- November 2023
In a newly urbanised, mechanised world - the ‘roaring twenties’ of Golden Age US - a young woman bears out the life prescribed for her. She works a job, until she marries her employer. She settles down, until she bears a child. She maintains a hollow marriage, until she meets another man. She conforms - until, like a loose cog in a machine, she shoots quickly down a wayward path.
Premiering in 1928, Sophie Treadwell’s play took inspiration from the life and death of Ruth Snyder. It reflected the Expressionist style popular in cinema and theatre at the time while anticipating the subtle, naturalistic dialogue of Beckett and Pinter. With its rote repetition, bleak characters and delicate construction of a hopeless, colourless world, Machinal is a harrowing gem of early feminist theatre - and a dark caution about the lengths one may go to in order to bring life into an empty existence.
- November 2023
Dripping with sarcasm, emotional tension, and uncertainty, Tusk Tusk powerfully explores the familial fractures within a seemingly innocuous London flat, where three children, eagerly awaiting a phone call, are playing hide and seek- in more ways than one.
Stenham’s second play, premiering at the Royal Court in 2009 and never before performed in Cambridge, powerfully explores the complexities, dysfunctionality and emotional entanglements of one family missing their mother. Boredom and playful sibling banter quickly transform into frightening emotional outbursts, violence, and a lingering sense that the lives of these children, “ricocheting between prematurely adult self-awareness and childlike neediness” (𝘝𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘵𝘺), are irreparably disturbed. A twisted domestic drama with a shocking twist, Stenham’s play is one of loyalty, uncertainty, and familial fracturing.
- February 2023
Newly married, Hedda and Tesman start to settle into their new house, new relationship, new life. But Hedda soon finds herself bored, and trapped, while her husband is haunted by the figures of his past.
Hedda Gabler is Henrik Ibsen’s attempt to present the complexity of human nature, as Hedda struggles with ideas of ambition, love, lust, and sexuality, reimagined in a modern dystopian world.
- February 2023
The Queen is dead. Long live the King.
After a lifetime in waiting, King Charles III ascends to the throne. Endowed with a future of power and a drive for democracy, how will he rule? How will he be remembered? And how will the country react?
A Shakespearean history play for the modern age, ‘King Charles III’ examines our media, our politics, and - of course - our monarchy.
- November 2022
On a beautiful St. George's day, Johnny 'Rooster' Byron is a wanted man. To some, he is a rustic pied piper, a demagogue of the woods, a powerful legend among men; but to most of the townsfolk, he is a drunkard who disturbs the peace and needs to be evicted from the land. However, Rooster has more to worry about: his son wants to be taken to the fair, a father wants to give him a serious kicking, and a motley crew of mates want his ample supply of drugs and alcohol.
After its success in the West End, The Financial Times called it "a wonderful, rollicking, dark comedy about contemporary life in rural England."
- November 2022
Every man has a star… the star of one’s honesty.
A tree has blown down in the night. It’s Larry Keller's tree; the tree that his mother planted in his memory after he disappeared three years ago. It’s 1946: the War is over, but its memory – the inter-personal ruptures it has caused – continues to intrude on the Keller family’s life. Kate Keller, Larry’s mother, refuses to accept that he might be dead; Chris, his brother, scarred by the war and now in a relationship with Larry’s ex-girlfriend, Ann Deever, encourages his family to move on. But when it transpires that Joe Keller, the play’s patriarch, was complicit in the manufacturing of faulty aeroplane parts — parts which could have been a cause of Larry’s death — the foundations of the Keller family are shaken to their core. Unresolvable questions about guilt and responsibility, youth and ageing, materialism and selflessness all vibrate in Arthur Miller’s brilliantly crafted meditation on the shadowy underbelly of the American Dream.
- February 2022
What does it mean to trust yourself and those around you?
Arel is a powerful sorcerer gifted with the magic of the forest. When sent away from her home for her own safety, she is met by a party of outcasts - a wizard, a rogue, a bard and a healer - seeking to take down a tyrannous force in the community. As each member of the party grapples with their own identity and place in the world, Arel learns that the life she always longed for may have never even existed.
Splinters is a fantasy musical inspired by the stories and lives we pretend to live that make us feel like we belong. It is my love letter to the roleplaying fantasy game dungeons & dragons and all the magic that goes along with it.
