Atlantic City. 1988: Jonny and Rebecca are very much in love and very much in debt. He’s a struggling singer-songwriter (who spends most of his time playing backup for Annie, a singer at the Oasis Casino Hotel Resort) she works part-time at the casino and for a local charity. They struggle to make ends meet but they’re happy and that’s enough. Or is it?

When wealthy stranger Larry Harris arrives in town and offers Rebecca a million dollars to spend a night with him, will the lure of money outweigh the promise of fidelity? Will Rebecca accept Larry’s indecent proposal? Will her marriage survive if she doesn’t? Will Jonny stick around if she does?

Based on Jack Engelhard’s 1988 novel, which sparked a worldwide debate when it was made into the hit 1993 film starring Robert Redford, Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson, Indecent Proposal is a chamber musical with a dynamic and fast-paced narrative and a moving and exciting score.

While staying true to book’s setting of Atlantic City in the 1980s, it reimagines the work through the lens of the current, post #MeToo social and political climate, allowing audiences to consider what they would do in a similar situation, while they watch this couple grapple with the fallout from a stranger’s proposition.

This musical brings a story to the stage that, over 30 years after the book was published, is still painfully relevant. Speaking of the piece and its exploration of power, fidelity, gender politics and a woman’s sexual autonomy, director Charlotte Westenra says:

“I am so excited to share this beautiful, important story that is of its time but also painfully relevant today. Like in the show, people with influence still use it to take more than we’re sometimes willing to give. The fact that it happens all the time doesn’t make it right, even if you agree to give it. We can’t wait for audiences to come and contribute to the conversation and ask themselves what they would do if they were to receive an indecent proposal.”

Following the 7.30pm performance on Monday 15 June 2020, Terri talks to cast and creatives about the 21st-century perspective on Indecent Proposal and its themes. Any questions? Join us!

Based on the cult 2007 Irish indie feature, originally shot on a micro-budget of just $160,000, ONCE tells the uplifting yet yearning story of two lost souls – a Dublin street busker and a Czech musician – who unexpectedly fall in love. Following their relationship across five short days, big changes happen to both of them in little ways. Celebrated for its original score including the Academy Award-winning song Falling Slowly, Once is a spell-binding and uplifting story of hopes and dreams.

The cast is led by Daniel Healy as Guy and Emma Lucia as Girl, who return to the roles after receiving acclaim in this production’s 2018 premiere at the New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich and Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch.

See all Once production shots in our StageFaves gallery

Dan Healy is a singer-songwriter, musician and actor, who has co-written songs for multi-platinum artist Ronan Keating including the single Breathe, which topped the BBC Radio 2 Playlist. His theatre credits include Backbeat and Once, both in the West End. Emma Lucia made her professional debut as Marilyn and understudying Carole King in the UK Tour of Beautiful, before taking on the role of Girl in Once.

The stage version of Once premiered at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2011 before transferring to Broadway in 2012. There it won eight Tony Awards including Best Musical, the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical and the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. Productions have since opened all over the world, including the West End production in 2013 which received the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music.

Once has a book by award-winning Irish playwright and screenwriter Enda Walsh, and music and lyrics by Academy Award-winning Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová who, for Falling Slowly, won the Oscar for Best Original Song.

Following the 2.30pm matinee of ONCE THE MUSICAL at Woking’s New Victoria Theatre on Wednesday 12 February 2020, Terri chairs a post-show discussion with the company. Any questions? Join us! CLICK HERE FOR FULL TOUR SCHEDULE & TICKETS!

Jason Schofield has been charged with the murder of his wife. He’s claiming self-defence. After an eternity of waiting, the case has finally come to trial and it’s up to twelve strangers to decide his fate. What really happened on that night? Was it cold-blooded murder? Was Emily Schofield really the victim here?

A ‘fly on the wall’ production sees 12 strangers collide in a case that will change them forever. The evidence is tainted, the verdict is divided, and the rules are abandoned.

The Jury has music and lyrics by Ashley M A Walsh, book by Amy Fletcher and additional lyrics by Fletcher and Timothy Vest. The premiere production is directed by Joseph Meighan.

The 12-strong cast are Laura Meaton, Katherine Green, Ashley Ball, Bethany Grace, David Gibbons, Kaidyn Hinds, Tom Blackmore, Huon Mackley, Elizabeth Brooks, Laura Coard, Janice Fryett and Charlie Culkin.

After the 7.30pm of THE JURY on Thursday 6 February 2020, I'll be joined by creatives and cast. Any questions? Join us!

Indeed, the truth will soon come out... Don’t miss @TheJuryUK @GatehouseLondon February 4th - 16th. @jrtheatrecomp @ashleymawalsh @charlieculkin @GraceBethanyK @Laura_Meaton @JaniceVoiceGeek @emilyjanebrooks @okhinds @Ashley_BallUK @DavidG_Actor @TomBlackmore93 @ABPtheatreshows pic.twitter.com/IxrW097KPL

— Katherine Victoria (@K_Victoria__) January 27, 2020

RAGS The Musical tells the heart-warming and powerful tale of a group of Jewish immigrants as they arrive to start a new life in America. Fresh from Ellis Island, a young mother and her son search for a new life and a sense of home as the 20th-century beckons. The streets of Manhattan’s Lower East Side may not be paved with gold, but they echo with the music of opportunity, optimism and hope.

