- November 2024
Theo feels pretty… sometimes.
Theo feels ugly… a lot.
In Pretty Ugly, Theo has had enough. He decides to put a stop to the problems of self-worth, self-confidence, and self-doubt which have been plaguing him for too long. Through song, story, and multimedia; he traces the origins of these pesky inner-demons and attempts to plot his way forward.
Theo Chen has been professionally performing since he was 10 years old, and engaging in amateur dramatics (i.e, putting on shows for his friends and family) since he came out the womb. Originally from Singapore, his performances in Cambridge have been described as “excellent”, “audaciously funny” and “perfectly insufferable”.
This year the Cambridge University Musical Theatre Society is transforming the Larkum Studio into the CUMTS Cabaret - a chance to explore the enchanting possibilities when music & theatre intertwine. The first three shows feature powerful storytelling in a uniquely intimate setting: an experience like no other in Cambridge theatre!
- November 2024
A story of friendship through the years is brought to the ADC by Ava Fitzhugh and Sam Ericsson. Forged in the fires of Freshers' Musical 2023, this dynamic duo tell the tale of their hypothetical future: from humble CamDram beginnings to negotiating the real world of work and love, one night of a collection of our favourite musical numbers will guide you through the trials and tribulations of this tumultuous friendship. Different ambitions lead to diverging paths and years of tension which culminate in one unmissable night of therapy which is sure to heal us all in some way.
This year the Cambridge University Musical Theatre Society is transforming the Larkum Studio into the CUMTS Cabaret - a chance to explore the enchanting possibilities when music & theatre intertwine. The first three shows feature powerful storytelling in a uniquely intimate setting: an experience like no other in Cambridge theatre!
- November 2024
The feel-good musical comedy based on the smash-hit film, Sister Act is a dazzling tribute to the universal power of friendship and music.
Disco diva Deloris’ life takes a surprising turn when she witnesses a murder. Under protective custody she is hidden in the one place she should never be found – a Convent! Under the suspicious watch of Mother Superior, Deloris uses her unique disco moves and talent to breathe new life into the church community at the expense of blowing her own cover. The gang soon gives chase, only to find themselves up against Deloris and her newly found sisterhood.
- November 2024
The 2nd Bar Night of term, this evening will showcase the original music from Cambridge's composers. This is a chance for people to get creative and have some fun! CUMTS will be hosting a 'speed-dating' event in the Larkum on the 20th of October at 7pm, with the aim to introduce lyricists and composers to each other in the hope that they can create brand new material! Following auditions a week before the bar night, composer/lyricist(s) will have to write a brand new song (or songs) for a performer to debut at this bar night! This will be a fun, creative opportunity for composers/lyricists/performers old and new to test their skills and grow in confidence.
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! With a range of performers and songs, you are sure to find something you like in these bar nights.
Keep an eye on the CUMTS instagram (@cumtscambridge) for more information nearer the time about auditions!
- October 2024
Liquor and Lust delves into the intertwined lives of characters consumed by desires and vices, where alcohol and lust drive their actions. This evocative show navigates the exuberance of indulgence and its sobering aftermath, provoking thought on the duality of pleasure and pain. Featuring songs like "Little Girls" from Annie and "If You Ever See Me Talking to a Sailor" from The Last Ship, the performance offers a rich emotional tapestry.
Izzy Lane, a member of the National Youth Theatre and British Youth Music Theatre, brings this powerful exploration to life. Recent credits include Ruth in The Pirates of Penzance (Minnack Theatre) and Chris in Carrie the Musical (ADC theatre).
This year the Cambridge University Musical Theatre Society is transforming the Larkum Studio into the CUMTS Cabaret - a chance to explore the enchanting possibilities when music & theatre intertwine. The first three shows feature powerful storytelling in a uniquely intimate setting: an experience like no other in Cambridge theatre!
- October 2024
Welcome and welcome back all Cantabrigians! Come sing your heart out at the first bar night of term. It's an open theme, so you can come and show off those pipes with any musical theatre song you like (in case anyone forgot over the summer that you can, in fact, sing!)
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! With a range of performers and songs, you are sure to find something you like in these bar nights.
Keep an eye on the CUMTS instagram (@cumtscambridge) for more information nearer the time about auditions!
