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Christmas Mysteries: A Sherlock Carol @MaryleboneTHLDN

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A mash-up of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol and Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes would seem an unlikely pairing. Yet it provides a surprisingly fun Christmas-themed adventure. These two Victorian tales (albeit separated by about 40 years) provide the basis for an inspired adventure at Christmastime that just also happens to turn out to be a murder mystery as well. With lavish costumes, a few spooky set pieces and some good old-fashioned stage trickery with lights and a lot of smoke machines, it is hard to resist. It returns to the Marylebone Theatre for Christmas after a run there last year.  The premise is that after Holmes sees off the criminal mastermind Professor Moriarty, he is left adrift in London. People thought he was dead, and he might as well be. Disinterested in the misdeeds of other Londoners, Holmes has even given up on his friend Dr Watson. It's almost as if he has become a Scrooge. Or half a Scrooge, moping about shouting, "bah" in respon

Previews: English National Ballet's Nutcracker


English National Ballet’s acclaimed production of Nutcracker returns to the London Coliseum this Christmas. Running through to Sunday 4 January 2015.

First performed in 2010 to celebrate English National Ballet’s 60th anniversary, Wayne Eagling’s version has since been seen by over 300,000 people.

Photos from the 2014 production have been released, including Ksenia Ovsyanick in full flight (opposite).

This year, two of English National Ballet’s rising stars make their debuts as Clara; Katja Khaniukova who performs alongside Ken Saruhashi’s debut as the Prince and Daniele Silingardi’s debut as the Nutcracker; and Ksenia Ovsyanick who performs alongside Max Westwell’s debut as the Prince and Fabian Reimair’s Nutcracker.


Further Principal dancers include Alina Cojocaru as Clara, Alejandro Virelles as Prince, winner of the 2014 Emerging Dancer award Junor Souza as Prince and Nutcracker, Laurretta Summerscales as Clara, identical twins Guilherme Menezes and Vitor Menezes, both making their debuts as Prince and Nutcracker, and Artistic Director Tamara Rojo as Clara. I'm going in the lead up to Christmas...





Production photos by ASH

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