The Egg, BathThere's plenty of fun in the forest as Robin and his merry men redistribute wealth " to the sounds of an all-female ska bandSedition is being preached in normally sedate Bath, w…
Soho theatre, London Marisa Carnesky's exploration of the menstruation taboo starts off cheeky and turns into something downright hair-raisingA woman, naked but for a pair of blood-red shoes…
Black Beauty gallops in Scotland, La Soirée keeps swinging in Leicester Square, and there are festive treats including a Snow Mouse, two Snow Queens and David Walliams's hippoIf you find fe…
St James, LondonThere is vocal magic and energetic choreography in Bruce Guthrie's production of Jonathan Larson's New York musicalJonathan Larson's musical is 20 years young and still rocks…
There's a renewed interest in the lost age of music hall and this West End wonder, which keeps its tongue firmly in its cheek, continues to be a class actJohn Nevil Maskelyne was a 19th-cent…
Tara theatre, LondonThe cross-cultural company's festive show isn't short on local appeal, but Jatinda Verma's production lacks verve and inventionThere aren't many pantos that include a gue…
Bristol Old VicA goblin experiments on deep-frozen children and a depressed reindeer is roused from apathy in this ingenious take on Hans Christian Andersen's storyThe opening moments of Lee…
Cambridge Junction New International Encounter's talented ensemble of actor-musicians conjure a sophisticated story with a quirky comic edge'Daddy, poor's not very in at the mo," lisps the g…
Young Vic, LondonThe actor Mark Lockyer's gripping story of his bipolar disorder plays on his status as an unreliable narratorIn 1995, while playing Mercutio in Romeo and Juliet for the RSC …
David Walliams's The First Hippo on the Moon goes on tour, an RSC double-header opens at Theatre Royal Haymarket and there are festive shows aplentySh!t Theatre's Sing-a-long-a Muppet Christ…
Critics are getting laid off. It's getting tougher to find ways to be paid to write. It sounds as if theatre criticism is on life support. Or is it?Is theatre criticism in meltdown, as some …
Fuel's Situation Room is a night of performance and debate prompted by our changing political landscape, but such events must reach out to include the voices absent from our stages"We have a…
Derby theatre The results-driven school system provides a framework for Mike Kenny's inventive adaptation, in which the despotic Queen of Hearts is headmistressUpdating Lewis Carroll's class…
Liverpool Playhouse was once home to mesmerists, acrobats and all sorts of variety acts. A new show, The Star, celebrates the artists who knew how to make the audience laugh, cry and sing al…
West Yorkshire Playhouse, LeedsThe stage version of Baz Luhrmann's movie gives the audience a good time and there are moments when Drew McOnie's choreography burns up the floorBaz Luhrmann's…
UnderbellyPhoebe Waller-Bridge's up-for-anything antiheroine provides a distinctive take on the effects of porn on 21st-century womenForty years ago, Erica Jong coined the phrase "zipless fu…
Royal and Derngate, NorthamptonDirector Luke Sheppard throws everything he can at Rick Elice's convoluted story, but it still can't touch JM Barrie's masterpiece A convoluted and anachronist…
Arcola, London The father-son myth is reborn by playwright Sergio Blanco as a skirmish probing identity and male power that is funny, taut and puzzlingOne of the closing images in this vivid…
Phyllida Lloyd's storming all-female Shakespeare trilogy is saluted by Lyn Gardner who, in no set order, chooses other essential productions of the yearMore on the best culture of 2016Phylli…
Mary Stuart flips a coin at the Almeida, Gemma Arterton becomes Saint Joan, Jack and the Beanstalk gets a Bollywood twist, and the festive spirit touches everyone from Robin Hood to Hansel a…
Nuffield, SouthamptonExpanding on Dahl's original cast of characters, the show leads us into interesting territory but loses its nerve and mixes its messagesIt's early morning. A barber shop…
Hackney Empire, LondonSusie McKenna delivers a bright, brash and cheeky production, with fine voices and a kick-ass princess, but it lacks the brilliance of previous yearsSusie McKenna's ann…
Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, LondonFour Hans Christian Andersen stories are reimagined with beguiling, anarchic irreverence in Emma Rice and Joel Horwood's heartwarming showA match is struck and…
Lyric Hammersmith, London Daftness trumps topicality in a magic carpet ride that finds the actors working the audience really well, even if the dame gets a bit lost in the washVice is except…
Half a century after their first gig in a bookshop's basement, the innovative group are staging their 132nd show which promises to be as unpredictable as everIt's almost impossible to define…