Oxford Playhouse - What's On Guide - Spring 2023

What’s On Spring 2023

“The event – a Live at the Apollo-style show – has become a local institution, a jolly beacon of cheer.”

Oxford Mail

Oxfordshire Mind Comedy Gala

Oxfordshire Mind and Jericho Comedy take to the main stage at Oxford Playhouse for their annual Comedy Gala! Line up includes Rachel Parris, Abi Clarke, Chelsea Birkby and Alex Farrow.

Raising money for the vital support Oxfordshire Mind offers those with mental health problems, don’t miss this hilarious event of belly laughing comedy!

A newly curated, intimate performance that whisks the audience through a suspenseful adventure. A one-on-one, interactive phone call experience personalised for each audience member. Structured like a video game, the audience’s ‘mission’ is to find a missing artefact that has been lost for years after being sucked inside a magical arcade game. Each call is one-of-a-kind; the entire trajectory is determined by the audience responses and ideas; no two Transience performances are alike.

Hitcher Encounters meets the Oregon Trail in this video game like choose-your-own-adventure style call made for anyone craving an arcade game from the comfort of their own home.

Oxford Operatic Society present An amateur production by arrangement with The Really Useful Group Ltd

Evita

Lyrics by Tim Rice Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber Originally directed by Harold Prince

Oxford Operatic Society bring Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s iconic musical Evita to Oxford Playhouse, charting the rags-to-riches story of Eva Peron.

Set in Argentina between 1934-1952, this Tony awardwinning musical follows the young and ambitious Eva Duarte on her journey from poverty to wife of military leader-turned-president Juan Peron - becoming the First Lady of Argentina and the most powerful woman in Latin America, before her untimely death from cancer aged 33.

Featuring a chart-topping score from Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice including Don’t Cry for Me Argentina, Oh What a Circus, Buenos Aires, Another Suitcase in Another Hall and the Oscar-winning You Must Love Me

“They’ve got rhythm, they’ve got music, they are OXOPS; who could ask for anything more?”

Daily Info

Mon 23 to Sat 28 Jan

Mon to Sat 7.30pm Sat mat 2.30pm Tickets From £10 Discounts available Age guideline 12+

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Rob Newman: Live On Stage

Fresh from his BBC Radio 4 series Rob Newman On Air, the award-winning comedian’s new show is a stand-up epic that goes from cave paintings to car-free cities to ask: Who are we? Where are we going? And how do spiders fly?

Rob Newman tells a story of how dancing in step saved prehistoric humans and how new scientific discoveries may help us take the right steps to a life after oil.

“Refreshingly intelligent & hugely entertaining!”

The Guardian

Stewart Lee: Basic Lee

After a decade of ground-breaking high concept shows involving overarched interlinked narratives, massive sets and enormous comedy props, Stewart Lee enters the post-pandemic era in streamlined solo stand-up mode with his brand-new show. One man, one microphone, and one microphone in the wings in case the one on stage breaks. Pure. Simple. Classic. Basic Lee. "The world's greatest living stand-up." (Times)

Photo credit: Steve Ullathorne

Fairport Convention

Fairport Convention have been entertaining music lovers for over half a century, having formed in 1967. During that time the band that launched British folk-rock has seen many changes, but one thing has remained the same - Fairport’s passion for performance.

This tour presents a mix of long-established favourites and some surprises from albums old and new.

The band features founding member Simon Nicol, Dave Pegg, Ric Sanders and Chris Leslie with former member Dave Mattacks joining on drums.

Guardian

“Stuffing their set with a surprising amount of new material for a vintage act, Fairport are still clearly having fun and brought the house down.”

Bill Kenwright presents

The Shawshank Redemption

The acclaimed stage version of the nation’s favourite movie

Despite protests of his innocence, Andy Dufresne is handed a double life sentence for the brutal murders of his wife and her lover. Incarcerated in the notorious Shawshank facility, he quickly learns that no one can survive alone. Striking up an unlikely friendship with the prison fixer Red, things start to take a slight turn for the better. However, when Warden Stammas decides to bully Andy into subservience and exploit his talents for accountancy, a desperate plan is quietly hatched...

Based on Stephen King’s 1982 novella Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption, this thrilling stage production examines desperation, injustice, friendship and hope behind the claustrophobic bars of a maximum-security facility.

