News

• Mr. Wonderful

  

  20 – 28 September 2019

  Mr Wonderful - by James Robson

  Norma is growing old without growing up. She lives with her bedridden mother Phoebe who is on the verge of Alzheimer’s which makes her believe she’s the Queen Mother.

  Norma is trying to find her Mr Wonderful through a dating agency. After several hilarious and poignant attempts she meets Geoff, who seems to fit the bill until Norma finds out more about him and plots a lasting revenge …

• My Three Angels

  

  22 – 30 November 2019

  My Three Angels - by Sam & Bella Spewack & Albert Husson

  It is Christmas Eve in the tropics and Felix Dulay, a hopeless storekeeper, is fearfully awaiting the cruel shop owner.

  In a twist of fate, only allowable around Christmas, three convicts with a desire to do good, drop in (literally) from above and find touching, funny and inventive ways to save the family and restore justice in time for Christmas Day.

• Prisoner of Second Avenue

  

  31 January – 8 February 2020

  Prisoner of Second Avenue - by Neil Simon

  Economic meltdown and urban angst create the perfect setting for a Neil Simon comedy.
  
  In a Second Avenue apartment with paper thin walls, Mel has been sacked, his wife is sacked too, they are robbed and his psychiatrist dies.
  Mel follows the only path he can think of … he has a mental breakdown. But this bleak picture is painted by the master of New York comedy, so it’s not all going to end up as bad as it sounds!

• A Life

  

  27 March – 4 April 2020

  A Life - by Hugh Leonard

  A bittersweet Irish comedy that begins in the 1970s and slips back to the 1930s to see a man reflecting on a life that was not well lived.

  Drumm is reaching the end of his days and he’s beginning to see that he has not been as kind as he could have been, even to his devoted wife, who has always seen something more than his sharp sarcasm and sardonic responses.

  Looking back over 40 years, (we see the four main characters as young people, as well as old!), Drumm begins to understand the consequences of his past behaviour

• Holiday Snap

  

  29 May – 6 June 2020

  Holiday Snap - by Michael Pertwee & John Chapman

  Classic mistaken identity set in a Portuguese timeshare villa will get you in the mood for your summer holidays.

  Holiday rep and expat Commander Chittenden seems  completely oblivious to the fact that two couples have been double-booked into his villa.

  When they begin to mistake each other for the servants and their adulterous tendencies come to the fore, inevitable plot twists make for an hilarious night out.

Lyceum Theatre Oldham is located on the lower ground floor of the Lyceum Building, 95 Union Street, Oldham

SCRIBBLE FESTIVAL 2014

Event: Scribble Festival 2014
Venue:Bury, Heywood, Middleton, Oldham & Rochdale.

Scribble Festival 2014
Date: Thursday 23rd October 2014
Time: 2pm – 9pm

Join us for Scribble Festival, Tell Us Another One and Cartwheel Arts’ annual literature celebration, featuring Verbally Challenged, Akiel Chinelo, & Dominic Berry.

On 23rd October, leading North West arts organisation Cartwheel Arts presents Scribble Festival, the annual creative writing festival celebrating work by participants in the highly successful Tell Us Another One project, which has brought together creative writing groups for adults in seven locations across Bury, Heywood, Middleton, Oldham & Rochdale. Participants will share their work on stage, alongside local poet Dominic Berry, traditional storyteller Akiel Chinelo, and bespoke threatre performances from Verbally Challenged in a day celebrating new writing and performance.

Scribble Festival is presented as part of the diverse Rochdale Literature and Ideas Festival programme, inviting members of the public to come and join in during the day from 2pm. An afternoon of creative writing workshops with some of the best artists from across the North West will be followed by an evening of live performances compered by Dominic Berry.

The TUAO project manager Danny Fahey says “Scribble festival is a very important event for us at Tell Us Another One, it’s our chance to highlight all of the great work our participants have put in over the year and really shine in their own right as writers and performers.”

The programme will consist of a stimulating afternoon of workshops & panel discussions, followed by an eclectic evening of performance and opportunities for people to network with peers.

