"The Spy Who Came In From The Cold" by John Le Carre

Adapted by David Eldridge.

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

For the first time ever, a novel by John le Carré is brought to life in a stage adaptation. Personally, I have never read any of Le Carré's books so couldn't make any comparisons of the story from book to stage, so I've had to take this production at face value, being the first time of experiencing the story. Sometimes I think this is the best option for a theatre reviewer as there's nothing to compare what you see on stage to.

British intelligence officer Alec Leamas is weary, hardened, and ready to "come in from the cold", in other words, returning from Berlin to England intending to retire from The Service, after witnessing the murder of his friend and best undercover agent, Karl Reimeck.

But when spymaster George Smiley presents one final mission, that should see the head of the East German Secret Service, and the man who murdered his friend Hans-Dieter Mundt, ousted from power, Leamas agrees to stay in the game. Dispatched into enemy territory, he finds his convictions tested and his defences breached by Liz Gold, a quietly defiant librarian whose compassion threatens to thaw his frostbitten heart.

Ralf Little plays Alec Leamas. I have been a fan of Ralf's since his days in "Two Pints Of Lager" and "The Royle Family", but this role shows what an excellent serious, theatre character actor he is. To start with he seemed incredibly clipped in his speeches, and once I'd got used to this, came to realise that it all fitted in with the old 1940's style Dan Dare type of film noir. 

By the second part of the play though the delivery sounded so much more natural, maybe because of the anger that was brought out from the character. I think that when you're only used to seeing an actor play television roles, and then you see them on stage, I think it brings out the real mettle in an actor; and by the end I was a massive Ralf Little stage character actor, as well as still loving all of his televisual roles.

Jonny Burman plays several roles including Riemeck, Kiever and Probation Officer. Kiever brings Leamas to Holland to meet with the Russian interrogator Peters. 

Melody Chikakane Brown plays Miss Crail  and President of the Tribunal.

Grainne Dromgoole is Liz Gold who becomes Leamus’s lover after meeting him at the library where they both work. What a lot of passion comes this character and in the Tribunal scene, you just want to go and give Liz a massive cuddle.

Jeff D'Sangalang plays Ashe, a low-level Communist spy working in London, Ashe makes contact with Leamus as soon as he gets out of prison, then introduces him to his superior, Sam Kiever.

Peter Losasso is Mundt. A former member of the Nazi party, current member of the Abteilung, and secret British agent, Hans-Dieter Mundt is a cynical, cold-blooded killer and anti-Semite. He worked as an East German spy in London, was involved in a murder, and tried to kill George Smiley.

Nicholas Murchie is Control, the head of the British secret service, or “the Circus,” Control is a member of the upper class, whose polite and banal manner conceals his deep cynicism and manipulative intelligence. Control convinces Leamus, who he sees as expendable, to go on a mission to frame Mundt.

Jo Servi plays Pitt, Ford  and Governor.

Eddie Toll is Fiedler, who has begun to suspect Mundt of being a British agent, which is why Control sends Leamus on his mission.  Fiedler comes to like and trust Leamas, who he sees as merely a simple operator.

Tony Turner plays George Smiley, a former agent for the Circus, and Karden.

Clara Wesseley and James Burman make up the Ensemble.

Directed by Jeremy Herrin alongside Tour Director Joe Lichtenstein. What I really enjoyed was the visitations given to the audience to the inner workings of Leamus's head. The people in the play who constantly revolve inside his mind is like some ghoulish nightmare. I love the pace in this play, always seeming to hurry along, urgently galloping on to get to the conclusion of the play. A conclusion that became something that I did not expect at all.

There's also a scene with Leamus and Mundt and a barrel of water which makes for a very uneasy watch.

Design is by Max Jones. The highlight of this particular set design is the final scene, which I'm not going to give away because the design is vital to how the play ends, and let's just say, it's not a happy one.

Lighting Designer is Azusa Ono. This is one area that really creates a lot of tension for the play. Most of the play is shrouded in darkness, and the shadows that are created really create that tension that all good thrillers should emit to its' audience. Programmed by Nick Simmons.

Sound Design is by Elizabeth Purnell. This is another area which sets the mood and gets you sliding towards the edge of your seat. There's one particular sound effect which will make you feel slightly nauseous; I won't say what it is, but listen out in the second act!

Paul Englishby's original musical compositions are the third side to this wonderfully evocative triangle of tension.