Joe Absolom’s impressive TV career has barely seen him off our screens in 25 years: from Matthew Rose in EastEnders to Al Large in Doc Martin, Christopher Halliwell in A Confession and Andy Warren in The Bay Ben Onwukwe boasts a 30-year stage career as well as 11 years on TV as Recall McKenzie in London’s Burning and the role of Jackson Donckers in Professor T

Sat 11 Feb

Evenings

Mon to Sat 7.30pm Fri 8pm Matinees Thu & Sat 2.30pm Tickets from £10 Discounts available

Age guideline 14+ Wed Eve Sat Mat

The Observer

“Electrifying - it truly is a must-see show.”

Wed 15 to Sat 18 Feb

Evenings

Wed, Thu & Sat 7.30pm Fri 8pm Matinees Thu & Sat 2.30pm Tickets from £10

An Oxford University Student production: 00Productions present

An American in Paris

Music and Lyrics by George Gershwin and Ira Gershwin Book by Craig Lucas Originally produced on Broadway by Stuart Oken Van Kaplan Roy Furman By special arrangement with Elephant Eye Theatrical & Pittsburgh CLO and Théâtre du Châtelet

The smash-hit Tony Award-winning musical, An American in Paris, tells the beautiful tale of love and liberation in the broken world of post-war Paris.

Student

The worldwide copyright in the music of George and Ira Gershwin for this presentation are licensed by the Gershwin Family.

Based on the classic 1951 movie, and packed full of spectacular dance, the musical follows the stories of a newcomer and long-standing Parisians as they recover from war, struggle to achieve their dreams, and fall in love.

Set to the iconic music of George Gershwin, including the show-stopping numbers I Got Rhythm and Stairway To Paradise, this whimsical and timeless story is sure to leave you feeling S' Wonderful!

The Tempest

When Prospera is forced to flee her home, a remote island provides refuge and a space to raise her young child. But when the opportunity for vindication finally presents itself, Prospera must decide whether to choose forgiveness or revenge. Meanwhile, deep within the island, an ancient force is stirring.

Can humans control nature? Can they control each other? Should they do either? In a time of exploitation and ecological crisis, this is a story that we all need to hear again.

An Oxford University Student production: Pennyfarthing Productions presents

William Shakespeare

A Complicité co-production with Barbican London, Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Bristol Old Vic, Comédie de Genève, Holland Festival, Les Théâtres de la Ville de Luxembourg, L'Odéon-Théâtre de l'Europe, The Lowry, The National Theatre of Iceland, Oxford Playhouse, Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen and Theatre Royal Plymouth

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead

Based on the novel by Olga Tokarczuk A new Complicité production directed by Simon McBurney

The world-renowned international touring company Complicité presents Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, based on Nobel Prize winning author Olga Tokarczuk’s novel of the same name. The darkly comic, anarchic noir caused a seismic reaction in Tokarczuk’s native Poland due to its defiant attack on authoritarian structures, with right-wing press branding the writer an ‘eco-terrorist’ and national traitor.

A thought-provoking, wry and otherworldly murder mystery, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is a tale about the cosmos, poetry, and the limitations and possibilities of activism.

“A new Complicité show isn't just a devised play: it's a theatrical event. At the company's inimitable best, it is a ticket to another world.”

Time Out

“One

New York Times on Complicité’s award-winning production of The Encounter

Sat 4 Mar

Evenings

Wed to Sat 7.30pm Matinees Thu & Sat 2.30pm Tickets from £10 Discounts available

Age guideline 14+ Post show talk Fri Thu Mat Sat Mat

of the most fully-immersive theatre pieces ever created.”

A Pilot Theatre production

Noughts & Crosses

By Malorie Blackman Adapted by Sabrina Mahfouz

Winner of Excellence in Touring, UK Theatre Awards 2019

Finalist for Best Show for Children and Young People, UK Theatre Awards 2019

Sephy and Callum sit together on a beach. They are in love. It is forbidden.

Sephy is a Cross and Callum is a Nought. Between Noughts and Crosses there are racial and social divides. A segregated society teeters on a volatile knife edge.

As violence breaks out, Sephy and Callum draw closer, but this is a romance that will lead them into terrible danger. This gripping Romeo and Juliet story by acclaimed writer Malorie Blackman and adapted by Sabrina Mahfouz is a captivating drama of love, revolution and what it means to grow up in a divided world.

