"There was nothing 'lovely' about that, you idiot. That was art is what that was."
Book and lyrics by Bertolt Brecht
Music by Kurt Weill
English adaptation by Simon Stephens
Oxford Playhouse, October 2018
The coronation is looming, London is restless, and no-one is safe from the corrupt Mr and Mrs Peachum. When their daughter elopes in the middle of the night, a man-hunt begins through the grimy backstreets, brothels, and gallows of the city beyond morality, scouring the East End for her crime-lord husband. Mack the Knife is back.
Expect no arias as SLAM Theatre invites you on a jaunt into the underbelly of London, accompanied by Weill’s timeless score and Simon Stephens’ bold new adaptation of Brecht’s libretto. Come shed your scruples and dive into a world determined to destroy itself in this titillating display of grit, wit, blood, sex and politics.
Morality is not a simple matter.
CAST
Macheath
J J Peachum
Mrs P
Polly Peachum
Tiger Brown
Jenny
Lucy Brown
Balladeer
Filch
Pastor Kimble
Jimmy "Retail"
Walter, aka The Scholar
Marcus Knight-Adams
Ella Tournes
Emelye Moulton
Alex Buchanan
Amelia Holt
Maddy Page
Louis Cunningham
Ryan Lea
Gavin Fleming
Kerenza Hurr
Eloise Kenny-Ryder
CREW
Director
Producer
Musical Director
Assistant Director
Assistant Producer
Assistant Musical Director
Set Designer / Production Manager
Production Manager
Lighting Designer
Sound Designer
Associate Sound Design
Costume Designer
Assistant Costume
MARKETING TEAM
Marketing Managers
Marketing Assistants
Education and Access
Graphic Designer
Georgie Botham
Emilia Clark
Matthew Jackson
Issy Paul
Rhiannon Ogden-Jones
Josh Cottell
Christina Hill
Alex Walker
Cherona Chapman
Andrew Orr
Kavana Crossley
Chloe Dootson-Graube
Beth McCullagh
Emma Corris
Harry Lukakis
Jessica Bradley
Kristen Cope
Laura Coppinger
Franciscka Csongrady
Read more about our schools and access work
Click to go to REVIEWS
GALLERY
Photography and editing by Ben Darwent
REVIEWS
Oxford Opening Night
"I’m struck with the thought: this is how it’s supposed to be done."
"The Threepenny Opera manages to capture that rarest of things – a highly-studied piece which still manages to be an enjoyable watch. What could be more impressive than that?"
Read the full review HERE
The Cherwell
"SLAM Theatre’s The Threepenny Opera is not to be missed. As the first production of Simon Stephens’s adaptation since the National’s in 2016, SLAM makes the most of this exciting opportunity with their exhilarating and hilariously vibrant revival."
"Though the play is prefaced with a warning that “there will be no moralising tonight”, SLAM’s revival of The Threepenny Opera speaks to social problems of abuse and poverty, offering a compelling performance that is both unsettling and wonderfully entertaining."
"If at times the play borders on the absurd, it is prevented from ever becoming too chaotic by tight direction and well-rehearsed timings. Indeed, the performance was skilfully balanced, combining crude scenes of poverty and prostitution with hilarious slapstick comedy."
Read the full review HERE
Daily Info
"Self-awareness and a sense of humour about your work are probably the two most important things needed to make a student play succeed, and director Georgie Botham’s conception of Brecht’s famous satire The Threepenny Opera had these by the bucketload."
"a visual treat of a production, the SLAM Theatre students using every square centimetre, both horizontally and vertically, of the Playhouse's ample space."
"an excellent rendition of a classic play, true to the spirit of the original - at once entertaining, uncomfortable and thought-provoking - and with some innovative twists of its own."
Read the full review HERE
Director, Georgie, interviewing playwright Simon Stephens at the Oxford Playhouse in October 2018
EDUCATION PACK
Download the Threepenny education pack here:
If you're a school that would like more information, then don't hesitate to contact us at