- August 2024
In 1850s Victorian England, a prison chaplain is tasked with cleansing the souls of those sentenced to death or transportation for the most heinous crimes. In a dirty prison cell, the Chaplain meets three convicts: Edie, a young woman from the inner-city slums with a dream of dancing in the music hall and forced into prostitution in order to survive, John, a coachman for a wealthy family who killed his master after his love was taken from him, and Jamie, a young boy forced to steal for his starving mother and brother and sentenced to transportation as a result. Throughout, the Chaplain is also plagued by the voice of a mysterious woman who lurks in the cell’s shadows, and the Chaplain is certain he has met her somewhere before. As the musical unfolds and the Chaplain’s mental state deteriorates, it becomes clear that he too has sins he must confess…
Though the show is dark in its themes, it hopes to be a moving show with humorous elements. The show explores the nature of the hypocrisy of those in positions of power, as well as deeply human ideas as the power of love for one another and the human capacity for forgiveness.
As a story told through classic musical theatre numbers, The Chaplain promises an emotional exploration of love, hate, faith and power abuse underscored by bloodthirsty Victorian law in the hope of drawing parallels with the not-so-distant society of today…
- August 2024
The story follows dowdy, kind, trusting, lonely, technologically-naïve Aunt June. Desperate to connect with her niece Andy, June begins to get on Andy’s nerves. Andy suggests that June fill her time instead by finding friendships online. Grandma (the eccentric matriarch of the family) lends June a laptop that she won in a poker game from Knucklehead Joe, a laptop which June discovers only has an “onion” browser installed …
Matters take a strange turn when June unwittingly finds herself on The Dark Web and befriending a low-level drug ring, the members of whom June mistakes for cooking and gardening enthusiasts. June’s new friends offer her a job in their cooking business making special cookies using undisclosed ingredients that are shipped to her, which includes a very unusual recipe ...
Set to an upbeat funk/pop score, the story, at its heart, follows the relationship between Andy and June who share a mother-daughter-like bond. At the beginning of the show, they struggle to communicate; but through the events of June’s online adventures, they reconcile and build their relationship. The story follows three generations of women in a family context and explores the importance of female relationships in this family setting.
- June 2024
The story follows dowdy, kind, trusting, lonely, technologically-naïve Aunt June. Desperate to connect with her niece Andy, June begins to get on Andy’s nerves. Andy suggests that June fill her time instead by finding friendships online. Grandma (the eccentric matriarch of the family) lends June a laptop that she won in a poker game from Knucklehead Joe, a laptop which June discovers only has an “onion” browser installed …
Matters take a strange turn when June unwittingly finds herself on The Dark Web and befriending a low-level drug ring, the members of whom June mistakes for cooking and gardening enthusiasts. June’s new friends offer her a job in their cooking business making special cookies using undisclosed ingredients that are shipped to her, which includes a very unusual recipe ...
Set to an upbeat funk/pop score, the story, at its heart, follows the relationship between Andy and June who share a mother-daughter-like bond. At the beginning of the show, they struggle to communicate; but through the events of June’s online adventures, they reconcile and build their relationship. The story follows three generations of women in a family context and explores the importance of female relationships in this family setting.
- June 2024
Step into the dazzling world of musical theatre for an exhilarating night of big band music...and all that jazz!
Big Band Roulette is the big band, with the big twist. Every performance has a brand new setlist, randomly selected musicians, and only one day to rehearse. With a talented pool of musicians composed of Cambridge's premier student jazz talent, you'll be sure to feel that "fascinating rhythm".
We are thrilled to be joined by Cambridge University's esteemed Musical Theatre Society to bring you an evening of theatrical showstoppers, all arranged for our colossal 26-piece jazz band. From classic broadway hits to jazz re-imaginings of modern favourites, there is something for everyone to tap their feet to. Featuring multiple original arrangements, numerous vocal features and epic instrumental medleys, this will be a truly unforgettable (and unrepeatable!) night of music.
- June 2024
A cartoonish, eclectic group of six overachieving mid-pubescents vie for the spelling championship of a lifetime. While candidly disclosing hilarious and touching stories from their home life, the tweens spell their way through a series of [potentially made-up] words. Each hope to never hear the soul-crushing, pout-inducing, life un-affirming "ding" of the bell that signals a spelling mistake, and the overstated feeling of failure that resonates with overachievers everywhere. Six spellers enter; one speller leaves! At least the losers get a juice box.
Complete with an engaging, tuneful score by William Finn and a sweet, funny book by Rachel Sheinkin, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee causes audiences to fall in love, both with the show itself and its “perspicacious,” “jocular,” and “effervescent” spellers.
