The much-loved and world’s oldest surviving grand music hall, Wilton’s Music Hall will open its doors once again on 28th May 2021 for a specially-programmed summer season of theatre, music, opera and spoken word from a number of prestigious production companies. The reduced audience numbers, in line with current COVID-19 government regulations, will allow these shows to be fabulously intimate.
All shows will run straight through without an interval and with a seating capacity of just over 100, effectively giving each audience member their own exclusive performance. The comfort of brand-new customised seats installed during the lockdown period, along with improved acoustics will significantly enhance the audience experience and make the return to live performance at this unique venue an even more special one.
The line-up offers an expedient, entertaining and exciting selection of shows for this opening season to give London’s theatre lovers a diverse programme of live performance. Everything from Justin Butcher’s cathartic one-act marvel Scaramouche Jones, a twist to the classic clown trope that spans a century’s worth of history to time-travelling magicians Morgan & West with a show full of fabulous family fun to two operettas in one sitting with the return of Opera della Luna with a brand new production Curtain Raisers: a double bill with Cox and Box by Arthur Sullivan and Les Deux Aveugles by Offenbach and everything in between.
Musical turns include award-winning Apphia Campbell’s stunning solo performance in Black Is The Colour of My Voice, inspired by the life of Nina Simone, a powerful musical homage to one of France’s most endearing icons in Christine Bovill’s PIAF and songs and stories exploring the history and culture of London from the music hall to the modern day from Tom Carradine’s ‘London Songbook’.
When opening on 28 May, Wilton’s will comply with all relevant COVID-19 government regulations at that time. Audiences will be able to enjoy drinks in this delightful grade II* listed building before the performance, experiencing the magic and majesty of Wilton’s.
Wilton’s CEO Holly Kendrick said “It has been an enormously difficult year, but we cannot wait to reopen and to welcome audiences back to our magical East End building. For over 160 years Wilton’s has inspired artists and audiences alike and we can only continue to do this by opening our doors for all of London and for everyone with a curious imagination. Our shows will play to socially-distanced audiences, but we look forward to welcoming back full houses as soon as possible.”
Dates: 28 – 29 May 2021
Obsessive Entertainment presents
EastEndless
Running time: 60 minutes, no interval
Time: 7.45pm
Prices: £16.50 – £18 full price, £14.50 – £16 concessions
Written by Tim Fountain
Directed by Mike Bradwell
James Holmes returns with his sell-out Camden Festival hit. Obsessed fan Tony Coventry has every EastEnders episode on video, but when he lands a bit part on the show, his dream job soon turns into a nightmare. This hilarious play is a blackly comic look behind the scenes of Britain’s favourite soap
Date: 01 June
Seabright Productions Ltd. presents
Quentin Crisp: Naked Truth
Running time: 70 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.30pm
Prices: £19 – £22 full price, £17 – £20 concessions
Written and performed by Mark Farrelly
Directed by Linda Marlowe
Sound by Tom Lishman
Naked Hope is a glorious, truthful, and uplifting celebration of a genuinely unique human being, and of the urgent necessity to be yourself. Written and performed by Mark Farrelly, and directed by the legendary Linda Marlowe, who also directed Farrelly’s show The Silence of Snow. Naked Hope depicts the legendary Quentin Crisp at two distinct phases of his extraordinary life. Firstly, in the late 1960s in his filthy Chelsea flat. The second part of the play transitions the audience to New York in the 1990s. Here a much older Quentin, finally embraced by society, regales the audience with his sharply observed, hard-earned philosophy on how to have a lifestyle.
Dates: 2, 4 June
Morgan & West and makin projects presents
Morgan & West’s Fantastic Family Magic Spectacular
Running time: 60 minutes, no interval
Times: 12pm
Prices: £7.50 – £9 full price, £5.50 – £7 concessions
Age recommendation: 5+ (younger children welcome)
Bags of bafflement and side-splitting laughter for the whole family.
Time-travelling magicians Morgan & West are back with a show full of fabulous family friendly fun, frantic frolics, and fantastic facial furniture! The dynamic duo deals out a delightful dollop of deception, deftly delivered with a dash of derring-do. Awesomely alliterative acts of amazement and astounding asymmetry await!