Daytime Programme from 2pm:

• 2.30pm: Tell Us Another One
• Readings from TUAO Story Group Members
• 3pm: Panel Discussion on Sustainability in the Arts
• Robin Parker (Langley Writers), Keisha Thompson (Young Identity), Alison Bold McNally (Bury Libraries, Hosted by Dominic Berry
• 3.30pm: Creative Writing Workshops
• Take part in a range of workshops with Anjum Malik, Shamshad Khan, Dominic Berry & Lisa Risbec

Evening Performances from 6pm – 9pm:

During the evening you can expect readings of original material, dramatic tales and monologues, audio and visual treats and a very special performance in the form of ‘Verbally Challenged’.

• 6.45pm: Tell Us Another One
  Performances from Tell Us Another One participants who have been working tirelessly to bring new work to this year’s festival. Further readings from TUAO Story Group Members.
• 7.15pm: Akiel Chinelo – akielchinelostoryteller.co.uk
  To mark Black History Month in the UK we will have a bespoke performance from acclaimed storyteller Akiel Chinelo. Akiel shares the art of storytelling, with traditional African tales interspersed with modern tales of urban life in his native city of Manchester – not to be missed! Akiel teaches the art of storytelling at the University of Manchester, School of Arts Histories and Cultures and also works with Theatre in Prisons and Probation (TIPP) and Ride Out Theatre (Arts for Rehabilitation).
• 7.45pm: Verbally Challenged – contactmcr.com/verballychallenged
  In partnership with Manchester’s Contact Theatre, Verbally Challenged will include four 10 minute performances, written by participants of the Tell Us Another One project, and performed by a professional cast of actors. At the end of the performances, you can vote for your favourite piece of writing and the ultimate winner will receive a cash prize!

The Manchester Theatre Awards may be the most important theatre awards outside London, so it’s great to hear that Oldham’s very own Coliseum Thatre (who we are great fans of) has gathered 12 – yes 12 nominations in this year’s awards right up there with Kenneth Brannagh and the like. The event will be held on 7 March at Manchesters fabulous Royal Exchange Theatre in St Ann’s Square so bet of luck to them – break a leg (…er not literally, it’s a theatre saying yanno).

The Nominations are-

Best Actor

• David Birrell, Sweeney Todd, Royal Exchange
• Kenneth Branagh, Macbeth, Manchester International Festival, St Peter’s Church
• Nigel Cooke, To Kill A Mockingbird, Royal Exchange
• Paul Webster, Sugar Daddies, Oldham Coliseum
• Jack Wilkinson, David Copperfield, Oldham Coliseum

Best Actress

• Marianne Benedict, Chicago, Oldham Coliseum
• Cush Jumbo, A Doll’s House, Royal Exchange
• Gillian Kearney, Educating Rita, Library at The Lowry
• Alex Kingston, Macbeth, Manchester International Festival, St Peter’s Church
• Maxine Peake, Masque Of Anarchy, Manchester International Festival, Albert Hall
• Shannon Tarbet, To Kill A Mockingbird, Royal Exchange

Best Actor in a Supporting Role

• Ray Fearon, Macbeth, Manchester International Festival, St Peter’s Church
• Kieran Hill, The Glass Menagerie, Octagon Theatre Bolton
• Robin Simpson, David Copperfield, Oldham Coliseum

Best Actress in a Supporting Role

• Sally Bankes, That Day We Sang, Royal Exchange
• Shirley Darroch, Chicago, Oldham Coliseum
• Heather Phoenix, Sugar Daddies, Oldham Coliseum
• Kelly Price, That Day We Sang, Royal Exchange

Best Actor in a Visiting Production

• Paul Michael Glaser, Fiddler On The Roof, The Lowry
• Julian Glover, Maurice’s Jubilee, Opera House
• Louis Maskell, West Side Story, Palace
• Barrie Rutter, Rutherford and Son, The Lowry
• Tim Treloar, Birdsong, Oldham Coliseum

Best Actress in a Visiting Production

• Michele Dotrice, The Ladykillers, The Lowry
• Katie Hall, West Side Story, Palace
• Catherine Kinsella, Rutherford and Son, The Lowry
• Karen Mann, Fiddler On The Roof, The Lowry
• Sian Phillips, People, The Lowry

