Georgina Butler
Writing. Dancing.

NEWS: Join ‘Barnum’ the circus musical – Milton Keynes Theatre, September 2026

 

Step right up and dream big when Barnum, the circus musical, brings sights and sounds to marvel at to Milton Keynes Theatre this month.

Revived for its first UK tour in over a decade, this colourful production is inspired by the life and legend of Phineas Taylor (PT) Barnum. That’s right, the real-life nineteenth-century American impresario whose experiences sparked 2017 film, The Greatest Showman. Long before Hugh Jackman brought Barnum to the big screen, the all-singing, all-juggling stage show was celebrating the entertainer whose ambition knew no limits.

The musical follows Barnum’s rise from small-town dreamer to global showman, with his devoted wife Charity by his side. Reimagined for a new generation, this fresh production promises music, magic and miracles.

 

Barnum, the circus musical. A circus troupe in colourful costumes perform on stage under a sign that spells out ‘BARNUM’ in lights. Acrobats hang overhead and a ringmaster poses, with his arms raised triumphantly, centre stage.

 

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NEWS: Fasten your seatbelt for Matthew Bourne’s ‘The Car Man’ – Milton Keynes Theatre, July 2026

 

Buckle up, Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man is set to seduce audiences at Milton Keynes Theatre this month.

Gritty, witty and definitely the most adults-only of all Bourne’s shows, The Car Man is loosely based on Georges Bizet’s ever-popular opera, Carmen. The elements of lust, betrayal, revenge and murder remain, but the narrative is reimagined and the action is relocated from the familiar cigarette factory in nineteenth-century Spain to a greasy garage-diner in 1950s America.

Danced by Bourne’s New Adventures company, this is a steamy dance–theatre thriller that promises to ignite your senses and leave you breathless.

 

New Adventures dancers in Matthew Bourne's The Car Man. Dancers perform dynamic partnering moves in a vibrant urban setting that features a retro garage and diner.

 

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NEWS: Get into scrapes with London Children’s Ballet’s ‘Anne of Green Gables’ – Peacock Theatre, Summer 2026

 

The young dancers of London Children’s Ballet will showcase their talent and charm theatregoers of all ages in Anne of Green Gables at Peacock Theatre this July.

Pint-sized performers are set to share dramatic flair and youthful verve with this wholesome revival, bringing Canadian author Lucy Maud (LM) Montgomery’s treasured story to the stage. Considering the calibre of past productions – most recently, Ella’s Big Chance: A Jazz-Age Cinderella – they will delight audience members with their passion and professionalism.

 

London Children's Ballet dancers promote Anne of Green Gables. Two children in period costumes pose by a chalkboard with "ANNE" written on it. The boy, kneeling, watches the girl, who has reddish-brown braided hair and is standing in arabesque on demi-pointe, gesture towards the underlined "E".

 

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NEWS: Keep on Trockin’ with ‘Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo’ – Milton Keynes Theatre, June 2026

 

Gender-skewering comic ballet company Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo will bring its unique blend of low comedy and high art to Milton Keynes Theatre on 2 and 3 June.

The troupe of professional male dancers, affectionately known as “the Trocks”, is celebrating fifty years of delighting audiences of all ages with sassy spoofs of, and hysterical homages to, romantic and classical ballet. This season’s special anniversary production promises to showcase the Trocks’ fabulous sense of fun and flawless dancing through a sensational repertoire of hilarious and breathtaking pieces.

Every dance norm will be challenged with technical panache as each talented dancer transforms into two personas – a female ballerina and a male danseur. Tutus, testosterone and tongue-in-cheek playfulness? Theatregoers should expect to be enthralled and entertained.

 

Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo 50th anniversary UK tour. The troupe of drag dancers, wearing colourful ballet tutu costumes and party hats, pose playfully with balloons, cake and party favours.

 

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NEWS: See three new narrative ballets in ‘From Ash to Promise’ – London and Brighton, February 2026

 

Audiences will be guided through fractured histories and into a recontextualised future when From Ash to Promise, a new triple bill of contemporary ballet, takes to the stage this month.

The production, which features works by BalletMAR co-directors Marika Brussel and Richard Bermange, premieres at London’s JW3 on Sunday 8 February. For dance fans in the South East, there will also be a performance in Brighton, at The Dance Space, on Friday 27 February.

BalletMAR is a London-based dance organisation that is dedicated to the development of contemporary narrative ballet theatre. It aims to make dance more accessible and inclusive for audiences and artists alike. It does so by creating and sharing original works, which represent and honour the human spirit, and providing professional development workshops and classes for freelance dancers.

Promising to be a powerful exploration of personal and national identity, the From Ash to Promise programme comprises Lot’s Wife, Mr Greentree (My wish was my command) and Slant of the Earth.

 

BalletMAR dancers Tamara Hinson and Stefanos Dimoulas in rehearsal.

 

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