Shakespeare gig theatre and Jungle Book hip-hop musical announced in Pleasance Theatre season

The Pleasance Theatre in north London has released details for its upcoming spring season.

Highlights include a new gig-theatre twist on Shakespeare's The Tempest by Wildcard Theatre and the return of Concrete Jungle Book, which adapts the classic Rudyard Kipling tale for a British inner-city setting, complete with live rap, reggae and grime music, alongside spoken word.

Anthony Alderson, director of Pleasance Theatre Trust, said: "Our Spring season is an eclectic mix of truly incredible performance from brand new companies just emerging on the scene to award-winning returners who are part of the Pleasance family. We can't wait to welcome back Wildcard after their amazing Electrolyte in Edinburgh or to see companies like HighRise Theatre bring back shows after triumphant sell-out runs. Our LGBTQ History Month shows present work from exciting drag artists to heartfelt autobiographical shows. I can't wait to sit back in our auditorium and watch them all."

Wildcard's Tempest is set to run from 11 March to 3 April, while Concrete Jungle Book's return engagement is scheduled from 25 May to 11 June.

In addition, Marika McKennell teams up with physical theatre company Project Lockout to present Caligari from 5 to 22 March. The piece offers a new interpretation of the German Expressionist classic silent film, fusing mime with poetry and lipsync.

From 9 to 13 February, Nathaniel Hall and Dibby Theatre bring the tragicomic autobiographical show First Time to the Pleasance stage, exploring Hall's personal journey growing up HIV in a negative world.

Dead Good Theatre present Leaving from 13 to 24 April. The show is comprised of 23 short scenes and monologues examining the impact of having to leave something or someone.

And direct from the 2021 London Horror Festival, SUCKER 4 U will play from 16 to 17 February, portraying "a doomed interdimensional romance between man and giantmonster-squid-from-beyond-the-stars".

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