A new UK tour of musical Judy & Liza opens for a week-long run at Manchester's Hope Mill Theatre (May 28-June 2), ahead of visits to Wales, Runcorn, the North East, New Brighton, Leeds and venues wider afield. Charting the careers and relationship between Hollywood mother and daughter Judy Garland and Liza Minnelli, the production tells the turbulent tale of the stars against the backdrop of their infamous 1964 London Palladium concert, an emotional rollercoaster as they reveal the uncanny parallels between some of their most iconic songs and their personal lives. The show is created and written by Emma Dears, who also plays Liza. Liverpool-born Emma’s acting career began when she was nine, touring the UK in the title role of Annie. Her West End roles have included Les Miserables, Miss Saigon and Oliver. Helen Sheals - widely known for her roles in Coronation Street and Downton Abbey - is no stranger to portraying Judy Garland, having previously played the title role in the West End musical Judy!. Her extensive theatre includes Merry Wives and King Lear for Northern Broadsides; The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and Shirley Valentine, as well as many TV roles. Producer Bill Elms said: “It’s a show very close to my heart; I worked on the first run 12 years ago. We can promise audiences an entertaining and memorable experience with some fantastic music." “The show is full of love, heartache and passion," said Emma. "Helen and I have worked to make sure we get every tiny detail right." More info and tickets here

Liverpool's Everyman Theatre will celebrate its birthday year with a revival of Willy Russell’s mega-hit Shirley Valentine (March 1-29, 2025), featuring Liverpool actress Helen Carter as Shirley. At 42, Shirley's zest for life is missing; she has an empty nest, an emotionally-distant husband and only "the wall" for company. When her best friend offers the trip of a lifetime to Greece, Shirley jumps at the chance to go... Originally commissioned and staged by the theatre in 1986, the play is now one of the most successful one-woman plays and films ever staged. Announcing the news, Willy Russell said: “I’m delighted to be back at the Everyman, a theatre that holds a special place in my heart. As it has done for so many writers, actors and directors in its 60-year history, the Everyman gave me my first opportunities as a writer. "I can’t wait to work on bringing the play back home and seeing Shirley on the boards on which she was born”. Willy Russell is one of the most celebrated and widely-produced writers of his generation, with works regularly seen across the globe. He has had a long association with the Everyman, which staged his breakthrough play John Paul George Ringo… & Bert in 1974, which transferred to the West End and won several awards. Further stage plays at the Everyman have included Breezeblock Park (1975) and Stags and Hens (1978). After huge international success with Blood Brothers and Educating Rita, Russell returned to the Everyman in 1986 to write Shirley Valentine. Originally commissioned by the Everyman for the theatre’s 21st birthday by artistic director Glen Walford, Shirley Valentine opened with Noreen Kershaw in the title role and Glen directing. The show enjoyed huge success and an extended run. Playing Shirley for the celebratory production, Helen Carter has several stage credits at the Everyman and Playhouse, including The Flint Street Nativity, Once Upon a Time at the Adelphi, No Wise Men, The Star, A Christmas Carol and Dead Heavy Fantastic. She most recently appeared at Liverpool’s Royal Court in Boys from the Blackstuff, soon to be seen at the National Theatre. Director Stephen Fletcher has also worked extensively at the Royal Court as a writer and director. He has performed in three of Willy Russell's plays, Breezeblock Park, Our Day Out and Stags and Hens and alongside Helen in The Last 5 Years and Dead Heavy Fantastic. Theatre CEEO Mark Da Vanzo said: “Bringing Willy’s celebrated Shirley home is the perfect end to our 60th birthday year. It’s a huge honour for us all to be working again with Willy and a wonderful opportunity to celebrate not just the Everyman’s past but look confidently to its future as well”. Tickets for the show go on general sale from noon on May 1, priority booking from April 26. More info here

A show filled with original stories from the lives of older people returns to Leeds Playhouse this week. The Performance Ensemble developed Sinfonia as part of 1001 Stories, a festival that celebrated age and ageing at the Playhouse for LEEDS 2023, the Year of Culture. Directed by Alan Lyddiard, the 2024 production, at Leeds Playhouse's Courtyard Theatre on April 26-27, features new stories and performers in a more intimate show that will be performed in Leeds, Doncaster and Barrow. Local performers will share tales of activism and politics, love and family, told by the generation that pioneered punk, fronted marches and invented the internet. Alan Lyddiard, who is the company's artistic director, said: “We’ve been creating high quality performances with people aged over 60 for years now, giving a voice to generations that have been forgotten. These people have full lives and experiences worth sharing and we are revealing and celebrating them in new, beautiful and emotive ways.” The ensemble has just become an Arts council England National Portfolio Organisation, which neans it is guaranteed national funding. "We want to say life doesn’t stop as you get older," said Alan, who himself is 73. "In becoming an NPO we have been able to offer 12 new roles in the company to people usually closer to considering retirement; each of them bringing a lifetime of expertise and enthusiasm.” More info here

