2023 at Leeds Heritage Theatres
Happy New Year from all of us at Leeds Heritage Theatres!
There’s plenty to look forward to across our venues in 2023; Leeds Grand Theatre brings the West End to West Yorkshire with a spectacular line-up featuring returning favourites and brand new productions, while City Varieties Music Hall maintains its reputation as one of the finest venues in the UK for live comedy, music and variety. Work also continues on The Picture House Project, with Hyde Park Picture House expected to reopen in April, screening a full programme of films and events.
Written by Ellen Carnazza
Leeds Grand Theatre
2023 starts with a bang as we celebrate the new year with The Magic of Motown, the biggest Motown party of the year. We then welcome Opera North for their first season, featuring Tosca, The Cunning Little Vixen and Ariadne Auf Naxos.
In March, join The Mind Mangler for one hilarious night only before Northern Ballet returns with the most glamarous party in town – their sell-out sensation The Great Gatsby.
Throughout spring we have a trio of feel-good musicals: Sister Act, MAMMA MIA! and Leeds Amateur Operatic Society’s Kinky Boots.
Laugh your stockings off in April with Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of), the Olivier Award-winning, unique and audacious retelling of Jane Austen’s most iconic love story.
There’s a chill in the air in May as the world premiere adaptation of Peter James’ Wish You Were Dead comes to thrill audiences at The Grand, before Opera North returns with The Pearl Fishers and Requiem.
June welcomes even more show-stopping musicals, including crowd-pleaser Dirty Dancing, smash-hit The Bodyguard and soul celebration The Commitments.
Get ready to dance as summer begins and things heat up; Richard O’Brien’s Rocky Horror Show will certainly get pulses racing and Strictly Ballroom: The Musical is sure to send your heart soaring and toes tapping!
Don’t miss the stage adaptation of the beloved film Steel Magnolias in July, featuring an all-star cast.
For the little ones, Hey Duggee The Live Theatre Show promises a vibrant interactive production bursting with music, puppets and barrels of laughs along the way. For the older ones, the summer holidays promise sensational productions including all-time favourites 42nd Street, SIX and The Mousetrap.
As winter draws in, we have two feel-good musicals to brighten the dark nights and warm your hearts. The sell-out phenomenon Everybody’s Talking About Jamie is back by popular demand before the sensational new production of Take That’s smash hit musical Greatest Days arrives to Relight Your Fire.
If that wasn’t enough, we have plenty of one-night-only events throughout the year. Laugh with some of the UK’s biggest comedians, including Jon Richardson, Frankie Boyle and Tom Allen; enjoy music from The Proclaimers and the cast of FastLove: The Tribute to George Michael; join one of Britain’s best-respected sports broadcasters, Jake Humphrey, and Psychologist Professor Damian Hughes for life lessons with High Performance Live; escape the ordinary and enter the world of the extraordinary with Cirque: The Greatest Show.
City Varieties
Don’t forget to look across the road at Leeds’ hidden gem for the very best in variety in 2023. For the full programme, take a look at What’s On and keep an eye out for shows still to be announced.
Some highlights include:
Comedy to suit all tastes including household names like Sara Pascoe, Henning Wehn and Tim Vine.
Live music of all genres with everything from singer-songwriters (Kate Garner, 25 Years of Badly Drawn Boy), showtunes (Dreamcoat Stars) and 50s/60s hits (Those Were The Days, Rave On: The Ultimate 50s & 60s Experience), to jazz and blues (The Chicago Blues Brothers, Eric Bibb, The Manfreds), tribute acts (Hello Again: The Neil Diamond Songbook, Simply Dylan, Gareth Gates: The Best of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons) and even pop icon Lulu.
Magic and hypnotism in shows such as Magical Bones: Soulful Magic, The Greatest Magician and Andrew Newton: Hypnotist LIVE!
National Theatre Live screenings of The Seagull, The Crucible, Othello and GOOD.
Party nights and cabaret with shows such as Europhoria, Bamboogie, An Evening of Burlesque and The Tiger Lillies.
And, back by popular demand, The Rock ‘n’ Roll Panto returns in time for Christmas 2023.
