What’s on at the theatre in Milton Keynes this April

Wherefore art thou Romeo? Who cares!

An unstoppable ballet flaps in for a return visit, a 1990s sitcom will bring the laughs, and there’s a monstrous show ready to wow – just three of the goodies playing out across our stages in the coming month. Pulse’s Sammy Jones has more about those and other top picks for April…

Milton Keynes Theatre of Comedy are unbeatable when they stage comedy classics, and they’ve previously delivered sterling productions of Blackadder, Porridge, the Vicar of Dibley and Fawlty Towers to sell-out success.

In fact, their upcoming show, being played out at Stantonbury Campus (April 29-May 3) is sometimes described as the ‘Fawlty Towers of the 1990s’ and MKToC will only ever do it justice!

This one is set in Whitbury New Town Leisure Centre where there is a receptionist who keeps her baby in a drawer. Have you guessed what it is yet?

It’s the Brittas Empire, and Gordon Brittas also has a wife on the verge of a nervous breakdown, a maintenance man suffering from a bizarre range of rare diseases, a team who can’t stand him and numerous enemies who want to see him fired!

This two act-play has been penned by ToC’s Steve Clark and Emma Dell, and has been given a firm thumbs up by the writers behind the original BBC hit series, Nice.

At MK Theatre, & Juliet (until April 12) will prove that there is indeed life after Romeo in this clever musical which boasts a playlist of modern pop anthems by Max Martin – so you can expect Britney, The Backstreet Boys and Ariana Grande tracks to cut loose.
The Wanted’s Jay McGuiness will be portraying Shakespeare, and he’s not the only popstar in this piece – Steps’ Lee Latchford Evans is signed up, too.

When it debuted nearly three decades ago, Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake (April 15-19) was a sensation, albeit one that ruffled a few feathers, too.

Replacing the female corps-de-ballet with a menacing male ensemble was a decidedly bold move and one that ‘changed the dance landscape forever.’

Truth be told, everyone needs to see this reinvention of Tchaikovsky’s work, and once you have, you’ll be desperate to repeat the visit.
War Horse is back at MK Theatre this month – and there’s plenty about that across the page…

Louis Pearl is always getting in a lather – he has spent decades cheering audiences with the science, art, magic and fun of bubbles. He’ll be at The Stables (April 7, 11.30am & 2pm) delivering square bubbles and fog-filled bubbles and putting people in bubbles!

Miles Jupp is back (April 8) with On I Bang, ‘a tale about surprise, fear, luck, love and qualified medical practitioners,’ which follows a tumour discovery and subsequent major neurosurgery. It’s great to have him back.

There are roar-some times ahead with Teach Rex Live (April 19, 10am, 12.30pm, 2.45pm) which uses interactive, life-like dino’s to teach little folks about these long extinct, marvellous creatures that once roamed the planet.

The hour-long show is perfect for those aged three years and over, but adults will love it, too.
One of the true masters of imitation is impressionist Jon Culshaw (April 27) who stops off at the Wavendon venue as part of his Imposter Syndrome tour.

This is the closest you’ll come to rubbing shoulders with the US President, well, unless your name is Elon Musk and you are clutching this issue of Pulse in your mitts…

MK Theatre: atgtickets.com/miltonkeynes
The Stables: stables.org
MKToC: mktoc.co.uk