Know your theatre: Built for £95,000 by public subscription and opened in 1967, the Octagon was the first professional theatre built in the North West after World War II – one of very few 'in the round'. Particularly associated with local playwrights Bill Naughton and Jim Cartwright, the Octagon today offers a wide range of repertory productions and co-productions mixing classics and lighter material. When the theatre's future was threatened in 1999, 12,000 people signed a petition to 'Keep theatre made in Bolton', and succeeded. The theatre closed in 2018 for a £12m renovation and officially reopened, after Covid delays, on July 6 2021, with a production of The Hound Of The Baskervilles . The revamped building has a new roof, electrics and plumbing, is more environmentally friendly, has greatly improved accessibility, new restaurant, bar and back stage facilities. The Octagon's main space seats up to 390, its studio space 100. The main house has the best sight lines of any theatre – that's probably a fact. Octagon Theatre, Bolton Address: Octagon Theatre, Howell Croft St, Bolton BL1 1SB . Phone: Box Office: 01204 520661 (Mon-Sat, 9am-6pm, opt 2; applies also to group bookings). You can also contact info@octagonbolton.co.uk with general inquiries and boxoffice@octagonbolton.co.uk with booking inquiries. Facilities: The new theatre has an extensive cafe/bar area (open Tue-Sat, 10am-4pm) breakfast served until noon), extensive facilities for disabled patrons, new seating and studio and classroom spaces. Parking: Nearest car park: Octagon NCP multi-storey (BL1 1TN). Free street parking (some disabled bays) in Le Mans Crescent after 6pm, (limited spaces). Online box office: Go here for what's on and follow the show links for tickets. Access 24 hours.

Know your theatre: Wales’ largest producing theatre opened in 1976 next to County Hall, in a complex opened by the Queen. The theatre has a proud history of major productions with star international names. Theatr Clwyd productions are seen throughout the year both in Wales and on UK tours. Appointed as artistic director in 2023 Kate Wasserberg, formerly artistic director of new-writing company Stockroom and Cardiff's The Other Room, is overseeing an ambitious, £35m redevelopment project to create a large extension at the front, including a new three-storey foyer and restaurant, bar and cafe. The building has three performing spaces and a multi-purpose function room, and though the redevelopment will massively upgrade facilities, the theatre spaces won't be changed. The main Anthony Hopkins Theatre is a single-raked tier seating up to 569, with five wheelchair spaces. The Emlyn Williams Theatre is a flexible studio space for 147-250. Studio 2, built to TV broadcast standards, can hold up to 120 for performance events and is used as a second rehearsal space. The theatre also has a small cinema (capacity 113) and a large function room used for gigs (capacity 240). Theatr Clwyd Address: Raikes Lane, Mold, Wales CH7 1YA Phone: General inquiries and box office: 01352 344101 (line open 10am-6pm) Facilities: The theatre complex is large, containing theatre spaces and other events and refreshment facilities. The theatre website is here . Disabled visitors are well catered for with wheelchair access to all floors, disabled parking spaces, an induction loop for hearing aid users, some "relaxed" performances when audience movement and noise are acceptable, and facilities for visual impairment. See here for details. Parking: Once in the Mold area prominent signage points you to the theatre complex. Currently, an underground car park is closed but parking is available on a tiered open air car park. Avoid parking immediately in front of the building. Online box office: Go here if you haven't booked online at Theatr Clwyd before, or find the show on the website and follow the bookings link. Email box.office@theatrclwyd.com with queries.

Know your theatre: Clonter Opera Theatre, Congleton Clonter, sometimes called ‘the Glyndebourne of the North’, is on a working farm in the Cheshire countryside, not far from the Jodrell Bank radio telescope. Clonter began as informal gatherings in a barn, with seating on bales of straw. Today the venue has a 400-seat theatre (though a former hen house is still part of the backstage facilities), and a well-established programme of events. Clonter notably showcases young operatic talent, but also jazz and folk. Front of house now offers sufficient accommodation for the entire audience to enjoy a meal under one roof, either before or part-way through the performance (ordered from the house caterer or your own picnic), which is something even Glyndebourne cannot offer. Expect to meet the Cheshire set in full cry (especially after imbibing during a long interval) as your fellow opera-buffs, but this stage frequently offers future international stars in the making, so it can be worth it... Address: Swettenham Heath, Trap Rd, Congleton CW12 2LR Phone: General inquiries and box office: 01260 224514 (10am-4pm Mon-Fri and performance days). The theatre is large, the building boasting separate rooms of various sizes, allowing it to function as a theatre and for corporate hires and schools use throughout the year. The theatre website offers a range of accommodation choices for long-distance visitors. Disabled visitors are well catered for Facilities: Parking: There is a drop-off point outside the theatre entrance, and free parking. Eight bays close to the main entrance can be reserved for those with reduced mobility. Online box office: Go here if you haven't booked online at Clonter before, or here if you have. You need to open an account for online booking.