The Theatre Royal Haymarket seems to be cursed. In September, the musical, ‘Marguerite’ closed early. The following show was ‘Girl with a Pearl Earring’ which also closed early. Now ‘Treasure Island’, which was due to play until the end of February will finish on the 10 January 2009. It is difficult to imagine that a show will be found to take over the space at such short notice and many producers may be wary.

The next scheduled production at the theatre is ‘Waiting for Godot’ which is set to run from the 6th May 2009. The Beckett classic will star Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart, and will be the first of the Haymarket’s 2009 season of in-house productions. This will be the second season of these and they will be directed by Sean Mathias. The 2008 season which included Edward Bond’s ‘The Sea’ starring David Haig and Eileen Atkins was a notable success.

Another family show that has failed to sell theatre tickets and therefore has decided to close early is ‘Horrid Henry – Live and Horrid’ which will now leave the Trafalgar Studios a week early on the 4th January 2009. Despite this, preparations are afoot to take the show back out on tour.

Book Waiting for Godot tickets

One of the most exciting productions to come to the National Theatre in 2009 will be an adaptation of a 1994 Russian film which won the Oscar for best foreign film in 1995. ‘Burnt By the Sun’ has been adapted for the stage by Peter Flannery. The original screenplay was by Nikita Mikhalkov and Ruslam Ibragimbekov.

Flannery is best known for his television series, ‘Our Friends in the North’ although he is currently enjoying critical acclaim courtesy of ‘The Devil’s Whore’ which is showing on Channel Four.

‘Burnt By the Sun’ will be directed by Howard Davies who had a huge hit in 2007 with a new version of the Russian writer Gorky’s ‘Philistines’. Although the casting is not yet complete, he will be reunited with a number of actors from that production including Rory Kinnear, Stephanie Jacob and Duncan Bell.
Davies has a particular interest in Russia and this story is set in 1936 under the rule of Stalin and his five year plans. This was shortly before the dictator launched the great purge which ensured the suppression of dissent, or even perceived dissent as millions were executed or sent to Gulag labour camps.

This may not sound like the most immediately commercial theatre but, by the end of the run of ‘Philistines’, people were queuing around the block. This is a london show that you should book early for.

The government’s Department for Children, Schools and Families has awarded a grant of £1.85 million pounds to the Pegasus Theatre in Oxford. This means that it now has reached its fundraising target of £6.3 million pounds. The organisation was established in 1969 to house Oxford Youth Theatre. The theatre has also raised money from the Arts Council of England, Oxfordshire County Council, their patron, the author Philip Pullman and a number of local trusts and foundations.

The work to be carried out includes the demolishing of dilapidated workshops, a complete renovation of the auditorium and the construction of a brand new backstage area. There will also be new administration offices, a dance studio and a foyer/bar.

Meanwhile, the new Artistic Director of Bolton’s Octagon Theatre has warned that they may have to stop producing their own work unless they receive more funding. David Thacker who was previously Artistic Director at the Young Vic and the Lancaster Dukes theatres claims that the Octagon receives less funding than other similar companies.

Although he is stressing the need for more public funding, he has also stated that he intends to ensure box office income will be increased. Many regional theatres face a similar challenge to put on productions that will sell enough theatre tickets to support their subsidised existence.

They don’t get the critical acclaim that the RSC’s revivals of the bard get. Neither are they showered with prestigious awards like the National Theatre or the Donmar Warehouse. However, if a producer wants to make big money in the West End, they certainly consider staging a musical. Actually musicals do receive awards these days, though many of them are specifically for musical theatre and some argue are often inaugurated by the people working in that industry themselves.

It is not all plain sailing though. ‘Imagine This’ is to end its run at the New London Theatre before Christmas after running for less than two months. It is set in occupied Poland in the run-up to the Holocaust and some point out that; whilst coach loads of people will turn up to the latest musical celebrating the back catalogue of former pop stars, they may not be in the mood for a song, a dance and the murder of millions.

Even Cameron Mackintosh’s production of ‘Oliver’ is suffering, and that is before it has opened. Certainly, there are many rumours circulating, and they haven’t been helped by the fact that the first two previews have been cancelled, much to the disappointment of those who had booked their theatre tickets well in advance. For those that would still like to see this musical, you can purchase you Oliver tickets with Concierge Desk.

The Southwark Playhouse seems to go from strength to strength, certainly their recently announced plans for the earlier part of 2009 promise much. As always, a variety of visiting companies provide some exciting new work.

A new play by the Danish writer Thor Bjorn Krebs called ‘About Tommy’ will run from the 31st March to the 25th April 2009. It is produced by Brother Tongue, who specialise in producing translations of both classic and contemporary European plays.

The play is the result of two years development work and was shortlisted for the Oxford Samuel Beckett Theatre Trust Award 2008. It is to be directed by Elly Green who was responsible for a wonderful revival of Michael Frayn’s ‘Copenhagen’ at the Tabard Theatre.

‘About Tommy’ asks the question, “What price would you pay for peace?” The producers explain the subject of the play further.

“When Tommy joins the Danish army, he is looking for a way to make a difference. Posted to Bosnia as part of the UN’s peace-keeping mission during the early 90s, he struggles to understand the violence around him. When he and his comrades find themselves in the firing line, Tommy begins to fight back.”

“About Tommy tells the absurd and tragic story of a young soldier trying to preserve his humanity against all the odds. Based on the real accounts of the recent war in the former Yugoslavia, it is a wonderfully irreverent exploration of how far we will go to make peace – when everyone else is determined to do the opposite.”

Good to see a london show which promises to be thought provoking as it does entertaining.