What's on in the North East

Published: 2 February 2020
Reporter: Peter Lathan

The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff (Northern Stage)
The Last Cyclist (Gosforth Civic Theatre)
MIss Crispy 1988 (Customs House, South Shields)
Guy: a Musical (various venues)
Half Life (ARC, Stockton)

Mamma Mia! continues at Newcastle Theatre Royal until Saturday.

From Tuesday (preview performance) until 22 February (not Sundays or Mondays) The Ballad of Johnny Longstaff, words and music by The Young ‘uns, a musical celebration of northern working class activism co-produced by Northern Stage, The Young’uns and Harbourfront Centre Toronto, runs at Northern Stage (Stage 2). Then on Friday in Stage 1 at 7:00, The Life of Reilly, a play about autism, returns. Growing up with autism can be difficult, growing up with autism, a stressed mother, a father in denial and a granny who believes all you need is a smacked backside is much worse.

The Paper Birds’ Ask Me Anything continues at Live Theatre until Saturday.

The Brundibar Arts Festival's The Last Cyclist ends at Gosforth Civic Theatre on Monday.

From Thursday to Saturday, Thriller Live returns to Sunderland Empire.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the Arts Centre Washington on Thursday.

Miss Crispy 1988, set in a beauty pageant in 1980s Billingham, comes to the Customs House in South Shields on Friday for one night only.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the Alnwick Playhouse on Tuesday.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the The Queen’s Hall in Hexham on Monday.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the The Witham in Barnard Castle on Friday.

From Tuesday to Saturday the touring production of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap comes to Billingham Forum.

Tangled Feet presents Half Life at ARC Stockton on Friday at 7:00 and Saturday at 2:00 and 7:00. Tangled Feet is a theatre ensemble whose members are about to turn 40. They met 20 years ago and have been creating theatre together for half their lives. To mark the moment, they’ve been joined by a unique local company of 10-, 20- and 80-year-olds to make a show and wrestle some big questions: how does our perspective change as we age? How can we cope when we don’t know what’s coming next? What do we hold onto? What do we let go?

At Middlesbrough Theatre from Thursday to Saturday, Joseph Purdy Productions present Sinderella, an adult panto. Then on Friday, Isosceles, in association with Useful Idiots, presents Murder—Just What the Doctor Ordered, a play about the Edinburgh Anatomy Murders of 1828, and finally on Saturday, Kick in the Head presents Choice Grenfell, a celebration of Joyce Grenfell on the 40th anniversary of her death.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the Hartlepool Town Hall Theatre on Saturday.

From Wednesday to Friday, Menopause the Musical 2 comes to Darlington Hippodrome.

Guy, a new gay musical, is at the Saltburn Community Centre on Wednesday.

At 7:45 on Wednesday in The Studio at Harrogate Theatre, award-winning HIV+ theatre-maker Nathaniel Hall presents First Time, an autobiographical solo-show about attempting to stay positive in a negative world. It is followed on Friday, also in The Studio, by Riot Act, an exploration of the history of the LGBT rights movement written and performed by Alexis Gregory.

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