But another thing that we like to do before we head off on holiday is to just give you a quick reminder of all the shows that we recommended over the last few weeks that will still be on over the Christmas and New Year period. You know, just in case you forgot.
Many are on until the end of December (with a break around actual Christmas Day), many into early January, and some even until late January. But we're going to start with those that you haven't got long left to see, because they all end on Christmas Eve.
There's TW favourite Luca Silvestrini's 'The Little Prince' at The Place, 'Well Done, Mummy Penguin' at The Albany Deptford, and 'The Holly King And The Oak King' at Battersea Arts Centre, all of which are, of course, suitable for family viewing.
And speaking of family stuff: there's a whole plethora of pantos for you to choose from if you're still looking to book into one.
There are two productions of 'Sleeping Beauty', so I'll start there, one at The Bridge House Theatre until 30 Dec, the other at Catford's Broadway Theatre until 31 Dec. There's a staging of 'Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs' at Croydon's Fairfield Halls until 5 Jan, 'Cinderella' at the King's Head Theatre in Islington until 5 Jan, and 'Dick Whittington And His Cat' at Greenwich Theatre from 22 Nov to 5 Jan.
And from my file marked 'more unusual panto' is 'Pinocchio' at Stratford East until 4 Jan - perhaps it's not that unusual, but I haven't witnessed many 'Pinocchio' pantos myself.
The next one is definitely unusual - and expectedly so, it's Charles Court Opera - 'Napoleon: Un Petit Pantomime' at Jermyn Street Theatre until 5 Jan; and finally, 'Potted Panto' at Wilton's Music Hall until 4 Jan which is, of course, many pantos mashed together.
And from pantos to more shows suitable for families and children. You'll hopefully definitely remember 'The Fir Tree', on at ArtsDepot until 31 Dec, because we recently did a lovely Q&A with its director. Elsewhere - Polka Theatre to be precise - Christmas classic 'The Nutcracker' is on until 26 Jan.
And there are plenty of shows with a wintry, snowy, frosty feel still running. First up, 'The Snowy Day' which is also showing at Polka Theatre all the way until 2 Feb.
Meanwhile, over in Chiswick at The Tabard Theatre you can see 'The Snow Queen' until 4 Jan, while 'Odd And The Frost Giants' plays at Unicorn Theatre until 31 Dec. 'Christmas Comes To Moominvalley', on at Jacksons Lane until 5 Jan, looks quite snowy, and 'Rosie The Robin And The Christmas Post' (pictured) at Little Angel Theatre until 5 Jan is all about adversity caused by a great big snow storm.
Also on at the Little Angel Theatre is 'The Singing Mermaid' and it's on until 26 Jan, which gives you plenty of post Christmas time to see it, in fact. Other fab family shows for you include 'Captain Sandy & The Sea Monster' at Puppet Barge until 26 Jan, and 'Alice In Wonderland' at Brixton House until 4 Jan.
Lots of panto and child friendly shows, but now we're headed into the territory of grown up funny stuff and theatre with three shows all ending on 11 Jan. Although to be fair, this first funny one is fine for older kids - dinosaur film parody 'Hold On To Your Butts' at Arcola Theatre. Up next is TW fave clown Julia Masli with 'ha ha ha ha ha ha ha' at Soho Theatre, and more funnies with Sh!t-Faced Showtime's 'A Pissedmas Carol' at Leicester Square Theatre.
And if you are after something theatrical, the excellent 'Cyrano' is on at Park Theatre until - again! - 11 Jan, as is 'The Massive Tragedy Of Madame Bovary' over at Southwark Playhouse Borough.
Orange Tree Theatre's 'Twelfth Night' continues until 25 Jan, you can see 'Montague's Millions' at Jack Studio until 4 Jan and, finally, 'St Nicholas' at the Omnibus Theatre finishes on 5 Jan - read our Q&A with its star Nick Danan here.
And even more finally: Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all those who celebrate these things. See you in January!
DAVID LEVESLEY AND CHARLES QUITTNER: THESE GAYS! THEY'RE TRYING TO…
You may well be aware of the work of Brooklyn Rep UK, award winning resident company in the basement of The Divine in Dalston, and those of you who are edfringe fans will almost definitely have heard about their 2024 Festival show 'All The Fraudulent Horse Girls'.
Over the Christmas and New Year period the company are staging their latest work - 'These Gays! They're Trying To…' - which is "a queer imagining of the inevitable Reykjavik-based fifth season" of HBO's social satire 'The White Lotus'.
