What's in the Theatre this week? (Feb29 - March6)

Oxford Playhouse:

Spies- Set during the Second World War in a quiet suburban cul-de-sac Stephen and his friend Keith play at detectives. But the game changes gear when Keith announces that his own mother is a German spy.

Michael Frayn - To celebrate Oxford Playhouse and Theatre Alibi's co-production of Spies, award-winning author Michael Frayn joins us for this season's final Friday at 5 session. Michael Frayn is the author of plays including Noises Off, Democracy and Copenhagen and award-winning novels such as Spies and Headlong. His works often raise philosophical questions in a sometimes humorous context. Join him for what promises to be a fascinating insight into his incredible body of work.

The Clean House - Worlds collide in one painfully clean living room as four men and one woman confront the mess and beauty of their own lives. Lane has got everything, a successful surgeon for a husband and her own busy career as a doctor, but all she wants is a clean house. Unfortunately Matilde, her young cleaner from Brazil, hates to clean, instead preferring to dream up the perfect joke. Lane's sister Virginia loves to clean and comes to an arrangement with Matilde. Meanwhile, Lane's husband Charles becomes enchanted by one of his patients, the free-spirited Ana who cast a surreal spell over the clean house.

dancin' Oxford - Dance on Screen - Featuring the premiere of exciting new dance films made by Oxford-based dance filmmakers (commissioned by OFVM's Production Awards), plus screenings by regional and national dance film-makers. Followed by an opportunity for discussion.

Old Fire Station:

Quills - Quills tells the tale of the infamous and imprisoned Marquis de Sade, and his descent into the very bowls of Revolution-ravaged France. As his sedition is quashed by the tyranny of the Napoleonic regime, his downfall becomes the catalyst for merciless sexual domination and murder within the walls of the Charenton Asylum.

Measure for Measure - Darkly comic yet strangely disturbing, Shakespeare's tale of love, lust, sex and lies is reinterpreted in the Soviet East. The Duke's deputy is left to enforce Vienna's strict moral code of law and reform their decadent society. With its strikingly modern echoes, Shakespeare's explores the nature of authority and justice whilst mocking human fallibility and the way we judge society.

Mort - Death comes to us all. When he came to Mort, he offered him a job. But when Mort is left in charge for an evening, he allows his heart to rule his head and soon the whole of causality and the future of the Discworld itself, are at risk. Along the way, Mort encounters not only Death's adopted daughter, Isabell – who has been 16 for 35 years – and his mysterious manservant Albert – whose cooking can harden an artery at ten paces – but also an incompetent wizard with a talking doorknocker and a beautiful, but rather bad-tempered and dead, princess. He also, of course, meets Death.

Burton Taylor Studio:

Debris - By Dennis Kelly. When Michael finds a baby in some rubbish, he decides to bring the child home and raise him himself. He only wants the child to have a normal life.

Dolores Wears the Stares - By Jen Chutz. We have taken every sitcom ever written, smashed them to pieces and let savant toddlers reassemble them. The result is a surreal, satrical missile to launch towards DVDs of "Joey".

True West - By Sam Shepard. LA, 1981. Austin's in town to write a movie, when brother Lee blows in from the desert for some light robbery. Turns out he steals Austin's producer, and in 24 hours of savage boozing, Shepard's power-house pair go from grand theft toaster to fatal violence and everything in between.

New Theatre:

LazyTown Live! - Welcome to LazyTown Live! - The Show with Go! The funniest and freshest, award-winning show of the moment, packed with moves, music, fun and a great story, all set in this amazingly colourful, fast-paced, upside-down world. Stephanie, an optimistic 8 year old with bright pink hair, comes to live in LazyTown and meets a zany mix of kids and grown-ups, including the world's laziest super-villain, Robbie Rotten. Fortunately for Stephanie, Sportacus, an athletic superhero who jumps, leaps and flips his way across LazyTown in his airship is also on hand to help the townsfolk battle Robbie's latest lazy schemes. LazyTown may have the laziest name on Earth, but it's jam-packed with action, energy and a powerful message that will energise and inspire children everywhere.

All That Jazz (Birmingham Royal Ballet) - David Bintley enjoys a long-running passion for jazz, and these delightful, warm-hearted and deeply evocative ballets capture memories of his father's record collection.

Swan Lake - Birmingham Royal Ballet - Out hunting, Prince Siegfried watches in astonishment as a swan changes into a beautiful Princess. She is Odette, who, under the evil Von Rothbart's spell, spends her days as a swan, returning to human form as night falls. Only Siegfried's love – that of someone who has never loved before – has the power to break the evil spell. But when the Prince is tricked into declaring himself to Von Rothbart's daughter Odile, magically disguised as Odette, all hope appears lost.

Pegasus Theatre:

okan' nijo (one) - Sakoba returns to Pegasus with a trilogy of pieces encapsulating the company's signature post-modern African dance. Aiduronijo (Clockwork) plays with the elements of time through intricate precise movements. Ogo (Glory) is a new duet that questions our disengagement from our spiritual faculties and Okan' Nijo (One) takes us on a revealing journey across continents with a new piece researched in China, India, Brazil, Cuba and Nigeria, with acclaimed choreography from Bode Lawal.

Ain't Misbehavin' The Fats Waller Musical Show - Oxfordshire Touring Theatre Company presents AINT MISBEHAVIN a sexy, sultry, sassy musical show that boasts a live jazz trio and five fabulous vocalists strummin, struttin, and singing the songs made famous by the outrageously prodigious King of Swing, the fabulous Thomas Fats Waller. A prestigious team includes concert pianist Dominic Harlan & singers that have recently performed in West End productions of Carmen Jones, The Lion King and Miss Saigon.

College Theatre:

Kwame Kwei-Armah on Race and Playwrighting in Britain Today - As part of the OXFORD RADICAL FORUM, Kwame Kwei Armah comes to Wadham College to talk about race and playwrighting in Britain Today. Moser Theatre, Wadham College

Love's Labour - "Love's Labour" is a contemporary, cross-cultural take on Shakespeare's classic "Twelfth Night". Writer, director, and founder of the Roma Kyogen Ichiza group, Prof. Sekine, is coming from Japan to direct this exciting project that brings a fresh twist to Shakespearean comedy through its exploration of Kyogen (classical Japanese comedy) - inspired performance technique. O'Reilly Theatre, Keble College

Miscellaneous Theatre:

dancin' Oxford - Dance-A-Thon Weekend - Building on the huge success of last year's event - an exciting opportunity to participate in dance taster workshops (ranging from Flamenco, Hip Hop & Salsa, to Ceroc, Ballroom, African & Bollywood!) See website for times and locations

dancin' Oxford - Spring Dance Platform - A showcase of dance by the college's dance students (A-level / BTEC ND in Dance) with invited guest youth dance groups. Oxford & Cherwell Valley College

Breaking the Silence: a one women show about Rachel Carson - In 2007, a century after her birth, Rachel Carson scientist, writer and pioneering ecologist was voted top environmentalist. Her achievements included proof of the link between pesticides and their damage to the environment and their impact on human and animal health. She single-handedly took on the US government and agro-chemical industry in her groundbreaking book "Silent Spring" published in 1962. Meet this remarkable woman played by actress Liz Rothschild, who in this dynamic and moving one-women play, reveals stories about Rachel Carson never told in her lifetime and how they reverberate today. Ruskin College, Walton St.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here