Carrie Hope Fletcher’s Calamity Jane in Nikolai Foster’s touring production of Sammy Fain’s musical at the Grand Opera House, York
WEST End leading lady, author and vlogger Carrie Hope Fletcher returns to York from tomorrow to Saturday in the title role in Calamity Jane at the Grand Opera House – much to her mum’s delight.
Something about the gun-slingin’, tough-talkin’, hard-ridin’ frontierswoman immortalised by Doris Day in the 1953 film made her reckon it was a role that Carrie was born to play.
How could she say No when the offer came through to the 32-year-old South Harrow actress, whose credits include Éponine and Fantine in Les Misérables; Veronica Sawyer in the original West End production of Heathers: The Musical; Wednesday in The Addams Family; Beth in the arena tour of The War Of The Worlds and originating the role of Cinderella in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella.
“My mum had always said I would be a good Calamity Jane, and through the entirety of my adult career she has always said she would love to see my playing the part,” says Carrie. “It’s her dream role for me. So I looked into it and listened to the songs and watched the movie starring Doris Day and fell in love with it. Doris is such an icon. Though I did have to prepare my mum not to get her hopes up as things do fall through and you never know what might happen.”
“It’s so wonderful Calamity is not just an ingenue or the soppy romantic or just a comedy character, she is all of it,” says Carrie Hope Fletcher
Mum knows best, however! Since January, Carrie has been leading North Yorkshireman Nikolai Foster’s cast in the good-hearted Western musical comedy, following the likes of Carol Burnett, Barbara Windsor, novelist Lynda La Plante, Toyah Willcox and Jodie Prenger, who played Calamity on its last Grand Opera House visit in February 2015.
Carrie loves how the fearless, feisty Calamity pushes her as a performer. “I am relatively new to the whole world of Calamity Jane, but it’s a dream role in terms of her as a character,” she says of a whip-crackin’ woman “prone to making a few blunders and mistakes”. “She is the romantic lead, gets a great love story, has an amazing female friendship with Katie Brown and gets all the cracking, belty numbers.
“She ticks all of those boxes and it’s so wonderful she’s not just an ingenue or the soppy romantic or just a comedy character, she is all of it. Parts like that are really rare and she has been great fun to get to know.”
The subject of femininity plays out in Calamity’s relationship with Wild Bill Hickok, the Howard Keel-originated role now played by Vinny Coyle. “There are conversations between her and Wild Bill where he says ‘Why can’t you be more feminine?’,” says Carrie. “She goes through a Cinderella story finding it, but ultimately ends up going back to who she is comfortable as, and being loved and accepted for it. And it’s all hidden within this funny, farcical story.”
Carrie Hope Fletcher: West End leading lady, musical theatre singer, author, vlogger and sister of McFly’s Tom Fletcher
She is not daunted by singing songs such as The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away) and Secret Love forever associated with Doris Day. “I have a good mindset about the pressure that comes with that,” she says. “You can’t please everyone as everyone has different versions of what they want the character to be. If you tried to please people, you would come up with this warped version that isn’t anyone’s dream version.
“I feel like I have been entrusted with the role and I need to be the one to decide who this version of Calamity Jane is. And if people don’t like it, they don’t like it. But if they do, it means all the more.”
Alongside her theatre work, Carrie has published a series of books for young people and accrued more than 500,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel and hundreds of thousands of Instagram followers. She last appeared in York last October in Love Letters, her exploration in song of all forms of love, from romantic to maternal, unrequited to obsessive, at York Barbican.
As always, she found joy in singing, joy that transferred to the audience too. “That’s what people latch on to. Maybe the joy I get from it separates me from others. That’s what people connect to,” she says. “I do think that musical theatre is based in expressing emotion, and if you’re not feeling it one night, then it won’t transmit to the audience.”
The tour poster for Calamity Jane starring Carrie Hope Fletcher
Now her focus is on being on the road in Calamity Jane for the best part of a year, necessitating being away from her husband, fellow performer Joel Montague, and their daughter, Mabel, who will join her for some of the dates, however.
