theatre club
Do you love theatre, and wish you had more people to talk with about it?
Do you secretly eavesdrop on people during an interval or after a show, to find out what they thought?
Do you wish theatre offered more spaces to connect and chat?
Come to Theatre Club!
What is it?
It’s a bit like a book group: you see a show, then meet with friendly people to chat about it. All are welcome, snacks are provided, and I’m there as the host with abundant curiosity.
Who is invited?
Anyone who saw the show! But not the people who made it, which makes Theatre Club very different to the usual post-show Q&A. Got a comment, not a question? Secretly hated the show? Feel like you didn’t understand it? Come to to Theatre Club!
How does it work?
You watch the show on any day that suits you, and come to the discussion on the advertised date. To make life simpler, that’s usually post-show in the bar, but sometimes it’s online. I host the conversation and always have a few questions I’m interested in, to move us along if needed – but the best Theatre Clubs are genuine conversations, to which everyone brings their curiosity and points of view..
Why do people come?
Why don’t I hand you over to some of the people who come for this bit? They say:
“There's something about the range of people, opinions and reasons for attendance that is beautiful, theatre club brings me into contact with people and opinions that differ and I value that.”
“I like the friendliness and the format and the chance to share my love of theatre with like-minded people.”
“We could talk so freely and I got so many different takes/opinions and I felt safe to disagree, it was chewing it over with people I didn't know that was so great – new opinions!”
💙💛💙
Where does it happen?
I have an ongoing relationship with Cambridge Junction, who have supported Theatre Club since 2023, enabling some extraordinary conversations, from a group of teenagers responding to a show featuring people aged 60+ to a multi-ethnic group dissecting an evening inspired by Sardinian carnival. It’s a wonderful community so if you’re in the area, do join us!
I also host Theatre Clubs ad-hoc around London (with an often remarkable lack of support from theatres themselves). And because not everyone lives in the bottom of the country, there are always a couple of Theatre Clubs each season watching digital work and then chatting online as well.
Although all the listings can be read online, I also have a mailing list where I share additional theatre recommendations and reminders. Do join if you're interested!
When are the next dates?
Below are all the upcoming dates I have in mind. If you like the sound of Theatre Club and would like me to host one in your area, please get in touch!
At Cambridge Junction
Tuesday 24 February, 7.30pm: Nine Sixteenths
If, like me, your first thought looking at the blurb for this show is “but I’m really not a Janet Jackson fan”, please, push that aside. Made and performed by four black female artists aged 40s and over, it’s a fascinating deep dive into the machinations of power behind celebrity culture, tracing a single story of misogynoir across two decades and a political landscape that still does everything it can to obstruct black women. I’ll be joined by Jade Pollard-Crowe as co-host of Theatre Club; see the show with us on Tuesday 24 and join the conversation afterwards. Tickets here: https://www.junction.co.uk/events/nine-sixteenths/ If you can’t make it to Cambridge, Nine Sixteenths is on a massive national tour: all the dates are here https://paulavarjack.com/9-16ths/, please do tell your friends! I might see the show again in London, so if you’d like to see it there with me, email and let me know.
Wednesday 18 March, 7.30pm: Ways of Knowing
I saw this show in late 2023 and the moment it finished wanted to watch it again. Made by Emergency Chorus, it looks up to the skies and into the darkness of caves to consider human relationships with prediction, forecasting, and uncertainty. It’s the kind of show that could easily leave people scratching their heads: perfect for a Theatre Club discussion. We’ll meet immediately after the performance on Wednesday 18 March, book tickets here: https://www.junction.co.uk/events/ways-of-knowing/
NOT YET CONFIRMED! Thursday 21 May, 7.30pm: Second Trimester
I already have tickets to see this with my parents when it’s performed at Battersea Arts Centre in April, but I’m very much hoping to see it again in Cambridge, and discuss with people there. It’s part of a trio of shows being made by Krishna Istha in response to his desire to have children, and attitudes to trans people raising families of their own. In this show, he performs with his real-life actual mum, digging into family history – and the family love of Bollywood films. Even if Theatre Club ends up not happening, do go and see, I think it’ll be brilliant. Tickets here: https://www.junction.co.uk/events/second-trimester/
In London
Sunday 8 March, 7.45pm: KENREX
Something I always do in the mailing list newsletter is invite requests for shows to discuss - and here I am responding to one! If you saw KENREX at any of its London performances and would love to talk this ethically murky, true-crime thriller through with others, come along to the downstairs cafe of the Picturehouse Central cinema (I know! a cinema!!) on Sunday 8 March and we can do just that! If possible, I'll have a laptop with me to experiment with making this hybrid, please email me to let me know if you'd be interested to join.
