Step into the enchanting world of the Stephen Joseph Theatre (SJT) in Scarborough, where a captivating lineup of theatrical events awaits audiences this holiday season. From exclusive sessions at Circle Café to the much-anticipated play 'Aladdin,' and the heartwarming melodies of André Rieu's Christmas Concert, SJT promises an unforgettable experience for every visitor. Join us as we explore these events, meet the artists, and dive into the magic that the theatre world has to offer. Whether you're a theatre enthusiast or a festive reveler, SJT has something special in store for you.

A Theatrical Extravaganza: Unveiling the Magic of Stephen Joseph Theatre's Upcoming Performances

This Christmas, be transported into an ethereal world where a sprinkling of fairy dust makes dreams come true. This enchanting ballet by The Royal Ballet’s Founding Choreographer Frederick Ashton is a theatrical experience for all the family.

Royal Ballet and Opera: Cinderella (12A)

Stephen Joseph Theatre

It's the Isolation Creations' Chrimbo event - what better way to celebrate the holidays? Our festive extravaganza and Christmas Camptacular promises an afternoon of uproarious entertainment…oh, yes it does!

Isolation Creations Haus of Games: Tinsel 'n' Turkey

It’s a busy day down at Scarborough’s South Bay. The judges from Britain’s Best Beach are due to arrive any minute but, after a big rush of tourists, the bins are overflowing with rubbish. There’s litter everywhere and a pile of something sticky by the rock shop. Who can save Scarborough? 

Captain Cliff & the Seagull Squad

Master storyteller Robert Lloyd Parry is back with two more thrilling M R James stories following his sold out performance of A Warning To The Curious in 2023.

Casting the Runes

Raven are delighted to be performing their ever-popular annual Christmas concert fundraiser for the SJT this year.

Raven

Celebrate the holiday season with André Rieu's dazzling Christmas Concert Gold and Silver, bringing joy, warmth, and sparkle to the big screen.

Get ready to be transported to the wondrous world of enchanting glamour that is André's winter wonderland -under the sparkle of 150 chandeliers and 50 Venetian candelabras, feel your heart warm with the magical melody of all your favourite Christmas classics.

André Rieu's 2024 Christmas Concert: Gold and Silver

An angel is sent from Heaven to help a desperately frustrated businessman by showing him what life would have been like if he had never existed.

Dementia-Friendly Film: It's a Wonderful Life (1946, U)

Buddy Holly and the Cricketers once again herald in the Yuletide festivities with Holly at Christmas, the show that is now as traditional as mulled wine and mince pies! Holly’s hits, other contemporary classics and some Christmas crackers are all wrapped up in a fast, furious and funny feast of entertainment to make the perfect gift for all the family.

Buddy Holly and the Cricketers - Holly at Christmas

We're delighted to be hosting a conversation with SJT Patron James Norton as our latest fundraising event. James grew up just down the road in Malton and came to the SJT on work experience age 15. Over the course of his career he's become a household name, recently appearing in Happy Valley, Joy and Bob Marley: One Love. Last year he appeared in the stage adaptation of the best-selling book A Little Life, winning numerous awards for his performance.

In Conversation with James Norton

Adrian Dunbar (Line of Duty, Ridley) and Broadway royalty Stephanie J. Block (Into The Woods, The Cher Show) lead a stellar cast in a sizzling new 5-star production of Kiss Me, Kate, filmed live at the Barbican in London especially for the big screen.

Kiss Me, Kate: The Musical (PG)

Everyone loves magic here – magic spells, magic shows, magic shops… everyone, that is, except Aladdin. Why?

He’s rubbish at magic. Like, really, really terrible.

Which wouldn’t be a problem, except his dad – before he disappeared – was the most beloved sorcerer Scarbaresia has ever known. Aladdin works in a shop selling magical merchandise and dreaming of a better life for him and his mum.

