THEATRE: ... AND BEYOND

1

The Winter's Tale (Watermill, Newbury)

Edward Hall and his all-male Propeller Company excel even their own enviable best with this simply (and not-so- simply) wonderful production of Shakespeare's late, great tragicomedy. See Reviews, right. To 9 Mar

2

Julius Caesar (Swan Theatre, Stratford)

David Farr's informal production transplants the proceedings from ancient Rome to the world of other would-be dictators, such as Vladimir Putin in modern-day Russia. To 26 Feb

3

Going Dutch (Plowright Theatre, Scunthorpe & Grand Theatre, Blackpool)

Cracking new comedy by John Godber in which a 50th-birthday weekend in Amsterdam is disrupted by an old college friend and her one-time porn- star lover. Scunthorpe, tonight; Blackpool, Tue to Sat

4

Relative Values (Salisbury Playhouse)

Lucy Pitman-Wallace directs a rare revival of this 950s Noel Coward comedy in which the upper-crust bridle when an heir apparent gets engaged to a Hollywood starlet. How times change. To 26 Feb

5

Rutherford and Son (Royal Exchange, Manchester)

Northern industrial drama and the tensions between fathers and the younger generation are presented from a valuably female perspective in this revival of Githa Soweby's fine play.

To 9 Feb