Monday 16 March, 6.45pm: Iron Fantasy, at Soho Theatre
My friends, this one could well be quite strange. She Goat are two performers from the wonderful company Little Bulb; their first show was a playful dalliance with the idea of doppelgangers, inspired by the frequency with which they are mistaken for each other, and in Iron Fantasy they decide to stop being conflict avoidant and learn how to fight. The medieval way. Theatre Club will happen directly after the performance on Monday 16 March, but you can see the show the previous week and return for the conversation if you prefer. Tickets here: https://sohotheatre.com/events/iron-fantasy/
Thursday 9 April, 7.30pm: Consumed, at Park Theatre
I’ve finally put Park Theatre on my list of venues to check for possible Theatre Club plays, and so glad I did, as I love an intergenerational comedy with bite, and that’s exactly what Consumed promises to be: a story of four generations of women in an Irish family, sharpening the knives as much for each other as for the food on the table. Theatre Club will happen directly after the performance on Thursday 9 April, but you can see the show earlier in the run and return for the conversation if you prefer. Tickets here: https://parktheatre.co.uk/events/consumed/
Wednesday 27 May, 7pm: Flush, at Arcola Theatre
If you’ve ever been into the women’s toilets on a night out then you’ll know they’re overflowing with drama – really it’s amazing we haven’t seen more plays set there. Fourteen women of different ages pass through the cubicles of Flush: plenty of lives for us to discuss. Theatre Club will happen directly after the performance on Wednesday 27 May, but you can see the show earlier in the run and return for the conversation if you prefer. Tickets here: https://www.arcolatheatre.com/event/flush/
Saturday 27 June, 2.30pm: Care, at the Young Vic
Care has long been a preoccupation for writer-director Alexander Zeldin. In plays that zoom in on the relationships between shift workers in a meat factory or the lives of families in temporary accommodation, he probes at the veneer of care in British society and exposes the hollow space beneath. For his debut at the Young Vic, he turns his attention to care homes, and the experience of a grandmother moved from her own home before she’s ready. Theatre Club will happen directly after the MATINEE performance on Saturday 27 June, but you can see the show earlier in the run and return for the conversation if you prefer. Tickets here – I recommend booking asap, as it’s already selling well (and you might catch one of the cheaper “lucky dip” tickets if you’re quick): https://www.youngvic.org/whats-on/care
Online
Helpful notes: these online chats happen on zoom and they really are like book groups – you need to watch the show BEFORE joining the zoom call! If the price would make it hard for you to watch the show, email me and we can see if we can figure something out together… I share the zoom link on the newsletter, or you can email me for it.
Sunday 1 March, 8pm: Poor Judge
I know nothing about this play, and to be honest know nothing about Aimee Mann, whose music features in it heavily. But I saw this recommended in the Guardian and love the idea of an online Theatre Club discussing a play that’s on in the US. Plus it has an accessible pricing option! (Albeit quite an expensive one.) You can book to see the show on this link: https://wilmatheater.gumroad.com/l/poorjudge – it’s streaming now until 22 February, so please make sure to watch it asap, ready for the online Theatre Club chat on Sunday 1 March. Email me for the zoom link!
Sunday 31 May, 8pm: Bacchae
I heard mixed things about this show, which obviously set off my Theatre Club radar: there’s always lots to discuss when people don’t agree. Put it this way: I’m excited by the idea of a hip-hop take on an old Greek play, love how it looks in pictures, but wasn’t ready to pay National Theatre prices – hence choosing to see it online! The play costs £7.99 to rent from NtatHome (here’s the link https://www.ntathome.com/products/bacchae), watch it BEFORE Sunday 31 May then join me online that evening at 8pm to discuss. Email me for the zoom link!