If juggling motherhood and appearing in a major tour were not enough, Carrie has mastered a new skill while working on Calamity Jane. Her cast cohorts are actor-musicians, and not one to be left out, she can be spotted picking up an instrument – a somewhat unusual one.
“I got the coconuts to play,” she says. “I am the horse! So while everyone else is incredibly talented with the saxophone and the trumpet and cello, I’ll be focusing on the coconuts.”
Calamity Jane, Grand Opera House, York, April 29 to May 3, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm matinees. Box office: atgtickets.com/york
YORK unlocks for the weekend. Charles Hutchinson unlocks the door to multiple other delights too.
Festival of the week: York Unlocked 2024, today and tomorrow from 10am
IN its third year, York Unlocked welcomes residents and visitors to experience York’s architecture and open spaces with the chance to discover, explore and enjoy around 50 sites.
This year’s new addition is a children’s trail book; families can pick up a free copy from York Explore Library, All Saints’ Church, North Street, or The Guildhall. Full details of the participating locations, from Spark: York to City Screen Picturehouse, Terry’s Factory Clock Tower to Bishopthorpe Palace, Holgate Windmill to York Railway Station, can be found at york-unlocked.org.uk. Entry is free, including those requiring booking.
Rachel Croft: Heading back to York to play The Crescent
Return of the week: Black Deer Live in association with TalentBanq presents Rachel Croft Live, supported by Tom Sheldon Trio, The Crescent, York, tonight, doors 7.30pm
AFTER relocating to London almost three years ago, thunderous alt-rock singer-songwriter Rachel Croft returns to York for an explosive hometown show, backed by a full band.
Caffe Nero Artist of the Month in February 2024, she has performed at The O2 Arena Blue Room, Bush Hall and Camden Assembly in London, the Bitter End in New York and Bluebird Cafe in Nashville and such festivals as Cambridge Folk Festival, Secret Garden Party and Black Deer. Her cinematic songs have featured on Netflix, the BBC and in rotation in Tesco, Waterstones and Centre Parcs stores. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Much more than stripping assets: York’s queen of burlesque, Freida Nipples, hosts The Exhibionists in The Old Paint Shop
Cabaret night of the week: Freida Nipples presents…The Exhibitionists, The Old Paint Shop, York Theatre Royal Studio, tonight, 8pm; Halloween Edition, October 26, 6pm and 9pm
YORK’S award-winning burlesque artiste Freida Nipples launches the Theatre Royal’s new Old Paint Shop cabaret season with some of her favourite fabulous performance artists from across Great Britain.
“From burlesque to drag and beyond, be sure to expect the unexpected,” she says. “Get ready to be dazzled, shocked and in awe. Only a few things are guaranteed: glamour, gags and giggles.” Tickets update: all three shows have sold out. For returns only, call 01904 623568.
Frankenstein (On A Budget): One man, one monster, one glorious dream at Friargate Theatre, York
“Comedy musical Hammer Horror homage you didn’t know you needed”: Frankenstein (On a Budget), Friargate Theatre, York, tonight, 7.30pm
ONE man, one monster, one glorious dream to singlehandedly tell the most famous cult horror story of all time on absolutely no budget whatsoever. What could possibly go wrong? Inspired by Mary Shelley and Boris Karloff, Frankenstein (On a Budget) features one actor, some decidedly dodgy backdrops, new music, weather-based based puns, cardboard props, gore and flashing lights.
Can the ill-fated doctor build his monstrous creation, play 25 characters, sing songs aplenty, attempt accents from across the world, perform a dance routine, and ultimately save the day in only 60 minutes? Find out tonight. Age guidance: 14 upwards. Box office: ridinglights.org/friargatetheatre.
The Shires: Playing York on intimate acoustic tour
Country gig of the week: The Shires: The Two Of Us Tour, Grand Opera House, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm
GREAT Britain’s biggest country music export, The Shires, return to York on their intimate acoustic tour, where Ben Earle and Crissie Rhodes play songs from 2015 debut, 2016’s My Universe, 2018’s Accidentally On Purpose, 2020’s Good Years and 2022’s 10 Year Plan.
