WELCOME TO GRIMFEST at OLD RED LION THEATRE, ISLINGTON
1 - 31 OCTOBER 2024
A celebration of dark & twisted theatre in the bleeding heart of London returns for a whole month of thrills & chills this year. The Producers and the Companies chat about the festival, the shows and the works that have inspired them.
THE KING OF HOLLYWOOD
White Bear Theatre, Kennington 15 - 19 October
Now virtually forgotten, Douglas Fairbanks was the King of Hollywood! A gifted artist who alongside his wife Mary Pickford and best friend Charlie Chaplin was responsible for the creation of the movie industry that we know today. The story of his rise and fall is more remarkable than any movie!
WELCOME TO GRIMFEST
Old Red Lion Theatre
1st - 31st October
A celebration of dark & twisted theatre in the bleeding heart of London will return for a whole month of thrills & chills this year. If you are a fan or creator of live horror, come and join us
NINE MOONS by Nilgün Yusuf
The Old Red Lion, Islington
26 - 27 October
Lion & Unicorn Theatre, Kentish Town
29 - 31 October
The debut play of writer, Nilgün Yusuf and directed by Danäe Cambrook, NINE MOONS combines teenage angst, gothic horror and magical realism. A rites-of-passage story with a supernatural twist.
THE STORY OF MY LIFE
Stage Door Theatre, Covent Garden 10 Sept – 19 Oct
The Story of My Life is a Broadway rarity, an intimate chamber musical.
Lifelong friends, Alvin & Thomas, are reunited after Alvin’s mysterious death. In the abstract world of his mind, Thomas struggles to write Alvin’s eulogy while recounting the many turns that their lives have taken since meeting as children.
'A thing of beauty' ★★★★★ The Stage
Skin and Blister present
DON'T LET ME DIE BEFORE SUNDAY Bread & Roses
18 - 20 October
Aoife is in A&E... again. But the jazzy-nails-receptionist doesn’t need to know that. Doctors won’t listen and the charity challenge facebook group is popping off. The actor doesn’t want to perform a panic attack, the writer’s going on strike, and the director would rather do a DJ set. How the f*ck do you “correctly” stage a show about anxiety?
THE CHEMISTRY TEST
Stage Door theatre
22nd – 26th Oct
In this ever increasing digital age, two Artificial Intelligences, Steve and Evie, have been tasked with showing humankind that it’s more important than ever to get out from behind the screen and form genuine human-to-human connections. Exploring everything from meet-cutes to mundane couple talk, binary meets feelings as these two ‘bots try fabricating humanity’s most natural and illogical phenomenon – a romantic connection.
THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM
by Peter Hamilton
Directed by Ross McGregor
Waterloo East Theatre until 27 October
On a tour of India, a young Englishman decides to set out on a Spiritual Path. There’s only one problem. He has absolutely no idea how to do it.
BEDFELLAS &
WE ARE ALL THE PATIENT
Etcetera Theatre
31 Oct 9pm
Two darkly comedic plays by Roopak Khara explore the absurdities of medical bureaucracy and mental health. In Bedfellas, a man’s home is invaded by two nurses with mysterious motives, while We Are All The Patient questions the thin line between doctor and patient, sanity and madness.
UNTIL SHE SLEEPS by Brad Sutherland
White Bear Theatre 5 - 16 November
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf meets Whatever Happened to Baby Jane. Edward and Henrietta Dunbar considered themselves the preeminent couple down at “the club,” but when distrust takes hold of Henrietta, the Great Edward Dunbar faces his most formidable opponent.
LIPSTICK DOESN'T MAKE YOU PRETTY
Barons Court Theatre
11 and 12 Nov 9.30pm
At a mental health facility, a woman is confronted with memories keeping her stuck in the past. A show exploring scarcity mentality, filial piety, and abandonment through the lens of a multilingual Chinese American woman, invites you to surrender to “my fever dream of a quick fix to trauma responses".