It's very ironic that on one of the hottest days of the year so far that the play is "The Spy Who came In From The Cold"; that said these actors must have been roasting on stage, especially Ralf whose costume consisted mostly of a suit and trenchcoat. Costume Supervisor is Laura Rushton.

I love a good thriller, and this has been written by one of the most famous spy thriller writers ever. The stage production has all the tension of watching a film, and then some, in fact the stage version is very cinematic in itself.

If you like a thriller that is packed with twists and turns and presented by a very talented group of actors - sorry, not sure what a collection of actors is called; maybe a cast of actors? - then this is the play for you.

"The Spy Who Came In From The Cold" is at the Nottingham Theatre Royal until Saturday 27 June.

 "Accidental Death Of An Anarchist" by Dario Fo and Franca Rame.

Adapted by Tom Basden.

Nottingham Lace Market Theatre.

Here's another one of those plays where I know the play title and should know the story and, in the last quarter of a century, feel that I should have seen it, at least once, but I didn't and I haven't!

An anarchist has fallen to his death from a window whilst in police custody. But did he fall or was he pushed?

As the police attempt to avoid a scandal, a fraudster, known only as the Maniac, is brought into Police Headquarters just as the officers are preparing for a judicial review of the recent "accidental" death. Outwitting his captors, the Maniac dupes them into performing a farcical recreation of the incident, exposing the corruption and idiocy at the heart of the system.

Dan Janes (Maniac) is a comedy genius in this role, and is a real find. This is Dan's debut for the Lace Market Theatre, although he has worked with the Nottingham Playhouse as well as the National Youth Theatre. Maniac is a blend of Freddie Starr's unpredictability and comic danger, The Joker's  comic eeriness and threat, Malcolm McDowell's Alex from "A Clockwork Orange", Roger, the Alien from "American Dad", being a constant character re-imaginer and the edginess of Lee Evans stage work. If you can imagine all of these characteristics in one persona, then you're close to how Dan plays this character. 

Dan also gets the majority of the script, never falling over the words, especially with the breakneck speed that it's delivered. This is full on physical comedy and his facial expressions add to his visual comedy skills. With Maniac being on stage for practically all of the play, I imagine that Dan will be exhausted by the end of this week.

 

Joe Foster (Inspector Burton) returns to the Lace Market Theatre after working in London. Burton is the first of the police force to encounter Maniac, and straight away shows that Maniac has the ability to run rings around authority figures, giving them not a second to unravel his speed talk. All of these characters bring a wonderful feeling of slapstick and farce to the stage, which becomes even more apparent in the second act. Joe returns in Act Two and is the recipient of lots of physical kicking, all of which sounded like contact was made on every occasion. Another excellent comedy role.

 

Mark Anderson (Superintendent Curry) makes his second appearance on the Lace Market stage as Curry. Fo has created some brilliant comedy roles for these characters and have had proper comedy breath breathed into each role by all of these actors. But, don't take my word for it, korma long and see for yourself!

 

Luke Willis (Daisy) is one of those actors who, like Dan, has a very flexible face and uses it to wonderful effect as D.I. Daisy. I've been lucky enough to see Luke in many productions over the years, but playing Daisy has to be the pinnacle of his comedic talents, thus far anyway. Think Mr Bean's facial contortions and you'll be close to just how comical Luke's visual talents can be.

 

Raymond Macdonald-Hulme (P.C. Joseph) is another brilliant find for the Lace Market Theatre. Raymond makes his debut Lace Market Theatre performance, having acted in several productions in Leicestershire.

 

Phyllis Ruse (Phelan/P.C. Jackson) also makes her debut here. Jackson is a lovely comedy character and Phelan is the magazine reporter, seen in the second act who also manages to get hoodwinked about what may have been the real truth about the initial death of the anarchist.

This production is another one of those ensemble pieces where every actor is as strong as the next one, making the whole cast's combined qualities a sure fit hit with the practically packed auditorium.

Directed by Jamie Goodliffe, who also makes his debut as Director. Well, if this is what a directorial debut looks like, then bring on the next one because this show is as close to perfection as you can get. It's also a very brave debut due to the express train pace, the timing of the jokes, which often are delivered like a machine gun. The physical comedy is timed perfectly as is the farce and the slapstick elements of the play. Another perfect area is the casting.

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• Lighting Design is by Esther Warren. There are sections of the play that require split second lighting changes, and every cue for these changes are executed perfectly.
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• Sound Design is by Darren Coxon, and like the lighting cues, the sound cues are timed to perfection. Much of the physical comedy is almost like watching a piece of animation, and the sound effects that go along with that field make the connection even more realistic, thanks to the sound cues.

