Theatre Picks in Bath
Egg Theatre
See www.theatreroyal.org.uk/
Thu 2 – Sun 26 July. The Secret Garden. This bold new commission reimagines Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic for today’s new generation. Written by Tom Wentworth expect music, magic and a beautiful celebration of nature and childhood as The Egg becomes a living, breathing Secret Garden — a place to sit, dream, and discover.Adults: £17.50 – £22.50, Children/Students: £17.50 – £12.50. Preview: All tickets £15. Schools: £10 plus 1 free teacher ticket for every 10 tickets booked ( 11 tickets free)
Kingswood TheatreFri 10-Sat 11 July. Hadestown. A musical with music, lyrics, and book by Anaïs Mitchell. It blends versions of two ancient Greek myths, Orpheus and Eurydice and Hades and Persephone, to explore enduring and contemporary themes. The story begins with Eurydice, a hungry young girl, going to work in a hellish industrial version of the Greek underworld to escape poverty and the cold, and a poor singer-songwriter lover Orpheus proposing to her. Ticket prices and performance details: Weds 8 July 7:30pm & Thurs 9 July 7:30pm. Full price £14 (plus £1.09 booking fee). Concessions £12 (plus £0.94 booking fee) Family ticket – £42 admits 4 (plus £3.28 booking fee). Friday 10 July 7:30 pm: All tickets £15 (plus £1.17 booking fee). Saturday 11 July 2:30pm: All tickets £12 (plus £0.94 booking fee). Saturday 11 July 7:30pm: All tickets £15 (plus £1.17 booking fee). The production is at Kingswood Theatre, Kingswood School, Fonthill Road, Bath, BA1 5RH. Tickets can be booked via Ticketsource
Mission Theatre
See www.missiontheatre.co.uk/
Fri, Jun 26. The Elixir of Love. Presented by Bath Opera. Friday 26th June at 7:30 and Saturday 27th June at 2:30pm. The Elixir of Love tells the charming story of the shy Nemorino, who believes a mysterious “love potion” will help him win the heart of the witty and independent Adina. But the travelling salesman Dulcamara may not be quite the miracle-worker he claims to be… This joyful production is perfect for both seasoned opera lovers and those discovering opera for the first time. The Elixir of Love will be sung in English and accompanied by piano.
Wed 8-Sat 11 Jul. Gaslight by Patrick Hamilton. Presented by Next Stage Theatre Company. Nightly at 7:30pm with a Saturday matinee at 2pm. Bella is trapped in an unhappy marriage to a cruel manipulative husband. Help arrives unexpectedly one evening in the form of a retired detective, Sergeant Rough. He is investigating an unsolved crime; the brutal throttling of Alice Barlow – known as “The Cabman’s Friend”, a wealthy eccentric widow – more than twenty years before. The case has continued to haunt Sergeant Rough.
Wed 9-Sat 12 Sep. Pink Mist. Presented by Next Stage Theatre Company. A rarely-performed, gripping drama told in echoing verse that reverberates through the mind long after the final line. It follows three young men from Bristol as they answer the call of adventure, confront the brutal reality of conflict, and return home forever changed. Raw, beautifully lyrical, and deeply human, this powerful play – woven from the stunning, resonant language of Owen Sheers – reveals the hidden cost of modern warfare and the people left to gather the pieces.
Rondo Theatre
See https://rondotheatre.co.uk/
Wed 1 – Fri 4 Jul. Grimm • 7:30pm • Full £14 Concs £12 • Professional Theatre. Every year, the creatures of the forest gather to pay homage to the two rulers of the forest, the Faerie King and Forest Witch, by singing songs, telling tales, and wishing on stars, in hopes that one day the two will reunite. WhimsiCo is back with a brand new remount of their critically acclaimed production, in a haunting, ensemble-lead show, with beautiful music by folk duo Humm, and an uplifting message of hope, unity, and the power of once upon a time.
Thu 9 Jul. Improv Wolves. The fearless Improv Wolves create completely new comedy characters, scenes and stories on the spot from audience suggestions. Every show is different! We might see a film noir detective pastiche, hear surprising confessions from some of the most famous names in history or have the dubious honour of being present for the debut of a brand-new improvised song. Improv Wolves have appeared at venues around the UK including Bath Fringe Festival, Birmingham Comedy Festival, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Leicester Comedy Festival, Beardy Folk Festival and Guildford Fringe Festival. Running time: 90 minutes (plus interval). • 7:30pm • Full £10 Concs £8 • Professional Theatre
Fri 10 Jul. Hide, Watson! Two Adventures by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. • 7.30pm • Full £15 Concs £13 • Professional Theatre. Two thrilling tales featuring the greatest double act in literary history. With The Adventure of Charles Augustus Milverton, and The Adventure of the Dying Detective, Hide, Watson! has been adapted and will be performed by Robert Lloyd Parry.
