Veterans out of time

The Fylde Coast Players present the highly-acclaimed 2003 play HEROES, translated by Tom Stoppard from Gérald Sibleyras’ original French version.
Director Heather Cartmell with the Fylde Coast Players Heroes, from left, Andy Cooke, Jeff Redfern and Peter HoyleDirector Heather Cartmell with the Fylde Coast Players Heroes, from left, Andy Cooke, Jeff Redfern and Peter Hoyle
Director Heather Cartmell with the Fylde Coast Players Heroes, from left, Andy Cooke, Jeff Redfern and Peter Hoyle

Described as a gentle comedy, the play is set in the late 50s when three World War One veterans find themselves residing together in a military retirement home in rural France.

They pass time on their favourite terrace, gossiping, joking, and generally irritating one another. Dreaming of freedom, they plan their escape, if not as far as Indonesia then at least to the poplars on the horizon for a picnic – along with a statue of a dog!

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The roles of the old soldiers are taken by three of Fylde Coast Players’ most experienced members – Andy Cooke, Jeff Redfern and Peter Hoyle, all previous NODA award winners.The play is direted by Heather Cartmel who has previously won best director awards from amateur theatre organisation the National Operatic and Dramatic Association (NODA).

Heroes is at The Grand Theatre, Blackpool, from Thursday, May 15, to Saturday, May 17 at 7.30 pm.

Online bookings at www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk or call box office on 01253 290190

ORMSKIRK PLEASURE FOLK present the timeless musical, 42ND STREET, at ORMSKIRK CIVIC HALL from Wed May 14 to Sat May 17 at 7.30pm.

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The Tony and Olivier Award winning show focuses on director Julian Marsh and his bid to stage a new musical extravaganza, Pretty Lady, with young hopeful Peggy Sawyer making her bid for fame.

Featuring musical favourites Lullaby of Broadway, We’re In The Money and the eponymous title track, the stage production has proven a firm favourite with audiences for more than three decades.

Tickets £8, concs £6, family ticket £25.

LONGTON PLAYERS present AN EVENING OF ONE ACT PLAYS at ST ANDREWS CHURCH HALL, LIVERPOOL ROAD, LONGTON from Thursday - Saturday May 8-10. All shows curtain up at 7.30pm.

Back by popular demand the Players present three thought provoking plays which offer an excellent evening’s entertainment. ‘Score’is a fast paced tennis match between husband and wife; ‘Mother Figure’ is taken from ‘Confusions’ by Alan Ayckbourn and, finally, ‘Sketches’ from the works and life of Noel Coward.

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Tickets £7, inc refreshment glass of wine/fruit juice. Box office 01772 612766

Renowned theatre company Out of Joint put the NHS front and centre in their latest play THIS MAY HURT A BIT by Stella Feehily at the LIVERPOOL PLAYHOUSE from Wed May 7 to Sat May 10, at 7.30pm with matinees at 1.30pm on Thurs May 8 and 2pm on Sat May 10. Tickets £10-£23.

With wit, tenderness, and splashes of surreal, Feehily’s play follows one family’s journey through the NHS, and asks: what’s the prognosis?

Stephanie Cole is one of the country’s most cherished actresses, best known for her TV work, including classic comedy Waiting for God and Dr Beatrice Mason in Tenko. The cast also includes Jane Wymark (Joyce Barnaby in ITV’s Midsomer Murders.

Box Office: 0151 709 4776.

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Lionel Bart’s popular musical, OLIVER will be performed by THE ST. AMBROSE PLAYERS from Tuesday to Saturday May 13-17, at 7.30 pm in St Ambrose Church Hall, Moss Lane, Leyland PR25 4XA.

Tickets are £9.50 with children and concs £7.50 available from the Booking Office at Grandad Jim’s Traditional Sweet Shop, 37 Chapel Brow, Leyland PR253NH

Specially commissioned for the opening season of the LIVERPOOL EVERYMAN, acclaimed playwright Michael Wynne returns to Liverpool with HOPE PLACE, a story of myth, memories and secrets.

Something’s up with Maggie, rattling around in a house on Hope Place she’s lived in all her life. Her brothers and sisters flew the nest long ago but everyone’s still got a key.

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Brother Jack keeps turning up with his own Liverpool folklore, invented to delight foreign tourists, but all Maggie wants is to unlock the past and free herself.

The play runs from Fri May 9 to Sat May 31. Evenings: 7.30pm (except Wed May 21) Matinées: 1.30pm on Wed May 28 2pm on Sats May 17, 24 and 31. Twilight Performance: Wed May 21 at 5.30pm Tickets: £10 - £18

OPERA VIVA welcome distinguished former Southport resident, the renowned baritone Martin Lamb, as the star of their next production, THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO which is set in the early 20th century rather than in the days of French Revoluiton,

Director David Palmer says “We are in ‘Downton Abbey’ times where the costumes are as elegant, but master/servant relationships are about to undergo dramatic change. When Figaro sings his famous aria sending young Cherubino to war, it reminds us of the countless young men in the same situation 100 years ago.”

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The Marriage of Figaro is on Sat May 10 at Aughton Village Hall and Sat May 17 at St Mary’s College, Crosby.

Tickets £15, concs £13, students £5). Tel: 0151 920 5386 / 07540 796929 or e-mail: [email protected]

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