Best Production

• Of Mice and Men, directed by David Thacker, Octagon Theatre Bolton
• Macbeth, directed by Rob Ashford, Manchester International Festival, St Peter’s Church
• The Accrington Pals, directed by James Dacre, Royal Exchange
• The Glass Menagerie, directed by David Thacker, Octagon Theatre Bolton
• The Old Woman, directed by Robert Wilson, Manchester International Festival, Palace
• To Kill A Mockingbird, directed by Max Webster, Royal Exchange

Best Visiting Production

• Birdsong, The Original Theatre Company and Birdsong Productions Ltd, Oldham Coliseum
• The Full Monty, Sheffield Theatres, The Lowry
• The Ladykillers, Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse / Fiery Angel, The Lowry
• The Pirates Of Penzance, Scottish Opera and D’Oyly Carte, Opera House
• Twelfth Night, Propeller, The Lowry
• War Horse, National Theatre, The Lowry

Best Musical

• Chicago, Oldham Coliseum
• Fiddler On The Roof, The Lowry
• Paradise Moscow, Royal Northern College Of Music
• Singin’ In The Rain, Opera House
• Sweeney Todd, Royal Exchange
• Wicked, Palace

Opera

• Festival of Britten (Peter Grimes / A Midsummer Night’s Dream / Death In Venice), Opera North, The Lowry
• La Finta Giardiniera, Buxton Festival
• L’Elisir d’Amore, Royal Northern College Of Music
• La Voix Humaine, Buxton Festival
• Otello, Opera North, The Lowry

Dance

• Aladdin, Birmingham Royal Ballet, The Lowry
• Michael Clark Triple Bill, The Lowry
• Rambert, The Lowry
• Richard Alston Dance Company, The Lowry
• The Chelsea Hotel, Earthfall, The Lowry

Design

• La Colombe/La Princesse Jaune, design Lez Brotherston; light John Bishop, Buxton Festival
• Macbeth, design Christopher Oram; light Neil Austin; sound Christopher Shutt, Manchester International Festival, St Peter’s Church
• Of Mice and Men, design and light Ciaran Bagnall; sound Andy Smith, Octagon Theatre Bolton
• The Accrington Pals, design Jonathan Fensom; light Charles Balfour; sound Emma Laxton, Royal Exchange
• The Old Woman, designer/director Robert Wilson; sound Marco Oilvieri; light A J Weissbard, Manchester International Festival, Palace
• The Machine, design Lucy Osborne; light Mark Henderson; sound Ian Dickinson/Autograph; video Andrzej Goulding, Manchester International Festival, Upper Campfield Market

Best Newcomer

• Marcus Collins, Hairspray, The Lowry
• Laura Elsworthy, The Accrington Pals, Royal Exchange
• Nathan Ives-Moiba, Tull, Octagon Theatre Bolton
• Freya Sutton, Hairspray, The Lowry
• Nathan Wiley, The Glass Menagerie, Octagon Theatre Bolton

Best New Play

• Away From Home, by Rob Ward and Martin Jameson, 24:7 Festival

• Brilliant Adventures, by Alistair McDowall, Royal Exchange Studio
• Cannibals, by Rory Mullarkey, Royal Exchange
• Flesh, by Sarah McDonald Hughes, Royal Exchange Studio

Best Studio Production

• A Wondrous Place, Royal Exchange Studio
• Brilliant Adventures, Royal Exchange Studio
• That Is All You Need To Know, The Lowry Studio

Best Fringe Production

• Away From Home, Working Progress Theatre, 24:7 Festival
• Little Shop of Horrors, Kings Arms
• Mary Bell by Mary Bell, Studio Salford,
• The Best, Lass O’Gowrie
• Word:Play, Box Of Tricks, various venues
• Withnail and I, Shred Productions, Lass O’Gowrie