“Malorie

Evenings

Tue, Wed & Thu 7.30pm Fri 8pm Matinees Wed, Thu & Sat 2.30pm Tickets from £10 Discounts available

“Compelling

The Stage

The show contains depictions of; racism and its effects on physical and mental health, alcoholism, bullying, capital punishment, violence (including domestic violence). The show contains mild sexual content and some strong language, alongside references to sexual violence and suicide.

Age guideline 12+ Post show talk Wed Eve Wed Eve Sat Mat

Blackman’s bestseller leaps off the stage in a fine new adaption.”

staging of Malorie Blackman’s novel that provides a searing insight into the injustices of the world.”

An Oxford Playhouse Young Company production

A Servant To Two Masters

By Carlo Goldoni, Adapted by Lee Hall Directed by Paul Simpson

The Playhouse Young Company takes to the Main Stage, to bring this classic Italian comedy to Oxford audiences.

We follow wily, greedy servant Truffaldino, whose mind is focused only on his stomach and his pocket, as he navigates his service to two masters, who are entangled in a web of miscommunication and disguise. A fast-paced plot of tricks and absurd mishaps see our characters uncover mistaken identities and unmask outright deceptions.

“The acting was polished, the set imaginative and the ensemble pieces beautifully choreographed.”

The Oxford Times on Jane Eyre

“A rambunctious, energetic cast... it was thrilling to watch the ensemble.” Daily Info on Nell Gwynn

Oxford Theatre Guild present

Nell Gwynn

by Jessica Swale Directed by Cate Nunn

It’s Charles II’s London – and after years of Puritan gloom, the King wants life to be exuberant, sexy and fun. He’s reopened the theatres – and for the first time ever, they’re letting women on the stage...

In Drury Lane, spirited and charming Nell Gwynn is selling oranges. Rising from the backstreets of London to become a star of the burgeoning West End, she wins the adoration of the public – and the heart of the King.

A funny and heart-warming tale of a woman who triumphed against all the odds, set in the riotous and vibrant world of Restoration England, Nell Gwynn is a joyful story of love, friendship, theatre and family.

“Very highly recommended indeed.”

The Oxford Times on Blythe Spirit

The Oxford Times on Sense & Sensibility

Tue 21 to Sat 25 Mar

Tue to Sat 7.30pm Fri 8pm Sat mat 2.30pm Tickets from £10 Discounts available

Age guideline 14+

“A delightful and sophisticated performance.”

Mon 27 to Wed 29 Mar

Mon 2pm & 4.30pm Tue & Wed 11am & 2pm Tickets £14.50 Discounts available Age guideline 3+

Tall Stories presents

Room

on the Broom

Based on the best-selling book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler

Iggety ziggety zaggety zoom! Jump on board the broom with the witch and her cat in Tall Stories’ fun-filled adaptation of Room on the Broom, the bestselling picture book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler.

The witch and her cat are travelling on their broomstick when they pick up some hitch-hikers – a friendly dog, a beautiful green bird and a frantic frog. But this broomstick’s not meant for five and – CRACK – it snaps in two... just as the hungry dragon appears!

★★★★★

“Very catchy songs, brilliant puppets and a fantastically animated cast.” Families Magazine

Will there ever be room on the broom for everyone? Find out in the magical Olivier Award-nominated show for everyone aged 3 and up. ★★★★

“Undeniably charming... Winning performances, jaunty songs and some delightful puppetry... A sweet little enchantment.”

Time Out

Room on the Broom © Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler 2002 – Macmillan Children’s Books

Chris McCausland: Speaky Blinder

Star of the Royal Variety Performance, Would I Lie to You?, Have I Got News for You, QI, and Live at the Apollo...

One of the UK's top stand-ups Chris McCausland is on tour with a stand-up show about life, family, and loads of other nonsense as well.

Four of the country’s favourite television personalities from the world of antiques entertain you with tales from the saleroom, television and beyond. The enormous variety of their experiences range from selling chickens and cattle to priceless Chinese artefacts and to multi-million-pound cars.