RAGS The Musical is a story of love, loss and hope. Featuring a score celebrating the multicultural music which was filling the streets of New York in 1910. It’s a saga of both hope and disappointment, of power and greed, of strength and love, combined with memorable music.

RAGS The Musical has a book by Joseph Stein (Fiddler on the Roof), revised book by David Thompson, lyrics by Stephen Schwartz (Wicked) and music by Charles Strouse (Annie).

Carolyn Maitland, Dave Willetts and Sam Attwater star as Rebecca, Avram and Bronfman respectively in the Park Theatre’s largest-ever cast, which also features Debbie Chazen, Alex Gibson-Giorgio, Rachel Izen, Martha Kirby, Oisin Nolan-Power and Jeremy Rose.

This is a transfer of the UK premiere of this eagerly anticipated new version of RAGS The Musical which premiered at Hope Mill Theatre in February 2019 and is directed by Bronagh Lagan (Little Women, Putting It Together, Promises, Promises).

After the 7.30pm performance of RAGS The Musical on Thursday 16 January 2020, I’ll be joined by members of the company. Any questions? Join us!

It’s murder putting on a new musical – literally! Jessica Cranshaw, star of the new Broadway-bound musical Robbin Hood, has been murdered on stage on opening night. The entire cast and crew are suspects. Time to call in the local detective, Frank Cioffi, who just happens to be a huge musical theatre fan. With a nose for crime and an ear for music, Frank has his work cut out trying to find the killer whilst giving the show a lifeline.

From the creators of Cabaret and Chicago, Tony Award-winning backstage murder mystery musical CURTAINS has had audiences on tour laughing and guessing right to the final curtain. It’s a hilarious whodunnit is packed full of catchy songs, unforgettable characters and plot twists galore.

In this new production, comedian, actor and singer Jason Manford stars as detective Frank Cioffi, along with a top-notch cast that also features Carley Stenson, Rebecca Lock, Samuel Holmes, Andy Coxon, Leah West and Alan Burkitt.

Following the 3pm matinee of CURTAINS on Sunday 15 December 2019 at the West End’s Wyndham’s Theatre, I’ll be joined by the stars of the show for this unmissable post-show talk. Any questions? Join us!

Enter to win tickets by 25 November

I’ve loved Rufus Norris’ multi-award-winning production of Kander & Ebb musical classic CABARET since seeing its first West End run at Shaftesbury Avenue’s Lyric Theatre in 2006. It’s now with a fantastic new cast, who, with this post-show Q&A, we’ll help kick off on a major new UK-wide tour. Come join the cabaret!

It’s 1931. Berlin is a haven of divine decadence and the legendary Sally Bowles is about to take the stage at the infamous Kit Kat Klub…

CABARET is directed by Rufus Norris, now National Theatre artistic director, with show-stopping choreography by Javier de Frutos, dazzling costumes and iconic songs ‘Money Makes the World Go Round’, ‘Maybe This Time’, ‘Cabaret’ and more.

Kander & Ebb’s landmark musical – based on Christopher Isherwood’s short novel Goodbye to Berlin, about life in Germany as the Nazis rose to power, and John Van Druten’s play of it, I Am a Camera – premiered on Broadway in 1966 and was famously made into a 1972 film.For this new outing, presented by Bill Kenwright Productions, John Partridge stars as the emcee and Kara Lily Hayworth taking on the iconic role of Sally Bowles, with Anita Harris as Fraulein Schneider.

Winner of Celebrity MasterChef 2018, John Partridge is well known to TV audiences as EastEnders’ charismatic Christian Clarke and is one of West End theatre’s most prolific leading men (The View Upstairs, A Chorus Line, Chicago, La Cage Aux Folles). Kara Lily Hayworth was recently acclaimed for her title role in Cilla The Musical which was revered by both critics and audiences alike. Anita Harris first rose to fame as a singer in the 1960s and has appeared both onscreen (Follow That Camel, Carry On Doctor) and onstage, most notably as Grizabella in the West End’s Cats.

CABARET tours to Bromley, Wolverhampton, Nottingham, Crawley, Chester, Dublin, Belfast, Leicester, Shrewsbury, Hull, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Malven, with further dates to be announced. View the full schedule here.

On the first stop of the tour, after the 7.30pm performance at The Churchill Theatre, Bromley, on Thursday 29 August 2019, I’ll be joined by members of the Cabaret company. Any questions? Join us!

Millennial fashion designer Wes has just purchased an abandoned building, but little does he know that this forgotten gem was the UpStairs Lounge, a vibrant 1970s gay bar in the French Quarter of New Orleans, starting an exhilarating journey of seduction and self-exploration in the summertime heat with the rush of lust, sex and incense mixed in the air.