Aladdin

Troubled new kid in town Jim Stark (James Dean) gets in with the wrong crowd, clashing with peers, parents and the law as events spiral toward a dramatic conclusion.

Our monthly Moviedrome screenings bring you the chance to discover - or rediscover! - a choice cut of cinema that's cult, classic or somewhere in-between. The films are hand-picked by our resident film expert George Cromack, who introduces each screening. Moviedrome is a mix of guilty pleasures you never tire of seeing and overlooked gems you'll wonder why you've never seen!

Moviedrome: Rebel Without a Cause (1955, PG)

The story of Christopher Reeve is an astonishing rise from unknown actor to iconic movie star, and his definitive portrayal of Clark Kent/Superman set the benchmark for the superhero cinematic universes that dominate cinema today.

Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (12A)

While working as a coal merchant to support his family, he discovers disturbing secrets kept by the local convent - and uncovers truths of his own - forcing him to confront his past and the complicit silence of a small Irish town controlled by the Catholic Church.

Small Things Like These (12A)

Two young missionaries become ensnared in a deadly game of cat and mouse when they knock on the door of the diabolical Mr. Reed. Trapped in his home, they must turn to their faith if they want to make it out alive.

Heretic (15)

When it comes to music on the Mississippi river, the Cotton Blossom show boat is the place to go. When musical main attraction Julie Laverne and her husband are suddenly forced to leave the show, Cotton Blossom owner Andy Hawks' own daughter Magnolia takes centre stage. She soon falls madly in love with roguish gambler Gaylord Ravenal, and the two leave the Cotton Blossom on a honeymoon - only to enter into a tumultuous marriage.

Dementia-Friendly Film: Show Boat (1952, U)

Written and directed by celebrated playwright Conor McPherson and featuring Tony Award-winning orchestrations by Simon Hale, Girl From The North Country reimagines 20 legendary songs of Bob Dylan as they’ve never been heard before, including “Forever Young”, “All Along The Watchtower”, “Hurricane” and “Like A Rolling Stone.”

The World's Greatest Stage Musicals: Girl from the North Country

Colm Meaney (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Layer Cake) and Paul Reiser (Mad About You, Aliens) star as two estranged cousins, who having never met before, must try and put to rest a generation’s worth of family disputes – before they start another one!

Honouring his father’s last wish to reunite with the American side of his family, Irishman Ciáran calls his cousin, Barry, out of the blue with the offer for him to visit his homeland. Barry, keen to escape from the daily grind of his New York real estate firm, agrees to make the long trip over.

The Problem with People (15)

Ingrid (Julianne Moore) and Martha (Tilda Swinton) were close friends in their youth, when they worked together at the same magazine. Ingrid went on to become an autofiction novelist while Martha became a war reporter, and they were separated by the circumstances of life.

The Room Next Door (12A)

Paris, France, 1935, and a young actress has just been acquitted of murdering a famous French producer. But what's the truth behind the murder...?

The Crime is Mine (15)

A new show by acclaimed writer, storyteller and performer James Rowland, telling the story of a remarkable friendship he made when he was a lonely, unhappy teenager.

James Rowland: Learning to Fly

Described as “a triumph” by The Sunday Times, this state of the nation comedy is by turns hilarious and unsettling as Matt and Rose are inducted into the world of caravanning and karaoke.

Perfect Pitch by John Godber

A one-day symposium for creative people. Industry speakers, practical workshops, taster sessions and accessible networking.

Creative Connections

The greatest rock songs and power ballads, including songs by Queen, Fleetwood Mac, Def Leppard, Roxette, Berlin, Van Halen, Extreme, AC/DC, Whitesnake and more.

The Retro Rock Show

After living life on the edge in London, Rona attempts to come to terms with her troubled past. Hoping to heal, she returns to the wild beauty of Scotland's Orkney Islands where she grew up.