Hear how Philip Serrell started out on his auctioneering career, how the ebullient and eccentric Charles Hanson set up a thriving business and how Charlie Ross ended up flying across the world to sell ‘old bangers’. The three of them will (we hope) be kept in check by the delightful and effervescent Christina Trevanion

Wed 5 to Sat 8 Apr

Wed to Sat 7.30pm Sat mat 2.30pm Tickets from £12.50 Age guideline 7+

Musical Youth Company of Oxford present

The Addams Family

Book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice Music and Lyrics by Andrew Lippa Based on Characters Created by Charles Addams

The eccentrically macabre Addams family are about to find life at their spooky mansion turned upside down by the nightmare that besets all parents of a teenager. As their daughter Wednesday reaches that special age, she has just one thing on her mind. Is it homicide? No! It’s love - with a boy from an all-American family.

Andrew Lippa’s (Big Fish, You’re a Good Man Charlie Brown) quirky musical take on the Addams family first premiered on Broadway in 2010 where it was nominated for two Tonys and eight Drama Desk awards.

Sure to shoot your socks off (with a crossbow!), The Addams Family is certain to captivate with the spellbinding talent of the award-winning Musical Youth Company of Oxford, as they let loose their inner goth!

“Joyous,

An amateur performance by arrangement with Theatrical Rights Worldwide

Ox in a Box on MYCO’s Legally Blonde 2022

Ox Magazine on MYCO’s Legally Blonde 2022

“Breathing new life into the story and hurling it into the modern-day.”

fun, emotional and uplifting.”

Ballet Black: Pioneers

Now in their 21st year, Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black is excited to present award-winning choreographers, Will Tuckett and Mthuthuzeli November in a double bill of new and original work.

Will Tuckett's Then Or Now, originally created in 2020, blends classical ballet, music and the poetry of Adrienne Rich to ask the question: in times like these, where do we belong?

Mthuthuzeli November makes his third mainstage commission for the Company, Nina: By Whatever Means, a love letter to musician, performer and activist, Nina Simone, that combines ballet, jazz and the blues in a moving and inspiring piece of dance theatre.

“…the piece feels above all like a call for respect across any and all divides.” The Telegraph

Cassa Pancho’s Ballet Black in Then Or Now, choreographed by Will Tuckett. Photography by Bill Cooper.

Double Emmy award-nominee and star of Ted Lasso, Nick Mohammed takes his critically acclaimed alter ego Mr. Swallow on his first UK tour with a mix of new, old, very old and previously unusable material. Expect noise, maths, magic and the whole of Les Mis!

Nick Mohammed is one of the UK’s most celebrated comedians, actors and writers. Nick has received feverish critical acclaim for his previous Mr. Swallow shows Dracula!, Houdini and The Vanishing Elephant and has wowed audiences as Mr. Swallow in Dictionary Corner on Channel 4’s Cats Does Countdown, with clips of his performances quickly going viral. He is the writer and star of Sky’s hit series Intelligence with David Schwimmer and has recently featured in a host of TV comedies including Stath Lets Flats, Inside No. 9 and This Time With Alan Partridge

The Tiger Lillies

From The Circus To The Cemetery

The Grammy nominated Godfathers of alternative cabaret return with a career spanning concert. Expect dark and deviant theatrics as they delve into their back catalogue presenting their most famous songs alongside new surprises. This unique, Brechtian street opera trio tour the world playing concerts and theatre shows such as The Tiger Lillies Christmas Carol, The Ancient Mariner and the West End hit Shockheaded Peter.

Tue 9 to Fri 12 May Tue to Fri 7.30pm Thu mat 2.30pm Members 50%OFF TUE EVE

from £10 £5 tickets 14-25 year olds

Wuthering Heights

After Emily Brontë

Created by Inspector Sands Adaptation conceived & developed by Lucinka Eisler and Ben Lewis

Written by Ben Lewis Directed by Lucinka Eisler

“We don’t in general take to foreigners here… unless they take to us first.”

Channelling Emily Brontë’s piercing wit and fierce emotion, Inspector Sands bring their characteristic humour, passion, and pathos to the infamous love story of Heathcliff and Catherine. Wuthering Heights will contain violence, peril, social awkwardness, exhilarating music, high winds, and mud.

“They are brilliant and reckless, precise and inventive, intelligent and frank.”

