Critically acclaimed South Staffordshire College Performing Arts Department return to the Lichfield Garrick to close their Performance Season 2014/15 with the smash hit Sondheim musical comedy Merrily We Roll Along.

Turning the traditional showbiz musical on its head is this thrilling and compelling Broadway fable about friendship, compromise and the high price of success. Merrily We Roll Along begins in the present and moves backwards, tracing the lives of wealthy, jaded composer Franklin Shepard and his two estranged friends through each milestone of their personal and professional lives (good and bad). 

The show ends with a touch of rueful irony, as the three best friends at the start of their careers face a bright future: young, talented and enthusiastic about the worlds waiting to be conquered.

Featuring the hit songs Not a Day Goes By, Good Thing Going, Old Friends and Our Time. Don't miss this fantastic show from SSC Performing Arts.

Merrily We Roll Along plays at Lichfield Garrick, on the main stage, on 23 and 24 June. All seats are £12 and performances start at 7.30pm. For more information and to book tickets click here or call the Garrick's box office on 01543 412121.

Find SSC Performing Arts on Twitter here.
Find SSC Performing Arts on Facebook here.

Take a look here at our last review for SSC Performing Arts production of tick, tick, BOOM!

Are you a potential Oliver, an Artful Dodger, or could you just 'pick a pocket or two'?

Walsall Operatic Society is looking for boys aged between 8 and 16 for their next main production, Oliver! which will be performed at the Lichfield Garrick Theatre from 8 to 12 March 2016.  We require two teams, each one consisting of Oliver, Artful Dodger and 13 boys.

Auditions will be held on Sunday 14 June 2015 at Darwin Hall, Lichfield (see map below).

If you would like to register your child for an audition, please fill in your contact details at the form here, along with a brief explanation of any musical or performing experience they have. A pack of audition materials is also available for download from here.

For further information visit Walsall Operatic Society's website.

Find Walsall Operatic Society on Facebook here.
Find Walsall Operatic Society on Twitter here.

Award-winning Coventry Musical Theatre Society (CMTS) return to Belgrade Theatre, Coventry this May with their latest offering, Oliver!. Based on the classic novel by Charles Dickens, Oliver! is undoubtedly one of the best-loved musicals in theatre history. 

When orphan Oliver Twist utters the immortal words “Please Sir I Want Some More”, little does he know his actions will take him on unimaginable adventures in the underworld of Victorian London, alongside the colourful characters of Fagin, Nancy, Bill Sykes and The Artful Dodger.

Director Steve Boden says:
"It's fun to work with so many young people. Their energy and enthusiasm is boundless and they 
are making rehearsals great fun. Myself, the Musical Director James Suckling, Choreographer Sue 
Biddle and Assistant Choreographer Louise Redmond are thoroughly enjoying the challenges 
which mounting a show like this presents. The most enjoyable part is making sure the personality 
of each child shines through while making scenes like the workhouse exactly as the audience 
expect."

Lionel Bart’s sensational score includes the timeless songs, Food, Glorious Food, Consider Yourself, You’ve Got To Pick A Pocket Or Two, Who Will Buy?, Oom Pah Pah, As Long As He Needs Me, I’d Do Anything and many more tunes for the whole family to sing along to.

Six-times NODA award-winning Coventry Musical Theatre Society are proud to bring this legendary show to the Belgrade Theatre. Following their highly successful productions of Crazy for You and Oklahoma recently, they are again set to delight audiences, this time with the fun, family favourite, Oliver!

Oliver! runs at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry from Thursday 21 to Saturday 23 May 2015. There are two performances a day with show times of 3pm and 7:30pm on Thursday 21, a 10:30am schools performance and 7.30pm on Friday 22 and 2pm and 7:30pm on Saturday 23. 

For information and to book tickets click here or call the Belgrade Theatre box office on 024 7655 3055. 

You can find Coventry Musical Theatre Society on Twitter here.
You can find Coventry Musical Theatre Society on Facebook here.

Award-winning Solihull Theatre Company are taking to the stage - and the skies - with The Witches of Eastwick at Solihull Arts Complex this May.

Set to a fantastic musical score and based on the acclaimed Hollywood film, the story centres around three female protagonists, the 'Witches' Alexandra Jane and Sukie. Frustrated and bored by their mundane lives in the small and squeaky clean town of Eastwick, a shared longing and desire for ‘all manner of man in one man’ comes to life in the form of a charismatic stranger, the devil-like character, Darryl Van Horne.

This witty, dark and risqué production will leave audiences hot under the collar and in amazement as the three witches soar above audiences at Solihull Arts Complex from 12 to 16 May.

For more information about the production click here. Alternatively, if you would like to book tickets visit Solihull Arts Complex website here or call the box office on 0121 704 6962.

Find STC on Facebook here.
Find STC on Twitter here. 

Here is our top 15 theatre picks for May (we couldn't narrow it down to 10!). From amateur to professional, get your diaries at the ready to pop some of the most important dates in...

