- February 2025
We are so back, a sketch show, teched, written, and performed by BME students from Cambridge. And they’re taking back control. For one week only racism in Cambridge is cancelled. Get ready for an hour of comedy about the joys of being able to eat flavoured food and struggles of trying to explain to your grandparents you don’t want to get married.
- February 2025
Expect laughs, laughs, and more laughs...
Footlights bring you the funniest songs, sketches, monologues and stand up in an evening of non-stop, back-to-back fun-filled hilarity. The material is always original and always varied. It can be soft and silly; rude and spikey; wordy and nerdy or a little surreal - whatever the style, it's always "uproariously funny" (Varsity)
- February 2025
Sweet Charity explores the turbulent love life of Charity Hope Valentine, a hopelessly romantic but comically unfortunate dance hall hostess in New York City. With a tuneful, groovy, mid-1960s score by Cy Coleman, sparkling lyrics by Dorothy Fields, and a hilarious book by Neil Simon, Sweet Charity captures all the energy, humor, and heartbreak of Life in the Big City for an unfortunate but irrepressible optimist. With a toe-tapping score including The Rhythm of Life, Big Spender and If They Could See Me Now, Sweet Charity is one of Bob Fosse’s seminal works and this production takes great inspiration from this choreographic legend.
- February 2025
Ready for a sketch show so funny it should be illegal?
Footlights Presents: WANTED follows eight convicts who’ve broken out of prison—and straight into chaos. From outrageous disguises to heists gone hilariously wrong, watch as plans spiral out of control in the most unexpected ways. With sharp humour, unexpected twists, and a touch of camaraderie, WANTED delivers big disasters and even bigger laughs. This high-energy, theatrical sketch show is a must see - criminality has never been so funny.
- February 2025
Michael was looking forward to moving house. It was all going to be wonderful. But now his baby sister’s ill, his parents are frantic, and Doctor Death has come to call. Michael feels helpless. Then he steps into the crumbling garage. What is this thing beneath the spider webs and dead flies? A human being, or a strange kind of beast never seen before? The only person Michael can confide in is Mina. Together they carry the creature into the light, and Michael’s world changes for ever.
David Almond’s own adaptation of his renowned novel, winner of The Carnegie Medal, The Whitbread Children’s Book Award, and a string of prizes around the world. A timeless classic, published in over 40 languages, it touches the minds, hearts and souls of people of all ages. The story has become a movie, an opera, a radio play and this stage play, first produced at the Young Vic, and directed by Trevor Nunn.
- January 2025
Many of us will know someone who's lining up a graduate job at one of the big oil firms; they're probably future Chemical Engineers, Market Analysts, or Petrol-Pump attendants (insert joke about the employability of humanities degrees). But now there’s a new scheme for Stand-Up Comedians! This may all seem unbelievable, as I’ve made it all up, but it’s really true. I’m lucky enough to be partnering with one of these companies to produce my debut stand-up hour, ‘One Shell of a Guy’, this sponsorship will have no impact on the show and I barely even mention the company in the title so I wouldn’t worry too much about it.
- January–February 2025
“What, you think philosophy, you think poetry harmless, sir? Sir, it can maim, it can mutilate, blinded for centuries, it can kill.”
A dark summer, 1816, on the stormy shores of Lake Geneva, a utopia is born. This utopia is one built on free love, on unfettered immorality, on shadowy philosophies built to encase reality, to shield from the consequences of any misdeeds.
Here, in this thundery paradise, shelter the radical poets Bysshe and Byron, accompanied by their respective mistresses, Mary and Claire, and the frustrated physician, Polidori, who joins to shadow his sometime lover and document this sundry menagerie of Shelley’s devotees.
But no paradise can last forever, and a storm is coming.