New York Theatre Guild on Inspector Sands

An Oxford Playhouse, China Plate, Inspector Sands and Royal & Derngate Northampton co-production

The Way Old Friends Do

Written by Ian Hallard

Directed by Mark Gatiss

A new comedy about devotion, desire and dancing queens. In the late 1980s, two Birmingham school friends tentatively come out: one as gay, the other - more shockingly - as an ABBA fan. Thirty years later, they reunite to form the world’s first ABBA tribute band – in drag. Can their friendship survive the tribulations of a life on the road; one full of platform boots, fake beards, and a distractingly attractive stranger?

Simultaneously tender and laugh-out loud funny, this heartfelt story will appeal to anyone who understands how it feels to be a fan: of ABBA or of anyone.

Written by and starring Ian Hallard (The Boys In The Band), this world premiere is directed by Mark Gatiss (Sherlock, Dracula, Doctor Who, The League of Gentlemen). Cast includes Donna Berlin (Doctors) James Bradshaw (Endeavour), Sara Crowe (Olivier Award winner for Private Lives), Andrew Horton (Jupiter’s Legacy) and Rose Shalloo (Malory Towers). Featuring the voices of Miriam Margolyes and Paul O’Grady

Mon 15 to Sat 20 May Mon to Sat 7.30pm Thu & Sat mat 2.30pm Tickets from £10 Discounts available

Age guideline 12+

James Seabright in association with Jason Haigh-Ellery and Park Theatre presents the Birmingham Rep production

Tue 30 May to Sat 3 Jun

Tue & Fri 7pm Wed & Thu 10.30am & 2pm Sat 11am Tickets from £10

The Children’s Theatre Partnership and Royal & Derngate, Northampton present Michael Rosen’s

Unexpected Twist

An Oliver Twisted Tale

By Roy Williams

Music by Yaya Bey and Conrad Murray Directed by James Dacre, Designed by Frankie Bradshaw

A re-telling of the Charles Dickens classic, Oliver Twist, by one of the best-loved figures in the children's book world, Michael Rosen. Combining two stories in one; Rosen’s story and the Dickens classic that inspired it. Two stories that twist together, unexpectedly!

Shona and her class are studying the book, Oliver Twist. She’s the new girl in school and is finding it hard to stay out of trouble – much like Oliver himself! When she’s given a new phone by a stranger, she begins to suspect there’s something unusual about the new boys she’s met.

This thrilling production is brought to life by The Children’s Theatre Partnership, whose shows have included Animal Farm and Holes. It’s directed by James Dacre, adapted for the stage by BAFTA award-winning Roy Williams with original music by rising R&B star Yaya Bey and BAC Beatbox Academy’s Conrad Murray.

Dr John Cooper Clarke –I Wanna Be Yours

Dr John Cooper Clarke shot to prominence in the 1970s as the 'people's poet' and became one of the most prolific artists of the Punk years. Since then, his career has spanned cultures, audiences, art forms, and continents.

Today he performs as a stand-up solo poet and will do just that with new collection - I Wanna Be Yours. JCC goes into fascinating detail about his early life in Manchester leading to punk superstardom, drug addiction, and the title of major poet he enjoys today.

Zog

Based on the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler

Large in size and keen in nature, Zog is eager to win a golden star at Madam Dragon’s school, Zog tries so very hard, perhaps too hard, and he bumps, burns and roars his way through years one, two and three. Luckily, the plucky Princess Pearl patches him up ready to face his biggest challenge yet... a duel with knight, Sir Gadabout the Great!

With lively songs from Joe Stilgoe and directed by Emma Kilbey, Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s much-loved Zog is a magical production for all ages.

Zog © 2010 Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler. Published by Alison Green Books, an imprint of Scholastic Children’s Books

Freckle Productions in association with Rose Theatre

Our term-time company for young people aged 12 to 16, who are eager to develop their performance skills and build new friendships.

In the Spring Term, Youth Theatre participants will be creating and rehearsing their own monologues and duologues, using the forms of both spoken word and movement, in preparation for performance at our March 2023 Youth Theatre Jam in the BT Studio.

For more information on our Playhouse Youth Theatre sessions, please email: participation@oxfordplayhouse.com

TAKE PART Young People

KEEN Drama Workshops Hey Diddle Diddle

In partnership with KEEN Oxford, our free, inclusive drama workshops return for the Spring Term at KEEN’s base at St Clement’s Centre, Oxford.