The set design is the first thing you see as you walk through the door, naturally, and that piques your interest in the performance you're going to see. The set is one room on the third floor of the police station. There's a wonderful scene where Maniac transports us from the third floor to the fourth floor, thanks to a few changes to the props, sourced by Lesley Brown and Wendy Silver, and a clever use of the video background. One of the doors from the office also shows a corridor which leads off from this room. Guy Evans, who designed this set has really created one of those sets that keep your eyes occupied throughout the play as you notice different things in different parts continuously.

The projection showing the world outside the window is by Matt Allcock and created by Joe Foster.

What I wasn't expecting were dance routines scattered around the story. This area was thanks to Hannah Gorton, and will give you another reason to smile.

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• Stage Managed by Sammy Whitworth and Chloe Murcott.
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• Wardrobe is by Max Bromley and Madeline Gould, and the work that has gone into Maniac's various costumes is marvellous and very commendable.

This is one of the funniest plays I have seen, but that is due to an incredibly talented cast who can take the comedy from the page and bring the laughs to life on stage. It's also due to a Director who has a vision, and the ability to bring forth the comedy within politics.

Although written in 1970, you'll find plenty of modern additions to the script, and I smiled at the panto mentions and the type of people who are used to try and get bums on seats for pantomimes. There are some nice local mentions that have been added to the adaptation aside from Tom Basden's adaptation. Tom's name may be familiar to you, especially if like myself you're a fan of the comedy "Plebs". The final speech by Maniac brings the attitude of modern police behaviour right up to date, leaving quite a serious thought with the audience before they leave the theatre.

Monday was first night and was practically a full house, and I think that you may need to get your skates on to get a ticket for the remaining shows, as I have a feeling this production is going to be sold out, pretty damn quick!

"Accidental Death Of An Anarchist" is at the Lace Market Theatre until Saturday 27 June.

Photographs by Grace Eden Photography.

 "Dare To Dream Jr" by The Young Performers.

Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton.

Who doesn't love a Disney song? Well, The Young Performers most obviously do, and let's face it there are plenty to choose from.

I'd expected  a straight forward Disney revue, but no, this hour long production is almost like a musical play in itself. The group take the roles of new "imaginees" on their first day at Walt Disney Imagineering Studio. From this premise we are treated to an hour of some of the biggest Disney hits from all over the decades. As the group sets out to help each other discover their dreams, they work together to explore the power of dreams to unite, inspire, and make anything possible.

The main roles are played by Lottie Ellis , Alex Povey, Alexa Lewis, Olivia Hill , Mia Allen, Lexie-Mae Hart , Neve Johnson, AJ Chamberlain, Remy Read, Evie Perks, Jamie Higgins, Frankie Burden, Clarissa Armitage, Isobel Pickering and Paige Bone.

The dance ensemble are made up of Alexia Simpson, Megan Shackleton, Molly Price and Violet Graney. You know I love a good tap section, and I'm treated to one of those as well.

The other two ensemble groups are as follows....

The Dare Ensemble are Daisy O’Connor, Elijah Green, Emily Wilkins, Keeley Rickerby, Mily Hopkins, Imogen Scott and Olivia Monk. 

The Dream Ensemble consist of Amelia Baker, Archie Brooks-Ball, Emily-Mae Taylor, Emmie Simmonds, Livvy Read, Millie Newbold and Sophie Longcroft.

I would have loved to have seen some of the smaller Young Performers, like Elijah, moved forward as quite a bit of the time he seemed to be closer to the back behind the taller dancers.

I have always been impressed by this group, and this production takes it even further than before. There are sections in the show where two sets of step ladders are used to elevate the featured singers. This in itself requires utmost concentration from the person moving the ladders on wheels, as well as trust by the person up the ladders, but watching the faces of both participants of the stage manoeuvres it seemed as if travelling by step ladder was the most natural thing to do.

Directed by Lewis McDowall, who makes his directorial debut for The Young performers, and a magical job he does of it as well. I could imagine this show being staged at any of the Disneyland theme parks, especially the ending where the cast appear through the central Mickey Mouse doors to the music of Disney to take their final bows. Loved the imaginative staging and story in this production.

