Top 10 of 2016 at The Lowry

With the New Year fast approaching. We thought we’d ease you in to 2016 with a rundown of our Top 10 shows. How we spoil you.

1. The Girls

Cheshire’s very own Gary Barlow & Tim Firth’s brand new musical The Girls kicks off 2016 on The Lowry’s Lyric stage.

The musical comedy The Girls is based on a true story about a group of ladies who decided to appear in a nude calendar in order to raise money for their local hospital. Raising over three million pounds in memory of one of their husbands who died of leukaemia, The Calendar Girls is a well-loved story.

The Girls comes to The Lowry from Fri 8 January – Sat 30 January. For more info and to book tickets click here.

2. Shrek The Musical

The giant green ogre Shrek is set to take over Salford in February.

Based on the award-winning DreamWorks animation film, Shrek The Musical is a must-see show for all the family.

Join our unlikely hero and his loyal steed Donkey as they embark on a quest to rescue the beautiful (if slightly temperamental) Princess Fiona from a fire breathing, love-sick dragon. Add the diminutive Lord Farquaad, a gang of fairytale misfits, and a biscuit with attitude, and you’ve got the biggest, brightest musical comedy around!

Shrek The Musical comes to The Lowry from Tue 2 February – Sat 20 February. For more info and to book tickets click here.

3. The James Plays

The National Theatre of Scotland, National Theatre of Great Britain & Edinburgh International Festival present The James Plays at The Lowry in April.

Written by award-winning playwright Rona Munro and Directed by Laurie Sanson; James I, James II and James III are a modern cycle of history plays. This vividly-imagined trilogy brings to life three generations of Stewart Kings who ruled Scotland in the tumultuous fifteenth century. Each play stands alone as a unique vision of a country tussling with its past and future.

The James Plays come to The Lowry from Sat 23 April – Sun 24 April . For more info and to book tickets click here.

4. Origins | Animikii Theatre

The Lowry’s flagship scheme ‘Developed With,’ kicks off the year with Animikii Theatre’s premiere of Origins in April.

After murdering his brother, in cold blood, we meet Cain living out his life exiled from his homeland. Afflicted by his memories and haunted by figures from the past, Cain must now retrace his steps back to Eden in pursuit of answers.

A psychological thriller that plunges into the heart of darkness where movement, sound and rhythm fuse to create a physically pulsating stage adventure. Journey into the landscapes of both dream and reality, and confront life’s most primeval questions of faith, death and immortality.

Origins premieres at The Lowry from Thu 28 April – Fri 29 April. For more info and to book tickets click here.

5. Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang.

Oh yes! The classic that is Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang will arrive at The Lowry in December.

Starring Jason Manford as Caractacus Potts; Michelle Collins as Baroness Bomburst and Phill Jupitus as Lord Scrumptious/Baron Bomburst;

one of the world’s favourite musicals, Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang will have audiences of all ages flying high with its mixture of madness, intrigue and exuberance.

Chitty Chitty, Bang Bang comes to The Lowry from Tue 6 December – Sun 15 January. For more info and to book tickets click here.

6. Wind in the Willows

After a recent visit to local schools inspiring youngesters to read the wild tale about the thrill-seeking, lovable menace Mr Toad, Wind in the Willows comes to The Lowry in October.

Ratty, Badger and Mole join the exuberant Toad in a brand new musical and embark on a series of adventures (and misadventures) caused by his insatiable need for speed! Imprisoned for theft and with his existence under threat from the inhabitants of the Wild Wood, Toad must attempt a daring escape to defend Toad Hall.

Wind in the Willows comes to The Lowry from Thu 27 October – Sun 6 November. For more info and to book tickets click here.

7. Carlos Acosta: A Classical Farewell

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After an unparalleled career as one of the world’s most iconic male ballet stars, Carlos Acosta presents his final classical ballet programme at The Lowry in May.

From humble beginnings in Cuba to performing on some of the world’s biggest stages, Carlos Acosta has had an incredible career. He has played many of ballet’s most iconic roles including Prince Siegfried in Swan Lake, Basilio in Don Quixote and The Prince in Nutcracker. He has worked with some of the world’s leading ballet companies including Ballet National de Cuba, The Royal Ballet, English National Ballet and Houston Ballet, written two novels and appeared in two feature films.

For his final UK tour dancing classical works, he performs experts from his favourite ballet repertoire alongside an incredible cast of dancers from Cuba, with a full live orchestra.

Carlos Acosta: A Classical Farewell comes to The Lowry from

Fri 13 May – Sat 14 May. For more info and to book tickets click here.

8. The Chairs | Extant

The Chairs is presented by Extant, Britain’s leading professional performing arts company of visually impaired people, and comes to The Lowry in April.

This is a rare opportunity to see a performance of a ground breaking absurdist play in a unique interpretation, with audio description cleverly incorporated into the live performance. By Eugene Ionesco and translation by Martin Crimp.

The Chairs comes to The Lowry from Fri 15 April – Sat 16 April. For more info and to book tickets click here.

9. Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Pixie Lott as Holly Golightly 1 credit Uli Weber

Starring Pixie Lott Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the classic tale of Holly Golightly written by Truman Capote and so memorably portrayed by Audrey Hepburn in the iconic 1961 film, comes to The Lowry in April.

Adapted by Pulitzer Prize finalist and Tony and Olivier Award-winning playwright Richard Greenberg and directed by Nikolai Foster, this tale of vivacious, good-time girl Holly Golightly and her fantastical existence in 1940s New York City, is told through the eyes of a young writer, completely fascinated by this exquisite extrovert who every woman wants to be, and every man wants to be with.

Breakfast at Tiffany’s comes to The Lowry from Tue 12 April – Sat 16 April. For more info and to book tickets click here.

10. U Dance 2016.

The Lowry is to host the prestigious U.Dance Festival 2016, reaffirming the Salford arts venue’s reputation as the home of dance in the North West from 8 – 10 July 2016.

The annual national U. Dance Festival showcases the very best in youth dance from across the country. The four day festival, in July 2016, will give hundreds of young dancers the opportunity to perform to an audience on The Lowry’s stage and to work alongside nationally renowned artists.

U.Dance aims to give every child and young person in England the opportunity each year to take part in a dance performance. Since the inception of U Dance, in 2008, over 188,000 young people have performed at a U Dance registered event.

For more information click here.