Max Vernon‘s provocative new musical The View UpStairs, a hit Off-Broadway in 2017, is inspired by the true story of the 1973 arson attack that was the largest single attack against the LGBTQ+ community until the Pulse Nightclub shootings in Florida in 2016.

Filled with a collection of beautiful love songs and power rock ballads, this is a musical about friendship, community, how far we’ve come and how far we still have yet to go. It is a story of hope, and it’s a rainbow rollercoaster you do not want to miss.

This European premiere production, directed by Jonathan O’Boyle features Evening Standard Award winner Tyrone Huntley as Wes and American stage and screen star Andy Mientus as Patrick, along with John Partridge, Victoria Hamilton-Barritt, Carly Mercedes Dyer, Cedric Neal, Declan Bennett, Derek Hagen, Garry Lee and Joseph Prouse.

Following the 2.30pm matinee on Saturday 3 August 2019, I’ll be joined by members of The View Upstairs company. Any questions? Join us!

The View Upstairs at West End Live

Excited for this one! @maxvernon's @theviewupstairs at @WestEndLIVE yesterday with super performances from @TyroneHuntley, @mustbejp (those flares!) & cast. Starts at @SohoTheatre on 18th July. #StageFaves #WestEndLIVE #HouseholdName #SomeKindOfParadise https://t.co/Iuq07h4YEm pic.twitter.com/FUPKboubS7

— StageFaves (@StageFaves) June 23, 2019

"After Michel Legrand’s Amour, I’m back at the Charing Cross Theatre this summer for the transfer of Michael John LaChiusa’s award-winning Off-Broadway musical Queen Of The Mist in August" - Terri Paddock

Queen Of The Mist is based on the astounding and outrageous true story of Annie Edson Taylor, who, in 1901, on her 63rd birthday set out to be the first person to survive a trip over Niagara Falls in a barrel of her own design.

With a soaring score that incorporates turn of the century themes with renowned composer Michael John LaChiusa‘s insightful and engaging style, this award-winning musical is the story of how one woman risked death so that she could live.

The original 2011 Off-Broadway production of Queen Of The Mist won the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical and was nominated for six Drama Desk Awards, including Outstanding Musical.

The musical received its UK premiere care of Pint of Wine Theatre Company in an acclaimed, sell-out run this past April at west London’s Brockley Jack Studio Theatre. Dom O’Hanlon‘s production now transfers with its original cast, starring Trudi Camilleri (Ragtime, Death Takes A Holiday) as Annie Edson Taylor, along with Will Arundell, Emily Juler, Emma Ralston, Tom Blackmore, Conor McFarlane and Andrew Carter.

After the 7.30pm performance on Tuesday 20 August 2019, I’ll be joined by members of the Queen Of The Mist cast and creative team. Any questions? Join us!

Show trailer

Oscar-winning French musical composer, conductor and pianist Michel Legrand passed away in January. Join Faves founder Terri Paddock on Monday 13 May 2019 at the posthumous UK premiere of his five-time Tony-nominated 2002 musical AMOUR to discuss Legrand, his legacy and the show with director and cast...

Paris, 1950 – a shy, unassuming civil servant, Dusoleil, lives alone and works diligently in a dreary office. To pass the time, he writes letters to his mother and daydreams about the beautiful Isabelle, who is kept locked away by her controlling husband.

When Dusoleil miraculously gains the ability to walk through walls, he not only begins to lead a double life, stealing from the rich and giving to the poor to right the wrongs of his war-impoverished Parisian neighbours, but also gains the self-confidence to woo Isabelle and, just for a while, live the life he has always longed for.

This musical fantasy about daring to dream and the power of self-belief has music by Michel Legrand with English lyrics by Jeremy Sams (from the original French by Didier Van Cauwelaert). Adapted from the 1943 short story Le Passe-Muraille by Marcel Aymé, AMOUR opened on Broadway in 2002 and was nominated for five Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

In this major new production, Gary Tushaw stars as Dusoleil, Anna O’Byrne as Isabelle and Alasdair Harvey as the Prosecutor, who are joined by Elissa Churchill, Claire Machin, Keith Ramsay, Steven Serlin, Alistair So and Daniel Stockton. Hannah Chissick directs, Danielle Tarento produces.

After the 7.30pm performance on Monday 13 May 2019 at Charing Cross Theatre, I’ll talk to AMOUR's director and cast about the show and Michel Legrand’s legacy. Any questions? Join us! 

Competition

Enter to win one of five pairs of AMOUR tickets by Monday 6 May 2019, including a chance to attend the evening of the post-show Q&A chaired by Faves founder Terri Paddock with director Hannah Chissick and the stars on Monday 13 May.

Stop! Think before you eat that biscuit! Is it in any way fancy? If so, then you are a criminal!

In post-war London, The Ministry of Biscuits casts its sinister shadow over every tea-time and elevenses in the land. Established to “control biscuits, and to control the idea of biscuits,” it prohibits decadent sweetmeats, such as the Gypsy Cream. But when Cedric Hobson, a junior designer, falls in love and designs a biscuit to “shake confectionery to its very foundations,” his world – and the ministry – are turned upside down.