- January 2025
In just 24 hours, CUMTS members will create and perform a brand new musical in this
A theme will be announced to some of Cambridge's sparkiest new writers and composers, who will then put their heads together for an all-night session of creative madness. In the morning, a troupe of CUMTS performers and directors will rehearse the songs they've written, and that night, they, alongside musicians and designers, will bring their writing to life, in what will be a whirlwind celebration of new musical theatre 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.
"Chaos - of the wonderful kind."
"a true testament to the scriptural powers of the CUMTS writing team"
"a pleasure to observe"
"undeniably entertaining"
"a night of infectious enthusiasm, comedic chaos and unexpected brilliance"
"a cacophony of creativity like no other"
"an unforgettable whirlwind event"
- December 2024
One of Shakespeare’s most famous comedies, A Midsummer Night’s Dream tells the whirlwind story of expectations and dreams and getting lost in the in-between. This chaotic tale unfolds in the magical midnight world of the Athenian forest where the air is pierced with jealousy, unrequited love, and delicious confusion. As they enter the forest, the Athenians are caught in Titania and Oberon’s quarrel over a child, both fairies desperate to follow their dreams of motherhood. Determined and yet disoriented, the humans are left to grapple with new identities and unexpected declarations of love.
Founded in 1957 by a group of students including Derek Jacobi and Trevor Nunn, ETG is an all-student theatre company that tours Europe with a Shakespeare play at the start of the Christmas holidays every year. Last year’s tour went to Chantilly, Leuven, Frankfurt, Montreux, Konstanz, Bern and Antwerp before coming to Cambridge for a run at the ADC Theatre in January.
If you have any questions about ETG 2024, please get in touch with the Tour Managers, Gemma and Katie Stapleton, at manager@cuetg.co.uk.
- January 2025
The meek floral assistant Seymour Krelborn stumbles across a new breed of plant he names "Audrey II" - after his coworker crush. This foul-mouthed, R&B-singing carnivore promises unending fame and fortune to the down and out Krelborn as long as he keeps feeding it, BLOOD. Over time, though, Seymour discovers Audrey II's out of this world origins and intent towards global domination!
- December 2024
- December 2024
- December 2024
To be or not to be? The real question is: to Glee or not to Glee?
Nearly ten years from its finale, join CU Show Choir as we pay tribute to the show that taught us all what show choir even is! Come boogie, belt, and cry along to our latest selection of cheesy pop tunes, diva anthems, and musical theatre classics. Whether you were a New Directions fan or head-over-heels for the Warblers (we see you), there’s something for everyone… even for the Sues in the room!
- December 2024
Comic Sans is back! Check-in with your favourite under-represented genders and watch as they perform with no script, no direction and no men anywhere to be seen...
Will there be crustacean cowboys or shocking soap operas: no-one knows what will happen!
Cancel your late-night date with the library, gather some friends, and get yourself to the ADC for a night filled with chaos, comedy and crazy antics!
- November 2024
A long time ago in a kingdom far far away, Snow White is celebrating her eighteenth birthday surrounded by bags of dirty washing. With Dame Trudy Wench at her side, she makes sure that the palace is spick and span for Queen Grismerelda and her handsome son Prince Charming.
That is until Snow is banished into the Fantasy Forest, all thanks to the Magic Mirror, with nowhere to go and no pennies to her name. Join her, Trudy, Grismerelda, Prince Charming, Hemingway the Huntsman and the Stardom Seven as the magical story unfolds in the fairest panto of them all!
Don't miss this year's CUADC/Footlights Pantomime: Snow White!
This production will contain innuendo and political humour. While the content is suitable for all ages, it may not be appropriate for younger audiences. Parental discretion is strongly encouraged.
- November 2024
World-famous popstar Candice arrives in the town of Little Wonder, England, where she hopes to lay low during her record-breaking world tour. Unbeknownst to her, Little Wonder is also home to her biggest superfans: classmates Trish, Vee, Camryn, Jaime, Aisha and Bo, who plan to form a band after graduation and chase their dream of being musicians.