ID: The show poster. The title 'Splinters' is written in green capital letters at the top. The 'T' is a branch of a tree. Below the title is a line drawing of trees shaded in different greens. Dotted around are mushrooms, a d4, a d12 and a gem, and on some of the trees there are images of alchemical symbols. Below the image is the text 'A Fantasy Musical by Katrina Rose', the Brickhouse logo and the dates and times of the show. Poster designed by Ayesha Murphy Jallali
- February 2022
“It is easy, describe what haunts you. Frankenstein, you have thought of a story. Mary Shelley, you have seized the spark of life. Now write this.”
1816, Switzerland. Mary Shelley, Percy Shelley, Lord Byron, and Claire Clairmont vacation together. A challenge is made: who can write the most horrific story? As past and present intertwine, friendships fade and die, and a mysterious voice haunts the room, Mary Shelley reflects on the circumstances that led to her greatest work - Frankenstein.
- November 2021
"Cause people can surprise you... or not"
Brickhouse Theatre Company presents Dogfight, a story of war, love, and personal growth, as a marine learns the power of compassion when he plays a cruel joke on an idealistic waitress.
Set in the swinging 60s, in San Francisco, and featuring a score by Tony Award winners Pasek & Paul (Dear Evan Hansen, The Greatest Showman), the genuine heart of this show is sure to have you wanting more.
This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Music Theatre International
All authorised performance materials are also supplied by MTI www.mtishows.co.uk
- November 2021
- February 2020
"Those Left Behind" follows the McBride family as they cope with life after the death of Mark - the father of the family.
Mother Karen and daughter Heather discover that life doesn't stop for mourning and that everyday battles become infinitely harder in the face of loss. Meanwhile, son Joe finds a whole new side to his dad in the form of old and unfinished sheet music.
This musical has been based off a series of true anecdotes, and attempts to show the importance of support systems and family in the face of loss.
- February 2020
Philadelphia, Here I Come! centres around Gareth (Gar) O'Donnell's move to America, specifically Philadelphia. The play takes place on the night before and morning of Gar's departure to America. Gar is portrayed by two characters, Gar Public ("the Gar that people see, talk to, talk about") and Gar Private ("the unseen man, the man within, the conscience"). Gareth lives with his father, S. B. O'Donnell ("a responsible, respectable citizen") with whom he has never connected. Gar works for his father in his shop and their relationship is no different from that of Boss and Employee. Private makes fun of S.B. calling him "Screwballs" and parodying his nightly routine as a fashion show.
- November 2019
Newly set in 2019, Funny Girl follows the story of Fanny Brice, talented and irrepressible but incapable of succeeding as a woman in traditional showbiz because she doesn't fit the mould of the all-American beauty queen. The show charts her meteoric rise through comedy instead and her turbulent marriage to Nicky, who struggles to cope with his wife's successes. Featuring such hit songs as "People", "The Music that Makes Me Dance" and of course "Don't Rain on my Parade", Funny Girl is not to be missed!
- November 2019
Bunthorne is a poet, hipster and Instagram influencer whose name looms large on campus. Everybody worships both his poetry and his person – everybody except Patience, the one person Bunthorne loves apart from himself. Patience runs the campus cafe and cares nothing for poetry, to Bunthorne’s dismay. But when the beautiful Grosvenor appears on the scene, things are about to be turned on their heads: will Bunthorne’s fame endure a rival? Our updated ‘Patience’ brings Gilbert’s parody of aestheticism (think Oscar Wilde) triumphantly into the 21st century: there’s an array of hipsters and footballers, queer and trans characters, and octave-blind casting, which means all performers will have the chance to sing some of Sullivan’s catchiest tunes.
- November 2019
"It is madness in all women to let a secret love kindle within them, which, if unreturned and unknown, must devour the life that feeds it."
A bold and theatrically inventive adaptation of the literary classic that succeeds as both a wise distillation of the novel and a thrilling piece of theatre in its own right.
As a child, the orphaned Jane Eyre is taught by a succession of severe guardians to stifle her natural exuberance. A part of herself is locked away, out of view of polite society... Until she arrives at Mr Rochester's house as a governess to his young ward. Soon, Rochester's passionate nature reawakens Jane's hidden self, but darker secrets are lurking in the attic...
- February–March 2019
Violet is a young woman on a journey. Her facial disfigurement, caused by an accident involving her father's axe, and his subsequent effort to protect Violet from the outside world's cruelty, has caused her to shut herself away from everyone. But on September 4th, 1964, inspired by the promises of an evangelical preacher through a television screen, Violet gets on a Greyhound bus, and she is on her way. During her travels she meets new faces and stories, all the while experiencing flashbacks of her late father.