Musical Director is Vicky Byrne, who also makes her debut in the role of Musical Director. The music, and I am assuming that these are backing tracks, are extremely clear. Some of Disney's songs are not the easiest to vocalise on, and there are a couple of performances which show this, but you know what, that doesn't matter because everyone has different strengths, but what really matters is the oomph that everyone provides, and the absolute look of joyousness on every face, I was in my absolute element listening and watching this show.

I adore the music of Disney, it takes me back to my childhood, but there were songs in here that I hadn't heard before, and I hadn't anticipated being educated as well as entertained. the playlist for the show includes Disney bangers like "Be Our Guest", "I Just Can't wait To Be King", "Let It Go", "Friend Like Me", "You've Got A Friend In Me", "Go the Distance", a fabulous mash up of "Hakuna Matata/Bare Necessities", which I had not heard previously, plus the brilliant "Nonsense Medley", again a new one on me, even though I knew all the songs that made the medley, plus many more.

Lottie Ludlow is the choreographer. This is a big show with a large cast list, and the choreography for such a big ensemble was enchanting, especially that tap section.

Ella Charlesworth is also the Assistant Director and Choreographer.

The costumes are curated by Sarah Charlesworth but also created by members of The Young Performers through everyday clothes. Another clever touch to the show.

The set is designed and constructed by the Young Performers’ Young Techies, Eva O’Riordan, Liv Michaud, Gizel Chaperova and Maddie Taft, under the expert eye of Stage Manager and Set Designer Roydon Charlesworth, assisted by Finlay Tomlinson, who seems to be branching out into other areas of stage craft.

The set has a real magical feel about it with two big with Mickey Mouse's head taking pride of place in central position. At either side are, what looks like large hand drawn pictures of characters from the Disney films in a montage. These are not randomly chosen because if you pay attention to the characters and the songs that are being sung at the time, a spotlight picks out a character from the film that the song is sung from. Clever!

Lighting operation is by Gizel Chapanova, under the watchful eye of the master, Dave Martin, and sound operation by Olivia Michaud. I would have liked to have had the volume of the onstage mics turned up just a notch, but I also recognise that every person on that stage sings at a different level every time they go on stage, so getting that right sound mix isn't the easiest of tasks, and I have every respect for both sound and light operators. You know how picky I can be!

"Dare to Dream Jr." is a dream of a show and is at the Duchess Theatre until Saturday 20 June.

 "A Beginner's Guide To Widowhood"

Nottingham Arts Theatre (Studio).

Originally created by Omar Khan and written by Rae Mainwaring  and performed by Liz Jadav.

This sixty minute play is perfect for the Studio space of the Nottingham Arts Theatre due to its' intimacy between performer and audience.

Suria Smith is on an out-of-season package holiday in Turkey, with her two teenage children, a 20-year-old travel guide book, and an audiobook on grief. But not her husband, Dan. Because he's dead. The play takes us back to Dan and Suria's first meeting and snapshots of their life before his passing as well as the Turkey trip and coming to terms with being a widow.

The play shows what a person sometimes goes through when they lose a partner; the well meant sympathy, the unasked for advice and the well intended sentiments and enquiries about how she is feeling. Anyone who has lost a loved one will know exactly how these, albeit well meant, sympathetic offerings are not always welcomed.

There's that empty chair left at a table and the painful memories of hearing a song that brings back memories of better and happier times. For me, who lost my wife almost five years ago, it was a piece right at the start of the play involving pin numbers and something akin to brain fog. That happened to me, almost as if you're in another world. There's other lines and scenarios as well that mirrored my situation, especially regarding snatches of music, which will be relatable to many, many people. It's also a credit to the well observed writing.

Liz takes us through those stages of loss, the despair, the fright, the emptiness, the feeling of being alone, but also the feeling of hope and those "baby steps" in rebuilding her life. They say that "time heals", but when you have lost the love of your life, you realise what a stupid and inaccurate saying that is. Time just makes the pain more manageable, it never heals. 

Theatre is a wonderful way of escapism, but it's also a perfect stage, if you'll pardon the pun, for getting across areas of emotion such as death without preaching or judging. There are though many lovely splashes of humour in this story, which I am sure will also be relatable to many people.

Directed by Andrew Breakwell. The pace of the monologue is perfect, allowing you to, in stages fall into the memory with Suria, at other times the frustration steams along creating the anger felt inside of her, needing to erupt like a simmering volcano. The humour takes nothing away from the aching of missing that person, and only adds to visualise the humanity in loss.

Movement Director is Kitty Winter. At times the movements are almost balletic, almost dreamlike or when time stands still for that small moment in time.

