<img src='' title='Event Category: Drama' alt='' id='templ_icon_' width='' height='' /> Event Category: Drama

A funny, touching and at times savage portrait of a family full of longing that’s losing its grip – The Last of the Haussmans examines the fate of the revolutionary generation.

Anarchic, feisty but growing old, high-society drop-out Judy Haussman remains in spirit with the ashrams of the 1960s, while holding court in her dilapidated art deco house on the Devon coast.

After an operation, she’s joined by her wayward offspring, her sharp-eyed granddaughter, a local doctor and a troubled teenager who makes use of the family’s crumbling swimming pool. Over a few sweltering months they alternately cling to and flee a chaotic world of all-day drinking, infatuations, long-held resentments, free love and failure.

Stephen Beresford’s play The Last of the Haussmans was first staged at the National Theatre, London, in 2012, in a production starring Julie Walters and Rory Kinnear.

Now, don’t miss this much-anticipated Stafford Players production.

Please note, this production has themes of an adult nature and strong language. Age 16+

TWO-FOR-ONE ON ALL TICKETS. (Discount automatically applied at checkout.)

Join us for this live performance paying hilarious homage to one of the greatest movies of all time.

Here’s the set up, folks . . .

A festive edition of fictional TV show Movies and Memories honouring the 1946 Christmas favourite, ‘It’s A Wonderful Life’, exploring how the movie journeyed from Hollywood failure to feel-good, festive classic in this new theatrical adaptation.

Based on the original screenplay by Frank Capra and source material “The Greatest Gift” by Philip Van Doren.

Starring YOU as the live studio audience, the cast will take you behind the scenes of this festive classic in a performance that will leave you smiling from ear to ear.

Expect a tickling of the funny bones and a tugging of the heartstrings in this new Christmas production.

Opening night reviews in Stafford: 

‘Loved every minute – very clever and very funny!’ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
‘The cast were superb, they had us in stitches throughout.’ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
‘An imaginative retelling of a story that always melts your heart.’ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Three classic ghost stories – live on stage!

Vengeful spirits, murderous revenants and gruesome promises kept from beyond the grave – every horror imaginable is conjured in this uniquely terrifying experience. Nightmares is a gothic show that will leave you quaking in your seat… and dying for more!

The show features three of the most spine-tingling tales ever written – ‘The Judge’s House’ by Bram Stoker, ‘The Kit-Bag’ by Algernon Blackwood and ‘John Charrington’s Wedding’ by E Nesbit.

These pleasing terrors are brought to you by The Book of Darkness & Light, who have toured the length and breadth of the country with their unique brand of ghost story theatre for the past nine years.

14+ age guidance

The case of the Enfield Poltergeist in 1977 has long captured the public’s imagination. This dramatisation of those events focuses on the very human stories behind the lurid press headlines.
After the tragic death of his daughter, Maurice Grosse joins the Society for Psychical Research in London. But while investigating the Enfield Poltergeist in 1977, he is haunted by coincidences surrounding paranormal activity that appears to be centred around one particular girl.

Based on the true events of the infamous Enfield Poltergeist case, this is a journey of redemption, and the chance to lay old ghosts to rest.

Kiera Rhodes and Paul Voodini portray troubled characters, thrown together within the walls of a supposedly haunted council house in Enfield, who must not only solve the mystery of the poltergeist, but also find peace with their own tragic pasts.

Age guidance: This performance is recommended for ages 15+

Content warning: This performance contains strong language; themes surrounding death and the loss of a child; one instance of strobe lighting and several loud noises.

Duration: This performance is 50 minutes long with no interval.

“Could you get away with murder?”

Following the success of Crime Viral’s sell out UK serial killer tour – research psychologist and psychopathy expert Cheish Merryweather will be bringing to the stage for the very first time – MURDER: STAGED.

Did you know that 90% of people believe they can get away with murder – are you one of them? There will be a live psychopath test on the night to find out.

The ‘CSI effect’ has created a new type of killer – one that is forensically aware and is out to mislead an investigation.

This evening will explore the lies embedded in crime scenes and share the expertise from those who dig deep for the truth. You will investigate the five types of stagers: The Planner, The Creator, The Cleaner, The Concealer, The Inflictor.

Featuring forensics, reconstructed real-life crime scene walk-throughs and a deep dive into cases that have not been seen on stage live before. This is an unmissable evening for any true crime fan.

‘Singin’ I’m No A Billy, He’s A Tim’ is a phenomenon in Scotland where it has sold out countless nationwide tours, a sensation at the Edinburgh Festival and now touring internationally.

Written by Des Dillon an Directed by Stephen Cafferty. With Scott Kyle (Outlander, Angels Share, Kajaki and Winner of Stage Award for Acting Excellence), Colin Little (River City, Fried, Gasping, The Secret Agent) and James Miller.