The Outrun (15)

The most exciting and dramatic period of Van Gogh’s life explored on the big screen, using his revealing letters to better understand this iconic figure.

Exhibition on Screen - Van Gogh: Poets and Lovers (12A)

Puppetry, storytelling, projection and live original music combine to tell a beautiful story of the Selkies and a fisherman who discovers their secret...

SealSkin

The 25th anniversary of the first public performance of Phantom of the Opera was celebrated with a fully-staged, lavish production, set in the sumptuous Victorian splendour of the Royal Albert Hall.

Starring Ramin Karimloo as The Phantom and Sierra Boggess as Christine, together with a cast and orchestra of over 200 and some special guest appearances.

The World's Greatest Stage Musicals: The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall (PG)

Follow hapless heroine Agnes (Alice Lowe) through time as she repeatedly falls for the wrong guy, dies a grim death, and is reincarnated a century later before meeting him again and starting the cycle anew.

Timestalker (15)

An American grandson of the infamous scientist, struggling to prove that his grandfather wasn't as insane as people believe, is invited to Transylvania where he discovers the process that reanimates a dead body...

Fright Fest '24: Young Frankenstein (1974, 12A)

Hidden amongst the concrete high-rises and the redbrick buildings is something pretty unexpected: a place bursting with colour, where flowers, fruits and vegetables come to life in every corner growing up walls, twisting around handrails and planted in unusual objects.

The Hidden Garden

Werner Herzog’s much praised remake of the classic 1922 silent film based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

Count Dracula moves from Transylvania to Wismar, spreading the Black Plague across the land. Only a woman pure of heart can bring an end to his reign of horror...

Moviedrome: Nosferatu - Phantom der Nacht (Nosferatu the Vampyre) (1979, 12A)

The Circle Café is an exclusive monthly Members' event to meet the people behind SJT – including actors, directors, and SJT staff - for a fascinating insight into your favourite theatre. We can’t wait to meet you.

Circle Café

Join the ragtag band of wild musicians as they guide all the family through the famous tale of Red Riding Hood with new twists, turns, magic and song.

Royal Ballet and Opera: Wolf Witch Giant Fairy (12A)

Soulmates Eric (Skarsgård) and Shelly (FKA twigs) are brutally murdered when the demons of her dark past catch up with them. Given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself, Eric sets out to seek merciless revenge on their killers, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right.

Fright Fest '24: The Crow (2024, 18)

In Whitby Harbour, in the summer of 1991, something extraordinary happened. A humble pleasure boat set sail for the Arctic crewed by misfits, pensioners and the vicar for Egton & Grosmont.

This motley crew was assembled by Captain Jack Lammiman to complete a daring mission: to erect a plaque honouring Whitby whaling Captain William Scoresby senior on a volcanic island hundreds of miles north of Iceland.

The Whitby Rebels

Eric Draven and his fiancée are murdered on the eve of their Halloween wedding. Exactly one year after their deaths, he's risen from the grave by a mysterious crow to seek out his killers and force them to answer for their crimes.

Fright Fest '24: The Crow (1994, 15)

Manchester 2017. In the middle of a hot and sweaty queer warehouse party, two damaged hearts collide. He is HIV+ and drowning in shame. They are queer and one microaggression away from a full-on meltdown. Born into Thatcher’s Britain of race riots and rampant homophobia and growing up in the shadow of Aids and Section 28, the pair form a trauma bond so tight, they might just survive it all. But sometimes survival means knowing when to leave.

Toxic

Julia Trevelyan Oman’s period designs bring festive charm to Peter Wright’s beloved Royal Ballet production, as fairytale magic comes together with spectacular dancing in this unforgettable classic ballet.

Royal Ballet and Opera: The Nutcracker (12A)

Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) is forced to babysit her baby stepbrother, Toby. He doesn't stop crying and she wishes that he'd be taken away.

