One could be forgiven for thinking that theatre is all sparkly wands and ugly sisters at this time of year. But, for those with an aversion to flying sweets and screaming kiddies, there has been a veritable Aladdin’s Cave of non-panto riches this week, with the openings of classic musicals Company (at the Sheffield Crucible) and 42nd Street (at the Leicester Curve), an excellent stage adaptation of Ealing comedy The Ladykillers in the West End (pictured here) and – for those of a more serious temperament – Michael Grandage’s swansong at the Donmar Warehouse, Richard II Photograph: Tristram Kenton
Yusuf Islam, the artist formerly (and better) known as Cat Stevens, has been trying to get a musical based on his back catalogue on to the stage for some time. Back in 2009, there was talk of the show opening at the Derngate Theatre in Northampton, prior to a West End run, but that was abandoned when producers failed to secure a London theatre. Now, the musical – entitled Moonshadow – has re-emerged on the other side of the world, with news this week that it will open in Melbourne in May 2012 Photograph: Chris Pizzello / AP
Stateside, there has been a serious falling-out between the New York City Opera and the unions representing its orchestra and chorus. The company is currently faced with severe financial problems, meaning it has had to reduce its budget for next year from $31m (£20m) to $13.3m. As a result, it is looking to cut both the number of productions it stages and the amounts it pays its performers, as well as their benefits and guarantees of work. The unions claim it is essentially turning staff into freelancers and are threatening industrial action. Mediators have been called in to settle the dispute Photograph: Carol Rosegg
Back in London, the West End is facing its own problems, as it tries to come to terms with the assorted threats and opportunities presented by the 2012 Olympics. This week, the West End’s trade body, the Society of London Theatre, published a travel guide for getting in, out and about the area during the Olympic period. Meanwhile, it has also been in talks with the Metropolitan police about cracking down on ticket touts during the games, so that tourists don’t get fleeced Photograph: Jeff Blackler / Rex Features
Meanwhile, Salford’s Lowry Theatre was hosting the Royal Variety Performance for the first time ever, with Princess Anne in attendance. The event wasn’t without its hitches, though, as a series of technical problems meant that the eventual running time clocked in somewhere over the four-hour mark. Host Peter Kay was forced to apologise repeatedly to the audience, at one point taking to the stage to ask if anyone had a screwdriver. I suspect you’re unlikely to see any of this when the edited version hits ITV1 next week. Nicole Scherzinger (pictured) was one of the performers Photograph: ITV
Vanessa Redgrave, currently appearing in Driving Miss Daisy in the West End, has been appointed as the guest director of the 2012 Brighton festival. She follows another female firebrand – Aung San Suu Kyi, who presided over this year’s event, although admittedly from afar. No announcement yet of what Redgrave’s programme will feature next May, but it’s a fair guess it might have a slight political flavour. Meanwhile, news of a new festival in London next summer. The Chelsea fringe will run alongside the famous flower show, boasting a gardening theme. Perhaps another opportunity for Vanessa with her Driving Miss Daisy hat on? Photograph: David Levene
A salutary lesson for the Chelsea fringe from its elder brother north of the border, with a sad story that illustrates the dangers of operating on a shoe-string during a global economic crisis. Remarkable Arts, one of the Edinburgh fringe’s most critically acclaimed venue operators, has revealed that they are being wound up, in a move that will leave many of the companies who staged work with them during this summer’s festival thousands of pounds out of pocket Photograph: Murdo Macleod