The Ministry of Biscuits - which runs at London’s Barons Court Theatre from 29 January to 10 February 2019 - is inspired by 1940s British Light Music, George Orwell’s 1984 and The Ealing Comedies. This satirical musical fantasy is a unique collaboration between the hugely popular novelist Philip Reeve and playwright and composer Brian Mitchell.

Philip Reeve is winner of The Carnegie Medal, the Guardian Children’s Fiction Prize and the Los Angeles Times Book Award, whose best-selling novel Mortal Engines is now a major motion picture produced by The Lord of The Rings director Peter Jackson. Brian Mitchell‘s credits include Those Magnificent Men and Big Daddy Vs. Giant Haystacks.

“The freshest comedy in years… Absolutely hilarious, this is satire at its best” – Edinburgh Evening News

“What an absolutely ripping wheeze…a top-hole musical comedy without a trace of Lloyd Webber anywhere… A highly entertaining, clever show, packed with neat one-liners” – The Stage

“A wonderful cast… Terrific fun and a very entertaining evening” – Brighton Argus

“Wonderfully done, delightful and one of the best family shows on the Fringe” – The List

The Ministry of Biscuits comes to London following a sell-out 35-date national tour. Mitchell is joined in the cast by BBC Radio 4 regular David Mounfield (Geoffrey in Count Arthur Strong’s Radio Show), Amy Mount and Murray Simon in this highly entertaining and unique show – original, hilarious, and infectiously tuneful entertainment for audiences of all ages.

For the Q&A after the 7.30pm performance on Thursday 31 January 2019, I’ll be joined by writers Philip Reeve and Brian Mitchell and other members of The Ministry of Biscuits cast. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE!

Watch the trailer

"The Showstoppers are legends. I first came across them, well, a long time ago at Edinburgh and then at the King’s Head Theatre in London. They even created WhatsOnStage: The Musical for me for a special event. In the new year, they celebrate another milestone – their 1000th performance – with a new eight-week season at The Other Palace. I can’t wait to reunite with them to discuss their incredible journey to date." - Terri Paddock

The company of SHOWSTOPPER! The Improvised Musical will deliver eight brand-new, completely spontaneous musicals every week at The Other Palace, alongside their regular monthly performances in the West End’s Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue. During the run, the company will mark their 1000th unique, one-of-a-kind performance.

With eleven years as an Edinburgh Festival must-see phenomenon, a critically acclaimed West End run and the Olivier Award for Best Entertainment and Family Show to their name, The Showstoppers – founded by Dylan Emery and Adam Meggido – have blazed a trail in world-class improvised musical comedy and delighted audiences across the globe.

Transforming audience suggestions – for setting, musical styles, show title and more – into all-singing, all-dancing productions with hilarious results, The Showstoppers guarantee audiences an entirely different show every single night as each performance is a brand-new musical West End hit waiting to happen.

For the Q&A after the 7.30pm performance of SHOWSTOPPER! on Wednesday 30 January 2019, I’ll be joined by Dylan Emery, Adam Meggido and other members of the Showstoppers company.

You’re invited to join Terri for a ‘truly virtuosic performance… a masterclass’ (★★★★★ London Theatre 1) with Judy Garland, Patsy Cline, Edith Piaf, Billie Holiday and Maria Callas.

On stage for 90 minutes accompanied by live musicians and ‘performed with astounding versatility’ (★★★★ The Reviews Hub), award-winning Australian singer and actor Bernadette Robinson‘s miraculous voice shifts from the smoky blues of Holiday to the thrilling soprano of Callas, via Garland, Cline and Piaf.

With consummate ease, Robinson breathes new life into the five legendary performers and the five ordinary women whose lives were changed by their brush with fame. The piece was written specifically for Robinson by award-winning Australian playwright Joanna Murray-Smith, whose hit play Switzerland precedes SONGS FOR NOBODIES at the Ambassadors.

This ‘tour de force’ (★★★★★ Broadway World), showcasing Robinson in her critically-acclaimed one-woman performance of a lifetime, is ‘a fabulous story’ (★★★★ The Times).

Returning due to phenomenal demand, SONGS FOR NOBODIES transfers for this limited West End season following its European premiere in 2018 at Wilton’s Music Hall and international touring success.

For the Q&A after the 7.45pm performance of SONGS FOR NOBODIES on Friday 11 January 2019, I’ll be joined by Bernadette Robinson for an intimate and in-depth discussion.

Show photos

For more production photography, see the gallery on the SONGS FOR NOBODIES #StageFaves page.

"I had such fun talking with Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss about their blockbuster breakthrough mega-hit SIX. I can’t wait to talk to them about their new West End transfer, in which Toby also co-stars and Lucy once again directs." - Terri Paddock

Fresh from its own five-star, sell-out run in Edinburgh this year, Hot Gay Time Machine transfers to the West End’s Trafalgar Studios 2 for a very alternative Christmas show season.

Full of enthusiastic dance routines and hilarious original musical numbers, Hot Gay Time Machine – winner of the Brighton Fringe Award for Excellence – is a musical theatre-infused, cabaret comedy starring Zak Ghazi-Torbati and Toby Marlow and written by the show’s two stars with Lucy Moss, who also directs.