5 to 9 May
Sister Act
The Arcadians at Crescent Theatre
Click here

9 May
I Love You Because
Starbuck Theatre Company at Ruddock Performing Arts Centre, Birmingham
Click here

12 to 16 May
Hairspray
Trinity Players at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall
Click here

12 to 16 May
Bad Girls 
Mellow Dramatics at The Brewhouse Arts Centre
Click here

12 to 16 May
Kiss Me, Kate 
Bournville Musical Theatre Company at Crescent Theatre
Click here

12 to 16 May
The Witches Of Eastwick
Solihull Theatre Company at Solihull Arts Complex
Click here

13 to 16 May
Ghost The Musical
WBOS at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre
Click here

15 to 30 May
The Rise And Fall Of Little Voice
Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Click here

21 to 23 May
Oliver! 
Coventry Musical Theatre Society at Belgrade Theatre, Coventry
Click here

21 to 23 May
Judy - The Songbook Of Judy Garland
New Alexandra Theatre
Click here

22 to 23 May
Thrill Me 
Old Rep Theatre
Click here

26 May to 6 June
The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Night-Time
Birmingham Hippodrome
Click here

27 to 30 May
Wuthering Heights 
SSA Drama at The Edge
Click here

27 to 30 May
Hot Mikado
SSC Performing Arts at Lichfield Garrick
Click here

28 to 30 May
Into The Woods
Backstreet Theatre Company at Prince of Wales Centre, Cannock
Click here

Lichfield Operatic Society have just enjoyed a sell out run at the Garrick Theatre in Lichfield with The King and I, which enjoyed fabulous reviews. Now for something a little different. In October they are performing The Full Monty and the production team are eager to welcome more chaps who are prepared to get their kit off!

The show is based on the fabulous film and tells of a group of unemployed men who, for their own personal reasons, decide to strip for “one night only”. This great piece of theatre will make you laugh and cry, taking you on a journey with these men who find personal and financial fulfilment by the end.

Rehearsals started in earnest on 30 April with audition preparation, and casting will be on 18 May.

For more information and to express an interest in auditioning contact Lichfield Operatic Official via their Facebook page here.

Find Lichfield Operatic Society on Twitter here.
Find Lichfield Operatic Society on Facebook here.

After their award-winning production of Anything Goes in 2014, for which they received B.F.A.M.E’s NODA cup for Outstanding Achievement, Bournville Musical Theatre Company are delighted to present Kiss Me, Kate at the Crescent Theatre from the 12 to 16 May.

Based in 1940s USA, this classic Cole Porter musical follows the antics of a travelling troupe of players as they debut their musical version of Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew in a Baltimore theatre. 

The musical is complex, a ‘show within a show’, combining Shakespearean dialogue and medieval-based melodies with the more up-to-date language and musical numbers that are indicative of the post-war era. Adding to the complexities of staging a show are two love stories; that of the divorced leading couple, Fred and Lilli, and the far-from-smooth love affair between the supporting leads, Lois and Bill. Much hilarity ensues as the wrangling of the leading pair spills into the ‘real-life’ show, while Bill attempts to win over his love, Lois, once and for all. 

Bournville Musical Theatre Company have been performing now for over 80 years in the Birmingham area. The Company was originally linked to Cadbury’s Chocolate Factory where they used to perform in the Cadbury Theatre yearly. Although the close relationship with the Bournville based company no longer exists, BMTC continue to rehearse in Cotteridge and have close ties to the Bournville area.

For more information and to book tickets for Kiss Me, Kate, which runs from 12 to 16 May, click here or call the Crescent Theatre box office on 0121 643 5858.

Award-winning theatre group Union Theatre, are looking for new cast members to join them in their next production - William Shakespeare’s As You Like It.

The auditions will be open to all ages and you don’t need any experience to take part. It will be very informal and will mainly consist of a read through of the play with other cast members

Auditions are taking place at 7.30pm on Tuesday 28 April 2015  in the Mayflower Room, Christ Church, Union Road, Solihull (see map below). 

For further details, please contact the director Mark Firmstone on 0121 705 1033 or 07931 218116.

It's not long now until the amateur premiere production of Hairspray opens in the Midlands.

Award-winning theatre group Trinity Players are performing Hairspray from 12 to 16 May at Sutton Coldfield Town Hall. 

Winner of eight Tony Awards including Best Musical, and four Laurence Olivier awards including Best New Musical, Hairspray is a big, bouncy bouffant of a musical, piled high with laughter, romance, bright coloured costumes, energetic dance routines and contagious hits such as Good Morning Baltimore, You Can't Stop The Beat and many more.

It's 1962 and teenager Tracy Turnblad wants to land a part as a dancer on the Corny Collins TV show. In order to achieve her dream of stardom, she needs to fight off the evil Amber for the crown of Miss Hairspray and win the heart of local heartthrob, Link Larkin, whilst taking a stand against racial segregation. For the big girl with the big heart, anything is possible.

Trinity Players is an award-winning amateur theatre society based in Sutton Coldfield, which has been performing high quality shows for nearly 40 years. Formed in 1975 they have grown to become a thriving group that puts on three shows each year. 

For more information and to book tickets for the fantastic Hairspray, which runs from 12 to 16 May, click here or call the box office on 07843 928830. 

Find Trinity Players on Facebook here.
Find Trinity Players on Twitter here. 

South Staffs Musical Theatre Company is starting its search for talented individuals to join them for their 2015 production of the Irving Berlin classic musical, White Christmas, which will be performed at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre from 1 to 5 December.

An open audition for new members will be held on Tuesday 28 April in Studio 2 at The Newhampton Arts Centre (see map below), starting at 7.30pm. Please bring a song of your choice, preferably on backing track, and be prepared to do some movement and to read a piece of libretto from the show, which you will be given on the evening.

The group are particularly keen to recruit dancers with strong tap technique, gentlemen for both ensemble and principal roles and ladies suitable to take principal roles. However, please note that the ladies ensemble is complete. Trained dancers please prepare a short routine of your choice.

If you are interested in auditioning please send a message to South Staffs Musical Theatre Company via their Facebook page here.