LOFT UNVEILS ITS 2025 SEASON
A very happy theatre going 2025 to you all.
We finished off 2024 with a production of Glorious! by Peter Quilter and were thrilled to have the playwright visit us, with his family, on the opening night. My thanks to James Suckling and his entire company for delighting our audiences with this December treat.
I hope that you all saw the new year in in style and that you will be tempted to come to the line up of productions we have for you this year.
First up in January is Medea, in a new contemporary imagining by Ben Power, which was such a success at the National Theatre with the late, great Helen McCrory (Peaky Blinders) in the lead role. It is a clever piece of writing as the emotions and tensions throughout the play are timeless and carry weight in whatever century they are placed. I saw a rehearsal a week ago and I can’t wait to see the finished work. The inclusion of the classic Greek chorus throughout, acting as our narrator and commentator keep it true to its origins. The music is haunting and the lighting design adds to the mood swings of the play. A great chance to immerse yourself in this classic play with a contemporary treatment and a compelling central role. Don’t miss it.
On Sunday 2 February after the last night of Medea we are hosting the return of Down for the Count with their new show Swing That Music. They are simply spectacular, a professional jazz company on top of their game, who play at the famous Ronnie Scott’s in London, here in Leamington Spa! We are sold-out for this performance, but they will be back next year. We have already nailed a date in their 2026 programme.
The rest of 2025 is now scheduled, so here is the line-up for your delectation…
In February we are staging Constellations by Nick Payne. This premiered at the Royal Court Theatre Upstairs in 2012 and is a love story with two characters, against the backdrop of the idea of multiverses that can pull people’s lives in different directions, with different outcomes. The play was strongly received and transferred to the West End. It won a bunch of awards, including nomination for an Olivier award. These propelled the production to Broadway with the same director and a cast of Jake Gyllenhaal and Ruth Wilson, who received a Tony Award for best performance, with the play too receiving many more garlands. In 2021 it was back in the West End with four casts in rotation and the same director winning the 2022 Oliviers for Best Revival, Best Actress and nominations for Best Director and Best Actor. This is now a global success with multiple international productions. I am thrilled to be directing this and working with two creative actors on what is a unique piece of writing.
In April we are staging our long awaited musical production of Spring Awakening by Sater and Sheik, which had to be moved unexpectedly from 2024 to 2025. Under the direction of Chris Gilbey-Smith, who has a deep understanding of this production and has seen productions on both sides of the ‘pond’ there is a real sense of anticipation for his stellar cast and crew coming together to create a powerful piece of theatre. Based on a late 19th century German play, this play speaks with a contemporary voice about the trials, confusion and exhilaration of youth. I saw this at the Almeida as we emerged from the pandemic and were still wearing masks in auditoria and was glad that my facemask hid the tears that flowed from seeing this quite marvellous production. It is again a unique piece of work; nothing quite like it in musical theatre and a thrill to watch.
In late April we are reopening the Studio for the first time since the pandemic. This is a space with 50 seats which doubles as our rehearsal room. It is an intimate space and one both our audiences and our actors love to work in. This opening production will be directed by Mark Crossley, who many of you will have seen in lead roles on the main stage. Mark works professionally in the performing arts and has co-written a book about the inspiring theatre company Stans Cafe (pronounced ‘caff’) in Birmingham. They are nationally acclaimed for their writing and performance and have kindly agreed to allow us performing rights to one of their outstanding plays. The Just Price of Flowers, written by their Artistic Director, James Yarker, is about the financial crash of 2007/8 through the lens of 17th century Holland. Playfully using the price of tulips as its inspiration, it highlights how for a short time tulips were priced equivalent to a house, until the inevitable bubble burst.
In May we are staging a production inspired by the highly creative Frantic Assembly called Things I Know To Be True by Andrew Bovell – funny, moving and imaginative, this is a wonderful piece of writing and attracted a large number of actors to both the reading and the auditions. Dealing with the highs and lows of family life, it has received accolades across the globe. It is bold in its treatment, doesn’t hold back and is deeply relatable with families as they try to define themselves beyond their parents’ love and expectations for their lives. We are delighted to welcome Lynda Lewis to direct at the Loft for the first time, following working as an Assistant Director in 2023.
In the Studio, following their sell-out visit to us in 2024 on 31st May, we are welcoming back Improvesarios, a group of classically trained musicians and singers, improvising a brand new opera on any topic of the audiences’ choosing on the night, on the spot. A really fun way to spend an evening and a huge hit on their last visit to us. Book early as spaces are limited.