Our weekly drop-in sessions, led by Beth Sedgwick, provide a supportive opportunity for people of all ages and abilities to have fun and be expressive through performance. This term our participants will create bold characters and explore imaginary worlds, in preparation for an exciting performance to friends and family at the end of term. Sessions are accessible to disabled and nondisabled participants to ensure everyone can comfortably get involved.

Spring 2023 Term dates to be announced. To register interest or to sign up to the free, inclusive drama workshops, email KEEN Oxford at: keen@keenoxford.org

To find out more about KEEN Oxford please visit their website: www.keenoxford.org

Time 6.30pm to 7.15pm

Location KEEN Oxford (St Clement’s Centre) Course Fee Free (booking is essential) Age 11+

Mon 9 Jan to Mon 27 Mar (no session Mon 13 Feb)

Monday morning musical fun!

Our Hey Diddle Diddle sing-along sessions for toddlers and their adults introduce music, dance and performance skills to early years children, to kick-start their excitement for creativity and imagination.

With a new theme each week, you and your child are invited to play, laugh and learn in our fun and friendly sessions, conducted by our own musical maestra, Becki Reed. Space will be provided in our foyer for buggies and pushchairs.

Time 11am to 11.30am

Location Top Room Tickets £7 (1 parent + 1 child) Age 5 and under

Please note, the Top Room, Circle Bar and BT Studio are only accessible by stairs

TAKE

Workshops & Get Togethers

Play In A Week

Mon 13 to Fri 17 Feb

Spend the week with Oxford Playhouse being creative, playing games and making new friends.

Participants will be exploring the mythical worlds of fables and legends, breaking down the stories and rebuilding them in their own way, ready to present to parents and families at the end of the week. Sessions will involve working together through exercises and activities, where everyone’s ideas are shared and celebrated.

For more information, please email: participation@oxfordplayhouse.com

Tea Talks Social Thursdays

As part of the Oxford Playhouse Culture Café

Thu 19 Jan, Thu 23 Feb, Thu 16 Mar

A place for people later-in-life to come together, have a go at creative activities and build new friendships, Tea Talks Social Thursdays launches our new Culture Café with opportunities designed to allow everyone the space to try something new.

A curated programme of various art forms, including talks, senior dance sessions, playreading groups and much more, participants can take part at their own pace in a friendly, supportive setting.

Refreshments will be available to enjoy during the session.

For more information please email: community@oxfordplayhouse.com

Time 10am to 1pm

Location Top Room Course fee: £150 Age 7 to 11

Time 10.30am to 12noon

Location Main Foyer Tickets Free (booking is essential) Age 50+

Our term-time Adult Company, led by Lara Sharman, welcomes anyone aged 26+ with a passion for performance, and an excitement for joining a friendly, multi-generational company. Building a foundation of key performance skills in voice, movement and expression, participants will spend the Spring Term rehearsing a scripted performance, ready for public performance in the BT Studio in March 2023.

For more information please email: participation@oxfordplayhouse.com

St John’s College Oxford

Trusts and Foundations

The Atlas Fund

Backstage Trust

Doris Field Charitable Trust

The D'Oyly Carte Charitable Trust

Dr T M N Salvesen's Charitable Trust

The Emmanuel Kaye Foundation

The Garrick Charitable Trust

The Hugh Fraser Foundation

The Lord Faringdon Charitable Trust

Mactaggart Third Fund

Mr & Mrs J A Pye's Charitable Settlement

The Schuster Charitable Trust

Souldern Trust

Still Point Fund

Theatres Trust

The Thompson Family Charitable Trust Anonymous - but appreciated! Building, Equipment and Technical Support Learning and Productions Support

Oxford Playhouse Trust gratefully acknowledges the support of its core funders:

Platinum Gold

OP Business Club members

By coming to see productions at Oxford Playhouse, our audiences help to keep the theatre thriving –thank you! As a registered charity we also rely on the generosity of our Friends, Patrons and Donors to enable us to put world-class productions on our stages, to continue vital Creative Learning programmes with schools and young people across the county, to nurture creativity within our communities and to support the next generation of theatre makers. If you can, please consider supporting the Playhouse through our Friends and Patrons schemes or by making a donation, so that we can continue this valuable work. For more information email: development@oxfordplayhouse.com

Friends of Oxford Playhouse

Applause Friends

Rev Charlotte & William Bannister-Parker

David & Marie-Jane Barnett Danby & Sandy Bloch

Prof Sir Clive & Lady Margaret Booth John Peter H Bradley Brian Buchan

Antony W Budgen Matthew Derbyshire Alex Duncan Marion Frostick Simon & Alison Jeffreys