- May 2024
In 1850s Victorian England, a prison chaplain is tasked with cleansing the souls of those sentenced to death or transportation for the most heinous crimes. In a dirty prison cell, the Chaplain meets three convicts: Edie, a young woman from the inner-city slums with a dream of dancing in the music hall and forced into prostitution in order to survive, John, a coachman for a wealthy family who killed his master after his love was taken from him, and Jamie, a young boy forced to steal for his starving mother and brother and sentenced to transportation as a result. Throughout, the Chaplain is also plagued by the voice of a mysterious woman who lurks in the cell’s shadows, and the Chaplain is certain he has met her somewhere before. As the musical unfolds and the Chaplain’s mental state deteriorates, it becomes clear that he too has sins he must confess…
Though the show is dark in its themes, it hopes to be a moving show with humorous elements. The show explores the nature of the hypocrisy of those in positions of power, as well as deeply human ideas as the power of love for one another and the human capacity for forgiveness.
As a story told through classic musical theatre numbers, The Chaplain promises an emotional exploration of love, hate, faith and power abuse underscored by bloodthirsty Victorian law in the hope of drawing parallels with the not-so-distant society of today…
- May 2024
'Doesn't anybody ever get it right?! Doesn't anybody think that I hear?!'
The cult-hit, rock musical based on Stephen King's bestselling horror novel. Carrie White is a freak, at least in the eyes of her classmates. There's just something about her, something that attracts their hate. She’s shy, awkward, desperately lonely, and controlled completely by her tyrannical, religious fundamentalist mother at home, while at school she is tormented by almost everyone she comes across. But something has changed. She feels different. She feels powerful. She can move things without touching them. She could hurt people, if she wanted to. When she is invited to the prom, the hatred and rejection of her peers still festering, their pity somehow even more hurtful, was there ever any hope of her keeping this power under control?
This iconic horror story is at once a supernatural thrill-fest, and a tragic, thoughtful, biting, meditation on the question: just how cruel can normal people be, in order to feel like they belong?
- March 2024
- February 2024
For four evenings this term, CUMTS host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality.
The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
For the third bar night of the term, in line with our goals to diversify the musical theatre scene and increase accessibility, CUMTS are working in collaboration with Bread Theatre & Film Company to bring you a Bar Night made up entirely BME performers who will be singing all of their favourite songs from musical theatre.
It's going to be an amazing night so please don't miss out! Buy your tickets now!
- February 2024
CUMTS presents you with the gift of Gala. For two nights only CUMTS brings you an evening of pure musical theatre decadence. Dressed to the nines and accompanied by a full orchestra, the finest of Cambridge’s Musical Theatre Talent will be performing all of your favourite musical theatre classics alongside the latest Broadway hits, all dazzling with glitz and glamour.
- February 2024
- February 2024
‘A new world calls across the ocean, a new world calls across the sky, a new world whispers in the shadows.’
These are the stories and characters of today, the Songs for a New World. The first musical from Tony Award winner Jason Robert Brown (The Last Five Years, Parade), this moving collection of powerful songs examines life, love and the choices we make.
Brown transports his audience from the deck of a 1492 Spanish sailing ship to a ledge 57 stories above Fifth Avenue to meet a startling array of characters ranging from a young man who is determined that basketball is his ticket out of the ghetto to a woman whose dream of marrying rich nabs her the man of her dreams and a soulless marriage.
- January 2024
- January 2024
In just 24 hours, CUMTS will create and perform a brand new musical. A theme will be announced to some of Cambridge's sparkiest new writers and composers, who will then put their heads together for 24 hours of creative madness. A troupe of CUMTS performers and musicians will be on hand to bring their work to life, in what will be a whirlwind celebration of new writing. There will be sleeplessness. There will be coffee. Who knows what the final product will be? All we know, is that it will be unmissable.
- November 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
for the first time ever members of CUMTS have been given the chance to vote on the theme for a bar night, so make sure you come along and see what the musical theatre stars of Cambridge have voted on !
- November 2023
Beyond Today follows Aoife Burke, a young woman in 1990s Ireland, who dreams of a peaceful life. With a long-standing conflict plaguing Aoife’s hometown, she’s always stuck with her own family: that is, until she meets Molly O’Keele – the daughter of her family’s nemesis. The pair keep their connection a secret, but it’s not long until people find out and, with tensions already high, chaos quickly ensues. How will the families react? Will Aoife and Molly ever get to be together? And, most importantly, will Aoife be able to stop the fight before more people get hurt?
- November 2023
- November 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
This time round we have the joy of welcoming the newest performers in Cambridge Theatre to the ADC Bar stage ! make sure you come along to support the newest members of CUMTS !