Violet, based on the short story 'The Ugliest Pilgrim', is a story of transitions, difference and acceptance. As Violet is brought into the light she must stand on her own, facing her peers, and her own image head-on. Jeanine Tesori's heartfelt score and Brian Crawley's script combine to create a coming-of-age story that is so much more than just skin deep.
- February 2019
“Since the disaster we’ve all kind of… forgotten about ourselves. You know, the way we look? And some of us thought it would be a nice idea to have someone like you to come along and give us a talk on beauty tips - a demonstration - that’s all. But the thing is - given what’s happened - some people might think it’s wrong for us to worry about the way we look. They might think it’s stupid.”
Set eight months after the Aberfan Disaster, 'The Revlon Girl' tells the true story of a group of bereaved mothers who met every week above a local hotel to talk, cry and laugh without feeling guilty. At one of their meetings, the women looked at each other and admitted how much they felt they’d let themselves go. So afraid that people would think them frivolous, they secretly arranged for a representative from Revlon to come and give them a talk on beauty tips.
★★★★★ (Varsity)
https://www.varsity.co.uk/theatre/17163
- November 2018
Sondheim's blackly comic masterpiece about obsession and revenge is coming to Brickhouse! Combining wickedly sharp lyrics with some of the most sophisticated and beautiful music in the whole of musical theatre gives a show not to be missed.
The play follows the barber Sweeney Todd as he returns to London after 15 years of wrongful incarceration to seek vengeance on the sadistic Judge Turpin who framed him. His quest to avenge his wife, who was stolen and violated by the Judge, and recover his daughter, whom the Judge took as a ward, soon spirals into a murderous campaign against all of humanity. Meanwhile, his eminently practical neighbour Mrs Lovett finds a mysterious new source of meat for her pie shop. "What happens next? Well, that's the play..."
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim
Book by Hugh Wheeler
From an Adaptation by Christopher Bond
Originally Directed on Broadway by Harold Prince
Orchestrations by Jonathan Tunick
Originally produced on Broadway by Richard Barr, Charles Woodward, Robert Fryer, Mary Lea Johnson, Martin Richardsin association with Dean and Judy Manos
This amateur production is presented by arrangement with Music Theatre International (Europe)
All authorised performance materials are also supplied by MTI Europe www.mtishows.co.uk
- November 2018
In the Tower of London, in the reign of Henry VIII, Colonel Fairfax has been sentenced to death for sorcery and awaits execution. Determined to outwit his cousin and accuser, he must marry before his death so that his inheritance will pass to anyone else. But as he and his friend Sergeant Meryll plot, their lives become irrevocably entwined with those of Jack Point and Elsie Maynard, two strolling players.
Arguably the duo's darkest and most poignant work, 'The Yeomen of the Guard' is regarded as having one of the best, if not the very best, of the Savoy opera scores.
- November 2018
'They're very warm people, really. Very warm. They're my family. They're not ogres.'
When Ted, a professor in philosophy at an American university, brings his wife Ruth to visit the North London home he grew up in, he finds his family still living in the house - Max, his father, Sam, an uncle, and Lenny and Joe, his brothers. From this point of reunion develops a series of disturbing encounters, with Ruth as the beating pulse of the action, in spite of the oppressive all-male environment.
Harold Pinter's classic dark comedy explores issues of masculinity, family, power, and the unknowability of the past, all within the confines of one large room in an old family home. Brought to life in the Robinson Auditorium courtesy of Brickhouse Theatre Company, this production promises brave staging, creative interpretation and, above all, thrilling drama.
- February 2018
Synopsis
Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik’s Spring Awakening, charts the coming of age of 11 late 19th century German teenagers, through the medium of folk-infused rock. It deals with a myriad of issues – sex, mental health, death, suicide, sexual and physical abuse and the struggles of being subjected to the parentocracy. This poignant musical, based on the 1891 play by Frank Wedekin, is dark, funny and heart-breaking and explores the blurred lines of adolescence and adulthood, of pain and pleasure, and the stark contrast of conservativeness and progressiveness in the context of 19th century Germany. It is a musical that manages to speak to people of all ages – especially young people - due to the universality and the pertinence of its themes, the complexity of its characters and the haunting beauty of its score.
- February 2018
“But I'm mad, Inspector: certified mad! I'm a sort of amateur performance artist – my fellow performers need to be people who don't realise that they're in my plays.”