Wayne Walker-Allen is the Sound Designer. the sound effects and constant weaving of Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy", dissected and stripped back to create the music snatches throughout the hour, almost sounding like the song is teasing you into remembering the past.

Ali Bakewell is Technical and Moral Support, and I think we all know that umbrella covers a wide area.

"A Beginner’s Guide to Widowhood" was first performed on 1st October 2021 as part of the China Plate and Warwick Arts Centre ‘First Bite Festival 2021’ prior to a regional tour in 2025, co-produced and directed by Omar Khan. The story was written in partnership with the charity Widowed and Young.  

Before shooting off after the play, I took the chance to say hello to Liz before she started the after show discussion, which everyone is welcome to partake of and share their thoughts on the play and their experiences. You will not find a more welcoming and lovely crew than Liz and her quartet of theatre makers.

There's one more chance to catch this beautifully sad but upliftingly hopeful piece of theatre tonight at 7pm at the Nottingham Arts Theatre Studio.

 "Out Of Order" by Ray Cooney.

Beeston Players.

Round Hill School, Beeston.

When Richard Willey, a Government Junior Minister, plans to spend the evening with Jane Worthington, one of the Opposition’s typists, in the Westminster Hotel, things go disastrously wrong - beginning with the discovery of a body trapped in the hotel’s only unreliable sash window.

Desperately trying to get out of an extremely sticky situation, Richard calls for his secretary, George Pigden who, through Richard’s lies sinks further and further into trouble with everybody and ends up going through an identity crisis.

Things go from bad to worse with the arrival of Jane’s distraught young husband and with the addition of an unscrupulous waiter, a frustrated Hotel Manager, Mrs Willey and Nurse Foster,  things really come to a head!

Farce is a funny old area of comedy which takes me back to my childhood in the 70's. Brian Rix and "whoops there goes my trousers". Farce is always about timing and doors, just think "Fawlty Towers" at the supreme end of the farce scale. Farce also encompasses a lot of physical humour and there's no shortage of that here.

Farce is a comedy style that is exaggerated and aims at entertaining the audience through situations that are over the top, and thus improbable. That too is in abundance here as well. Farce also indicates a certain amount of nudity, and yes, there's that as well!!

Richard Willey is played by Gary Frost. There aren't that many scenes where Gary isn't on stage, and as the leading man has the bulk of the script, and the clever word play, and quite rapid the script and wordplay is, well it is farce, and that's where so much of the verbal comedy lies. There's a really nice feeling of Richard really thinking on his feet with all of the twists and turns and little white lies that are told, all of this brought out by Gary. Keeping up with all of Richard's ongoing fibs takes some serious listening to, and you can almost see those thoughts speeding through Richard's mind in an ongoing attempt to dig himself out of trouble. 

The Manager, the highly suspicious and observant manager of the Westminster Hotel, is played by Meghan Southan. Always chasing her own tail with all the lines fed by Richard, but never quite catching it. Megan's facial expressions really back up the often frustrated lines, trying to work out who is who and their relationships to everyone else.

Rajni Birdi is The Waiter, an opportunistic, unscrupulous, and conniving hotel employee who catches wind of the illicit affair. I've an idea that Rajni is one of the new members of Beeston Players as I've not seen her on stage anywhere as far as I can recall. With the confidence shown as this character, I have an inkling that this can't be her first time on stage. A lovely show of confidence which makes her character a joy to watch, and possibly the only character who actually profits from the farce.

Jane Worthington, the opposition party typist and Richard’s prospective romantic partner for the evening, is played by Ali Parnham. I'm surprised that Jane knows who she is with all the confusion, but this typist isn't the only one. One thing that Jane isn't confused about is that her husband, for some reason, is hanging around the Westminster Hotel lobby, and he doesn't look happy!

Sean Knowles is "The Body". There's a surprise as well with this character, because all is not as first appears when we see new life breathed into a character that seems to have died on stage. It would have been a real shame if that were true because Sean manages to bring even more confusion to the already twisty story as The Body.

George Pigden, Richard’s innocent, loyal, and easily flustered personal private secretary who gets dragged into the cover-up, is played by Paul Langston. Paul does confusion extremely well, especially when Pigden, who has been called in to help clear up the little mess caused by Richard and Jane's hotel discovery, and ends up being embroiled in the confusion of many ongoing storylines and characters.

Christine Cairns is The Maid. She is originally from Italy, or is that Venice, or maybe Spain, so there's that element of bringing in another string of confusion in language form. Christine is another new name to me, and possibly another new signing for Beeston Players. 