It's intriguing, to say the least, so I thought I would find out more from creators David Levesley (also director and creative director of the company) and Charles Quittner, two of the four writers who worked on the show.
CLICK HERE to read this Caro Meets interview.
'These Gays! They're Trying To…' is on at The Divine from 27-30 Dec and 2-4 Jan. Find out more information and book your tickets here.
SOHO THEATRE STUFF>>
Carl Donnelly: Boosegumps | Soho Theatre | 3-4 Jan
So, this edition of tips in theory covers the period from Christmas Eve until 6 Jan, but - as it turns out - every single one of them is for after New Year. Therefore there's going to be pretty much nothing Christmassy about these Threes To See. But, as we're looking at that post New Year period, that can honestly be a bit bleak, lets's start with three lots of Soho Theatre comedy to cheer you through the early days of January. Starting with seasoned pro and longterm TW fave Carl Donnelly. Click here.
Bianca Cristovao | Soho Theatre | 2-4 Jan
"To be a Gold Digger or not to be? That is the question women worldwide ask while working a minimum-wage job in today's economy". Gotta say, that does sound like actually a serious discussion about the evils of capitalism and patriarchy. But rest assured, we're in the hands of a well established comedian (as seen on Colbert) who is going to cover stuff like money, sex, greed, passports and her short-lived relationship with a billionaire. Info here.
Rob Copland: Gimme (One With Everything) | Soho Theatre | 2-11 Jan (pictured)
One last show at the Soho Theatre then and it's Rob Copland, who won a lot of fans at edfringe this summer, and also the Edinburgh Comedy Awards' Victoria Wood Panel Prize. So, you know, you can definitely expect good things. And it's directed by Ben Target. "Gimme the thrills, gimme the spills, gimme a man with a microphone in his hand and careless abandon in his heart". Head this way for all the details and to book.
SERIOUS THEMES>>
Jock | White Bear Theatre | 3-8 Jan (pictured)
Okay, that's you lot cheered up enough, I reckon you're all ready now to get to grips with some gripping and/or thought-provoking dramatic fare. This one's about a student's experiences in a university sports society and his desire to belong, exploring themes of toxic masculinity and how far he's prepared to go to make sure he fits in. Already had a successful run at the venue in the summer, head there now for more info and to book.
Blood Of My Father | Drayton Arms Theatre | 4-5 Jan
"The neighbour heard the screams from next door. The body was found floating in Chiswick River. At 16 and 20 years old, Orestes and Electra never thought they would be interrogated as suspects in their father's murder". One for fans of updated Greek tragedies (that's me, I'm a fan of those), as this version of Sophocles' classic 'Electra' becomes a dark and twisted sequence of police interviews. Click here for more.
Living With Drones | Camden People's Theatre | 6-7 Jan
Telling a story about drone technology, this is a live journalism show highlighting the sounds of warfare and the devastating impact they have. It's produced by stitched!, a live journalism studio at Toronto Metropolitan University, and weaves together "first-person stories from the ground in Gaza, with wartime diaries from story-sharers", which sounds to me like necessary, if devastating, viewing. Info here.
MORE TOP STUFF>>
The Life And Death Of Martin Luther King | Golden Goose Theatre | 2-5 Jan
Right, more top stuff, and I suppose this one might have fit in the previous section, because this is a serious subject, not least given how the story ends. Before that ending though, Dr King's life was extraordinary and inspiring, so I imagine you can expect to find this uplifting in some ways, and maybe educational? Either way, it's the work of a great team in TNT Theatre, head to the venue website here to book your tickets.
Higher Ups | Old Red Lion Theatre | 2-4 Jan
"When acting agency mogul Brian Douglas turns up uncharacteristically late to an important meeting in London, his long-suffering assistant Daisy and new starter Natasha must navigate rocky waters as it becomes apparent that he believes that he was abducted by 'higher beings' the night before". Something a bit lighter, in the sense that it's a hilarious satire, but still one with points to make about the industry, and power. Quick, book here.
Shake It Up: The Improvised Shakespeare Show | Hen & Chickens Theatre | 6 Jan (pictured)
Okay, we've come full circle and with that last tip, and this one, we're back in comedy-to-cheer-you-up in January territory. Hurrah. We love improvised stuff, you love improvised stuff, so why not begin the year as you mean to go on and head over to Highbury for some Shakespeare themed improvving? These guys are on once a month going forward, so you could put it off for a bit, but come on, don't tell me you don't want this ASAP? Click here.
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