Best Studio Performance

• Joseph Arkley, Brilliant Adventures, Royal Exchange Studio
• David Judge, Pages From My Songbook, Royal Exchange Studio
• Robert Lonsdale, Brilliant Adventures, Royal Exchange Studio
• Gerry McLaughlin, Mugabeland!, The Lowry Studio

Best Fringe Performance

• Rebecca Fenwick, Spoonface Steinberg, The Swan, Dobcross and tour
• Stella Grundy, The Rise and Fall Of A Northern Star, Studio Salford
• Dickie Patterson, The Best, Lass O’Gowrie
• David Slack, Withnail and I, Lass O’Gowrie
• Rob Ward, Away From Home, 24:7 Theatre Festival

Best Ensemble

• Chicago, Oldham Coliseum
• David Copperfield, Oldham Coliseum
• Duck!, Z-Arts Manchester
• Manchester Sound: The Massacre, Library
• Of Mice and Men, Octagon Theatre Bolton

Best Special Entertainment

• Dick Whittington, Opera House
• Jack and the Beanstalk, Oldham Coliseum
• Strictly Confidential, The Lowry
• Sutra, The Lowry

Hip Hop and Rap Master Class Weekender With International Star Joe Motley

Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th of January 2014 from 12pm till 6pm.

Square 1 Studios, a community recording studio in Oldham town centre, presents a one-of-a-kind master class in the form of a weekend full of workshops, demonstrations and studio sessions with international rap artist Joe Motley

Joe Motley, an independent artist who was originally from Oldham but now living in Australia has shared the stage with names such as Nelly, Beyoncé, Nas and Damian Marley to name a few.

With a smooth and energetic rapping style, poetic genius Joe Motley has the charismatic presence to inspire and coach local aspiring rappers through this project.

Motley has combined his passion for music and youth work to assist and engage with young people and also to help, support and guide upcoming artists making a music career for themselves. He has worked with young people around the world in countries such as Africa, India, Peru, Brazil, Australia and the UK.

The weekend master class is a unique chance for local aspiring rappers in Oldham to further develop their song writing, recording and performing skills through a series of advanced workshops. They will learn the true art and science of Hip-hop and Rap music, bettering their chances of making a rap career.

During the project, participants will also be given a chance to collaborate and record a song and music video with Joe Motley.  This opportunity will be awarded to the best song created over the weekend which will be judged by Square 1 Studios CEO, Sam Malik and Project Manager, Laurence Boot, alongside Motley himself.

Rifco Arts, who previously brought us the awesome “Britain’s Got Bhangra” returned to the Coliseum with their latest, and from the 4th to the 8th of June they did Break The Floorboards. “Break the Floorboards” showing that once again Rifco have their fingers on the national pulse and their toes-a-tappin’. *

Like “BGB”, Breaking the Floorboards is witty and entertaining and is about family, the power of dreams in a land of opportunity – and those who would sour those dreams. Where BGB spanned decades of social change, Floorboards is set right here, right now. The dreamer in this case  Zain, a young man awaiting his exam result, who dreams of being a dancer. The cloud on the horizon is the EGBDP  “nationalist” party stirring up trouble. As in BGB we have a commentary by the broadcast news.shop, to a rehearsal room, to jail or the Peterton Mela. At home Mum is hooked on Indian Soaps on the Telly, while his brother is there bread-winner after mum they were abandoned by runaway Dad.  So we have practical son vs dreamer between the boys, while Mum disapproves of the dance despite her own Bollywood addiction. Both brothers end up in a spot of trouble , one in jail, while the EGBDP match into town stirring up trouble. Ultimately things work out, after the riot Mum decides that the dance is in fact a positive thing and her greatest duty is her son’s happiness, even Zain’s brother ends up encouraging him to enter the competition at the Mela, held the weekend after the EGDDP march – an opportunity to forge the togetherness of the community of Peterton through the creativity and celebration of the Mela. It will come as no surprise that Zain wins with an ultra contemporary fusion of  Body-Poppin Bollywood Hip-hoppin styles concocted by Andy Kumar and Maria Swainson for the show. And so we all win.

Full marks again to Rifco and the Coliseum for a great production and great sound.

*I really wanted to say “plugged into the national zeitgeist” – but thought better of it.