Dates: 3, 4 June
Seabright Productions Ltd. presents
A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad)
Running time: 70 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.30pm
Prices: £19 – £22 full price, £17 – £20 concessions
Written by Jon Brittain (Baby Reindeer; Rotterdam; Margaret Thatcher Queen of Soho)
Director: Alex Mitchell
Musical Director/Composer: Matthew Floyd Jones
Following award-winning, sell-out London and Edinburgh seasons, and prior to appearing off-Broadway, Sally’s a happy person who does not let little things get her down and almost never cries. But she has got an illness. It makes her feel like she is not the person she wants to be, but she does not want anyone to know about it.
Date: 5 June
Seabright Productions Ltd. presents
Black is the Color of My Voice
Running time: 70 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.30pm
Prices: £19 – £22 full price, £17 – £20 concessions
Written and performed by Apphia Campbell
Directed by Arran Hawkins and Nate Jacobs
Inspired by the life of Nina Simone, Apphia Campbell’s stunning solo performance Black Is The Color Of My Voice follows a successful jazz singer and civil rights activist seeking redemption after the untimely death of her father. She reflects on the journey that took her from a young piano prodigy destined for a life in the service of the church, to a renowned jazz vocalist at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement.
Date: 7 June
Poet in the City Presents
Virgil's Aeneid: Lessons on Fleeing, Hope and Resilience
Running times: 90 minutes, no interval
Time: 7.30pm
Prices: £13.50 – £16.50 full price, £11.50 – £14.50 concessions
The plight of refugees is not a new phenomenon, yet global crises persist. Join us for an evening of poetry and discussion considering the lessons of Virgil’s Aeneid in the context of contemporary refugee emergencies.
Virgil’s legendary Aeneid is an epic Latin poem written between 29 and 19 BC. It charts the story of Aeneas who fled from Troy, a city under siege in the East, and forged his way across the Mediterranean in search of safety. On arrival, Aeneas, and all those escaping the war are faced with a hostile rejection that breeds bitterness, resentment, and conflict towards the refugees. Over two centuries later, similar narratives can be found today. What lessons can Virgil’s Aeneid teach us about fleeing, hope and resilience?
Hear from contemporary poets, activists and community organisers who will share stories about refugee’s experiences throughout the ages, shine a light on current grassroots support initiatives, and consider lessons for the future.
Dates: 8 – 9 June
Tom Carradine’s London Songbook
Running time: 75 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.45pm
Prices: £12 – £15 full price, £9.50 – £12.50 concessions
Join Tom Carradine for the socially-distanced launch of his brand new album ‘Tom Carradine’s London Songbook’ and a celebration of his sixth year of sell-out shows at Wilton’s. Taking a break from his usual singalong format, Tom will entertain with songs and stories exploring the history and culture of London from the music hall to the modern day.
Please note that due to regulations at the time of scheduling, unfortunately we cannot encourage audience participation (including singing along), but we promise you will still have fun!
Dates: 10, 30 June
VERYFINE presents
OneTrackMinds
Running time: 90 minutes, no interval
Times:7.30pm
Prices: £12 – 15 full prices, £10 – £13 concessions
Step into a live storytelling event celebrating the power of music: think Desert Island Discs meets The Moth Radio and TED talks.
OneTrackMinds returns in 2021 with another vibrant selection of writers, thinkers, and musicians, each presenting a thought-provoking story about that one song that changed their life and is about to leave a lasting impact on yours.
Previous guests have included Peter Tatchell, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Cariad Lloyd, Tulip Siddiq and Mark Thomas.
Dates: 11 – 12 June
Jimmy Jewell presents
Dietrich: Natural Duty
Running times: 60 minutes, no interval
Times: 19.45
Prices: £18 – £23.50 full price, £16 – £21.50 concessions
Created and performed by Peter Groom
Co-written and directed by Oliver Gully
Originally commission by Curious Arts and Northern Stages
Produced by Jimmy Jewell
An intoxicating one (wo)man show revealing the life of a legend; Marlene Dietrich takes to the stage to fight the war her way; with an irresistible mix of songs, sex, and sympathy. This spectacular mixture of theatre, cabaret and drag returns to Wilton’s Music Hall. Fall in love again with this Hollywood icon and her extraordinary commitment to duty.