The city is in uproar following news of the mysterious death of an anarchist who fell from a window during a police interview – though the word on the street is that he was pushed…
The police force is in panic, the population on the verge of a riot – and who is the mysterious maniac recently arrived at the station? Part buffoon, part angel of justice, he embroils the police in a series of games, ranging from the ridiculously farcical to the deadly serious.
Come and see the fifth annual Italian-language play by the Cambridge Italian Society, a bold production that integrates the Italian and English languages to bring to life Dario Fo’s most daring, explosive and darkly comic masterpiece.
- February 2018
'Prevent couldn’t, pardon the pun, do enough to prevent tragedy. Respect will. And after all, what teacher hasn’t wished that children wouldn’t learn more respect?'
Books are being banned. Students are being sent to specialist behavioral units for reading. Teachers are being forced to stay silent. The world is changing and freedom is the price of safety. When Jessica reads a banned book, her whole life is changed and she realizes the system she is in is designed to oppress her, not protect her.
- November 2017
Starry-eyed young lovers Alexis and Aline wish everyone in their village could be as happily besotted as they are. In a moment of inspiration, they decide to hire John Wellington Wells, a distinguished representative of a highly respectable London firm of sorcerers, to brew a love-potion for their fellow citizens. It remains only to slip the potion into the tea at the wedding feast—but though the villagers fall in love, they do so with the first person the see, no matter who it is! Will magical love win through? Or are the villagers doomed to a life of joyless love?
The Sorcerer is a funny, touching, exciting and altogether wonderful comic operetta, and the Gilbert and Sullivan society is proud to present it as the Freshers' show of 2017!
- November 2017
'This is my rage. This is my love. This is my town. This is my city. This is my life'.
The Tony Award-winning hit rock musical 'American Idiot', which includes every song from Green Day's 'American Idiot' album as well as several songs from the following release '21st Century Breakdown', is coming to Brickhouse!
American Idiot follows three friends - Johnny, Will, and Tunny - as they try to navigate a post 9-11 world. Johnny and Tunny escape to the city, whilst Will stays at home to sort out his relationship with his pregnant girlfriend, Heather. When Johnny is experiencing the freedom of the city, he becomes entangled in a passionate affair with an unpredictable young woman; however, he begins an even more passionate affair with drugs, discovering a part of himself that he begins to hate. Meanwhile, Tunny quickly gives up on life in the city and enlists in the army to be sent to war. This is a hard-hitting show about identity and individualism, and above all, finding something to believe in.
- November 2017
A newly qualified journalist gets his first big break writing for the Maily Dail just as the biggest upset in British politics is about to occur. How will he cope with his fearsome editor and the many twists and turns of the referendum campaign? Follow the story of Cavid Dameron’s ill-fated decision to hold a referendum in the first instance, alongside Joris Bohnson’s grasp for power in supporting the leave campaign. Does anyone come out as a winner?
This musical comedy weaves patriotic anthems and political satire to shape the touching interactions of our torn protagonist as he tries to comprehend the mayhem of the campaign. Will he compromise his beliefs in order to further his career?
- November 2017
“Everyone understands uncertainty. Or thinks he does. No-one understands my trip to Copenhagen.”
September 1941. Nazi occupied Denmark. Two friends meet. One is a German nuclear physicist, Werner Heisenberg; the other, Niels Bohr, a Danish Jew, was once his colleague and mentor. Their meeting is documented, but what was said is lost to history. In a Europe engulfed by war and vying for nuclear armament, questions of personal and national responsibility, politics and physics, ethics and duty strain against each other. In the midst of these inexorable tensions, the motivation of individuals becomes as inscrutable as the quantum particles they study. Years later, in death, Heisenberg meets again with Bohr and his wife, Margrethe, in an attempt to resolve the uncertainty.
- October 2017
Four old school friends – Ella, Cathie, Robyn and Sal – reunite at a bar to reminisce about the good old days. However, Philippa, the fifth member of the group, is noticeably absent; upon discovering her old diary, she decides to do some reminiscing of her own. Over the course of the evening, we rediscover the group’s school days and watch as their friendships become increasingly fractured, as arguments over schoolwork, the pressure to fit in and their complicated love lives tear apart even the closest of friendships. As these arguments work their way into the present day, we are left to wonder – do people ever really change?
'Don't Ever Change' is an original musical written by Elspeth Collard and Rebecca Rebis coming to Brickhouse following its successful Edinburgh run. Reviewed as having 'some really impressive voices and musical talents', with a 'ridiculously catchy (and often deeply moving) musical score', this is not a show to be missed!