After a mix-up leads the group to Candice's whereabouts, news breaks that her back-up dancers have wedged their eco-boat in the Suez Canal. Discovering the friends already know her songs and choreography, manager O'Neill and tour handler Leslie offer the deal of a lifetime: for keeping the news a secret, the group can live their dream as the back-ups (to the back-ups!) to their favourite singer.
As preparations for the concert begin though, pressure grows and relationships are tested, while Candice faces tough decisions about her future when her partner Alix arrives. Pop stardom meets market-town Britain in this sweet, funny crowd-pleaser about what it means to meet your idol - and follow your dreams.
The CUMTS freshers musical is the perfect way to support musical theatre newbies in Cambridge. Each year, a group of freshers get together in their first term and put on a student-written musical with the help and oversight of CUMTS current students. A show full of fresh, new talent and enthusiastic musical theatre freshers, it is not one to be missed on the CUMTS calendar. Come and show your support for the next generation!
- November 2024
CUADC Freshers' Play
Welcome to the tech rehearsal. Around you, a company of fourteen is engaged in the very peculiar task of creating a new play.
Take a seat next to the sound designer as he mixes cues. Eavesdrop on backstage gossip as it happens in real time. And watch the director struggle to contain the uncontainable...
10 out of 12 is a wry and absorbing look at how work forms and deforms us.
This production is suitable for ages 12 and over.
This amateur production of “10 Out of 12” is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd. on behalf of Samuel French Ltd. www.concordtheatricals.co.uk
- November 2024
Remember own clothes day? Primary school cake? Watching celebrities eat spiders on live television? Or when the apprentice was actually good? Then Notstalgic is the show for you! Taking you back to the days gone-by this student-written sketch comedy show is guaranteed to make you sick with laughter (giving you the perfect excuse to skip PE again, because no one really likes PE). This night of hilarity and amusement will be one you won’t forget, or is it one you'll remember? Either way, we’ll leave you feeling Notstalglic for our show!
- November 2024
“We are only what we always were but naked now.”
A dramatized and partially fictionalised story of the Salem witch trials in Massachusetts in the seventeenth century. John Proctor, a farmer, and his wife Elizabeth are a troubled couple, haunted by Proctor's past affair with Abigail Williams, who still harbours feelings for him. Reverend Hale is called upon to investigate the claims of witchcraft. Proctor struggles with his guilt over his affair and his desire to protect his wife and the truth.
In a town crying witchcraft, Proctor must make a choice between integrity and self-preservation.
- November 2024
- 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.
- October–November 2024
Dragtime! is back again with another hour of cabaret fun and this time things are getting spooky! Get ready to meet our drop dead gorgeous kings, queens and inbetweens as we return to the ADC for our fifth (!) Halloween show, presenting the best drag talent the city has to offer. Hold on to your seats as we take you on a thrill-inducing ride through the dark side of drag, featuring singing, lip sync, spoken word, pole dance, burlesque, live music and more!
- October–November 2024
'I want to dance, Kate. It’s the Festival of Lughnasa. I’m only thirty-five. I want to dance.'
Welcome to the not-so-hot Summer of 1936 in Rural Donegal, Ireland. As the five Mundy sisters gather round to listen to the dulcet tones of their new radio, ‘Marconi’, change is coming.
Father Jack’s back from Uganda, Gerry comes and goes at will, yet there’s one journey yet to be decided upon - will the sisters make it to the Harvest Festival after all? Brian Friel’s celebrated semi-autobiographical play artfully and wittily captures the joys and pitfalls of an immediately identifiable era.
Guided by our narrator, Michael, the 'illegitimate' son of the youngest Mundy sister, Dancing at Lughnasa is at its heart a celebration of cultural survival. Marking Friel’s return to the ADC stage, this timeless tale ultimately questions how, in changing circumstances, we relate to and secure our own senses of identity.
- October 2024
Expect laughs, laughs, and more laughs...