The Shires have achieved three consecutive UK Top Three albums, four UK Country album chart toppers, more than 100 million streams, two gold-certified records and two CMA Awards, headlining the Royal Albert Hall too. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Aein Nasseri (Alland) and the CAPA College Chorus (Vox) in Red Ladder Theatre Company’s Sanctuary. Picture: Robling Photography
Play of the week: Red Ladder Theatre Company in Sanctuary, Selby Abbey, October 7, 7.30pm; Hull Truck Theatre, Hull, October 8, 7.30pm; Wesley Centre, Harrogate, October 12,7.30pm
DIRECTED by new Red Ladder artistic director Cheryl Martin, this timely premiere by Sarah Woods and musician Boff Whalley tells the vital story of Alland, a young Iranian man who begs to be given sanctuary at St Mary’s Church in a northern town, sparking a community to react in all the ways each member believes to be right.
Featuring a chorus of Wakefield’s CAPA College students, Sanctuary mixes hard-hitting ideas with melodic tunes and harmonies, asking the question: do we want safety and freedom for only ourselves, or for us all? Box office: Selby, 01757 708449 or selbytownhall.co.uk; Hull, 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk; Harrogate, 01423 502116 or harrogatetheatre.co.uk.
Carrie Hope Fletcher: Love Letters in song form at York Barbican
Musical theatre revue of the week: Carrie Hope Fletcher, Love Letters, York Barbican, October 8, doors 7pm
WEST End musical theatre actress, author and vlogger Carrie Hope Fletcher explores all forms of love, from romantic to maternal, unrequited to obsessive, all told through a concert of musical theatre favourites, accompanied by specially written letters about each song by Carrie.
She is best known for playing Éponine and Fantine in Les Misérables, Veronica in Heathers, Wednesday in The Addams Family, Cinderella in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella on the London stage. Her special guest will be Bradley Jaden, her West End co-star in Les Miserables. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Ed Gamble: Not discussing hot dogs in Hot Diggity Dog at the Grand Opera House. Picture: Matt Crockett
Comedy gig of the week: Ed Gamble, Hot Diggity Dog, Grand Opera House, York, October 9, 7.30pm
ED Gamble is promising “all your classicGamble ranting, raving and spluttering, but he’s doing fine mentally. Promise”. After all, he co-hosts the award-winning podcast Off Menuwith James Acaster, is a judge on Great British Menu and Taskmaster champion, hosts Taskmaster The Podcast and The Traitors: Uncloaked and has his own special, Blood Sugar, available on Amazon Prime. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Not Gonna Lie: Fool(ish) Improv use audience true stories to improvise “unbelievable comedy”
Improv gig of the week: Fool(ish) Improv present Not Gonna Lie, The Old Paint Shop, York Theatre Royal Studio, October 10, 8pm
PAUL Birch and co will take the truth to task by using real stories from the audience to improvise “unbelievable comedy”. Not so much Who’s Line Is It Anyway but more Who’s Lie Is It Anyway, Fool(ish) welcome you to a playful night of joy, nonsense and completely making things up.
“Come confess and unburden yourselves of some silly secrets, tales of the office and childhood memories and we will shape them into surreal sketches and sensational scenes,” say the Yorkshire improvisers trained by the best in Chicago Long-Form improv. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Sharleen Spiteri: Leading Texas at Scarborough Open Air Theatre next summer
Gig announcement of the week: Texas, Scarborough Open Air Theatre, July 26 2025
SCOTTISH band Texas, fronted as ever by Sharleen Spiteri, will return to Scarborough Open Air Theatre for the first time since July 2018 to showcase five decades of songs, from I Don’t Want A Lover, Say What You Want and Summer Son to Inner Smile, Mr Haze and Keep On Talking next summer. Irish rock band The Script are confirmed already for July 5. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.co.uk and ticketmaster.co.uk.
Carrie Hope Fletcher on stage in Love Letters, on tour at York Barbican
WEST End musical theatre star, author and vlogger Carrie Hope Fletcher will explore all forms of love, from romantic to maternal, unrequited to obsessive, in Love Letters at York Barbican on Tuesday.
