Category Opera House Manchester

Elena Dee carries Ellen Kent’s pressure-filled production of Madama Butterfly with a charged performance that shoulders every scene of Puccini’s iconic 1904 opera.

Disowned by her family for rejecting her community and religion, Cio-Cio-San also known as Butterfly, envisions a better life as a devoted wife to an American naval officer through an arranged marriage.

The Opera House audience is transported into the 15-year-old Butterfly’s world as the geisha is swallowed by an elaborate set d...

Michael Praed as Julian Marsh in 42ND STREET. Photo Credit: Johan Persson

Driven by its talented cast, showstopping tap sequences and fresh direction, 42ND STREET solidifies its place as a beloved classic in the world of musical theatre.

Few shows can boast the spectacle of 42ND STREET, and the latest touring production at Manchester’s Opera House is no exception...

The cast of ANNIE UK Tour 2023. Photo Credit: Paul Coltas

Aided by its colourful set, inspired choreography and incredible cast performance, ANNIE stands the test of time.

Slowly approaching its 50th year onstage after opening in New York in 1977, the beloved ANNIE returns to Manchester’s Opera House every bit as bright and joyful as ever.

Written by Thomas Meehan and featuring classic songs TOMORROW and IT’S THE HARD KNOCK LIFE, it centres on the titular character of Annie, an orphan who seeks...

With its beloved characters and exceptional cast performances, SHREK THE MUSICAL exudes the same rewatchable charm as the films.

You don’t need a magic mirror to predict the delight that SHREK THE MUSICAL’s live adaptation will bring to younger audiences, but its humdrum soundtrack may dim its shine for the big kids amongst them.

Pushing back on the familiar fairy-tale tropes and romanticised themes around true love, SHREK THE MUSICAL brings the 2001 animation to life with an honest take o...

The cast of ROCK OF AGES. Photo Credit: The Other Richard

Despite its catchy score and talented ensemble, ROCK OF AGES tries too hard to be funny, sexual, and different in its 2023 farewell tour.

After making its debut on the West End in 2011 and being adapted to film in 2012, ROCK OF AGES takes its final bow in its 2023 farewell tour.

The Sunset Strip is home to dreamers, rockers, and the infamous Bourbon Room, where Drew (Sam Turrell) fantasises of becoming a rock and roll legend...

The cast of THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW UK Tour. Photo Credit: David Freeman

Celebrating 50 years of absurdity, acceptance, authenticity, and amusement, THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW is as much of a crowd-pleaser now as ever.

Celebrating its fiftieth year onstage, THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW has rocked and rolled back into Manchester’s Opera House as part of its 2022-2023 world tour. Ever the fan-favourite, Richard O’Brien’s timeless, time-warping, mind-bending musical is as much of a crowd-pleaser now as ever...

The cast of THE PANTOMIME ADVENTURES OF PETER PAN. Photo Credit: Phil Tragen

With its audience participation, catchy music, comic innuendos and laugh-out-loud slapstick comedy, THE PANTOMIME ADVENTURES OF PETER PAN ticks all the boxes.

What makes a pantomime? Is it a villain played with comedic menace or his dimwitted sidekick? Is it the audience participation and the music? The innuendo and slapstick? It is all of these things, and this year’s offering from Manchester’s Opera House in the ...

Amar Blackman & ensemble in BUGSY MALONE. Photo: Pamela Raith Photography

From its spectacular set designs and talented cast ensemble, BUGSY MALONE is an utterly splurgtastic show for all the family.

Alan Parker’s world-famous 1976 movie BUGSY MALONE, which launched the careers of Jodie Foster and Scott Baio, heads to the stage for the first time on tour with this universally acclaimed revival of the universally acclaimed Lyric Hammersmith Theatre production.

Set in Prohibition-era New York, wh...

The cast of JERSEY BOYS UK Tour 2022. Photo Credit: Birgit Ralf Brinkhoff

Leaning on its talented cast and fantastic back catalogue, JERSEY BOYS is a thoroughly entertaining and impressively well-crafted show worthy of its ticket price.

Many musicals are often adapted from successful books, TV shows and hit movies, but JERSEY BOYS does something else entirely: it has been created from real life.

Based on the music and the inside story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, JERSEY BOYS tells the...

Joanna Ampil (Bloody Mary), Sera Maehara (Liat) & Rob Houchen (Joe Cable) in SOUTH PACIFIC. Photo: Johan Persson

Juxtaposing the lushness of the piece with an underlying threat of violent bigotry, Daniel Evans’ vibrant production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s SOUTH PACIFIC emphasises the anti-racist message of the 1949 Broadway hit.

Following a successful run in 2021, Chichester Festival Theatre’s critically acclaimed production of Rodgers & Hammerstein’s SOUTH PACIFIC launches at Manchest...