UK News: April at the Nottingham Playhouse

Friday 8 – Saturday 23 April 2005

Nottingham Playhouse Theatre Company presents

CHICKEN SOUP WITH BARLEY

By Arnold Wesker

Directed by Giles Croft

For the Kahn family, the Promised Land is neither the Jerusalem of their forebears, nor the basement flat they live in now. Their dream of a better world is sustained by the vitality of the East End community around them, and put to an exhilarating test in the anti-fascist riots of the 1930s.

Share in their lives through three decades, as history takes its toll and a mother's resilience contends with a father's weakness. Chicken Soup with Barley is a powerful and deeply moving portrait of the forces that drive us apart, and the ties that bind us together.

Arnold Wesker's autobiographical drama – the first in the "Wesker trilogy" – is one of the landmark plays of 20^th century theatre: a vibrant and honest testament to fading ideals and enduring love.

Performance times: 7.45pm

Matinee performances: 16 April (2.30pm), 21 April (1.30pm)

Tickets £6 - £22 (Concessions available)

Post-Show Discussion: 19 April (7.45pm)

Audio-Described Performances: 19 April (7.45pm), 20 April (7.45pm)

BSL sign language interpreted performance (Alan Haythornthwaite): 22 April (7.45pm)

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Saturday 23 April 11am & 1pm 

THE SATURDAY CLUB: 

Roundabout Theatre-in-Education and ajtc present

THE GARDENER

Let's face it, Harry's not the man he was. His memory is going. Sometimes he can't even get to the end of a … But while Harry is forgetting, his grandson Joe is busy making memories. He needs to know everything – 'What's this?' 'What's that?' 'Who?' 'When?' 'Why?' 'How?'

A gentle and beautifully-told tale from award-wining writer Mike Kenny, this is a story that is being forgotten and remembered at the same time. It is being lost and made. As the leaves fall from the branches of Harry's fading memory, they turn into the green shoots of his grandson's new stories. Performed with live music, THE GARDENER is designed for children aged 5-7.

Saturday Club is sponsored by The Ark Day Nursery, Mapperley Park, Nottingham and Childs Play Nursery, Bestwood Park, Nottingham.

Tickets: Adults £5, Children £4

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Tuesday 26 April 8pm

GRUPO CORPO BRAZILIAN DANCE GROUP

A Dance Consortium tour

Grupo Corpo make the hottest dance in the coolest way, combining amazing physical athleticism, stunning visual images and breathtakingly joyous choreography. Afro-Brazilian dance traditions fuse with classical ballet and sizzling latin beats into one electrifying celebration of life.

This evening of eye-popping dance includes the company's most celebrated work, the stunningly bold O CORPO, with flashing red lights, punky black costumes, and gymnastic choreography set to a brilliant rhythmic score. LECUONA by contrast is unashamedly romantic. Set to the music of Lecuona, "the Cuban Gerswin", the show is a sensual mix of vibrating colours, flowing fabrics, cleavage and high heels, with flashes of ballroom vibrancy.

Direct from Brazil, this is the true essence of dance: an uplifting, inspiring and utterly unforgettable experience for the body, mind and heart.

Age recommendation: PG

Tickets: £16 (£14.50), £14 (£12.50)

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Friday 29 & Saturday 30 April 8pm

PHOENIX DANCE THEATRE 

Phoenix return to Nottingham Playhouse with a new mixed bill of fresh dance theatre and classic contemporary dance works that journey through diverse environments and three decades of dance. The programme includes Artistic Director Darshan Singh Bhuller's new piece combining film and live performance and the UK premiere of the otherworldly SEE BLUE THROUGH by Didy Veldman (NBT's Carmen). Phoenix have also been granted the rare privilege of staging FOREST by Robert Cohan, founder of The Place and London Contemporary Dance Theatre and former dancer with Martha Graham.

Age recommendation: 9+

Tickets: £16 (£14.50), £14 (£12.50)

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