What's in the Theatres This Week (Fri 31 Oct - Thu 06 Nov)?

Oxford Playhouse:

Liberty - Paris, 1793. The French Revolution is four years old when ambitious young artist, Gamelin discovers he has been made a magistrate for the ruling forces. Believing the Revolution divides the world between good and evil, he sees conspiracy and corruption everywhere. How strong will the ties of love and friendship prove when Gamelin is given power over life and death, as the new order plunges with terrifying momentum from high idealism to bloody mob rule? Private jealousies and public fears, old alliances and new ideologies, panic legislation and political correctness all combine in this thrilling adaptation of Anatole France's 1912 novel Les Dieux ont Soif. Award winning poet, playwright and novelist, Glyn Maxwell brings a colloquial verse of great fluidity and immediacy to a story that is both fresh and relevant.

A Few Good Men by Aaron Sorkin - 'Can you handle the truth?' When two US marines are charged with killing a fellow soldier in Guantanamo Bay, their defence lawyer finds himself faced with a quandary: to duck out of the pressure of fighting against the system, or to prove the existence of a network of unlawful practice within the High Command itself. From the creator of The West Wing, this is a fast-paced courtroom drama staged to coincide with the real-life theatre of the American presidential elections.

Old Fire Station:

Sweeney Todd - Oxford Brookes Drama Society presents a version of the old melodrama Sweeney Todd set in the early nineteenth century. Todd returns to Fleet Street to avenge his family after his wife is raped by the Judge and his daughter abducted after he was deported on a false charge. On his return he sets up his Barber shop with Mrs Lovett, the pie maker, providing her with 'fillings' for her pies whilst biding his time to seek revenge.

Richard III - Shakespeare's most notorious villain in a new production with a supernatural twist. Enter Richrad's warped psyche in his dark and disturbing quest for the crown. Follow his spiral into sexual manipulation, torment and murder. A gripping thriller from the company that brought you sell out productions of Buchner's 'Woyzeck' and Philip Ridley's 'Mercury Fur'.

Burton Taylor Theatre:

All Roads Lead to Rome - The two greatest love affairs of all time are viewed afresh in this tapestry of scenes from 'Romeo and Juliet' and 'Antony and Cleopatra'. "Hell is to love no more".

The Last Train Out of Here - Three teenagers thrown together by their parents' remarriage. With tensions running high, it's only a matter of time before the situation reaches boiling point.

Accidental Death of an Anarchist - "I ought to warn you that the author of this sick little play, Dario Fo, has the traditional, irrational hatred of the police common to all narrow-minded left-wingers..." While we can't promise you the riots that followed original performances, we can promise wit, farce and a vivid caricature of authoritarianism.

New Theatre:

Barney Live! the Let's Go Tour - Barney, BJ and Baby Bop are going on a super-dee-duper musical adventure to a tee-rific toy factory and introducing their newest dino friend, Riff in the All-New Barney Live! The Let's Go Tour. Featuring 25 songs, including original compositions as well as classic Barney favorites

Jimmy Carr - Joke Technician - Jimmy Carr is not just a TV star. He's won awards, released chart-topping DVDs (there's a new one out this November), written a best-selling book and broken box office records by performing to over 500,000 people in the last three years. He may be the hardest working man in comedy. But perhaps he wouldn't have to be if he had a little bit more talent. This performance is not suitable for under 16s.

The Mighty Boosh - Two different men. One Mighty Boosh. Following the sell-out success of their debut live tour, Noel Fielding and Julian Barratt return to the live stage with their glorious mix of music and comedy. Back with a vengeance, Vince Noir and Howard Moon will be joined on stage by a profusion of characters from their hit TV show. See Naboo the Enigma dazzle with shaman magic, watch Bollo the Gorilla take on the irksome evil Cockney Hitcher and marvel at the worldly observations of the Moon. There may be punks and yetis, monsters, music and mayhem, in one terrific psychedelic melting pot.

Jools Holland and His Rhythm and Blues Orchestra - Jools formed his Big Band In 1987, comprising entirely of himself and Gilson Lavis.
This has gradually metamorphosed into the current 18-piece Rhythm and Blues Orchestra - one pianist; one drummer; two female vocals; one guitar; one bass guitar; one organ; two tenor saxophones; two alto saxophones; one baritone saxophone; three trumpets; and four trombones.

College Theatre:

The Last Five Years - Keble O'Reilly Theatre - A fresh and contemporary musical from Tony-Award winning composer Jason Robert Brown, THE LAST FIVE YEARS chronicles a young couple's romance in a new and exciting way: her story starts at the end of their relationship; his begins on the day they met. Funny and uplifting, the show captures some of the most heartbreaking and universally felt moments of modern romance.

North Wall Arts Centre:

Hysteria - The world is ending. And it's happening at table 9... Inspired by T.S. Eliot's poem of the same name, Hysteria makes us witnesses to a painstaking attempt at social interaction. A man and a woman are on the most awkward dinner date of their lives. He is an academic whose research into modern day neuroses is threatening his sanity; she is an events manager who's terrified of missing the party. Caught in the middle is their mortified waiter, haunted by visions of global catastrophe. With irreverent humour, vivid physicality and visceral sound and lighting, Hysteria draws its audience into a world where the main course is a fight for survival and a banana can move you to tears.

Matthew Sharp and Johnny's Midnight Goggles - Matthew Sharp: Matthew Sharp has performed worldwide as a solo 'cellist, singer and theatre performer. He combines core 'classical' activities with a uniquely pioneering outlook. Johnny's Midnight Goggles - Pete M Wyer/Sharpwire: A mind- and genre-melting explosion of storytelling, ravishing singing, virtuoso 'cello playing and sonic wizardry. The story of Johnny moves from suburban France to Takrilakastan where he has been spirited away by evil monsters hell-bent on destroying the world. A mysterious pair of goggles opens a portal into another world from which the rescue attempt and the adventure begins.

For all theatre information, times and dates, click here