Ronnie Worthington, Jane Worthington's suspicious husband, is played by Callum Scott. Ronnie is not a happy bunny, occasionally showing an emotional and revealing side to this character. Callum seems to be comfortably at home with comedy, but I have a feeling that he could do menacing equally as well. You'll also be pleased to know that Beeston Players have used Callum's raw talents to maximum effect in his role as Ronnie.

Pamela Willey, Richard's wife, is played by Sarah Nicholson. When Pamela decides to surprise her husband at the hotel, little does she know that the surprise goes both ways. I love the looks of confusion that Sarah wears almost constantly throughout; with the speed of the action in the second act, there's really not much time for all the action to register with poor Pamela!

Sue Frost plays Gladys Foster, the matronly carer for George Pigden's elderly mother who becomes comically swept up in the chaotic cover-up at the Westminster Hotel. There's also a surprise in store for Nurse Foster from one of the characters. Sue is one of those comedy character actors who never fails to put a smile on my face, both verbally and physically. This is almost only a cameo role but packs so much comedy into her time on stage that you are forced to remember Nurse Foster.

The other character that makes this play is the sash window, which seems to have a life of its' own, and more than that I will keep to myself and let you discover what I mean!

Directed by Tom Jenkins, the secret of a good farce is always timing, and Tom makes sure that his cast, which is a large one when compared to some of the other Beeston Players casts, deliver the gags in a timely fashion, often the gags are like rapid fire comedy one liners, so not only do you have to listen very carefully to the script for who is who, thanks to Richard's active imagination in trying to dig himself out of the hole, that ends up like a crater by the end of the play, but also for the rapidity of the funny lines.

The set design and construction is by Tom as well as Sam Williams and Callum Scott. It's all set in the hotel room of the Westminster. Decorated in a vibrant red colour with the essential three doors and a window needed for farce, and of course one of the doors that seems to open at the most unwarranted of times in the play. The dressing of the set is also quite classy with some nice props, sourced by Tom Jenkins and Ali Parnham.

Costumes are by Barbara Barton, and as usual with the Beeston Players, the costumes are always look excellent.

Production Manager, which is a far reaching job title and essential to all local theatre groups, is Nina Tunnicliffe.

Stage managed by Kevin Fairbrother.

Sound is by Sam Williams who has been involved in this area of production for a while, which explains why he is so good at his job. The timing of the sound effects are spot on, and that includes the synchronicity of the changing of the radio stations near the beginning of the play. I'm sure that I recognised the voice of the newsreader, but I just can't quite place their name!

Lighting is by Robert Jackson, showing that not only is Robert a wonderful character actor, he has talents on the lighting control desk as well.

Alison Williams is the Prompt, who's voice we heard a few times throughout the play, but this was opening night and the script is such a meandering and complex one that it almost makes you wonder if Ray Cooney was on something when he wrote "Out Of Order".

As usual the Front Of House team, led by Nicola Adkin, are one of the most welcoming around, selling raffle tickets, manning the bar and making free teas and coffees in the interval.

Now that England have played, and beat Croatia 4-2, there's no reason to not make your way to Beeston for even more dramatic action over the next couple of days.

"Out Of Order" is at Round Hill School, Beeston until Saturday 20 June.

 "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" 

The Attic Theatre School.

Nottingham Arts Theatre.

Based on the 1964 book by Roald Dahl and features an original score composed by Marc Shaiman with lyrics by Shaiman and Scott Wittman and a book by David Greig. The soundtrack also pays homage to the Leslie Bricusse/Anthony Newley score from the 1971 film with songs from the film, which starred Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka, including "The Candy Man," "I've Got a Golden Ticket," "Oompa Loompa Song," and "Pure Imagination."

The world-famous Willy Wonka is opening the gates to his mysterious sweet making factory…but only to a lucky few. Young Charlie Bucket and four other golden ticket winners will embark on a life-changing journey through Wonka’s world of pure imagination including chocolate waterfalls, nutty squirrels and the great glass elevator, all to be revealed by Wonka's army of curious Oompa-Loompas.

Performed by the talented students aged 5–12 years, this was a marvellous chance, not only to see how talented they are but to see one of my favourite musicals again, and even though this cast is probably the youngest I've seen perform this Roald Dahl magical spectacle, every single one of them absolutely shone and gave it all 110%.

