Clare Brennan

From dodging bombs to dancing in nightclubs, Syrian theatre-maker Hamzeh Al Hussien enacts the story of his life

Grounding fantasy in emotional reality, director Theresa Heskins and her joyous 14-strong ensemble make the David Niven-starring film fly on stage

Azuka Oforka’s bold, ambitious play confronts the horrors of slavery, while Emma Rice takes on Hitchcock’s classic, sidelining suspense but springing surprises

A Glasgow country-singing ex-con single mother dreams of the big time in Nicole Taylor’s new musical, directed by John Tiffany

The remarkable true story of how the resident of a Cardiff institution and a student revolutionised supported living is told with agit-prop energy and via superb performances

A fine, multitasking cast of three deliver laughs aplenty in Ian Hislop and Nick Newman’s adaptation of a 1930s satire, though the cad’s true malice is lacking

Shaw conveys both the public and private Thomas More in a period-perfect if patchy production of Bolt’s 1960 play of power and corruption

Shakespeare’s fleet-footed romance is somewhat constrained by Prasanna Puwanarajah’s direction, yet there are memorable moments

A stand-in Genie saves the day in a magical production of the age-old story that has audience members young and old suspending disbelief

The audience sees above and below the floorboards – with a little help from puppets – as Mark Babych’s production cleverly plays with scale