When stops crying, she learns her wish was granted and the Goblin King Jareth (David Bowie) has taken him to his castle in the Goblin City in the middle of a labyrinth. Sarah repents and asks Jareth to give him back, but Jareth tells her she has to rescue him before midnight. Soon she teams up with some allies: will they rescue Toby in time?

Moviedrome: Labyrinth (1986, U)

The ever popular Hammonds Brass Band returns to the Stephen Joseph Theatre for a fabulous afternoon of the best of brass music.

The award-winning band, one of the country’s premiere brass ensembles, was founded in 1855 by Sir Titus Salt as an amenity for the workers at his recently opened mill. The band later had a long association with Hammonds Sauce Works under the baton of the legendary Geoffrey Whitham. It is from these two parts of its past that it derives its current name, Hammonds Band.

Hammonds Brass Band

Juan Diego Flórez leads a fantastic cast in Offenbach's dream-like opera.

Sung in French with English subtitles

Royal Ballet and Opera: The Tales of Hoffman (12A)

A screening of the stage concert of the musical phenomenon, filmed at the Gielgud Theatre.

To mark the 40th anniversary of the world’s most popular musical, a unique opportunity to experience the spectacular staged concert version on the big screen featuring an all-star cast including Michael Ball, Alfie Boe, Carrie Hope Fletcher, Matt Lucas and John Owen Jones.


The World's Greatest Stage Musicals: Les Misérables - The Staged Concert Live (40th Anniversary)

Last Rites combines exciting physical, non-verbal storytelling with dynamic projection and an immersive soundtrack that can be felt and heard. Told through a Deaf man’s unique perspective, this show tells the passionate and poignant story of a complex relationship cut short.

Last Rites

David Tennant (Doctor Who, Broadchurch) and Cush Jumbo (The Good Wife, Criminal Record) lead a stellar cast in an ‘enthralling’ (★★★★★ Daily Telegraph) new production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth, filmed live at London's Donmar Warehouse especially for the big screen.

Macbeth: David Tennant & Cush Jumbo (12A)

Drawn from two years of Sussex retirement for the funeral of his friend, Dr Watson, Holmes returns to Baker Street to resolve ‘the last act’ of his epic career.

A theatrical evening then unfolds, with fourteen characters all played by Nigel Miles-Thomas in a tour de force performance.

Sherlock Holmes: The Last Act

Three-time Olivier Award-winner Sharon D Clarke is joined by Ncuti Gatwa (Doctor Who; Sex Education) in this joyful reimagining of Oscar Wilde’s most celebrated comedy. 

Being sensible can be excessively boring. At least Jack thinks so.

National Theatre Live: The Importance of Being Ernest (12A)

In 2023, a clip of Oasiz front man Steve performing as Liam went viral, racking up over 10 million views with fans convinced the clip was Liam Gallagher himself. The story was covered in the national press, including an appearance on national TV later that year.

Oasiz

Classical ballet's most powerful tale of love, treachery and forgiveness.



Royal Ballet and Opera: Swan Lake (12A)

Classical ballet's most powerful tale of love, treachery and forgiveness.

Power trio Lady Maisery and boundless songwriters O’Hooley & Tidow join forces again (at long last!) for the first time since their much loved annual collaboration as supergroup COVEN.

Combining the vocal and multi-instrumental talents of Rowan Rheingans, Hazel Askew and Hannah James, Lady Maisery has enraptured audiences throughout the UK and Europe with their “generosity of spirit and joie de vivre that seems to emanate from every minute of their exuberant live shows” (Folk Radio UK). Their most recent album Tender is an arresting record exploring the power in vulnerability, the tenderness of collective wounds and strength in kindness, hailed “a beguiling blend of ancient and modern” (The Times) and “both nurturing and raw, a sensitive response to the times we are living in” (Daily Info).

Lady Maisery and O’Hooley & Tidow

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s rock classic Jesus Christ Superstar returns to its roots with this sensational performance filmed in the UK during the Live Arena Tour.

