It seems that time in some respects has gone by so slowly. The age between the final performance of Macbeth and the heralding of a new era of the Everyman Theatre has been two long years. However, as the highly respected theatre duo of Gemma Bodinetz and Deborah Aydon beamed around the room, the light, metaphorically and in reality is almost ready to be switched on and the welcome back to The Everyman Theatre will be long and cheerful.
As with any season launch for The Playhouse in the ten years that Ms. Aydon and Ms. Bodinetz and their impeccable team have been involved with Liverpool twin theatres, the timing is all. The short period of space between launch and the festive frivolity that follows only heightens what is to come at the start of each New Year. 2014 is no different except for the news that the much loved Everyman Theatre, whose stage has launched a multitude of careers, will be opening its new doors in the March with a very special Lights Up ceremony on the 1st March which will be followed the next day by the type of housewarming that will warm the souls of all those have missed the iconic theatre and give the kind of timely introduction to anyone new in the city who never had the pleasure of being there during performances such as The Caretaker, Macbeth, Medea, Lisa’s Sex Strike and the abundance of Rock ‘N’ Roll Pantomimes.
It is fitting that the Everyman Theatre will open its doors to another of William Shakespeare’s plays, Twelfth Night. The naughtiness, the lords of misrule, the individuality and love not only shines through this play but in the ethos of what the Everyman is about.
Artistic Director Gemma Bodinetz said, “The Everyman has historically been a theatre that has represented the renegade and generous spirit of the city. It has held its arms wide open for the broadest section of humanity. It has always been fearless. It has always had a twinkle in its eye. When choosing the productions for this inaugural season I wanted plays that expressed these qualities; rebellious stories infused with wit and love. Stories for everyone that each in their different ways celebrate individualism.”
It is this sense of individualism, coupled with the creativity that is not only celebrated in the city but nurtured; almost demanded as a right that espouses Liverpool. The individual and the larger society coexisting in inventiveness and inspiring vision that is almost unseen anywhere else in the country.
Twelfth Night is not the only performance coming to the two theatres this coming new season; as ever there is so much going on that the diary will seem very full very quickly. With American legendry playwright Arthur Miller once more featuring in the schedule with A View From The Bridge, directed by Charlotte Gwinner, the fantastic Kneehigh Theatre company making their way once more to the city with a new version of A Beggar’s Opera, titled Dead Dog In A Suitcase (& other love songs), written by Carl Gros and the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dylan Thomas being captured in an unforgettable journey in May as Clywd Theatre Cymru bring Under Milk Wood to the Playhouse.
There is also a pioneering first for theatre attendees as the much praised Northern Stage brings Joseph Heller’s Catch 22 to the U.K. stage for the first time in May.
With the Young Everyman Playhouse (YEP) having superb success under the great direction of Matt Rutter, the new Everyman Theatre almost here and the enjoyable productions to come to all sections of the twin theatres, not just the Playhouse or Everyman but the incredible studio performances as well, 2014 should be a year in which the foundations of 2008’s Capital of Culture takes yet another huge step forward.
For further information on productions coming to the Everyman/Playhouse Theatres, times and prices go to www.everymanplayhouse.com or visit the Playhouse Theatre Box office on Williamson Square.