Dateline 24th December, 2000
Accused to close
Jeffrey Archer's play The Accused, which has been booking until early March, will close on 10th January. It has received uniformly bad reviews.
Dickens out, Churchill in
Far Away, Caryl Churchill's new play, will transfer from the Royal Court, where it has been playing for a sell-out season, to the Albery when Peter Ackroyd's The Mystery of Charles Dickens, which stars Simon Callow, closes. It will open on 18th January. The cast includes Linda Bassett.
Donohoe takes over from Hall
Amanda Donohoe will play Mrs Robinson in The Graduate at the Gielgud from 12th February. Jerry Hall, who currently plays the part, will leave on 10th February. Donohoe will play a strictly limited eight week season. The theatre has announced a new booking period to 7th April.
Noises Off tour and transfer
Michael Frayne's Noises Off closes at the National (Lyttelton) on 20th February and will then go on a two month national tour, finishing at the end of April. It will then transfer to the Piccadilly on 3rd May.
Semi-Monde to premiere 75 years on
Noel Coward's 1926 play Semi-Monde receives its London premiere at the Lyric in March. The cast of 28 includes Nicola McAuliffe, georgina Hale and Sophie Ward.
Oklahoma! on air
The film of the RNT's 1998 production of Oklahoma! will be shown on Channel 4 from 4.45 to 7.55pm on Boxing Day. It will be preceded by the documentary Oklahoma!: Behind the Scenes, which starts at 3.00.
The Car Man to close early
Adventures in Motion Picture's version of Carmen, The Car Man which is set in a car repair shop, is to close early on 13th January, having just recently announced an eight week extension until March.
Fame extends
Fame: the Musical (Victoria Palace) has announced a new seven month booking period, to 29th September.
Elyot play opens Royal Court season
Mouth to Mouth, a new play by Kevin Elyot, opens the new season at the Royal Court Theatre Downstairs. Directed by Ian Rickson, it features Linday Duncan, Barnaby Kay, Michael Maloney, Andrew McKay, Lucy Whybrow and Peter Wright.
Shockheaded Peter gets fourth London outing
The so-called "junk opera", Shockheaded Peter, based on Heinrich Hoffman's Struwwelpeter, gets its fourth London outing at the Piccadilly from 14th February to 28th April. Although it has played the Lyric, Hammersmith, three times, this will be its first West End performance. A Cultural Industry Project, it is a co-production of the West Yorkshire Playhouse and the Lyric, Hammersmith. It was premiered at the Leeds venue in 1998.