An incredible cast - including Tim Minchin as Judas Iscariot, Melanie Chisholm as Mary Magdalene, Chris Moyles as King Herod and Ben Forster as Jesus Christ - perform hit songs including “I Don’t Know How to Love Him,” “Gethsemane,” “Heaven on Their Minds,” “Everything’s Alright,” “King Herod’s Song” and “Superstar” in an exciting and contemporary interpretation.

The World's Greatest Stage Musicals: Jesus Christ Superstar Live (12A)

Join International award winning Cabaret super-star, Velma Celli, for an evening of music, comedy and general fabulous entertainment in her tribute to the best UK music icons, from Adele, Amy Winehouse and Annie Lennox to Florence Welch, Leona Lewis, The Spice Girls and more.

Velma Celli: God Save the Queens

“Two households, both alike in dignity. In broken Belfast, where we lay our scene...”

A brand-new adaption set on the streets of Northern Ireland’s capital in 1998 - the year the Good Friday agreement was signed.

Romeo & Juliet

An ancient family feud casts a long shadow over the town of Verona. In this hothouse of tension, brawls are quick to break out and both sides get caught in the crossfire...

Royal Ballet and Opera: Romeo and Juliet (12A)

The Impressionists are the most popular group in art history – millions flock every year to marvel at their masterpieces. But to begin with, they were scorned, penniless outsiders. 1874 was the year that changed everything; the first Impressionists, “hungry for independence”, broke the mould by holding their own exhibition outside official channels. Impressionism was born and the art world was changed forever.

Exhibition on Screen - Dawn of Impressionism: Paris 1874

The stags have made a solemn promise to each other: this is a boys’ weekend. Don’t talk to any girls, don’t even think about any girls, and most importantly, do not contact the hens.

The hens are ready for fun in the sun when the resort calls to say they’ve had to relocate them… to a hotel in Ibiza. Both groups of revellers are stuck on the same Mediterranean island. Cue shoddy disguises, mislaid love letters and theatrical chaos.

Love's Labour's Lost (more or less)

Based on the Academy Award® nominated film, Billy Elliot the Musical has won the hearts of millions since it opened in London’s West End in 2005.

Set in a northern mining town against the background of the 1984/85 miners’ strike, Billy’s journey takes him out of the boxing ring and into a ballet class where he discovers a passion for dance that changes his life forever.

The World's Greatest Stage Musicals: Billy Elliot the Musical Live (20th Anniversary)

Puccini’s captivating opera of a cold-hearted princess and her mysterious suitor. Featuring the ever-popular ‘Nessun dorma’, this opera of love and revenge is brought to life in a dazzling production.

Royal Ballet and Opera: Turandot (12A)

"What does it profit a person if they gain the whole world and lose their own soul?”

Dorian Gray, young and beautiful, sinks deep into a frivolous lifestyle of selfish abandon, seeming unchanged by corruption and untouched by age. But behind a locked door beneath a heavy curtain, Dorian’s portrait tells a different story

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Whether it’s finding a lost shoe or discovering who did a poo on the new gravel path, Nell’s ever-sniffing nose is always hard at work. So when the books at the school have disappeared one morning, Detective Dog Nell is ready to sniff out the culprit!

The Detective Dog

Mankind is on the cusp of vast technological change, scientific mastery and media innovation. But poised between traditional beliefs, the threat of the unknown and the shock of the new world, an altogether darker fear is emerging.

As a new shadow looms large over England, a small group of young men and women, led by Professor Van Helsing, are plunged into an epic struggle for survival. Stretching from London, through provincial England, to the mountainous wastes of Transylvania, Bram Stoker’s timeless gothic thriller embodies the struggle to break taboos, resist temptation and stop the unknown outside becoming the enemy within.

