11 things to do in the Peterborough area this week

Footloose

New Theatre, March 15-19

Footloose is back and better than ever!

With Dancing on Ice winner Jake Quickenden and West End legend Darren Day taking to the stage.

City boy Ren thinks life is bad enough when he’s forced to move to a rural backwater in America. But his world comes to a standstill when he arrives at Bomont to find dancing and rock music are banned. Taking matters into his own hands, soon Ren has all hell breaking loose and the whole town on its feet.

Based on the 1980s screen sensation which took the world by storm, Footloose sizzles with spirit, fun and the best in UK musical talent. With cutting edge modern choreography, you’ll enjoy classic 80s hits including Holding Out for a Hero, Almost Paradise, Let’s Hear It For The Boy and of course the unforgettable title track Footloose.

Read an interview with Darren Day

Peterborough Local History Society

St Marks Church Hall, Lincoln Road, tonight 7.30pm

Professor Stephen Upex – a leading authority on the Roman and early Saxon periods in our area – will be speaking about the Roman archaeology of the Nene valley. All welcome . £3 to attend or membership is £14 for the year.

Flo & Jean - Sweet Release

Key Theatre, tonight

Multi-award winning musical comedy duo (and sisters) Flo & Joan are climbing out of their pits, armed with a piano and percussion section to bring you a brand new show of their critically acclaimed songs and comedy. Their unique, sharp-tongued style has taken them around the world.

Zog And The Flying Doctors

New Theatre, March 11-13

Zog, super keen student turned air-ambulance medic, still lands with a crash-bang-thump.

Together with his Flying Doctor crew, Princess Pearl and Sir Gadabout, they tend to a sunburnt mermaid, a unicorn with one too many horns and a lion with the flu. However, Pearl’s uncle, the King, has other ideas about whether princesses should be doctors, and she’s soon locked up in the castle back in a crown and a silly frilly dress!

With a bit of help from some friends and half a pound of cheese, can Pearl make her uncle better and prove princesses can be doctors too?

Based on Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler’s bestselling sequel, Freckle Productions (Zog, Stick Man, Tiddler & Other Terrific Tales, Tabby McTat) bring the creative team behind Zog, Emma Kilbey and Joe Stilgoe, back together for this truly modern take on the classic fairy tale.

Crimes, Camera, Action

Key Theatre, March 11

Crimes, Camera, Action whisks the audience to golden-era Hollywood and introduces a new lead detective, a world-weary, hard-boiled private-eye in the mold of Humphrey Bogart: meet Stan Shakespeare.

The case? A screen starlet is stabbed as a result of a prop mix-up on set. It sets in motion a typically fast-paced and hilarious chain of events that sees a cast of four exceptional comic actors take on multiple roles, sometimes within the same scene.

Expect the usual New Old Friends mix of great theatrical set pieces, the quickest of quick changes, lightning fast word play and a thrilling plot driving the action at breakneck pace.

Magical Bones

Key Theatre, March 13

Join the Britain’s Got Talent finalist Bones as he effortlessly combines intricate sleight of hand with mesmerizing illusions and jaw-dropping break-dance moves in one of the most awe-inspiring shows, you’ll see this year. Direct from appearances on America’s Penn & Teller Fool Us, BBC1’s BAFTA Awards, ITV1’s This Morning and Sky’s Around The World In 80 Tricks.

Legends of Swing

Key Theatre, March 16

Expect to hear songs from the incredible musicians who pioneered swing music, including instrumental songs from the likes of Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Count Basie and Glenn Miller, and vocal classics from singers such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Nat ‘King’ Cole.

Cubed - A Short Play Festival

Key Theatre, March 15-23

Brought to the stage by Peterborough’s Mask Theatre, Cubed features six short plays; heartbreaking, emotional, hilarious and exciting, this festival is not to be missed.

Presented in double bills, you can see all six plays over three nights.

Featuring: March 15th, 18th and 21st, Contractions by Mike Bartlett, a black comedy about work and play and the corporate machine, and Constellations by Nick Payne, a beautiful and heartbreaking romance in parallel universes.

March 16th, 19th and 23rd How These Desperate Men Talk by Enda Walsh, a dissection of memories in search of truth, and Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons by Sam Steiner, a dystopian drama about what we say, how we say it and the effects of restrictions on our lives.

March 17th, 19th (matinee) and 22nd Sitting Here by Di Fox, an intimate look at a life well lived, and How To Date A Feminist by Samantha Ellis, a hilarious take on the different views of feminism.

Korpfest

Stamford, March 13

The renowned Peterborough street art festival is taking over Red Lion Square on Sunday with 9 artists at work between 11am and 4pm.

The line up features Peterborough’s Nyces - whose work has gone viral several times and is the founder of the multi award winning Street Arts Hire, responsible for some memorable murals across the city.

Also featuring is Korp, who is the founder of Korpfest and the online Korp Academy where members from all over the world learn to draw with marker pens.

The event will also feature local artist Cur5, who is the founder of the live art event Battle Lines, and Paul Kneen, who is currently enjoying a successful solo exhibition at Peterborough Museum.

Black Is The Color Of My Voice

South Holland Centre, Spalding, March 11

Inspired by the life of Nina Simone and featuring many of her most iconic songs performed live by Florence Odumosu.

Apphia Campbell’s acclaimed play follows a successful jazz singer and civil rights activist as she seeks

redemption after the untimely death of her father. She reflects on the journey that took her from a young piano prodigy destined for a life in the service of the church, to a renowned jazz vocalist at the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement.

The show is recommended for ages 12+

I Am A Camera

Stamford Arts Centre until Saturday

“I Am a Camera” is based on Christopher Isherwood’s novel ‘Goodbye to Berlin’.

It explores the plight of German Jews and romance in the face of antisemitism and racism. ( The musical ‘Cabaret’ was based on the same book.)

The play confronts subjects such as unwanted pregnancy and racism and is a telling reflection of history and life between the wars in Berlin.

Christopher Isherwood is the ‘camera’ of the title.

Sally is mercurial – a creature of extravagant attitudes, given to parading her vices, confident that she is going to take life in her stride, describing herself as “extraordinary.”