There were no programmes to say which actors played which parts, so unfortunately, I can't give any names to the roles played.

The young man playing Charlie Bucket on Sunday afternoon - I believe that it was a completely different cast on the Saturday - had so much confidence, and for one so young, a fantastic voice.

Willy Wonka's actor was likewise, and gave us that little bit of eccentricity required for the role.

The young lady who played Charlie's mother also had a beautiful singing voice, and all three actors will be extremely popular with any theatre group, especially musical theatre as they all get older.

I loved every bit of character put into the other Golden Ticket winners, especially the awfully spoiled Veruca Salt; what a lovely character actor she is going to be, I say going to be, but she is from the performance I saw this afternoon.

Another actor I absolutely loved watching was the young lady who played Cherry Sundae, the news anchor who reported on the revelations of the winning ticket holders. That young girl just didn't hold still, or hold back in her performance.

I really must also mention the array of Oompa Loompas, Baby Squirrels etc who flooded the stage with utter cuteness, and in costumes that looked like an advert for The United Colours Of Benetton. Greens, reds, yellows, pinks, purples, and if these colours didn't brighten up the stage enough, their collective smiles most certainly did.

The show ran all the way through and was nicely edited for a younger cast.

I loved every single minute of this production, and while I'd have loved to give all of the cast mentions by name, I understand why this was not possible in this instance. Never the less, everyone involved, and there were an absolute stage full of people for the final bows, presented an amazingly entertaining afternoon.

I will thank Mike and Amanda for arranging for me to experience such a showcase of younger Nottinghamshire talent.

You don't normally get to see stars in the middle of the afternoon, but there were plenty to see this Sunday afternoon.

 "A Million Dreams" by Midlands Academy of Dance and Drama (MADD).

Squire Performing Arts Centre, Nottingham.

I've been reviewing MADD's showcases for about a decade now, and there's one thing that you can always guarantee with them, and that is you are always in for a quality evening's entertainment by some of Nottingham's brightest future theatre stars. Let's face it, they have some of the most respected and talented tutors, which is always a great starting point for anyone who wants to get into the business.

The showcase/graduation is called "A Million Dreams" and that is what the students have, unfortunately the business is a harsh mistress and very few make it big, and that is why it's so important to support local arts as much as possible, because there's always a chance that you may be watching the next West End performer on a local stage. Either way, you do get to see the remarkable talents these young people have, and I have known so many local youngsters get that break, not just from MADD but several other local training grounds like Copper Studios, the Television Workshop and Kristian Thomas Company to name but three excellent groups.

One thing I've always loved about MADD's showcases is the staging and continuity of the shows. In between the introductions of the upcoming pieces, which are always very cleverly written and delivered, the outgoing performance is neatly segued into the incoming performances, making the show seamless. I've seem a few showcases where there are bare stages in between the performances and the audiences are left waiting looking at a blank stage. Not so with MADD, they have cracked that part of the stage management, which also makes for great timekeeping for the production and keeping an enthusiastic audience enthusiastic. 

Twenty seven performances in two one hour segments, so I'll just mentions some of my personal highlights of the evening......

The evening starts off with "I Hope I Get It" from "A Chorus Line", which is a brilliant starting point as it provides a realistic starting point of any show with the auditionees hoping that they get to start their careers in the musical. It also gives everyone a chance to see of the students on stage performing together. The other pieces that you get to see all of the students together including the closing of Act One with "A Million Dreams", the opening of Act two with a gorgeous medley of three of my favourite pieces from "Miss Saigon". After the presentation of the certificates near the end of the evening, we also get to see everyone singing "Bring On Tomorrow" from "Fame", another one of my favourite musical theatre songs, plus "Just Be" from "Kinky Boots", which is a fantastic message to send out to everyone as they exit the theatre.

In between these songs are so many of my favourites, "Freak Flag", another musical theatre song with a positive message, "Just Arrived" from "Copacabana", choreographed brilliantly by Luke Haywood, and talking about top notch choreography, "Buenos Aires" from "Evita" was as good as anything you'll see on a professional stage, and choreographed by Frankie Steele.

"Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat" from "Guys 'n' Dolls" is another great song with wonderful choreography, which by the way was segued seamlessly from a link with Toby Farley and Jamal Moyo, and sung by Jamal. 

This was followed on by "Somewhere" from "West Side Story" and what made this section special for me was seeing choreographer Stewart Avon-Arnold performing on stage, something he has not done for two decades. I had the pleasure of having Stewart as my guest on the radio a while ago, and he is such a passionate person when it comes to the subject of dance. He has choreographed for Kate Bush, and everyone knows that Kate is a supreme perfectionist with choreography.