Israeli vs Palestinian, Catholic vs Protestant, Celtic vs Rangers…When tribal factions clash can reason ever prevail?

What happens when on the day of the Old Firm Match, you lock up a Celtic and Rangers fan in a cell together?

Fireworks! And a weird kind of unity.

AGE 16+ : Show contains strong language.

Philip Markham, a publisher of children’s books, is asked by his business partner, Henry Lodge, if he can borrow the flat for the evening to gallivant with his latest girlfriend. As Philip and his wife will be out, he reluctantly agrees.

At the same time, Joanna Markham is being persuaded by Linda Lodge to let her borrow the empty flat in order to entertain her lover. With some misgivings, Joanna agrees. What nobody knows is that the interior designer who has been decorating the flat for the past three months has decided that this is the night that he and the au pair girl will try out the new oval bed.

When the Markhams’ evening out is cancelled, it is too late to let any of the parties know and three sets of hopeful lovers all converge on the bedroom at the same time. The situation is further complicated by the arrival of Olive Harriet Smythe, a straightlaced authoress of children’s books.

The frantic efforts of the Markhams to hide the amorous goings-on and, at the same time sign up Miss Smythe, lead to a hectic and hilarious evening.

From the award-winning creators of Austen’s Women, A Christmas Carol, I, Elizabeth, Female Gothic, Christmas Gothic, and A Room of One’s Own.

Austen’s Women are back – in a brand-new solo comedy show! Devil-may-care Lady Susan, the coquettish black widow, hunting down not one, but two, fortunes; oppressed, rebellious daughter Frederica; long-suffering sister-in-law Catherine; family matriarch Mrs De Courcy; and insouciant best friend, Alicia.

Return to the Regency (or rather, Georgian) in this wickedly funny tale of society and the women trapped within it; their struggles, their desires, their temptations and manipulations – and at the vanguard, Lady Susan: charming, scheming, witty, and powerful; taking on society and making it her own. But has she met her match?

Based on Jane Austen’s first full-length work from 1794, the piece is performed by Rebecca Vaughan and directed by Andrew Margerison. This is Austen as you’ve never seen her before!

Created in collaboration with The Old Town Hall, Hemel Hempstead.

Elemental Theatre Company Presents ‘WaitingRoom’, written and performed by Thomas Levi, Rebecca Morris and Chris Stevenson.
Following from the success of their previous sell out production ‘Normal’, Elemental Theatre Company is thrilled to announce their latest show “Waiting Room.” Set in the Accident and Emergency department of an NHS hospital this brand new comedy promises to deliver a dose of laughter. Audiences will be transported to the medical mayhem of a waiting room by a trio of actors performing multiple rolls and peer into the lives of the eccentric staff and the peculiar patients.

This two-act comedy is the show you’ve been waiting for, the injection of light entertainment which is needed in the current struggles of the NHS, whilst also dealing with some of the social and political issues that are hard to avoid in this industry. The show’s exceptional blend of humour and heart ensure that ‘Waiting Room’ appeals to a diverse range of theatre-goers. Sections of the show were developed verbatim through interviews and discussions with
junior doctors and paramedic staff, which helps to see deeper into the day-to-day lives of our beloved key workers; and the often difficult patients they encounter. If laughter is the best medicine then Waiting Room is the perfect prescription, and can be seen on tour throughout the UK in Spring 2024, starting at the Gatehouse on the 6th of March.

The play runs for approximately 2 hours with an interval and contains some adult content. More information can be found at www.elementaltheatre.co.uk

The story:

A Saturday night shift in a hospital A&E department takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious woman enters the waiting room and disrupts the routine. Dr Green is suspicious of the new nurse on the ward, David, as a complaint finds its way into his pigeon hole. The receptionist, Rachel, looks on as the chaos ensues unaware that the nights events would ultimately unsettle her just as much.

As the medical trio try to fight their way through the night, they are constantly interrupted by a sea of whimsical and extraordinary patients visiting accident and emergency with the most petty ailments. By the time the shift is over they have dealt with inky infections, unpredicted pregnancy and hostile hen parties.

NOW TWO-FOR-ONE WITH CODE: KAFKA241

‘As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a monstrous insect.’

The Metamorphosis is a new adaptation of Franz Kafka’s classic story of a man whose society causes him to feel so isolated and worthless that he physically transforms into a giant insect. Kafka’s Prague in 1915 was full of confusing bureaucracy, indecipherable rules and regulations and a host of reasons why Gregor should grow to consider himself utterly worthless.

The busy, successful and popular inhabitants of this world serve only to show Gregor just how far removed he is from their status.

Franz Kafka’s story of a misfit trying to adapt to his busy world is as relevant now as it ever was.

This new adaptation explores the many aspects of modern life which conspire to isolate us from each other, and what it is about being human which brings us closer together.

Download the Metamorphosis Education Resource pack here