Footlights bring you the funniest songs, sketches, monologues and stand up in an evening of non-stop, back-to-back fun-filled hilarity. The material is always original and always varied. It can be soft and silly; rude and spikey; wordy and nerdy or a little surreal - whatever the style, it's always "uproariously funny" (Varsity).
- October 2024
"I planted myself inside you and waited to bloom. And it didn't take me no eighteen years to find out the soil was hard and rocky and it wasn't never gonna bloom.”
August Wilson's critically acclaimed Pulitzer Prize and Tony Award-winning play Fences has often been described as one of the most moving and accurate portrayals of the black family. Meet Troy Maxson, a disillusioned sanitation worker who has bitterly moved on from the days of his youth where he used to play in the Negro Baseball League. Wilson explores the battle between ruthless pragmatism and hope dividing the Maxson family living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania as Troy is willing to tear down the dreams of his wife Rose and son Cory who aspires to one day follow in his father's footsteps in search of sporting acclaim with hopes of becoming professional football player. There is no line Troy is unwilling to cross.
- October 2024
Brutal. Infamous. Slimy.
He's a theatre critic.
Meet Bob the Leech.
Join three actors as they hopelessly attempt to impress this bloodsucking parasite ...
- October 2024
Uncle Vanya looks after the estate of his brother-in-law, a frustrated professor who has recently remarried. Vanya manages the books, he has essentially raised his niece and, above all, he is grumpy. When Doctor Astrov appears one evening to check on the professor, he puts a spark of life back into the household which will end in unrequited love, illicit desire, and Vanya’s ‘just too late’ realisation of his wasted life.
Uncle Vanya explores what it means to be at home, whether in the relationships we have, the house we live in, or the world we inhabit.
- June 2024
"Cry 'Havoc!' and let slip the dogs of war."
When Caesar returns triumphant to Rome, the people flood the streets in celebration. A group of educated elites are concerned by his popularity, and conspire to assassinate him. In the ensuing chaos, choosing what to believe and who to follow becomes the most important question of all.
Don't miss the home-run of this year's Cambridge America Stage Tour.
- October 2024
The Big Olive. Athens. Before B.C. existed. The populists are on the rise and they’re looking for a scapegoat. Sound familiar? Any old goat will do. Enter Socrates. He opens his mouth and soon he’s on trial for his life. The Man Who Argued Himself To Death, a blisteringly funny satirical comedy by Colin Swash (The Queen, Have I Got News For You) tells us all what it’s like when it becomes a crime to say ‘I Don’t Know’.
Corkscrew Theatre brings yet another original and thought-provoking piece of writing to a larger stage after successfully championing new plays Horrox (2023) and ABRA (2024). Following on from this year’s A Few Good Men and their much-acclaimed production of Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf, this is another piece of must-see theatre.
This production is suitable for ages 12 and over.
- September 2024
When her father dies unexpectedly, graphic novelist Alison dives deep into her past to tell the story of the volatile, brilliant, one-of-a-kind man whose temperament and secrets defined her family and her life. Moving between past and present, Alison relives her unique childhood playing at the family’s Bechdel Funeral Home, her growing understanding of her own sexuality, and the looming, unanswerable questions about her father’s hidden desires.
Winner of five Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Original Score, Fun Home is a refreshingly honest, original musical about seeing your parents through grown up eyes.
This amateur production of FUN HOME is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd. www.concordtheatricals.co.uk
This production will run for 100 minutes without an interval.
This production is suitable for ages 12 and over.
- September 2024
Join us for a timeless favourite, The Vicar of Dibley, presented by Hilarity Theatre Group in aid of Comic Relief. This extraordinary and side-splitting production is sure to keep you laughing heartily. Brilliantly crafted episodes are woven together to create a show brimming with merriment.
The hilariously memorable Parish Council characters, along with our very own Geraldine, promise to send you into peals of laughter. Anticipate a delightful array of entertainment they have planned for you.