- March 2017
Join the graduating class of William Ocean High School as they live through their final senior year - as they experience the fun, the heartbreak, the loves and the loneliness of growing up… all set to the biggest hits of the 80’s!
Set in the USA, Back To The 80’s tells the story of 17-year-old Corey, who is madly in love with Tiffany Houston, one of the coolest girls in the school. However, she is too busy mooning over Michael Feldman, the hottest guy around. Michael and his friends are athletic and good-looking - the kind of guys that Corey and his two best friends dream of being. However, while they may not be the coolest guys in school, they are still one up on Feargal McFerrin, who believes the crazy notion that one day CD’s will replace cassette tapes!
The plot follows Class President Elections, the arrival of several new students, and the teachers’ own problematic relationship. Throw in a Star Wars dream sequence, high-energy dance routines, the obligatory 80’s party scene, as well as some of the most popular songs ever written, and the result is a musical that will delights and amuses!
- February 2017
Following rave reviews of its premiere in 2009, at the Royal Court Theatre, Jerusalem’s run was extended and transferred to the Apollo. Jerusalem follows Johnny "Rooster" Byron on St. George’s Day, who besides being a local waster and modern day Pied Piper, is also a wanted man. Council officials want to evict him, his son wants to be taken to the fair, and his rag-tag group of mates wants his ample supply of drugs and alcohol. It’s a play about contemporary life in rural England, described by The Guardian as “unarguably one of the best dramas of the twenty-first century”.
- February 2017
"Heads, heads, heads."
Have you ever wondered if you're not, in fact, the leading role in your own life but, actually, a walk-on part in someone else's tragedy?
It's been a while since Rosencrantz and Guildenstern last saw Hamlet, their old friend from university, and things in Denmark have gotten a little rotten since then. These two minor characters, who watch from the wings as Shakespeare's play unfolds, are thrown centre-stage to make sense of it all in Tom Stoppard's chilling tragicomedy.
- February 2017
Songs for a New World is, according to composer Jason Robert Brown, “about one moment. It’s about hitting the wall and having to make a choice, or take a stand, or turn around and go back.”
With a rousing score that blends elements of pop, gospel and jazz, featuring tight harmonies and darling vocals, Songs for a New World transports its audience from the deck of a spanish sailing ship bound for a new land, to the ledge of a New York penthouse. Characters range from a young man in the Bronx who dreams of becoming a famous basketball player, to a forlorn and neglected Mrs. Claus lamenting as Christmas approaches.
A small but powerful diverse cast and a supercharged, well crafted score appeal to old and new generations alike as each character- in their own way- takes hold of that one moment and enters a new world.
- November 2016
This year's Robinson pantomime! It's Cinderella. M.
- November 2016
Joseph is coming to Cambridge! Brought to you by Robinson's Brickhouse Theatre Company, Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber's hit musical tells the well-known tale of Joseph and his coat of many colours from the Bible’s Book of Genesis. With a humorous blend of musical styles and a range of colourful and lovable characters, 'Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat' follows the story of a farmer's son whose astonishing dreams of power soon become an unimaginable reality. Featuring a talented youth choir from Stagecoach Cambridge and a fantastic cast, this is not a show to be missed!
- November 2016
Set in sunny Venice, The Gondoliers tells the story of the Palmieri brothers who hold mastery over the city's canals and the hearts of the local girls. But the arrival of the Spanish aristocracy along with the Grand Inquisitor presents a royal revelation and a serious identity crisis to the Gondolieri and their brides. With romance, political satire, roses white and roses red, The Gondoliers will be a show to remember. Of that there is no manner of doubt, no possible doubt whatever!
The CUG&S freshers' show is a fantastic opportunity for newcomers to the society to get involved and perhaps try something they haven't had the chance to before. Everyone who auditions is guaranteed a role in the chorus with priority for principal roles given to those who have not played a principal role before.
- November 2016
Joseph is an insecure and bitter man living through the rise of social media. He is a conformist in every sense, but his friend Clarissa elevates his life from the mundane. As The Connection begins to monopolise all aspects of life, a tragic spiral of events leads Joseph to re-examine his relationship with himself and those around him as he is forced to confront The Connection and the way it has indelibly changed the way we all experience the world. This dystopic production seeks to explore the use of technology in theatre, and how we present its growing influence in our lives on the stage.
