Theatre

The King Street venue's Studio will be used by the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School to put on two of its shows in November, The Threepenny Opera and a special Christmas Revue devised and directed by Malcolm McKee, Crackers and Spice.

The Old Vic closed in August for a £7m revamp, which will see better seating, new technical facilities, refurbished studio space and new ventilation installed.

If the work goes to plan the Bristol Old Vic is due to reopen in December 2008, but the theatre has admitted there is a £2m shortfall in funding and has started raising cash to plug the gap.

Meanwhile, the arrangement to rent space out to the theatre school has been made possible because of the school’s ability to provide all the additional professional services for the Studio – box office, front of house staff and technical support. 

It's hoped that running the shows will also provide further training opportunities for students at the school, who train for careers in all aspects of the arts and entertainment industry.

Threepenny Opera

First out of the gate for the theatre school's autumn/ winter season is The Threepenny Opera which comes to the Studio from 8-24 November.

Set in the future, in the impoverished back alleys of inner city London, The Threepenny Opera follows underworld antihero Macheath (Mack the Knife), as he tries to woo Polly Peachum whilst eluding her parents and the authorities. 

Seen by many as one of the great musical comedies of the 20th Century, Bertolt Brecht’s cutting and political imagining of Mack and his underworld cohorts is complemented by Kurt Weill’s edgy and jazzy musical score.

The show is followed from 28 November - 8 December by Crackers and Spice, a sparkling new musical revue that takes a wry look at Christmas from the first pop of the champagne cork through the presents, the parties, the pantos and beyond. 

The show fizzes with humour from Tom Lehrer, John Betjeman, Julian Slade, Fascinating Aida, Joyce Grenfell, Charles Dickens, Victoria Wood, Irving Berlin, Noël Coward, Dylan Thomas, Pam Ayres, Frank Loesser, Cole Porter and Jenny Éclair. 

Add a liberal sprinkling of classic seasonal songs – from Walking in a Winter Wonderland to White Christmas – and you have the recipe for an intoxicating early Christmas present.

And another Christmas treat is the theatre school's staging of panto Jack and the Beanstalk, which comes to the Redgrave Theatre in Clifton from 6-20 December.

The story of hapless Jack, the magic beans, the castle in the clouds, the golden hen, the singing harp and Jack’s encounter with the evil giant is a favourite for many families and is sure to be a big draw.

Also look out for the theatre school's very popular annual Nativity, this year taking place at the Redgrave Theatre on 8 and 15 December.

And a note for your diaries, theatre students bring Macbeth to the Redgrave at the end of January.

Tickets for all the shows are available now from the box office on 0117 973 3955.