Just like A Christmas Carol – but with fewer ghosts and more gays – the dynamic double-act sing, shimmy and sashay the audience on a time-travelling adventure through the history of their favourite topic: themselves.

The 75-minute evening covers all the most important moments in a gay man’s life, like coming out to your mum and navigating the naked politics of the school locker room. This is a Christmas party like no other.

For the Hot Gay Time Machine post-show Q&A at Trafalgar Studios on Thursday 29 November 2018, Terri will be joined by Toby Marlow, Lucy Moss and Zak Ghazi-Torbati. CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

Enter our competition by 23 November

You could win tickets to attend on the night of the post-show Q&A.

Get your geek on! As part of her ongoing post-show Q&A series, on Tuesday 20 November 2018, Faves founder Terri Paddock is at the Playground Theatre for the world premiere of new British sci-fi convention musical FANATICAL. Got any questions for the show's creatives and stars?

"After The Buskers Opera at the Park Theatre in 2016, I’m delighted to be able to work with The Stable on another world premiere, British musical. I saw extracts from Fanatical performed at The Stable’s New Songs 4 New Shows concert in the West End. It’s hilarious – and it’s so exciting now to see the show developed for full production." - Terri Paddock

In a distant Galaxy – the ragtag misfit crew of cargo ship Angel 8 are under the command of fearless pilot Iris Aucht.

Meanwhile…at a conference centre, somewhere in England – a ragtag misfit collection of 1,000 fans gather from all across the UK for Eight Con One, the first ever official convention of the cult TV show Angel 8.

Angel 8 started as a comic created by reclusive British Sci-fi author Scott Furnish. Its first TV outing ended on a shocking cliffhanger. With eager anticipation at the promise of a second series, these enthusiastic devotees have come together to celebrate their beloved series and to meet Scott face-to-face and hear his keynote speech.

Fanatical tells the suspenseful, comic, and affecting tale about being true to oneself, finding love against the odds, and snatching triumph from the jaws of disaster – proving that no power in the universe can keep a story from its fans. Music and lyrics are by Matt Board and the book is by Reina Hardy.

The cast for the premiere production, directed by Grace Taylor, are: Suanne Braun (Stargate, Red Dwarf, Mamma Mia!, Cabaret), Stephen Frost (Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Blackadder, Have I Got News For You, Mr Bean), Sophie Powles (Emmerdale, Britannia High), Tim Rogers, Amy Lovatt, Amber Sylvia Edwards, Eddy Payne and Theodore Crosby.

For the Fanatical post-show Q&A on Tuesday 20 November 2018, Terri will be joined by the writers and members of the company. CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

"After DAMES earlier this year, I’m happy to return to the Pleasance Theatre… for something completely different!" - Terri Paddock

International drag collective Sink the Pink present a dark and terrifying musical twist on the traditional Christmas theatre show. Inspired by London’s bawdy and dangerous theatrical past and a love of classic British Horror – think Sweeney Todd meets The Wicker Man (and Black Mirror with better wigs!) – How To Catch A Krampus is a raucous anthology of terrifying stories and spooked-out songs that come climbing out of the winter dark to remind us that not everyone is good for goodness’ sake….

Featuring:

• Dancing drag queens!
• Terrifying live score!
• Show-stopping numbers!
• Mind-bending magic!
• Bogeymen, blood and Brussel sprouts!

This is a black-hearted antidote to all things cheery this festive season… Guaranteed to ruin your Christmas and enough to put you off your eggnog! And give plenty to talk about with the post-show discussion with the company. Note: Recommended for 18+. This show contains nudity, flashing lights, and scenes of a violent and disturbing nature.

After the 7.30pm performance on Thursday 15 November 2018 at London’s Pleasance Theatre, Terri chairs a How To Catch A Krampus post-show Q&A with the Sink the Pink team.

About Sink the Pink

An antidote to the soulless mega clubs, Sink The Pink are a collective of queens, club kids, pop superstars, creative juggernauts, flamboyant dancers, and acclaimed designers. Founded in 2008 by two best friends Glyn Fussell and Amy Redmond, Sink The Pink has grown from humble beginnings at Bethnal Green Working Men’s club to be one of the biggest LGBTQ nights in the world, selling out venues such as the Brixton Academy, Roundhouse and Troxy.

Enter our competition by 21 November

Unexpected Joy is the headline production in Aria Entertainment's From Page to Stage. This will be the third year that Terri Paddock has been invited by impresario Katy Lipson to chair a post-show talk as part of the annual festival of new musicals. This time, the production also marks the start of an exciting transatlantic producing partnership...

Unexpected Joy is the story of three generations of female singers, long-held family tensions and a week together where change is in the air – Joy, a baby boomer pop star, is visited by her daughter, Rachel and granddaughter Tamara.

Rachel is married to a prominent televangelist, so Joy is reluctant to divulge that she’s planning to marry Lou, another singer who happens to be a woman. A week with all four together is bound to lead to tension, laughter, discoveries and happiness that really is unexpected. Let the sparks and music fly!