A DIFFERENT SONG
Canal Cafe Theatre 22 & 23 November
Fresh from sell-out shows in Chichester Fringe & Worthing Festival:
It's open mic night and star turn Mitch says he's packing it in, much to the dismay of new host Chrissie and regular performer Kate, who longs for something more from their friendship. An unmissable drama of love, grief and hope by award-winning writer, Liz Tait.
ORDNANCE
Drayton Arms Theatre
19 - 23 November
1880s Afghanistan: Against a backdrop of colonial wars and espionage, a young British cartographer embarks on an affair with the wife of an exiled botanist, setting them on an epic journey of self-reflection on how manmade borders restrict and shape national, personal and sexual identities. From award-winning writer Jonathon Crewe.
The Glass House
Lion and Unicorn Theatre
Kentish Town
19 - 23 November
Bella and Wendy have done something terrible. Saturday morning. A flat. The smell of cigarettes and cheap gin fills the room.
After his five star debut, McCreadie returns with a one-act play which tips its hat to Sarah Kane in a story about isolation and a thirst for acceptance.
THE HOPE THEATRE ANNOUNCES WRITE CLUB, A NEW WRITING FESTIVAL TO TAKE PLACE EARLY 2025
THEATRE503 ANNOUNCES JAMES DACRE AS ITS NEW CHAIR AND BEGINS RECRUITMENT FOR ITS NEXT ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
LISA SPIRLING TO STEP DOWN AS THEATRE503’S ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND CEO
FINALISTS announced for LPTM STANDING OVATION AWARDS 2024
OBITUARY
CLEO SYLVESTRE The first black women ever to play a leading role at the National Theatre
Saddened to hear of the passing of CLEO SYLVESTRE who was the trailblazing Artistic Director at Rosemary Branch Theatre for 20 years. Her career spanned theatre and television and she graced many stages as a wonderful blues singer.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT ...
Interview with award winning writer and actress LIZ TAIT on A DIFFERENT SONG at Canal Cafe Theatre 22 & 23 Oct
“Liz Tait’s writing is real and fresh and grounded, acutely observed and relatable.” Brighton Source review
Liz chats about the inspiration behind the play, fragile egos and open mike night.
Interview with SARAH MCGUINNESS – on her musical cabaret GRIT, GLITTER & GASLIGHT at Etcetera / various dates until 5 Dec
Derry girl, Sarah McGuinness, is singer, composer, producer, director, and screenwriter, this is no ordinary cabaret. Sarah has been the muse of industry legends for over two decades. Sarah chats about her music, and her new show.
Interview with ALEXANDER KNOTT on LAMBETH FRINGE 19 Sept - 20 Oct
The Lambeth Fringe (formerly The Clapham Fringe) is a four week Performing Arts festival from the team behind The Bread & Roses Theatre. Running since 2015, the 2024 festival reveals a multi-venue expansion including exciting venues across the borough with shows that reflect the rich tapestry of Lambeth's culture and history.
- SUBMISSIONS FOR WRITE CLUB AT THE HOPE ARE OPEN
- ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AT THEATRE503
- TECHNICAL CO-ORDINATOR FOR THEATRE503
- FreshFest 2025 at OLD RED LION THEATRE - Applications open Monday 21 October
- THE HOPE THEATRE IS PROGRAMMING FOR THE FESTIVE SEASON
- OLD RED LION IS PROGRAMMING SHOWS FOR THE FESTIVE SEASON
We are very proud to announce that LONDON PUB THEATRES MAGAZINE is now an OFFIE AWARD WINNING publication
A ONEOFF Special Award has been awarded to London Pub Theatres Magazine and Editor Heather Jeffery for providing a vital forum for highlighting the excellent work that happens in rooms in pubs, with sensitive editing, and an acute sense of the importance of tiny fringe venues to the health and development of British Theatre