Dates: 15 – 26 June
Passion Pit Theatre in association with Theatre Tours International presents
Scaramouche Jones or the Seven White Masks
Running time: 90 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.30pm; 3pm Thursday and Saturday matinees
Prices: £22.50 – £25 full price, £20 – £22.50 concessions
Written & performed by JUSTIN BUTCHER
Directed by GUY MASTERSON
with original direction by RUPERT GOOLD
11pm Millennium Eve: centenarian clown, Scaramouche, breaks fifty years’ silence to give his final performance charting a bizarre odyssey through crumbling empires, comic misadventures, and the 20th century’s darkest episodes, revealing the loves, brutalities, ecstasies, and tragedies beneath his seven white masks. As Scaramouche unveils his life, he takes us on an epic, poetic, profoundly moving voyage. An enchanting performance of supreme physical and vocal virtuosity, combined with haunting and evocative designs create a world of indelible images, a gloriously story sumptuous told. Twenty years on from its acclaimed premiere, starring the late, great Pete Postlethwaite, Scaramouche Jones has been produced, performed, and translated all over the world, an unforgettable experience.
Date: 28 June
Poet in the City Presents
Forugh Farrokhzad
The Rebel Poet of Iran
Running times: 90 minutes, no interval
Time: 7.30pm
Prices: £13 – £16 full price, £11 – £14 concessions
An evening of poetry and discussion celebrating rebel poet Forugh Farrokhzad and her legacy on contemporary feminist movements.
What is it like to be the first woman to write about women’s experiences in your country? During the 1960s, a time when literature and the arts, and most of the daily life in Iran, was dominated by men, poet Forugh Farrokhzad did exactly that. Now considered an iconic figure, Farrokhzad radically defied convention through her unapologetic storytelling of the reality of being a woman and has since captured the imaginations of generations of Iranians.
Join us as we hear from contemporary poets, activists, community organisers and cultural commentators who have been influenced by a poet that has come to represent the spirit of revolt against patriarchal and cultural norms in 1960s Iran.
Date: 1 July
Tricity Vogue’s All Girl Swing Band
Running time: 60 minutes, no interval
Time: 6.45pm & 8.30pm
Prices: £16.50 – £22.50 full price, £14 – £20 concessions
Swinging entertainment from an all-female, all-star line-up, as cabaret diva Tricity Vogue returns to Wilton's with her joyous All Girl Swing Band. After a phenomenal sell-out show in 2019, Tricity's eight-piece ensemble is back in town for a night of swinging vintage mischief. Expect musical surprises and cheeky cabaret from a wicked line-up of the finest jazz musicians, with one very saucy showgirl at the helm.
Inspired by 1930s bandleader Ivy Benson, Tricity Vogue's All Girl Swing Band have been winning hearts and wowing audiences at grand venues all over the UK since 2011 with swing versions of retro pop classics, delicious vintage tunes, and Tricity's own racy original numbers.
Date: 8 July
Christine Bovill presents
Christine Bovill’s PIAF
Running time: 75 minutes, no interval
Times: 7.30pm
Prices: £20.50 – £25 full price, £18.50 – £23 concessions
No glamour. No gimmicks. No pretence. Nothing but a voice, singing of life’s triumphs and tragedies. Piaf is both a personal narrative and a powerful musical homage to one of France’s most endearing icons.
Christine threads her remarkable journey through the world of French Song with the life and works of Edith Piaf. An award-winning songwriter in her own right, Bovill has toured throughout Europe with her self-penned homage to the Little Sparrow, appearing on BBC News, ITV and on BBC Radio 4’s series Soul Music.
Date: 14 July
Julie Clare Productions presents
Je Regrette!
Running time: 70 minutes, no interval
Time: 7.45pm
Prices: £16.50 – £20 full price, £14.50 – £18 concessions
Producer: Julie Clare
Written and performed by
Sarah-Louise Young and Michael Roulston
Funny, tragic, and compelling, Je Regrette! is the story of La Poule Plombée, a French singer tortured by jealousy, and unrequited love.