Megan Blake sent shivers down my spine with her performance of "Me and The Sky" from the show that everyone wants to do at the moment "Come From Away".

Love the comedy in "Pop" from "The Wedding Singer" and what I also liked was that instead of doing a straight copy of the lyrics in the song by changing the name of the intended one, Glen, they changed the name to Jamal. as you can see, thought has gone into the staging of these scenes.

There's always one or two songs in any showcase that will be new to me and that's the case with "I Want It All" from "High School Musical 3". This was performed by the BTEC students featuring the other male student, Toby Farley with Jasmine and Eliza. This song is great fun and that includes the choreography from Hannah Fox.

"I'm Here" from "The Color Purple" is an emotional piece, and on stage was danced/performed beautifully by Letizia with selected students from all courses, and choreographed by Stewart Avon-Arnold.

Another piece that highlighted the amazing choreography talents of Frankie Steele was the piece from "Moulin Rouge" the brilliantly sparkly "The Sparkling Diamond". I adored the posh frocks on show, let's face it, who doesn't like a bit of glitter? I think there are a few glitter balls that have gone by the way to create these lavish and glittery costumes, and the ladies looked amazing in them.

"What You want" from "Legally Blonde" is a big number, and performed with great humour by a whole host of talented performers. Jamal looked to be in his element in this piece, even more than in "The American Dream" as part of the "Miss Saigon" medley. Does that man ever stop smiling? Would you want him to? The answer to both questions is a resounding "No".

The mash up of two of the most beautiful songs from "Les Miserables" by Grace Jackson and Jasmine Hutchens in "I Dreamed A Dream/On My Own" was like liquid chocolate being dripped down my throat. Simply gorgeous!

"Defying Gravity" from "Wicked" is always a big crowd pleaser but I absolutely adored every single thing about the following number "New Money" from "The Great Gatsby". Brilliantly sung, brilliantly performed and danced, and brilliantly choreographed by Luke Haywood and Sam Rollo.

Class of 2026 3^rd Year Students are Jamal Moyo, Megan Blake, Tilly Bull, Jess Grant, Jessica Lily-May, Tegan King, Leila Ritchie, Tasmin Rose, Indie Eliza, Leila Williams, Maizie Wood, Darci Gowling and Kacey Nixon.

2^nd Year BTEC Graduates are Daisy Billam, Diasy Spitiri, Eliza Kosminder, Esme Watts, Grace Jackson, Isobel Farr, Lauren Broadhead, Jasmine Hutchens, Lottie Parsons, Millie Rodgers, Taya Garrard and Toby Farley.

1^st Year BTEC Students are Molly Banks, Freya Hallam, Nancy Harvey, Sara Nicholls, Amy Rawdin, Sadie Ridley, Eva Robinson, Lydia Sansum, Lily-Mae Shaw, Morgan Spencer, Matilda Stones, Eliza Szejda and Erica Walters.

HNC Students Musical Theatre/Dance are Katie Ambler, Jaydene Davies, Ellie Jones, Mia Marpole, Jessica Roxas (Musical Theatre) and Millie Richardson (Dance).

2^nd Year Diploma & HND Students are Bree Hubbard, Hannah Wood, Ellie Hobson, Lexie Sawyer, Janusha Thavarasalingam (Musical Theatre), Olivia Ellis, Maisie Hepworth, Letizia Yeboah, Shannon Hickling, Shayenne Townsend and Kyla Zutic (Dance).

The choreographers are Mark Hedges, who also staged the show, Frankie Steele, Stewart Avon-Arnold, Hannah Fox, Luke Haywood and Sam Rollo.

Created and devised by Kelvin Towse, who is also the Musical Director.

Directed by Mark Hedges.

Musical Director for the BTEC Performing Arts Course is Hannah Oseman.

Lighting Design by Squire Performing Arts Centre.

The costumes are by The Company.

Vocal captains are Tegan King and Bree Hubbard.

Dance Captains are Megan Blake, Jessica Lily-May, Darci Gowling, Maisie Howarth, Esme Watts and Daisy Billam.

My personal thanks also go to Principal Edward Nudd and Jeanie O Shea for asking me along to such another wonderfully entertaining evening.

There's another chance to see "A Million Dreams" on Sunday 14 June at 3.30pm at the Squire Performing Arts Centre.