Joining her for this concert of musical theatre favourites will be West End leading man Bradley Jaden, her Les Miserables co-star, one of three special guests on her 14-date autumn tour.
Best known for playing Éponine and Fantine in Les Misérables, Veronica in Heathers, Wednesday in The Addams Family, Cinderella in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella and Beth in the arena tour of The War Of The Worlds alongside Jason Donovan, Carrie’s tour marks her return to the stage after time away since giving birth to daughter Mabel, now seven months old.
“My last job finished on New Year’s Eve: panto in Crawley. I was Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty, the villain. It’s the best role – Sleeping Beauty is asleep for half the show!” says Carrie, 31.
“That was my second panto, and again I did it with Evolution Productions [co-producers of the York Theatre Royal pantomime] after Canterbury in the first year, both written and directed by Paul Hendy, who’s so much fun and just knows the essence of what makes a good panto.
“Last year I also did my first tour, called An Open Book, where I told stories from throughout my career that I hadn’t told before and paired them with songs, and we had such a great time, I wanted to do another show like that.”
Here comes Love Letters. “The fun thing is that it will be a different set list every night,” says South Harrow-born Carrie. “There are six songs that will be sung every night, at the beginning, in the middle and at the end of each act, with ten in between that will be completely different at each show.
“A list of songs will go live on social media before each concert, where fans can pick out their venue and make their choices from 25/26 songs per show.”
At first Carrie said that the six songs sure to feature each night were a secret but then she revealed: “There are three I can confirm: Journey To The Past, from Anastasia; Home, from Beetlejuice The Musical and Someone’s Waiting For You from The Rescuers.”
Carrie Hope Fletcher in her dressing room
Explaining the theme behind Love Letters, Carrie says: “I just felt that because the world is so fast paced, especially with social media, that I miss the slow-paced art of writing a letter, when you know that the writer has taken time to prepare before writing the words. It’s not just about people we love, but things we love as well: musical theatre, books, Disney.
“I’ve written a love letter to go with every song, dedicated to a person or a thing. Audience members for each show can send in a love letter and I’ll choose one and read it out. We’ve been going through the letters that have come in over the past few weeks and a lot of them are dedicated to someone who’s coming to the show with them.”
Assessing why love is the subject of so many songs, Carrie says: “It’s the thing that unites us all. We all feel love for someone or something one way or another, and we feel it deep down, whether it’s for a person, a pet or a favourite film.”
Carrie’s career has required her to sing some of the greatest songs in musical theatre. “There’s a responsibility singing those songs, especially when playing roles that people hold great affection for. Like singing I Dreamed A Dream in Les Miserables, where it’s become bigger than the musical.
“People attach it to their own lives, so I do feel that sense of responsibility when the opening chords are played and you know you have to deliver.
“It put things in perspective when people say, ‘you’re not a doctor, or a lawyer defending someone, you’re just putting on a wig and singing’, but for people who come to the theatre, it’s a chance to escape and that one night could have a life-changing effect on someone. You have to remind yourself that what you’re doing is important to people.”
Carrie finds joy in singing, joy that transfers to the audience too. “It’s a joy I feel just to sing and that’s what people latch on to. Maybe the joy I get from it separates me from others. That’s what people connect to,” she says.
“ I do think that musical theatre is based in expressing emotion, and if you’re not feeling it one night, then it won’t transmit to the audience.”
Carrie Hope Fletcher with special guest Bradley Jaden, Love Letters, York Barbican, October 8, doors, 7pm. Box office: yorkbarbian.co.uk. Carrie will play the lead role in Nikolai Foster’s production of Calamity Jane, on tour at Grand Opera House, York, from April 29 to May 3 2025. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
The poster for the 2025 tour of Calamity Jane starring Carrie Hope Fletcher
CARRIE Hope Fletcher will lead the cast in the 2025 tour of Jamie Wilson Productions’ revival of the Watermill Theatre’s whip-crackin’ production of Calamity Jane prior to a West End run. The Grand Opera House, York, awaits from April 29 to May 3.