Geraldine is presented with not just the chance to host a radio show for the Parish Council but also to organise a Gala evening and a Christmas play. But what can go right? Surely Jim will be on his best behaviour, right? And David, who might have embarrassed himself on live radio, thankfully has his moment of redemption.
Owen as a sound man? Now that's intriguing. Fear not, Mrs. Cropley will be there to ensure everyone is well catered for with her unique cakes.
Rest assured, there are no dull moments in this play. We invite you to this joy-filled show.
This amateur production has been adapted from the TV series by Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer by kind permission of United Agents. 'The Vicar of Dibley' was originally produced by Tiger Aspect Productions.
This production is suitable for ages 12 and over.
- September 2024
Comedy, farce, drama - the Cambridge Festival of Drama provides an opportunity to see the best of local amateur drama presenting a wide variety of plays in a mix of new writing and established pieces.
Each session features two or three short plays, followed by comment and evaluation by a professional drama adjudicator – with the added frisson of a competitive element!
There’s plenty of opportunity between plays to meet friends in the bar and talk over what you’ve seen – will you agree with the adjudicator, or not? Will you pick this year’s winner?
You’ll find a full listing of the plays at www.camdramfest.org.uk
- July 2024
Step into the world of Murder Most Unexpected, an Agatha Christie-style Whodunnit made up entirely on the spot. Our talented cast of improvisers will take you on a journey full of hilarious twists, turns, and suspicious characters - all dictated by your suggestions! Every performance is unique, anything can happen, and anyone could be the killer. Come and watch the mayhem unfold as our improvisers unravel the mystery. Don't miss this unforgettable night of comedy where you help craft the mystery.
This production is suitable for ages 12 and over.
- July 2024
Nick Warburton, screenwriter and playwright, a writer for The Archers, and who has also adapted many classic works for Radio 4’s Classic Serial, now brings you a new staged adaptation of Geoffrey Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. Originally adapted by Nick for BBC Radio 4’s The Archers in 2018, six tales from that version have now been readapted for the stage.
A raggle-taggle band of pilgrims – common working folk, some kings and queens, and the odd shady priest – pauses on its way to Canterbury. The pilgrims stretch their legs, take a little refreshment and start to tell their stories.
Here are six of Chaucer’s most vibrant tales, presented by a talented cast of fourteen.
You’ll meet the Knight, the Miller, the Wife of Bath, the Pardoner, the Friar and the Franklin who’ll spin a whole range of stories for you in lively modern English. Some will be comic and bawdy, some tender and romantic, and some will include a touch of magic.
More than thirty characters are brought to life in this new modern adaptation of Chaucer’s colourful and timeless storytelling.
This production is recommended for ages 12 and over.
- July 2024
"I’m just as good as bloody Pierrepoint." So says Harry, in his small pub in Oldham where he is something of a local celebrity. But what’s the second-best hangman in England to do on the day they’ve abolished hanging?
Among the cub reporters and sycophantic pub regulars dying to hear Harry’s reaction to the news, a peculiar stranger lurks, with a very different motive for his visit, telling the regulars:"‘Don’t worry. I may have my quirks but I’m not an animal. Or am I? One for the courts to discuss."
Set mostly in Harry’s Oldham pub in 1965, Martin McDonagh’s Hangmen premiered at the Royal Court Theatre, London in September 2015. It received the 2016 Olivier Award for Best New Play, with the Daily Telegraph describing it as "Pitch perfect…Perhaps the most line-by-line funny play London has seen in years."
- June 2024
It's that time of year again.....
The Footlights International Tour Show is back and has brought together six of Cambridge's BEST comedians to create a sketch show that can only be drescribed as 'funny'. And this time they have a dog (breed yet to be specified). You'd be absolutely silly to miss it as it jets off from Cambridge, across the UK, to Edinburgh, and Beyond!!!!