Unexpected Joy encourages its characters, as well as the audience, to take a journey of self-discovery because, at the end of the day, we really are all just one big family. It has book and lyrics by Bill Russell (Tony-nominated for Side Show) and music by Janet Hood (Elegies for Angels, Punks and Raging Queens). Amy Anders Corcoran directs a superb all-female cast led by Janet Fullerlove in the title role, along with Jodie Jacobs, Melanie Marshall and Kelly Sweeney.

Unexpected Joy is the first of a major transatlantic partnership between London-based Katy Lipson of Aria Entertainment and Tony Award-winning Broadway producer Jim Kierstead.

Enter our competition by Friday 7 September

As part of her ongoing post-show Q&A series, on Thursday 20 September 2018, Faves founder Terri Paddock makes her Union Theatre debut to talk to the writers and the stars of new actor-musician British musical MIDNIGHT. Got any questions?

Receiving its world premiere in a strictly limited season at the Off-West End musical powerhouse, MIDNIGHT is a haunting new musical thriller that matches a darkly witty psychological drama with a heartbreakingly beautiful score…

As the clock ticks towards midnight on New Year’s Eve, a husband and wife talk nervously about what the future holds for them and their fellow citizens.

Welcome to Azerbaijan, part of the police state of the Soviet Union in the dying minutes of 1937. The past year has been the worst of the Great Terror, in which the paranoid dictator Joseph Stalin unleashed wave upon wave of arrests. Millions have been tortured and executed. Informants and spies are everywhere. No one knows who to trust.

And then comes the dreaded knock on the door. Is it the NKVD, the state’s ruthless secret police? Or a far more mysterious – and terrifying – visitor? Dark secrets emerge, time is suspended and the husband and wife are tested to breaking point – and beyond…

Directed by Kate Golledge, this three-hander story – accompanied by an actor-musician ensemble – is based on an original play, Citizens of Hell by the great Azerbaijani writer Elchin. In adapting Elchin’s parable, writers Timothy Knapman and Laurence Mark Wythe have created a shatteringly unforgettable musical.

In MIDNIGHT, Colin Burnicle and Norma Butikofer are the Man and Woman with Leon Scott as the Visitor. The actor-musician ensemble also includes Ashley Daniels, Luke Thornton, Melania Maggiore and Tilly-Mae Millbrook.

For the MIDNIGHT post-show Q&A on Thursday 20 September 2018, I’ll be joined by writers, creatives and members of the cast. CLICK HERE FOR TICKETS!

Terri says:

"As musical thrillers go, this homegrown one sounds fascinating. MIDNIGHT is a magnificent show to mark my 'debut' hosting a post-show discussion at London’s Union Theatre - one of my neighbourhood theatres, which I absolutely love - and with Debunk Theatre company. I hope you'll join us!" 

KNIGHTS OF THE ROSE is a classic rock musical of Shakespearean proportions. Featuring the ultimate playlist including legendary ballads and timeless anthems from Bon Jovi, Meatloaf, Bonnie Tyler, No Doubt and many more.

In this epic tale of love, betrayal and sacrifice, the noble Knights of the Rose must defend their House and their honour.

Even as the chivalrous Knights return from a glorious victory, a greater threat against the kingdom stirs. As they face the greatest battle of the Age, and betrayal threatens to tear them apart, can true love and honour triumph?

Woven from a rich tapestry of literature and high-voltage classic rock, this heroic new story charges its way into the heart of London for a strictly limited summer season.

Andy Moss (Coronation Street, Hollyoaks) leads a cast of West End favourites, including Oliver Savile, Matt Thorpe, Adam Pearce, Bleu Woodward, Chris Cowley, Katie Birtill, Rebecca Bainbridge, Rebekah Lowings and Ruben Van Keer.

Terri will be joined by the cast for the KNIGHTS OF THE ROSE post-show Q&A after the evening performance on Thursday 26 July 2018.

Do you believe in undying love?

Richard Curtis meets Tim Burton. Based on a true story, brand new musical comedy It Happened in Key West takes you on a journey to 1930s Florida, where an eccentric scientist becomes hopelessly inseparable from the woman of his dreams.

Count Carl Von Cosel finally finds the girl he’s imagined all his life, only to diagnose her with tuberculosis and find out she’s married. Hilarious and absurd, this extraordinary love-story follows his desperate attempts to save her life at all costs, and the undying love he displays when she succumbs to her illness.

Dead though she may be, watch Elena come alive with Carl as he lives out their fantasy beneath the palm trees and sunshine of Key West. Funny, shocking and deeply moving, this new American musical will make you re-examine what you believe about the nature of love, loyalty and commitment (either to a person or an asylum!).

It Happened in Key West is written by Broadway composer Jill Santoriello, Jason Huza and Jeremiah James. Broadway star Wade McCollum (right) reprises his showcase performance as scientist Carl alongside a British cast including Alyssa Martyn as the tragic Elena.

For the post-show Q&A on Wednesday 11 July 2018, Terri Paddock will be joined by key creatives and stars of the show to gain unmissable insights into this major new musical.