Wed 15 – Sat 18 Jul. Ebb & Flow. • 7.30pm • Full £16 Concs £14 • Professional Theatre. Directed by Bryony Morgan. Written by Gabrielle Finnegan. Ebb & Flow is an intimate, lyrical new play about what happens after the happy ending. When two people move into their first home together after years of love and laughter, they expect solid ground. Instead, they find shifting tides. The play traces the undercurrents of a relationship navigating miscommunication, unmet expectations and the quiet ache of wanting to feel truly seen. Told through a striking blend of dialogue, poetry and movement, Ebb & Flow drifts between the spoken and the unspoken. Some relationships weather the storm. Others learn to swim.
Theatre Royal Bath Main House
See www.theatreroyal.org.uk/
Mon-Sat 29 June-4 July. Maureen Lipman in Allegra. Allegra is full of life, joy and an irresistible urge to sing. She bursts into song at home, in the street and even in the local shops and cafés. Sometimes the orchestra plays only in her imagination.
Mon 6-Sat 11 Jul. Fawlty Towers. Join Basil (Danny Bayne), the delightfully bumbling Major (Paul Nicholas) and Polly (Joanne Clifton) with an 18-strong cast as they bring to life all your favourite moments from the show’s unforgettable twelve episodes. Nightly at 7.30pm. Matinees Weds, Thurs & Sat 2.30pm.
Tue14 – Sat 25 July. Equus. Inspired by a true story, the play sees a bond developing between the boy and the doctor as Dysart searches for answers to the teenager’s obsessive interest in the horses he cares for. Toby Stephens, Amanda Abbington and Noah Valentine in Peter Shaffer’s powerful drama. Evenings 7.30pm. Matinees Wednesday & Saturday 2.30pm.
Tue 28 Jul-Sat 1 Aug. Teechers. It is the end of term and John Godber’s hilarious comedy masterpiece has been reset for our post-Covid times. Bristling with teenage swagger and outlandish imagination, Salty, Gail and Hobby use their BTEC Performing Arts exam to showcase their work. Updated by John Godber from his original 1980s classic, Teechers is a fast-paced comedy with a vital message about the entrenched inequalities of the UK’s education system that are still as punchy as ever forty years later. Evenings 7.30pm. Matinees Weds & Sat 2.30pm.
Tue 4-Sat 8 Aug. Our Man In Havana. Adapted by Clive Francis from Graham Greene’s novel, follows James Wormold, a British vacuum cleaner salesman in pre-revolutionary Havana, Cuba. Struggling financially to support his spoiled daughter, Wormold is recruited by MI6 agent Hawthorne to be a spy. Lacking any actual spy skills or intentions, Wormold fabricates an entire network of fictional agents and reports, using his imagination and local bar conversations. His absurd reports, claiming to depict secret weapons, are taken seriously by MI6, leading to real-world consequences as the Cuban government grows suspicious. Evenings 7.30pm. Matinees Weds, Thursday & Sat 2.30pm.
Theatre Picks outside Bath
Bristol Old Vic Theatre
See https://bristololdvic.org.uk/
Thu 9-Sun 12 Jul. The Enormous Crocodile The Musical. This mischievous musical based on Roald Dahl’s snappy book has toe-tapping tunes by Ahmed Abdullahi Gallab, a rib-tickling book and lyrics by Suhayla El-Bushra, and additional music and lyrics by Tom Brady. Developed and directed by Emily Lim, it features a menagerie of puppets by co-director and puppetry designer Toby Olié, with set and costume design by Fly Davis and puppetry co-designed and supervised by Daisy Beattie.
Alma Theatre, Bristol
See https://www.almatavernandtheatre.co.uk/
Fri 10-Sat 11 Jul. Glove Fulla Vaseline. Written and performed by Andrew Brooke. Comical one man show about the joys of teaching English in a state school for many years. Includes music and anecdotes from the classroom.
Fri 24-Sun 26 Jul. Esther’s Revenge. Pawstudios Africa – one of Nigeria’s most dynamic theatre companies. It’s 1953 in Lagos and Esther has been accused of murdering her white lover Mark. The sentence is death by hanging. What happens next is up to you. 8pm Friday & Saturday, 5pm Sunday.
Bath Voice and Local Democracy Reporters
The journalists are funded by the BBC as part of its latest Charter commitment, but are employed by regional news organisations. A total of 165 reporters are allocated to news organisations in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland including Bath Voice. These organisations range from television and radio stations to online media companies and established regional newspaper groups. Local Democracy Reporters cover top-tier local authorities, second-tier local authorities and other public service organisations.
Bath Voice Monthly Newspaper is distributed free to thousands of homes and some supermarkets – distributed from the first of the month. Harry Mottram is the News Editor
Email him at news@bathvoice.co.uk Bath website: https://bathvoice.co.uk/news/
Bath Facebook: https://tinyurl.com/bdtf2kep Also on Twitter: https://twitter.com/bath_voice And Bluesky @bathvoicenews.bsky.social And also on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/harrymottram6/
Harry Mottram is a freelance journalist has his own website with more stories on a variety of subjects at https://www.harrymottram.co.uk/ and has a strong social media presence – check out his work.
Read the newspaper online at :https://issuu.com/bathvoice
To advertise to thousands of Bathonians call Shaun on 07540 383870 or email him on sales@bathvoice.co.uk