- October–November 2023
The Drowsy Chaperone is a loving send-up of the Jazz Age musical, featuring one show-stopping song and dance number after another. With the house lights down, a man in a chair appears on stage and puts on his favourite record: the cast recording of a fictitious 1928 musical. The recording comes to life and The Drowsy Chaperone begins as the man in the chair looks on. Mix in two lovers on the eve of their wedding, a bumbling best man, a desperate theatre producer, a not-so-bright hostess, two gangsters posing as pastry chefs, a misguided Don Juan and an intoxicated chaperone, and you have the ingredients for an evening of madcap delight. Hailed by New York Magazine as "The Perfect Broadway Musical," The Drowsy Chaperone is a masterful meta-musical, poking fun at all the tropes that characterize the musical theatre genre.
- October 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
- August 2023
“Nestled in the heart of a highland community, the local Glenelg Post Office is on the brink of going out of business. The world is changing and putting pen to paper to send letters is becoming a thing of the past. When a huge new packaging and delivery warehouse springs up in the once peaceful village, what was the heart of the community risks being lost to the reality of world that is moving forwards at a faster pace than the town can keep up with.
Working on the warehouse production line, however, is the postie’s daughter, Hannah. Hannah has always seen things a little differently, because to her, everything is backwards. Her ups are down and lefts are rights. While all her life she has felt like she was always the wrong way round, when she sees her mother’s life turned upside-down by the changes in her town, Hannah along with her two best friends have to find a way to move forwards in a backwards world.
‘Palindrome' is a story of connection, communictaion, opening up and writing things down. When world rushes forwards, sometimes we all need to take a step back.”
- July–August 2023
From the brains behind BLUE WORKERS comes INVASION! @ Camden Fringe!
JOHNNY FOX thought adult life would be wonderful - but working at LOTUS LAND, Britain’s most magical theme park, he’s trapped on minimum wage, lodging with his cowardly uncle BRIAN, and under fire from their despotic manager, HACKETT.
But upon the arrival of mysterious new-hire SOLA, Johnny discovers the park hides a terrible truth - it’s run by a race of zealous alien parasites, hell-bent on replacing humanity!
Join Johnny, Brian, and Sola on this wild rollercoaster ride to prove their worth and save the Earth in INVASION! - a toe-tapping intergalactic spectacular!
- May 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
This week it's time to bid farewell to our graduating performers- auditions will be open to finalists only!
- May 2023
‘And now our bodies are the guilty ones…’
Winner of eight Tony Awards,‘Spring Awakening: the Musical’, features an electrifying rock soundtrack that explores the journey from adolescence to adulthood in a poignant story of teenage curiosity and sexual naivety.
In 1891, a group of teenagers grapple with puberty with a lack of adult guidance. They encounter Love, loss, desire and much more in this passionate and heart-wrenching coming-of-age story; a narrative of sexual liberation, community, and learning what it is to love and to exist in a world which aims to keep you in the dark.
- May 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality. The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
- March 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality.
The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
- February 2023
A group of rebels, young and old, unite the outcasts of society, pick up their placards, and demand justice!
In the midst of Roman occupation, three Marys: a Mother, a Leader, and a Runaway, live out their lives. But who are these women, and why did the things they say and do cause such a stir?
Come along to watch this re-telling of the biblical narrative, from her perspective. See the cast sing and fight their way through first century Judea, refusing to accept their designated positions as women on the side-lines of history.
- February 2023
Celebrating their 25th birthday, CUMTS brings you the gift of Gala: two evenings of musical theatre magnificence. With a dazzling cast of Cambridge’s finest musical theatre talent, accompanied by a full orchestra, Gala will be an extravaganza of all of your favourite musical theatre classics and latest hits. Dressed to the nines and brimming with glitz and glamour, these wonderful performers invite you into the world of big ballads, stunning harmonies, kick-lines and jazz hands.
- February 2023
Three times a term, we host a night where people can come along and sing a musical theatre song for a smaller audience in a less intimidating venue (the ADC bar). The atmosphere is always friendly and uplifting, and the performances are always of a top quality.
The most wonderful thing about these shows is that the more intimate setting allows for those less confident performers to feel more comfortable in their singing and eventually move onto principal roles in bigger shows. You never know, any Bar Night participant might just go on to be the next big star of the stage! Not only that, but also the range of performers means that there is always a range of songs and dynamics to fit every audience member's needs. Whether you're into comedy or you're a hopeless romantic, there'll be something for you!
- February 2023
we choose who we invite / through the front door of our life
Sky, a precocious but quiet teenager, gets caught smoking a zoot and is sentenced to live with their teacher, Miss Court. Between Miss Court's caution to maintain boundaries and Sky's disinterest in interacting at all, neither of them is expecting the other to be anything except a housemate. But a badly-timed Covid-19 infection forces the two to spend a fortnight with no social options except one another.
What emerges from the ashes of this explosion of misfortune could either be a beautiful gift, or a disaster...
An original musical about friendship, trust, identity and weed.