“Calamity Jane is one of those roles that doesn’t come around all too often,” says Carrie. “She’s action, romance and comedy all packed into one character, and I can’t wait to take on the challenge of filling her shoes.”
Marking the tenth anniversary since the Watermill show hit the road, next year’s production reunites the creative team with direction by Curve artistic director Nikolai Foster, co-direction and choreography by Nick Winston, orchestration and music supervision by Catherine Jayes and set and costume design by Matthew Wright. Lighting design will be by Tim Mitchell and sound design by Ben Harrison.
Producer Jamie Wilson says: “With this new version of Calamity Jane first opening at The Watermill Theatre in 2014, I am delighted to be collaborating with them again to finally bring this wonderful production back to theatres all over the country after a ten-year absence.
“We have been waiting for the right moment and artist to step into Calamity’s boots and bring this hilarious and joyful musical back to the nation, and we are thrilled that Carrie Hope Fletcher will be leading the company as the iconic Calamity Jane. Carrie is one of the UK’s most talented artists whose broad fan base will introduce this much beloved musical to audiences across the country.”
Based on the cherished 1954 Doris Day movie, this foot-stomping new production features such songs as The Deadwood Stage (Whip-Crack-Away), The Black Hills Of Dakota, Just Blew In From the Windy City and the Oscar-winning Secret Love.
The tour publicity invites you to “meet the fearless, gun-slinging Calamity Jane, the biggest mouth in Dakota territory and always up for a fight. She’ll charm you hog-eyed, however, especially when trying to win the heart of the dashing Lieutenant Gilmartin, or shooting insults at the notorious Wild Bill Hickok.
“But when the men of Deadwood fall hard for Chicago stage star Adelaid Adams, Calamity struggles to keep her jealousy holstered. Her heart’s a thumpin’… but who for? What are you waiting for, you wild coyotes? Whip -crack-away!”
Tickets for the 7.30pm evening performances and 2.30pm Thursday, Friday and Saturday matinees are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.
Carrie Hope Fletcher: More than one million views every month on her YouTube channel
Carrie Hope Fletcher: back story
Born: October 22 1992, South Harrow, Harrow
Occupation: Actress, author and vlogger.
Theatre includes: Elizabeth in The Crown Jewels (West End/UK tour), Grusha in The Caucasian Chalk Circle (Rose Theatre), Cinderella in Cinderella (Gillian Lynne Theatre), Fantine in Les Misérables: The Concert (Gielgud Theatre), Veronica in Heathers (Theatre Royal Haymarket), Carabosse in Sleeping Beauty (Marlowe Theatre), Brenda in The Christmasaurus Live (Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith), Wednesday in The Addams Family (Music and Lyrics), Eponine in Les Misérables (Dubai – Cameron Mackintosh), Truly Scrumptious in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (Music and Lyrics), Eponine in Les Misérables (Queen’s), Beth in Jeff Wayne’s War Of The Worlds (arena tour), Wind In The Willows (Regent’s Park Open Air), Jane Banks in Mary Poppins (Disney Theatrical/Cameron Mackintosh), Jemima in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Young Eponine in Les Misérables.
Television: In Two Minds, Break Kids, Princess Beatrix in Wilhelmina and Dog & Duck.
Concerts: Once – In Concert (London Palladium), Treason – The Musical in Concert (Theatre Royal Drury Lane), When The Curtain Falls (Cadogan Hall), Jason Robert Brown in Concert (Haymarket Theatre), West End Does Love (FortyFour Productions), West End Does Christmas (FortyFour Productions), West End Does Animation (FortyFour Productions), Edges (Prince of Wales), Andrew Lippa in Concert, Sheytoons in Concert (St James) and Ramin Karimloo’s 2012 tour Road To Find Out.
Carrie’s first solo tour in 2023, An Open Book, toured UK and played London Palladium (sold out) in a celebration of her career so far.
Music: Debut solo album When the Curtain Falls was released in March 2018, produced by 2300 Records. Reached Top 20 in UK album charts and number two in iTunes Soundtrack Charts. 2022 Grammy nominee for Best Musical Theatre Album for Cinderella (Original Concept Album) and Les Misérables: The Staged Concert (Live Album).