June sees a welcome return of a John Godber play to our programme. Following the success of Lorna Middleton’s production of Bouncers last year, she was hugely tempted to repeat the experience and is to direct his Olivier award-winning Up ‘n’ Under. A depleted and ragged amateur rugby league team who spend more time in the pub than on the pitch, take on their arch rivals. Their coach enlists the help of a female fitness guru who attempts to turn the team around. As one critic remarked, “it is action packed and totally hysterical”.
Renowned as an actor, director and founder of his own theatre company, he also steered the pioneering Hull Truck Theatre Company for 26 years,from bankruptcy to success. Famous for his observational comedy and the third most performed playwright in the UK after Shakespeare and Ayckbourn, audiences are guaranteed an evening of laughter and joy.
In July David Fletcher, our resident playwright, has written a new adaptation of Christopher Marlowe’s shorter version of his classic play Doctor Faustus. David is also to direct this notorious tale of greed and damnation and is working alongside the creative team at the theatre who he has promised to unleash with every ounce of imagination and magic at their disposal. Can’t wait!!
Faustus is a brilliant but embittered academic, desperate for a deeper understanding of the universe – and for the worldwide fame that he believes it will bring.
Risking everything, he conjures the demon Mephistopheles and asks him to strike a deal with the Devil. The deal? Twenty four years of infinite knowledge in exchange for his soul. However…. as he begins to revel in his new powers comes the consequences……..I would book now!
In the autumn, in September, we are staging a play by David Eldridge, called Beginning. This premiered in 2017 at the National Theatre as part of a trilogy of plays which was followed by Middle – you get the idea! A sell-out on arrival, it transferred to the West End gaining many five and four star reviews that have anchored it in ‘best play’ categories. The play takes place in real time as two people meet at a party and carry on talking together when all the other partygoers have departed. A captivating piece of writing and much acclaimed. I have wanted us to stage a play by David Eldridge for some time, so am delighted to include this in our schedule. Viki Betts returns to the director’s chair following her previous successes.
Our second production in the Studio will be in October when you will have the chance to see a new piece of writing by one of our own. We have a history at the Loft of new writing and encouraging new writing and have held several play writing competitions too. The last time we ran one the successful play was an American playwright and Script Doctor from Hollywood, who flew over to see his production staged in our main house. Giles Allen-Bowden, who has been part of our tech team, stage management team and has appeared on stage too, has written a play called The Cage Protects Me. We had an unrehearsed reading of this last year and this year we are to let it loose on an audience. It is a fascinating play, a fascinating genre – a blend of psychodrama, ghost story……….and Western…. Irresistible!
This will be followed in October/November by Dancing at Lughnasa, written in 1990 by Brian Friel, a production we wanted to stage in 2024 but which was awaiting a possible transfer from its National Theatre revival. We staged Translations, also by Brian Friel, in its place which was a huge hit and are delighted that the rights to Dancing at Lughnasa are now granted to us. Brian Friel is a quite wonderful writer, whose work is captivating. Set in Donegal in 1936 it is a story of a man recounting a summer in his aunts’ cottage when he was 7 years old. Loosely based on the lives of Friel’s mother and aunts it explores the glory of late summer days when love seems in reach, albeit briefly, for the five Mundy sisters. A finely crafted memory play with larger themes anchored in their domestic lives. Unmissable classic theatre. Tom O’Connor brings his affinity with all things Irish to direct this wonderful play.
To round off the year we are staging a ‘physical theatre’ version of Jane Eyre in a new adaptation by Chris Bush, which premiered as the centrepiece of the Bronte festival in 2022. Sheffield born Chris Bush started writing when a student at York University, going on to win multiple prizes. She caught the eye of the National Theatre as her powers increased as a writer and won an Olivier for her play Standing At The Skies Edge. This version of Jane Eyre is an ensemble piece focussed on a tale of morality and desire. Witty and fast-paced it is both true to the beating heart of Bronte’s classic novel but with a physicality and creative treatment which elevates it to create a beautiful imagining for the stage. Chris Bush was keen to portray Jane Eyre as a woman who ultimately has control over her destiny, rather than being weak or lovelorn. In the hands of joint directors Libby Morris and Leonie Frazier, this augurs well.
I hope there are many things to tempt you. We shall do our best to delight you and encourage you to support us in our 103rd year. Every ticket you buy will help to ensure our future of bringing outstanding theatre to Leamington Spa. Equally we want to encourage all our volunteers, on stage, off stage and front of house to continue to create a place which is welcoming and attractive; nothing is more exciting to us all than the chance to create great theatre for you to enjoy. We shall continue to strive to meet professional standards and to invest every penny of our income into the future of this remarkable theatre company.
Hurrah for you all.
SUE MOORE
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR
January 2025