It Happened in Key West runs 4 July to 18 August 2018 at Charing Cross Theatre, The Arches, Villiers Street, London WC2N 6NL, with performances Mondays to Saturdays at 7.30pm, Wednesday and Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. Tickets are priced £15-£49.50. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE!!

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Based on the reality of Italian Fascist leader Mussolini’s persecution of homosexuals, SAN DOMINO is the story of men sentenced to five years confinement for degeneracy.

One night in 1939, Carlo, Claudio and friends are arrested in Catania. Condemned without any trial, they arrive on San Domino: a prison island solely for gay men. For all the indignity and squalor of prison life, men previously forced to live in the shadows now have no need to hide who they are. But whatever kind of life they may be trying to build, in the background war is looming.

SAN DOMINO‘s cast of actor-musicians conjures up an intimate tragi-comic world of love, loss and the struggle just to survive.

This new British musical first previewed to an audience at the Courtyard Theatre, then played at Arcola Theatre’s Grimeborn Festival in 2014. The writers were inspired by the story of 45 gay men rounded up in Catania one night in 1939.

SAN DOMINO has book and lyrics by Tim Anfilogoff and music by Alan Whittaker. This full-scale premiere production is directed by Matthew Gould, whose many other recent credits include musicals Pete ‘n’ Keely and I’m Getting My Act Together and Taking It on the Road, both of which I’ve also chaired Q&As for.

After the 2.30pm matinee performance of SAN DOMINO on Saturday 9 June 2018 at London’s Tristan Bates Theatre, Terri will chair a post-show Q&A with the cast and creative team. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS! 

San Domino runs at Tristan Bates Theatre 5 to 30 June 2018

Encore! After a fun-filled event during its Off-West End season at The Vaults last spring, I’m delighted to be able to play a small part in the next stage of MISS NIGHTINGALE‘s wonderful success story as it gets a new extended London season in the heart of the West End…

Homegrown British musical MISS NIGHTINGALE, set in London during the Second World War, gets its much-anticipated West End debut at the stylish, 180-seat theatre at the Hippodrome Casino in Leicester Square.

This original British musical, set in 1940s London during World War Two, is created and written by Matthew Bugg and features 16 original songs, from innuendo-laden Music Hall style numbers to tender ballads and complex trios and quartets, which wonderfully capture the soaring spirit and biting wit of the 1940s.

An intimate underground cabaret club opens in the heart of London. A saucy new star shines under the spotlight. Two men struggle to bring their illicit love out of the shadows. The war-torn capital has never been so revealing! Welcome to the Glitz of the Blitz; where showgirls, secrets and scandal abound. A world where aristocrats jostle with black-market spivs, songwriters take to the streets and nothing is quite as it seems.

Maggie Brown, an aspiring singer and her best friend George Nowodny, a songwriter and Jewish refugee, perform a dazzling act at the newest nightclub in town, owned by wealthy socialite and RAF war-hero, Sir Frank Worthington-Blythe. Maggie’s beau Tom Connor paves the way for the sexy and charismatic ‘Miss Nightingale’ to be born, and the musical duo quickly find themselves with a West End hit. However, what the leading lady doesn’t know, is that George and Sir Frank are hiding a secret and as Miss Nightingale’s success grows, so does a forbidden love between the two men.

From the moment the audience arrive at the Hippodrome Casino’s beautifully intimate theatre space, they will be taken back in time to the hilarious and heart-warming world of the wartime West End. Themed food and drink will be served at cabaret tables and the audience will be able to immerse themselves in World War II London life during the days of air-raids, rationing and the Great British stiff upper lip.

This joyous, new musical is performed by a cast of six actor-musicians, led by Lauren Chinery in the title role, alongside Oliver Mawdsley as Frank, Matthew Floyd Jones as George, Adam Langstaff as Tom, Tobias Oliver as Clifford and creator Matthew Bugg himself, in the role of Harry. The production has set design by Carla Goodman, lighting by Craig Garratt, original lighting designs by David Phillips, sound by Danny Kissane, and is produced by Mr Bugg Presents and The Hippodrome Casino.

Since it was first staged in 2011 at The Lowry Studio, Salford, MISS NIGHTINGALE has completed five sold-out UK tours, had a headline season at The Vaults in 2017 and featured in the Guardian’s ‘Top 50 Must-Sees’.

For the free post-show Q&A on Thursday 29 March 2018, Terri will be joined by MISS NIGHTINGALE writer and director Matthew Bugg and the cast. CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE SHOW! 

Miss Nightingale runs at the Hippodrome from 21 March to 6 May 2018

A family willing to risk everything.

ROTHSCHILD & SONS is the remarkable story of how a father, mother and their sons changed the world.

This uplifting and universal tale affirming human dignity springs from the hearts and minds of Broadway songwriters Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock and Tony-nominated writer Sherman Yellen. Inspired by the book The Rothschilds by Frederic Morton, this re-imagined musical about a family that risks everything includes several never-before-heard songs in its thrilling UK premiere.