Presenting: Host of 2016 Olivier Awards in the Piazza; backstage host of 2018 Olivier Awards at Royal Albert Hall.
Books: First book All I Know Now: Wonderings and Reflections on Growing Up Gracefully, was released in 2015; On The Other Side, July 2016; All That She Can See, 2017; When The Curtain Falls, July 2018; In The Time We Lost, 2019; first children’s book, Into The Spotlight, a reimagining of Noel Streatfield’s Ballet Shoes, September 2020; With This Kiss, 2022; The Double Trouble Society, 2023.
Awards: Three-time winner of Best Actress in a Musical at WhatsOnStage Awards for roles of Cinderella in Cinderella, Veronica Sawyer in Heathers and Wednesday Addams in The Addams Family. Also won WhatsOnStage Award for Best Takeover in a Role for Eponine in Les Misérables
Social media: Established online presence with more than 472,000 followers on X, 600,000 on Instagram and 630,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel with more than one million views every month. Named in The Sunday Times Influencer List as one of UK’s top 100 influencers.
Davide Ortu’s illustration for the book cover for Carrie Hope Fletcher’s 2023 children’s novel, The Double Trouble Society And The Worst Curse
Carrie Hope Fletcher: the writer
“I HAVE written eight novels and one non-fiction book, my first book [All I Know Now: Wonderings and Reflections on Growing Up Gracefully, published in April 2015], written off the back of the lifestyle blog I wrote from 2011 onwards.
“I was 22 when I wrote it with all the knowledge of what I thought I knew as a teenager. I could easily write another now at 31,” she says.
“I wrote for Little, Brown Books for the first five books and then switched to Harper Collins. I have this incredible editor, who transferred to Harper Collins, and I followed her.
“My recent books were my first children’s books, the Double Trouble Society series. Last year Puffin published The Double Trouble Society And The Worst Curse, where the Double Trouble Society know how to handle witches but can they manage vampires, werewolves and ghosts as well?
“I have ideas for my next books, both for children and the adult market, but I’ve been preoccupied with being a new mum!”
Carrie Hope Fletcher: the vlogger
“YOU can find them on YouTube @Carrie. It’s mainly behind the scenes of musical theatre. I’ve been doing it for 11-12 years now and it’s been a delight to keep doing it,” says Carrie, who has made 893 videos and has 628,000 subscribers.
Love letter to theatre: The reopening season at York Theatre Royal
MUCH ado about nothing but love is promised when York Theatre Royal reopens with two nights of letters from the heart from May 17.
Love Bites will turn the spotlight on the creativity of artists from in and around York, whether poets, performers, singers, dancers or digital artists, who have been commissioned to write love letters celebrating the return to live performances after the easing of the Government’s pandemic restrictions.
More names will be announced nearer the time for the 8pm performances on May 17 and 18, but confirmed already from 200 proposals are Alice Boddy and Leanne Hope’s piece, A Love Letter To Female Friendship, and Japanese-English actor Erika Noda’s semi-autobiographical account of growing up dual heritage, entitled Ai.
Magic trio: writer Bethan Ellis, illustrator Elena Skoreyko Wagner and composer James Cave
Contributing too will be the Magic combination of illustrator and papercut artist Elena Skoreyko Wagner, composer and York Minster choir member James Cave and writer and editor Bethan Ellis, finding magic and meaning in the mundane, and York-based Zimbabwean playwright Butshilo Nleya, who combines words, music and dance in works centred on place, home and the multiplicity of cultures, this time presenting Ekhaya, Love Them Both?.
Juliet Forster, the Theatre Royal’s creative director, says: “Love Bites is really a love letter to live performance, put together by York artists. It’s a celebration of what we have been missing for over a year now: the chance to come together under one roof and share our stories and experiences. There was no one single theatre production that felt enough to mark the reopening of theatres, the lifting of restrictions, so we decided that we needed multiple ones.”
