Sleeping Beauty, complete with dragon, the evil fairy Carabosse and the awesome power of true love, at the Muni. Meanwhile, Giant Blunderbore is on the prowl at the Empire where much-loved family classic Jack and the Beanstalk is set for an extended run.
The Dukes in Lancaster is renowned for its productions, and the latest offering looks set to be another winner. The Borrowers, with a script by award-winning playwright Bea Roberts, is based on Mary Norton’s much-loved children’s tales about tiny people who live under the floorboards. Arriety and her family make good use of the things they find in an empty house, but their peaceful existence is about to be threatened when those pesky humans move in.
Meanwhile, in Blackpool, Coronation Street and Emmerdale actress Hayley Tamaddon and comedian Steve Royle are among the stars of Cinderella at the Grade ll-listed Grand Theatre.
If your fancy is for more adult-oriented entertainment try King George’s Hall where Paddy McGuinness’s Nearly There, Rhod Gilbert and the Giant Grapefruit, Jimmy Carr Laughs Funny and Jason Manford is A Manford All Seasons will have you rolling in the aisles. As The Scummy Mummies celebrate 10 years in the business, they bring their offbeat humour and greatest hits to the Empire in November.
At the heart of Burnley’s cultural scene is The Mechanics, which opened as a theatre in 1979. You can get your humour there American-style with Rich Hall: Shot From Cannons, or for home-grown fun, head to Colne’s Edwardian Muni for an evening with Edinburgh Fringe sensation Ed Byrne.
Music lovers can catch up with 70s hitmakers Showaddywaddy on their 50th anniversary tour, West End and Broadway star Kerry Ellis at the Mechanics, the Swing Commanders and folk-punk fusion Ferocious Dog at The Grand in Clitheroe or let the Muni light up Christmas with The Dreamcoat Stars, from hit West End show Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.
UK superband Toploader will also be appearing live at the Grand, Clitheroe, in December. Catch The Lancashire Hotpots Too Much Too Old Tour at King George’s Hall or join Sleeper Unplugged there for a rare acoustic show from the Britpop legends.
There’s also an evening to be spent with Rovers Legends, escape to the chateau with Dick and Angel, or be swept away on a tide of music and romance with the Imperial Classical Ballet’s enchanting production of Swan Lake, all at King George’s Hall. Or join Ballet Theatre UK as it brings Tchaikovsky masterpiece The Nutcracker to life at the Mechanics.
KING GEORGE’S HALL, BLACKBURN
01254 582579
bwdvenues.com
THE MUNI THEATRE, COLNE
01282 661234
themuni.co.uk
THE DUKES, LANCASTER
01524 598500
dukeslancaster.org
BLACKBURN EMPIRE THEATRE
01254 685500
blackburnempire.com
MECHANICS THEATRE, BURNLEY
01282 664400
burnleymechanics.co.uk
THE GRAND, CLITHEROE
01200 421599
thegrandvenue.co.uk
BLACKPOOL GRAND THEATRE
01253 290190
blackpoolgrand.co.uk