Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse announce their 2025 season - the first from new creative director, Nathan Powell, who puts the emphasis on new writing, collaborations, diversity, inclusion and artist development,
The first of three new productions is Takeaway (Everyman, April 26-May 17 2025), written by Powell himself. Set in a Liverpool restaurant, it's a comedy of family tensions.
Powell says: “It’s a story about Liverpool as a whole; how it was built, where it is now, and about the communities that make up the city. It feels very ‘Everyman’ in that it asks big questions, but there are also lots of laughs, silliness and humour. I’m hoping stories like Takeaway, that are rooted in this place, can also tell a national tale.”
The second of the new productions, inspired by real animal encounters from around the world, is The Walrus Has a Right to Adventure (Everyman, June 12-21), by Wirral playwright Billie Collins, which brings three stories from around the world into a play about instinct, expectation, identity and what it means to be free.
Thirdly - and partly as a way to introduce younger audiences - there's a new, abridged version of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (Everyman, September 13-October 4), which will be directed by Ellie Hurt, a graduate of Young Everyman Playhouse Directors Programme. It is promised to be "a powerful, potent production, stripped back to its brilliant basics".
Tickets for each of the three new shows will be from £11, with two-thirds of seats at £21 or under.
The Everyman season overall begins with the already-announced revival of Willy Russell’s Shirley Valentine (March 1-29) - originally commissioned by the theatre and completing the theatre's 60th birthday celebrations - and will end with the legendary rock ‘n’ roll panto, which next year will be Jack and the Beanstalk (November 15, 2025-January 17, 2026).
Productions already on sale for 2025 at Liverpool Playhouse include The Merchant of Venice 1936 with Tracy-Ann Oberman as Shylock (February 4-8); the return of Ghost Stories (March 11-15); George Orwell’s Animal Farm (April 1-5), and a stage adaptation of The Girl on a Train (May 13-17).
Creative projects with associate companies will include a studio commission with Talawa as part of its Black Joy Season and collaborations with some of the UK’s best touring companies. These include, at the Playhouse, Actors Touring Company in Tambo & Bones (March 26-29); Wise Children in North by Northwest (May 20-24) and with Royal & Derngate on Breaking the Code (October 21-25).
The theatres also continue their commitment to younger children and families with The Baddies (February 18-22); The Gruffalo (April 8-12); Pirates Love Underpants (May 28-31) and Pig Heart Boy (March 18-22).
Comedy nights throughout the year feature everyone from Nina Conti (January 25) to Sam Avery (November 21).
Nathan Powell said: “Liverpool has been home to me for many years, and the city and its broad artistic community are close to my heart."
More info and tickets here