Greg Lovett Keith McCullagh Elizabeth Paris Sue Staunton Timothy & Marion Stevenson Jens Tholstrup Dr Trudy Watt

Ovation Friends

Prof Sir Richard and Lady Elizabeth Brook Debbie Dance Dr Sos Eltis

Richard Gladstone John & Margaret Leighfield

Prof Colin & Annette Mayer John Parrott

Will Schreiber

Anonymous Standing Ovation Edward & Anna Bernard David & Sue Jackson Anonymous

Donors £250+: 00Productions

Louise Armstrong Lady Helen Baker Sir Christopher and Lady Wendy Ball Pauline F Beighton Edward & Anna Bernard B J Birch

Valerie Boasten John Peter H Bradley Lesley Brown Antony W Budgen

Prof John Carey Martin Cattermole Mark Charter Dr Mark Crane Karen David David Dunne

Prof Raymond and Sandra Dwek CBE Kathleen Emmens Miss Patricia Freestone Cllr. Dr James Fry Alan Grafen Kevin Green Brian Griffiths

Guy Grimsley Dr Sophie Hague James Hammond Nigel Harper Alan Hodgetts

Simon Inch Dr Jane Jackson Sarah Jones Sue Ledwith

Geoffrey Lescott

Kathryn Lewin

Peter Mackridge John May

M J Morris Elizabeth Paris Brian W Plater

Diana B Renton Steve Rumford

Prof John Simons Sue Staunton Michael Tappin Jens Tholstrup Dr Louise Upton J Willis St Aloysius First School

Donors £1,000+: Diana Acland

Saphié Ashtiany & Prof Paul Davies

Rev Charlotte & William Bannister-Parker

Prof Sir Clive & Lady Margaret Booth

Prof Sir Richard & Lady Elizabeth Brook

His Hon John Quentin and Her Hon Ann Campbell Keith Crawford Dr Cecile Deer James Del Favero Richard and Felicity Dick Alex Duncan Liesl Elder Dr Sos Eltis

Richard Gladstone David and Sue Jackson Paul James

John & Margaret Leighfield Jack Macpherson

Greg Lovett John Parrott

Dr Michael Peagram Timothy & Marion Stevenson

We are also incredibly grateful to those who prefer to remain anonymous and anyone who has supported us during the past year, but who we are unable to list here. Your help and solidarity has made an enormous difference during these most challenging of times. Thank you.

Alison Townsend

Alan Trinder

Joyce Wales

Edward Whinney

Dr Trudy Watt

Corporate Donations

Lucy Group

Tickets and discounts

All tickets and fees are non-refundable. Tickets can be exchanged for another performance of the same production, up to 48 hours ahead of the advertised start time and subject to availability. An admin fee of £2 per ticket applies, up to a maximum of £10 per order. Where the new performance is of a higher cost, the price difference will be charged, but if lower, we regret we will not be able to offer a refund.

For sold out events only, the Box Office may be able to process a credit refund to your Oxford Playhouse account. This will only be possible if we are able to confirm that another customer will take the tickets first. If you are unable to use your ticket/s please let us know. We do not make any guarantee that we will be able to arrange this - If successful all refunds will be to credit only.’

Discount Group Ticket Price Conditions

Up to 50% off opening night or Saturday matinees for week-long shows. Bonus discounts of 25% or 50% on most shorter runs. (excludes £10 tickets)

Available on up to two tickets, on either the opening night or the Saturday matinee, for almost every production, for all Full Circle & Enjoy members. Membership starts from £50 a year. For more information, visit www.oxfordplayhouse.com/membership

£5 tickets

In Advance

£5 tickets available in You must be aged 14 to 25 and a member of OPTin! advance for selected Membership costs £5. Join at the Box Office or visit shows, subject to www.oxfordplayhouse.com/membership availability.

£4 off each ticket. Available for most shows on full priced tickets of more than £10 for people 18 and under, Full Time University/College Students (must provide ID on collection), those in receipt of Universal Credit, NHS Staff and Equity, BECTU and Stage Directors UK members. No further discounts available. £11.50 tickets for students and under 18s are available for student shows, and must be booked by the Sunday before the show starts.