Dracula

What started as a College project has grown into a passion, but the dance steps are exhausting. Far beyond their home city of Hull, our trio find excitement, purpose and the tribe they’ve been looking for - and now they can’t get enough! From Brid Spa to Stoke, from Scarborough to the Tower Ballroom, our young soulies are determined to keep the faith.

Do I Love You? by John Godber

Welcome to the warped mirror world of Imaginary Friends, award-winning writer-performer Daniel Bye’s first solo show for seven years. This is a major event.

After a personal tragedy, a floundering TV comic starts listening to the wrong voices in his head. They’re terrible people, and he knows it. But the ideas they’re coming up with for his failing show are terrific.

Daniel Bye: Imaginary Friends

Songs, stories and anecdotes from the life and times of a true British music legend.

Award winning songwriter and star of The Voice UK Peter Donegan and his older brother Anthony present a fantastic evening of Lonnie’s songs and stories about their legendary father - ‘The King of Skiffle’, Lonnie Donegan.

Lonnie Donegan - The Stories

The spectacular sculptures and paintings of Michelangelo seem so familiar to us, but what do we really know about this renaissance genius? Who was this ambitious and passionate man?

A virtuoso craftsman, Michelangelo’s artistry is evident in everything he touched. Beautiful and diverse works such as the towering statue of David, the deeply moving Pietà in the Papal Basilica of St. Peter and his tour-de-force, the Sistine Chapel ceiling, still leave us breathless today.

Exhibition on Screen - Michelangelo: Love and Death (Encore)

Sensuous contemporary ballet meets the energy of musical theatre in four distinctive short works - Fool’s Paradise, The Two of Us, An American in Paris, Us - showing the remarkable choreographic range of The Royal Ballet's Artistic Associate, Christopher Wheeldon.

Royal Ballet and Opera: Ballet to Broadway - Wheeldon Works (12A)

The Rod Stewart Songbook’s spectacular theatre production is the ultimate homage to Rod Stewart, featuring Pete McCall, Europe’s foremost tribute. Along with his sensational live band, you'll be taken on a musical journey spanning 50 years, when one of rock music’s greatest icons sold over 250 million records worldwide. These unforgettable hits include Sailing, Maggie May, Da Ya Think I’m Sexy, Some Guys Have All The Luck, Baby Jane, Rhythm Of My Heart, You Wear It Well, Hot Legs and many many more.

The Rod Stewart Songbook Theatre Show

Tavaziva Dance returns to the SJT with Greed, a dynamic, powerful, exhilarating dance piece accompanied by a stimulating and infectious soundtrack.

First performed to great acclaim in 2013, Greed is choreographer Bawren Tavaziva’s treatment of The Seven Deadly Sins and deals with the interplay of money, power, and religion between African and Western cultures.

Tavaziva Dance: Greed

Do you have questions after a breakup that were left unanswered? Well Lydia did, so she sent a questionnaire to all her ex-partners and made a show out of it.

Closure? is a one act comedy performance following Lydia De La Murrãy on her journey of self-discovery through analysing all her past relationships…in great detail.

Closure?

Karen’s silky contralto is combined with Richard’s piano and seamless harmonies in this big production that brings Close to You, We've only Just Begun, Top of the World, Rainy Days and Mondays, Solitaire, Goodbye to Love, Please Mr Postman, For All We Know, Only Yesterday and dozens more classic songs to the stage.

Stephen Joseph Theatre

12 - 21 Dec, 2024

Captain Cliff & the Seagull Squad

Nov 29 - Dec 28, 2024

Aladdin

Dec 22, 2024

Royal Ballet and Opera: The Nutcracker (12A)

Dec 27, 2024

Moviedrome: Labyrinth (1986, U)

Jan 5, 2025

Hammonds Brass Band

Dec 16, 2024

Royal Ballet and Opera: Cinderella (12A)

Dec 15, 2024

Isolation Creations Haus of Games: Tinsel 'n' Turkey

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Stephen Joseph Theatre