NEWS – 25 Nov 2022
Major new co-production and season of family favourites announced for His Majesty’s Theatre and the Music Hall
A major new co-production and a host of the most beloved characters in family entertainment lead the way in a dazzling new season of shows announced today for His Majesty’s Theatre and the Music Hall.
Audiences at His Majesty’s Theatre will be transported to a sparkling Sleeping Beauty’s Castle in the newly announced 2023 pantomime (December 2 2023 – January 7 2024), the Hundred Acre Wood with Winnie the Pooh (14-16 July), a ‘pineapple under the sea’ for Broadway smash-hit Spongebob the Musical (July 18 – July 22), as well as the opportunity of coming up close to such enchanting characters as The Tiger Who Came to Tea (February 24 & 25) and an encounter with David Walliams’ Demon Dentist (22-24 June) for the thrill-seeking youngsters out there, while the Music Hall will play host to Children’s Classic Concerts as they present Roald Dahl’s The Three Little Pigs (19 March).
The new season announcements continue with all bases covered from legendary comedians, world-class ballet, and a world premiere of brand new production from National Theatre of Scotland and Aberdeen Performing Arts in association with Belgrade Theatre, Dracula: Mina’s Reckoning (September 2-9) completing the bumper line up of shows announced by Aberdeen Performing Arts today.
National treasure Dawn French will take to the Music Hall stage on Thursday October 26, joining previously announced comedy heavyweights Romesh Rangathan, Frankie Boyle, Russell Howard for 2023, as well as musical treats including Suede, KT Tunstall, DMAs and Mike and the Mechanics.
Scottish Ballet will bring two stunning productions to His Majesty’s with A Streetcar named Desire (April 27-29) and Cinders (January 25-27 2024), and Lyric Theatre’s Kinky Boots (June 28 – July 1) and the Aberdeen student show, Ayetanic (April 19-22) add to a plethora of previously announced West End blockbusters including the likes of Six the Musical, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Bodyguard, starring former Pussycat Doll Melody Thornton and Emmerdale and Hollyoaks star Ayden Callaghan, heading to Aberdeen in 2023 and 2024.
And 2023 dates for Granite Noir 2023 have been revealed with the much-anticipated crime writing festival confirmed to take place from Thursday February 23 – Sunday, February 26 with a full line-up to be announced soon.
Aberdeen Performing Arts’ Director of Programming and Creative Projects, Ben Torrie, said: “2023 just keeps getting better and better. We’re delighted to be announcing next year’s glittering panto as the enchanting Sleeping Beauty, and ahead of that there are so many great family shows on the way.
“We are very proud to be working with the National Theatre of Scotland to bring a brand-new, Aberdeenshire-based adaptation of Dracula to the stage.
“The rest of the programme is shaping up to be just as exciting. Dawn French is one of the most loved comedians in the country and it’s very exciting to be bringing her to Aberdeen for one night only at the Music Hall. Scottish Ballet’s A Streetcar Named Desire is a truly stunning production and joins an already packed line up for amazing musicals at HMT.
“With such a varied choice for everyone it looks like Aberdeen is the place to be!”
The enchanting pantomime Sleeping Beauty will cast its spell over His Majesty’s Theatre from December 2 2023 – January 7 2024. Once upon a time in a land far away, a Princess is given a 21st birthday present by her evil aunt Carabosse. By pricking her finger on an enchanted spinning wheel, she is placed under a cruel curse and forced to sleep for 100 years. Star casting is to be announced.
Featuring irresistible characters, magical choreography and dazzling costumes, Spongebob the Musical is an exciting new production set to make a splash with audiences young and old. When the citizens of Bikini Bottom discover that a volcano will soon erupt and destroy their humble home, SpongeBob and his friends must come together to save the fate of their undersea world. With lives hanging in the balance and all hope lost, a most unexpected hero rises up in this must-see musical for 2023.
The Tiger who came to Tea is celebrating 12 years on stage and over 50 years as Britain’s best-loved picture book.
The much-loved tea-guzzling tiger is sure to delight in this stunning stage adaptation of the classic tale of teatime mayhem, packed with magic, sing-a-long songs and clumsy chaos.
Demon Dentist follows Alfie and Gabz as they investigate the strange events happening in their hometown in this fun adventure.
Children are leaving their teeth for the tooth fairy and waking up to find odd things under their pillows. Determined to get to the bottom of the mystery, no one could have dreamed what they’ll discover when they come face to face with the demon dentist herself, in this hilarious and thrilling story.
Disney’s iconic Winnie the Pooh, Christopher Robin and their best friends Piglet, Eeyore, Kanga, Roo, Rabbit, Owl and Tigger have come to life in this beautifully crafted musical stage adaptation. Featuring Grammy award winning music, the charming story is told with stunning life-sized puppetry in a new story from the Hundred Acre Wood.
Children’s Classic Concerts presents the phizz-wizzing concert, Roald Dahl’s The Three Little Pigs. CCCs Essential Orchestra brings the most whoops-whiffling characters and stories from Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes to life. With fabulous performances, theatrical staging and crazy costumes, this is a concert for the whole family to enjoy.
The darkly fascinating and murky world of Dracula will come to life in the world premiere of Dracula: Mina’s Reckoning from National Theatre of Scotland and Aberdeen Performing Arts in association with Belgrade Theatre, Coventry.
Under the buzzing lights of a psychiatric hospital in Aberdeenshire in 1897, Mina Murray recounts her encounters with the most terrifying of beasts, Dracula.
Not for the faint-hearted, Morna Pearson’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s classic tale is filled with her trademark humour and taste for the strange and grotesque. This breathtaking gothic production transposes the action to Scotland amid the wild beauty of the landscapes of the North East which originally inspired the novel …we witness the addiction, intoxication and empowerment of Mina.
Legendary comedian Dawn French will bring her brand new one woman show to the music Hall on October 26.
Expect buttock-clenching embarrassing stories to give the audience a peek behind the scenes of Dawn’s fascinating and varied working life.
Scottish Ballet announce two highly anticipated productions coming to His Majesty’s with A Streetcar Named Desire and Cinders. The hugely popular, award-winning A Streetcar Named Desire will return to Scotland for the first time since 2015. This astonishing, stylish production is narrative ballet at its very best, with stunning dance, devastating drama, pitch-perfect period design and a sizzling score used to tell the iconic story. The choreography breathes new life into the famous tale about Blanche DuBois, her sister Stella and brutish husband Stanley, with intense duets, graceful waltzes and electrifying lindy jives, all danced in the caged heat of 1940s New Orleans.
Scottish Ballet’s festive favourite Cinders returns, with a charming twist to the tale, glittering new set and costume designs, and a surprise in store every night. Meet a whole host of fantastical characters – including a dancing grasshopper and designer spiders – and be spun into Cinders’ enchanted world. Cinders is everything you adore about the romantic fairytale – made sparkling and new.
Aberdeen’s student show returns with Ayetanic from 19 –23 April. An affa funcy cruise is about to set sail from Aberdeen’s new South Harbour. Rose Hill can’t wait to see the coastal sights between Balnagask and Banff, but things might head off course when struggling artist Jock unexpectedly boards the Ayetanic. Will it be tatties ower the side oot on the North Sea?
Tickets for all of these shows are on sale to Friends of Aberdeen Performing Arts on Thursday, December 1 and on general sale on Tuesday, December 6, and are available from www.aberdeenperformingarts.com, phone (01224) 641122 or visit the box office at His Majesty’s Theatre or the Music Hall.