Selecting 20 commissions from more than 200 proposals was “extremely difficult, but really inspiring too,” she reveals. “There are so many talented, inventive, creative people in York – we could have filled the night several times over. The selection of short pieces that you will see on our stage represent a wide range of voices, artforms and approaches to the theme of love, created by both well-established artists and those who are newer to the scene,” she says.
“We hope Love Bites will turn out to be ‘a many-splendored thing’,” says York Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster
“Love Bites will explore the idea of love letters, dedicated to people, places, things, actions, occupations and much, much more in a multitude of ways, all presented in five-minute specially commissioned bite-sized chunks. We hope Love Bites will turn out to be ‘a many-splendored thing’”.
After these two nights introduced by Look North alumnus Harry Gration with a Pay What You Feel ticket policy, The Love Season’s focus on human connection, the live experience and a sense of togetherness will embrace solo shows by stage and screen luminary Ralph Fiennes [Four Quartets} and Coronation Street star Julie Hesmondhalgh [The Greatest Play In The History Of The World…]; a new Ben Brown political drama about writer Graham Greene and spy Kim Philby, A Splinter Of Ice, and Swedish playwright August Strindberg’s Miss Julie, transposed to 1940s’ Hong Kong by writer Amy Ng and director Dadiow Lin.
Performances will be presented to socially distanced audiences, adhering to the latest Government and industry Covid-19 guidelines to ensure the safety of staff and audiences with a reduced capacity of 344, but should Step 4 of the roadmap roll-out go ahead as planned on June 21, there is scope for more seats to go on sale for shows later in the season. Over to you, Mr Johnson.
“We’re so chuffed to have Ralph Fiennes coming to York. We can’t believe it,” says Theatre Royal chief executive Tom Bird
Theatre Royal chief executive Tom Bird says: “The last thing we want to do, given our mission and the trouble in keeping theatre alive, is to put up more barriers to people coming, but we have to be Covid-safe, and that’s the bottom line. We did it for the Travelling Pantomime we took around York wards, and we will do it again from May 17.’”
The number one talking point is Ralph Fiennes’s Theatre Royal debut, in six performances from July 26 to 31, directing himself in the world-premiere tour of T S Eliot’s Four Quartets: a solo theatre adaptation of Burnt Norton, East Coker, The Dry Salvages and Little Giddings, a set of poems first published together in 1943 on the themes of time, nature and the elements, faith and spirituality, war and mortality.
Tom says: “The link to bring the show here is James Dacre, artistic director of Northampton’s Royal & Derngate Theatres, who co-produced A View From The Bridge with the Theatre Royal in 2019.
Ralph Fiennes rehearsing T S Eliot’s Four Quartets
“He’s co-producing this tour, helping Ralph put the show together. Ralph is rehearsing in London, opening at the Theatre Royal, Bath, from May 25 and then touring. We’re so chuffed to have Ralph coming to York. We can’t believe it!
“We’re thrilled that Ralph’s show became a possibility for us, and it’s a huge credit to him to recognise the need to support theatre around the country at this time.
“Let’s say it, it’s rare for an actor of his profile and standing to do a regional tour, but he’s seen that he can help to save some incredibly important producing houses, like this one, by doing a tour – and it’s not an act of charity; it’s an important and really exciting piece of work.”
“It’s a huge credit to him to recognise the need to support theatre around the country at this time,” says Theatre Royal chief executive Tom Bird
Tom is delighted by Fiennes’s choice of material too. “There’s a massive tradition of actors doing Eliot poems, like Fiona Shaw doing The Waste Land,” he says. “They lend themselves to performance, and it’s really telling that Ralph has chosen to take Four Quartets on tour at this moment because they’re rooted in life and death; the past and the future; human relationships and a love of place.
“For that reason, it fits into our programme for a season built around love, connection and being rooted in a place. As an American coming to England, Eliot was trying to root himself here by looking for his ancestors in Somerset.”
For full details of The Love Season, go to: yorktheatreroyal.co.uk. Tickets can be booked at yorktheatreroyal.co.uk; on 01904 623568, Monday to Saturday, 12 noon to 3pm, and in person, Thursday to Saturday, 12 noon to 3pm.
