Birmingham is jam-packed with theatrical venues, from the huge stages of The Hippodrome and The Alexandra, to smaller venues like the Midlands Arts Centre (MAC) and the Old Joint Stock Pub and Theatre. Whether you’re looking for serious theatre, pantomime fun or amateur drama, there will be something for everyone at one of Birmingham’s arts institutions. Here’s a run down of some of the best productions running in the second city this month.
Hamilton
Birmingham Hippodrome, Tuesday 25th June – Saturday 31st August 2024
Okay, final one from the Hippodrome, we promise. Arriving at the end of the month is a powerhouse of musical theatre like you’ve never seen it before. A multi award-winning cultural phenomenon, Hamilton is touring the UK for the first time ever in 2023-4, and will run for an epic ten week season at the Birmingham Hippodrome until the end of August.
Another historical piece, Hamilton tells the story of America’s Founding Father Alexander Hamilton, an immigrant from the West Indies who quickly became George Washington’s right-hand man during the Revolutionary War, helping to shape the very foundations of modern day America.
The much-loved score features influences from hip-hop, jazz, blues, rap, R&B and Broadway, with book, music and lyrics all created by Lin-Manuel Miranda. Directed by Thomas Kail, the production is based on Ron Chernow’s biography of Alexander Hamilton, with history rooted deep in its core.
The production has eleven Tony Awards under its belt, including Best Musical, seven Olivier Awards, the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album. This musical means BUSINESS.
If you want your children to tell the story of tonight, don’t wait to pick up your tickets, many of which have already sold. To catch Hamilton in all its glory, book your seats here.
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Royal Shakespeare Company, Wednesday 5th June – Saturday 7th September 2024
Slightly further afield, one train ride out of Birmingham to Stratford-Upon-Avon, Shakespeare’s Merry Wives of Windsor finds a new lease of life in this fresh new production of his suburban comedy.
When no-good schemer Sir John Falstaff arrives amidst the lawns and picket fences of Windsor, he begins to work his charms to seduce two well-to-do married women. It seems like the perfect scam – surely one of them will fall for his charms. But in this tight-knit neighbourhood, he has failed to account for the fact that wives talk, and Mistress Page and Mistress Ford fancy playing some tricks of their own.
Jam packed full of lies, jealousy, and dirty laundry, The Merry Wives of Windsor is a cacophony of laughter and mischief. What goes on at Number 22 is everybody’s business, and it could be yours – tickets are available to purchase now, via the RSC’s website, here.
Director Blanche McIntyre’s uplifting production promises to be a piece where women get the last laugh, and is set to have a long run over the entirety of the summer at the RSC. Don’t be deceived by the long list of performances, however – the RSC has a strong reputation for selling out its shows, and to grab the best seats in the house you’ll have to act quickly.
101 Dalmations
The Alexandra, Tuesday 2nd July – Saturday 6th July 2024
Landing at one of Birmingham’s best-loved theatres, the smash hit musical ‘101 Dalmations’ is coming to the Alexandra this summer. Starring Coronation Street’s Kym Marsh as wonderfully wicked Cruella De Vil, this production has been called a ‘very tasty family treat’ by the Daily Telegraph.
Eccentric fashionista Cruella De Vil hatches an evil plan to swipe Pongo and Perdi’s sweet little Dalmation puppies, along with all of the pups in town, to create a fabulous new fur coat. Can the pair of parents step in and save the day, or will their little of tail-wagging young puppies pay the ultimate price in the name of fashion?
Dodie Smith’s beautiful children’s novel has been brought to life by Douglas Hodge’s music and lyrics, from a stage adaptation by Zinnie Harris.
Tickets are running very low for the seven shows in Birmingham, but are available here while they last.
Grease
The Alexandra, Monday 15th July – Saturday 20th July 2024
This is a strong month for musicals in the second city, with the widely beloved ‘Grease’ landing at the Alexandra theatre for a week-long run this July.
When girl-next-door Sandy transfers to Rydell High for her senior year, the last thing she expects is to bump into leather-clad greaser Danny, with whom she shared a whirlwind summer love affair.
As their seaside passions and freedoms are dragged into a claustrophobic schoolyard, will their relationship be renewed? Or will their friends, who have plenty to say about Sandy and Danny’s obvious differences, get in the way?
With one of the most iconic musical soundtracks of all time, featuring classics such as ‘Summer Nights’, Greased Lightnin’’, ‘Hopelessly Devoted to You’ and ‘You’re the One That I Want’, fans can expect to hear the musical they love, given a fresh lease of life by an energetic young cast.
Tickets for the show are available here, but a very limited number remain, so grab them while you can.
Red Velvet
The Crescent Theatre, Ron Barber Studio, Saturday 13th July – Saturday 20th July 2024
The scene? Theatre Royal, Covent Garden. The year? 1833. Backstage? A revolution is brewing.
Edmund Kean, widely recognised as the greatest actor of his generation, has collapsed on stage whilst playing Othello. A young black American actor Ira Aldridge has been asked to take his place.
As the public take to the streets in riots over the abolition of slavery, how will the cast, newspaper critics and audience react to the revolution taking place on stage?
Lolita Chakrabarti’s 2012 play explores imagined experiences based on the true, but little known story of Aldridge, who built and incredible reputation on the stages of London and wider Europe in the nineteenth century, overcoming the odds stacked against him.
This production runs for a week, and following Friday’s performance there will be an After Dark session, where audiences can meet members of the cast and creative team to discuss the production.
To grab your After Dark session tickets, or tickets to any of the productions over the coming month, head to the Crescent Theatre’s website, here.
The Hanged Man’s Bride
The Blue Orange Theatre, Wednesday 10th – Sunday 14th July 2024
July marks the second city’s annual ‘Birmingham Fest’, which involves a whole heaping of wonderful theatre. At the Blue Orange, this story by Charles Dickens comes to life in the hands of James Nicholas.
“She comes towards me on the floor; always approaching; never coming nearer; always visible as if by moonlight whether the moon shines or not”.
A writer struggling to reunite his creative vision, a real life crime, and a visit to a supposedly haunted inn – all the makings of an epic and eerie ghost story. The lines are soon blurred between fact and fiction as darkness descends.
If you’re ready to be well and truly spooked, support the festival by buying your tickets to see this cracking play in one of the city’s best independent theatres. Tickets are available here.
Spiked
The Old Joint Stock, Tuesday 16th July 2024
Something totally different, playing at the Old Joint Stock pub, Saraya Haddad presents her one-woman play about the time she performed a play she doesn’t remember.
In a fictional retelling of the astonishing time she played Shakespeare’s Ariel in ‘The Tempest’, having been spiked, Saraya pieces together the hours from the campus bar before the show, to the blackness that followed.
Filled with laughter and with tears, as she notices the uncanny parallels between Shakespeare’s age-old production and her own experience of having her bodily autonomy washing away, Saraya pushes herself back up to the surface and out of her spiker’s control.
The culmination of a decade’s worth of work, this insightful and gripping piece will preview in Birmingham before heading to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival later this year.
A gripping production about a very modern issue, you can grab tickets for Haddad’s performance here. It’s worth noting that the Old Joint Stock is a small (but iconic) pub venue, so you’ll have to act fast to ensure your tickets!
There is plenty to keep you entertained this month in Birmingham, and if these don’t sound like your cup of tea, fear not! We’ll update this list every month, to bring the best of Brummie theatre to your fingertips.
