Festive fun for all at the Broadway

There will be a real festive feel to the Christmas period at Peterborough’s Broadway Theatre.

Theatregoers will be treated to an exclusive new show as Bill Kenwright presents the next instalment in the Dreamboats saga.

Created especially for the new season at The Broadway Theatre, Dreamboats and Petticoats: The Christmas Party will make its premiere on December 22.

Bobby, Laura, Norman and Sue will perform everyone’s favourite festive hits and Christmas tunes including Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree, Jingle Bell Rock and Little Drummer Boy, live from St Mungo’s, the youth club where their road to love and rock ‘n’ roll fame all began.

This is the third instalment in the Dreamboats series, which began in 2009 with Dreamboats and Petticoats, which was inspired by the chart-topping album of the same name.

It runs from December 22-27, with tickets priced from £19.50 to £55.

Before that there are two great children’s favourites - The Cat in The Hat and Miracle on 34th Street.

Based on the much-loved book by Dr Seuss, The Cat in the Hat is a lively and engaging first theatre experience for young children aged 3+ and can be seen from De- cember 15-17 .

From the moment his tall, red-and-white-striped hat appears around the door, Sally and her brother know that the cat in the hat is the funniest, most mischievous cat they have ever met.

With the trickiest of tricks and craziest of ideas, he turns a rainy afternoon into an amazing adventure. But what will mum find when she gets home?

It is followed on December 18 and 19 by Miracle On 34th Street, based on one of the most popular and bestloved Christmas films of all time.

It is the heart-warming story of Susan, a young girl who dreams of a father and brother to make her family whole, and Kris Kringle, a kindly old bearded man who claims he is the real Santa Claus. When employed as a Santa at a department store grotto, Kris quickly spreads a wave of love through New York City, but can he help make Susan’s wish come true? This dazzling musi- cal is an uplifting family tale about what it truly means to believe.

And getting December off to a storming start is The Sound of Music, based on the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical film which generations have grown up watching on television at Christmas.

This new show will see two leading cast members making their debuts when the run starts on December 2.

Gray O’Brien, the former Coronation Street villain Tony Gordon has been cast as Captain von Trapp, while Lucy O’Byrne, fresh from her success on BBC One’s The Voice, joins as Maria.

Lucy, who hails from Dublin, became a household name earlier this year when she shot to success as a finalist in the live shows of the TV talent show. With chart-topper Will.i.am as her mentor, and biggest fan, Lucy made history as the first classical singer to reach the final, impressing the nation with her stunning vocal range.

This wonderfully lavish staging of the classic musical coincides with the 50th anniversary of the film version - the most successful movie musical in history.

It all began with the story of the Trapp Family Singers and Baroness Maria von Trapp’s 1949 autobiography, which inspired Richard Rodgers, Oscar Hammerstein II, Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse to create a Broadway musical in 1959.

The unforgettable score features some of the most memorable songs ever performed on stage, i ncluding ‘Edelweiss’, ‘My Favorite Things’, ‘Do-Re-Mi’, ‘Climb Ev’ry Mountain’, ‘ So Long, Farewell’ and of course, the title song, ‘The Sound of Music’.