The stellar cast of Broadway and West End actors is led by Tony nominee Robert Cuccioli as Mayer and Glory Crampton as Gutele, reprising their roles from the New York run, and Gary Trainor (School of Rock, Beautiful in the West End) as Nathan Rothschild. The production is directed by Jeffrey B Moss.

ROTHSCHILD & SONS, first seen at New York’s York Theatre in 2015, is a one-act reimagining of Harnick and Bock’s nine-time Tony-nominated 1970 musical The Rothschilds. One of Broadway’s most successful songwriting partnerships, Sheldon Harnick and Jerry Bock (who died in 2010) had numerous other hits, including Fiorello! (1959), She Loves Me (1963) and their best-known blockbuster, Fiddler on the Roof (1964). In addition to three earlier Tonys for Fiorello! and Fiddler on the Roof, Harnick was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2016 Tony Awards.

For the Q&A on Tuesday 30 January 2018, Terri will be joined by Sheldon Harnick and members of ROTHSCHILD & SONS company.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE SHOW!

‘Good afternoon, your honour. I’m Colin Bradley. I’m here today to ask you, your honour, not to let Christine Davis, my ex-wife, move out of the country with Emily Bradley, my daughter.’

Colin is a loving husband and stay-at-home dad who adores his daughter. But mistakes are made, and he finds himself in the fight of his life climbing Big Ben dressed as a superhero. How did he get here? And why couldn’t he get a bigger cape?

SUPERHERO is a world premiere one-man (or rather “one-dad”) musical that shows how you can ignore your fears when the stakes get high – really, really high.

Featuring the Stiles and Drewe award-winning song ‘Don’t Look Down’, SUPERHERO is a heartwarming story that looks at what it means to be a parent in the twenty-first century – with or without the cape.

SUPERHERO has a book by Michael Conley, music by Joseph Finlay and lyrics by Richy Hughes. It stars Michael Rouse, directed by Adam Lenson. 

For the SUPERHERO post-show Q&A on Tuesday 11 July 2017, Terri will be joined by some of the musical’s creators and star.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE SHOW!

On a sweltering summer morning in 1892, in a small New England city, a prominent businessman and his wife were axed to death in their home. Their daughter Lizzie Borden was the prime suspect. Lizzie’s trial was a coast-to-coast media sensation, and her story has become an American legend.

LIZZIE is four women fronting a six-piece rock band. LIZZIE is rage, sex, betrayal, and bloody murder. LIZZIE is American mythology set to a blistering rock score. LIZZIE is a new American musical with a sound owing less to Sondheim and Andrew Lloyd Webber than to Bikini Kill, the Runaways, and Heart.

Broadway star Eden Espinosa – well known for playing Elphaba in Wicked, Maureen in Rent, and the title characters in Evita, Brooklyn the Musical and Flora the Red Menace – makes her London stage debut as Emma Borden alongside three other dazzling divas: British #StageFaves Jodie Jacobs and Bleu Woodward and Dane Bjorg Gamst as Lizzie Borden.

LIZZIE marks the start of a new and exciting collaboration between British-based company Aria Entertainment, headed by producer Katy Lipson, and Denmark-based Fredericia Theater, where the production, helmed by artistic director Søren Møller, first opened in January. The collaboration builds on Aria Entertainment’s support and development for new musicals both in the UK and overseas and Fredericia Theater’s desire to continue mounting acclaimed work on an international scale beyond their home in Fredericia, Denmark.

For the LIZZIE post-show Q&A after the evening performance on Thursday 23 February 2017, Terri will be joined by the four-strong cast: Eden Espinosa, Jodie Jacobs, Bleu Woodward and Bjorg Gamst. Don't you think we need to get some tweeting going?!

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE TICKETS TO THE SHOW!

Ahead of their individual Crazy Coqs cabaret shows this month, #StageFaves founder Terri Paddock quizzes two of our favourite #DazzlingDivas in an intimate one-hour conversation at 5pm on Thursday 13 October 2016 at Brasserie Zedel, as part of Mark Shenton's weekly West End chat show, COQ-TALES & CONVERSATION...

Terri Paddock is delighted to deputise for her friend and My Theatre Mates co-founder Mark Shenton for two dates of his weekly West End chat show in October. Coq-Tales and Conversations takes place each Thursday or Friday afternoon as part of the Live at Zedel season, programmed by renowned American composer Scott Alan, at the renowned “Crazy Coqs” cabaret venue at Brasserie Zedel in the heart of the West End.

For the hour-long event on Thursday 13 October 2016 at 5.00pm, Terri will be chatting to two incredible West End leading ladies and #StageFaves, Anna-Jane Casey and Emma Hatton, both of whom have their own cabaret shows coming up at Brasserie Zedel this month.

Anna-Jane is also about to spend Christmas in Sheffield taking the title role in the Crucible’s much-anticipated, rooting-tooting-shooting revival of Annie Get Your Gun. Emma was just seen on the green carpet last week celebrating the tenth anniversary of Wicked in the West End, a show for which she gained legions of fans for her performance as Elphaba.

We’ll be talking about those and many other credits and perspectives with these two. Come along on 13 October! More details on their upcoming cabarets below.