Nottingham Playhouse has announced that its festive family show Jack and the Beanstalk has been moved to the theatre’s main auditorium to ensure social distancing.
Artistic director Adam Penford said, "I’m so delighted that we're still able to produce Jack and the Beanstalk this year alongside our panto. By moving the show to the main stage we're able to ensure social distancing for both the audience and actors. This new version is really energetic and witty. I'm sure everyone will love it."
The cast of Jack and the Beanstalk comprises Derbyshire actor Danny Hendrix who was in the UK tour of Nick Stafford’s adaptation of Michael Morpurgo’s War Horse in 2019 and Ebony Feare from Leicester who played Mrs Hawkins in Treasure Island at the Octagon Theatre Bolton in 2019.
The play was written by Naomi Obeng from Loughborough who entered the script as part of an open callout to playwrights. Trina Haldar, artistic director of Mashi Theatre, will direct.
The designer is Gemma Caseley-Kirk, a graduate of Nottingham Trent University who won the opportunity to design the set as part of the annual Playhouse Prize competition, a collaboration with the NTU theatre design course.
Jack and the Beanstalk will be staged from Wednesday 9 December until Saturday 2 January 2021. One of the performances will be recorded and will be made available for audiences to watch from home.
It will run alongside Cinderella which will take place from Friday 27 November until Saturday 16 January 2021. It will also be streamed live because there is reduced capacity in the auditorium.