Theatre Guide Dog: Week 5

Abandon hope, all ye who enter the ADC this week… for it has been prophesied that molten lava will flow from the Jesus Lane traffic lights, that the earth will ope’ its gravel jaws and consume the wicked idolaters (and possibly the bike racks outside, and the Quaker meeting house, depending on the accuracy of the chasm and the scale of the Lord’s wrath) and the babes will turn foul in their mothers’ arms and run to the theatre to behold the vile and evil thing as it consumes our very souls for we have had warning of this day since about the beginning of October and yet we have fallen further from the path of righteousness until this moment when we must turn to face the stage and behold the root of our wickedness in the form of MAX UPTON (as Jerry  Springer). Look on ye mighty, then perhaps applaud. Here’s week five:

Jerry Springer the Opera: 8th–12th November

Written by Stewart Lee, featuring adults in nappies, like Paradise Lost with rude words, these people hate it – what’s not to like? Hopefully the production values of the ADC will be on top form to help this show through some tricky scene changes, but regardless, this is one of the few genuinely exciting big shows of the term. Vamos!

ADC, 7.45pm  £8-12

The Glass Menagerie: 8th–12th November

The past – weren’t things simpler then? Isn’t it sometimes really hot in the south of America? Aren’t some people just a bit too sexually frustrated for their own good? Is there still a demand for repressed dialogue on the nature of truth and, y’know, feeling honey? HEY STELLA?! Are you even listening any more?

Corpus Playroom, 7pm  £5-6

Hatch 7th November only

This well-curated showcase for new writing returns to the Corpus Playroom to make good use of that funny little space and to give students the chance to share works-in-progress with a (usually) like minded audience. If you enjoy it, there’s more poetry available this Friday evening at the Judith E. Wilson drama studio, 7:30pm.

Corpus Playroom, 9pm  £5-6

Bird Pie 8th-12th November

I won’t lie, I’ve read the script for this and it wasn’t great. BUT what seems forced and flat on the page can be reanimated, like the corpses of this work, by a decent directorial hand and some acting talent, so if musicals that are uncritically indebted to Freudian psychoanalysis are your thing, try a slice. It’s crrrrrrazy.

Corpus Playroom,  9pm  £5-6

Scrooge and Marley 9th–12th November

The ‘reduced’ Dickens show is getting to be a bit of an ADC festive staple, and who can blame them? The BBC’s been up to the same trick for years. Though last year’s one-man incarnation got a bit tired and repetitive, this one might be helped along by the presence of another performer and, to be fair, it’s probably quite fun for people who actually like Dickens (hi Mum).

ADC, 11pm  £4-6