Propped up by her hen-pecked pianist Mumu, she weaves her darkly comic tale with beautiful original music and stunning vocals.
Written and performed by the creators of Roulston & Young, Julie Madly Deeply and Cabaret Whore, this show was a smash hit at the Edinburgh Fringe, winning The Stage Award and an Argus Angel Award.
Dates: 28 – 29 July
Cabaret vs Cancer presents
Ashes to Ashes
Running time: 120 minutes
Times: 7.30pm
Following their sold out show of 2019, the very best of the UK’s cabaret community come together for a new show in song, dance, comedy, burlesque, and performance to celebrate the mercurial genius of that leper messiah, The Thin White Duke, Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, the genre-spanning space oddity, that chameleon, comedian, Corinthian and caricature, David Bowie.
Bowie fans of every stripe, era and age are hereby invited to join us to pay homage to ‘The Greatest Entertainer Of The 20th Century’.
All proceeds from the event will support Cabaret vs Cancer, a London based charity who support those living with cancer, as well as child bereavement teams across London. Cabaret vs Cancer is a registered charity in England & Wales No 1167819.
Dates: 2 – 4 August
Seabright Production Ltd presents
First Piano on the Moon
Running time: 60 minutes, no interval
Times: 7pm, 2pm Tuesday and Wednesday matinees
Prices: £8 – 18 full prices, £5 - £15 concessions
Written and Performed by Will Pickvance
Adapting Mozart for outer space requires a specially equipped pianist. William is the best piano player in the school, and only a dreamer gets to play the first piano on the moon. But what happens when the real world brings things back down to earth?
In this engaging, playful, and virtuosic performance, acclaimed pianist Will Pickvance tells the story of one boy’s flight of fantasy all the way to the moon and back.
Chosen to represent the school at Mozart’s birthday celebrations in Salzburg, William’s ambition to perform for a big audience has suddenly come to life. He should be excited… but doubt creeps in, and he questions his ability to play at all.
The audience is waiting. The celebration concert approaches. But William may as well have been asked to play the piano on the moon. This one-man-and-his-piano show features an unlikely birthday invitation, hot pursuits through the beautiful city of Salzburg, a magic cake, and Mozart himself!
From the acclaimed creator of Anatomy of the Piano, this is a summer treat for all the family not to be missed.
Dates: 10 – 11 August
The Lucky Dog Picturehouse presents
Nosferatu with live score
Running time: 125 minutes
Times: 7.30pm
Prices: £11.50 – £13 full price, £10 – £11.50 concessions
The 20s are back and so is Silent Film! Join musicians from The Lucky Dog Picturehouse as they recreate a night at the cinema 100 years ago with their original era-specific scores.
Nosferatu (1922) plus shorts
Piano score by Sam Watts
'It haunts us' (Roger Ebert). German director F.W Murnau's 1922 symphony of horrors was the first (unofficial) screen adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula and almost 100 years on it can still chill the blood.
Dates: 31 August – 04 September
Opera della Luna presents
Curtain Raisers: Cox and Box by Arthur Sullivan and F C Burnand and Les Deux Aveugles by Offenbach
Running time: 90 minutes, no interval (two operettas are performed in one sitting)
Times: 7.30pm, 2.30pm Thursday and Saturday matinees (Tuesday 5pm and 7.45pm)
Prices: £22 – £30 full price, no concessions (£19.50 – £27.50 under 30s and job seekers)
Opera della Luna return to Wilton’s with a brand new production Curtain Raisers: a double bill of two short operettas by Arthur Sullivan and Offenbach.
Cox and Box was Sullivan’s first stage success and predates his collaboration with Gilbert. It tells the farcical tale of an unscrupulous landlord who rents out the same room to two tenants – Cox, who works by day, and Box who works by night. The ruse works until one day, Cox is given the day off and they meet much to the horror of the landlord, Sergeant Bouncer. This short operetta was a huge hit, and its title has now passed into common parlance.
Les Deux Aveugles, the story of two separate con-men who are both pretending to be blind beggars and arrive one day at the same patch on a Parisian bridge, was similarly Offenbach’s first major success. Although it only lasts 25 minutes, it made the composer enough money to build his first theatre, the Bouffes Parisiens.