Access Users

£11.50 or £15 per ticket. Available for most shows for access facility users, wheelchair users and one companion.

Schools £11.50 or £15.50 per ticket Schools tickets for Jack and The Beanstalk & Colleges plus one free teacher £10 early bird rate (until 31 March 2023) & £13. seat for every 10 seats booked.

Group Rate

10% off for groups of For all groups of 10 or more. Not available online, 10 or more and 20% for email boxoffice@oxfordplayhouse.com groups of 40 or more. or call 01865 305305 or group bookings. (Available Mon to Thu Payment must be made as one transaction. & Sat Matinee performances only)

Over 60s Matinee £4 off the full price. Limited number available to anyone over 60 for most Thursday and Saturday matinee performances. Must be booked before the week of the show. Max 4 tickets per booking.

Main Stage Seating Plan

Access facilities

We want to make your visit to Oxford Playhouse as comfortable and enjoyable as possible. We offer a range of access facilities.

To find out more information about the accessibility of our venue please visit www.oxfordplayhouse.com/access, call the friendly Box Office team on 01865 305305 or email access@oxfordplayhouse.com

Our range of Access facilities includes:

General Access Our main entrance is at street level on Beaumont Street and fully wheelchair accessible with automated doors. Our Box Office, Auditorium and Foyer Bar are all fully wheelchair accessible, with low level counters. There is also an Accessible toilet on ground level.

Wheelchair spaces Within Stalls, end of rows E and L and centre of row T. Unfortunately, the Circle, Lucy Room and Top Room are not currently wheelchair accessible. Our BT Studio is only accessible via two flights of stairs. If you require a stair climber, please let the Box Office know when booking.

What's On Guides are available as audio recordings and large-print copies on request. Please email access@oxfordplayhouse.com.

Sennheiser infrared headset system can help to boost the sound level straight to your hearing aid, if you are hard of hearing. Please ask the Box Office team at the time of booking, who can advise on the best places to sit for using the Sennheiser headsets.

Captioned performances convert spoken word into text that appears on a screen as the words are sung or spoken on stage British Sign Language (BSL) performances feature a BSL interpreter, who stands at the side of the stage and interprets the show for deaf audiences.

Audio described performances (via headphones) offer a live narration describing the action in the pauses between the onstage dialogue, for those who are blind or partially sighted. Free touch tours also accompany these performances and are a chance to explore the set before the show begins.

Relaxed performances are specifically set up to be more sensitive to audiences who may benefit from a more relaxed environment, including people with autistic spectrum conditions, learning disabilities or young children. The house lights will be partially on, sound levels reduced, and audience members can come and go as they please and make noise if they want to.

Dementia Friendly Performances are carefully tailored for those living with dementia and their friends, family or carers, so everyone can enjoy the show in a supportive, comfortable, and relaxed environment. Adaptations include reduced volume of music when dialogue is taking place.

www.oxfordplayhouse.com

Our address

Oxford Playhouse, Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2LW

Box Office: 01865 305305 www.oxfordplayhouse.com

Box Office Opening Hours

Monday to Saturday 12noon until the start of the evening performance.

When there is no evening performance we close at 6pm. We are closed on Sundays and Bank Holidays unless we have a performance when we open 90 minutes before the scheduled start time.

Our Foyer Bar opens an hour before performances.

How to get to us

Park and Ride: If travelling by car, using one of Oxford’s five Park and Ride services is the easiest way to reach us. For more information visit www.parkandride.net

Car Parking: Nearby car parks include Gloucester Green (closest), Worcester Street, Abbey Place, Oxpens and Oxford Rail Station. There are on-street pay-and-display meters on Broad Street, St Giles and in Jericho.

Train: Oxford Rail Station is a 10 minute walk. For Oxford Parkway use the Park and Ride.

Bus and Coach: The main Bus and Coach Station is two minutes’ walk away on Gloucester Green.

Family Friendly Shows and activities designed especially for families, plus:

Free booster seats.

Picnic bags available to pre order for many family shows Baby change on ground floor.

Babies are welcome to family shows for free. To book, please call the Box Office on 01865 305305 or email boxoffice@oxfordplayhouse.com. Lap tickets are available for children aged 24 months or under for Mainstage shows and 12 months or under for BT Studio shows.

Made in Oxford Shows which have been created here in the county.

www.oxfordplayhouse.com

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