Shows closing in September

It’s all change in the West End next month as September sees a number of shows bid farewell.

September marks a busy time for Theatreland as a slate of new shows open in town, which means a number of summer hits are closing to make way.

This month, Sam Mendes’ Bridge Project shows at the Old Vic, As You Like It and The Tempest, starring Stephen Dillane and Juliet Rylance, closes on 21 August. They are swiftly followed by La Bete at the Comedy Theatre, which closes on 28 August before heading off to Broadway. The Matthew Warchus-helmed show features a starry cast including David Hyde Pearce, Mark Rylance and Joanna Lumley.

In September, things start to get really shaken up and we lose some of the big summer shows. In a reversal of La Bete, HAIR made its debut on Broadway and then came to London – and you only have until 4 September to see what all the fuss was about and catch the New York cast, including Gavin Creel, before they head home.

Also on the 4th we lose David Essex penned musical All The Fun of the Fair, and dance spectacular Burn The Floor , which is clearing its tango shoes and sequins out of the Shaftesbury Theatre to make room for another big dance show, Flashdance The Musical. This will star Matt Willis and Victoria Hamilton-Barritt and is choreographed by Arlene Phillips.

And it’s never just one big dance show that goes: butch and blue-collar Tap Dogs starring Adam Garcia is also leaving the West End the day after Burn The Floor, on 5 September.

The short run of The Secret of Sherlock Holmes, riding high after the BBC’s Sherlock series, will end on 11 September at the Duchess Theatre to make way for Michael Gambon in Krapp’s Last Tape.

And we wave goodbye to Jeff Goldblum and Mercedes Ruehl on 25 September as Neil Simon’s The Prisoner of Second Avenue leaves the Vaudeville Theatre.

BOOKING AND OFFERS

Save £19 on tickets to see HAIR at the Gielgud Theatre

Save £30 on tickets to see All The Fun of the Fair at the Garrick Theatre

Save £21 on tickets to see Burn The Floor at the Shaftesbury Theatre

Save £11 on tickets to see Tap Dogs at the Novello Theatre

Half Price tickets to see The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at the Duchess Theatre

Save £14 on tickets to see The Prisoner of Second Avenue at the Vaudeville Theatre

The Secret of Sherlock Holmes

From the director of The Woman in Black comes Jeremy Paul’s thrilling play based on Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous characters Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson. Stars Peter Egan and Robert Daws.

Daniel Radcliffe in Woman in Black movie

Harry Potter’s Daniel Radcliffe is to star in a big-screen version of West End classic The Woman in Black

Produced by Hammer Films, Daniel Radcliffe will take the lead in the film as the young lawyer who finds himself immersed in a ghostly mystery. The film will go into production later this year for a 2011 release date.

The movie has been adapted from Susan Hill’s blockbuster novel byJane Goldman, wife of TV star Jonathan Ross and writer of recent box-office hit Kick-Ass. The director will be James Watkins, who directed horror film Eden Lake.

Radcliffe said: “I am incredibly excited to be part of The Woman In Black. Jane Goldman’s script is beautifully written – both tender and terrifying in equal measure. It is thrilling to be working with James Watkins. From his brilliant work on Eden Lake and also having met him and heard his vision for the film, I know he will make a fantastic film.”

The Woman in Black has been scaring audiences at the Fortune Theatre in the West End for over 20 years and currently stars Orlando Wells and Michael Mears. It is directed by Robin Herford, whose production of The Secret of Sherlock Holmes has just opened at the Duchess Theatre in London.

With the wrapping of the final Harry Potter film, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Daniel Radcliffe is committing to a number of new projects including the starring role in musical How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying on Broadway next Spring.

In The Woman in Black, a young lawyer, Arthur Kipps, is ordered to travel to a remote village to arrange a recently deceased client’s papers. As he works alone in the client’s isolated house, Kipps begins to uncover tragic secrets, his unease growing when he glimpses a mysterious woman dressed only in black. Shunned by the local people, Kipps is forced to uncover the true identity of the Woman in Black on his own, leading to a desperate race against time when he discovers her true intent.

SPECIAL OFFER: Save £20 on tickets to The Woman in Black at the Fortune Theatre in London

Sherlock Holmes – Half Price tickets

Save 50% on tickets to see The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at the Duchess Theatre

New thriller The Secret of Sherlock Holmes opens tonight, 20 July 2010, at the Duchess Theatre in London.

Starring Peter Egan as Sherlock Holmes and Robert Daws as Watson, the thriller is directed by Robin Herford, who directed The Woman in Black at the Fortune Theatre.

The play is a journey into the mind of Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective and his relationships with the two most significant people in his life: his great friend, Dr Watson, and his deadly enemy, Professor Moriarty.

Through his friendship with Dr Watson, Holmes reveals his driving forces and ambitions but also exposes his demons and fears.

Peter Egan (Ever Decreasing Circles, Noises Off) returns to the role of Sherlock Holmes after appearing in a successful tour of The Hound of the Baskervilles.

BOOK NOW: Half price tickets to see The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at the Duchess Theatre

Sherlock Holmes to investigate Duchess

Following the departure of Broadway musical The Fantasticks at the Duchess Theatre, which closes this Saturday 26 June, a touring production of The Secret of Sherlock Holmes will run at the venue.

Starring Peter Egan as Sherlock Holmes and Robert Daws as Watson, the play is directed by Robin Herford, who directed The Woman in Black at the Fortune Theatre.

The play is a journey into the mind of Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous detective and his relationships with the two most significant people in his life: his great friend, Dr Watson, and his deadly enemy, Professor Moriarty.

Through his friendship with Dr Watson, Holmes reveals his driving forces and ambitions but also exposes his demons and fears.

Peter Egan (Ever Decreasing Circles, Noises Off) returns to the role of Sherlock Holmes after appearing in a successful tour of The Hound of the Baskervilles.

Book tickets to The Secret of Sherlock Holmes at the Duchess Theatre in London