shirley valentine on tour 2023

Shirley Valentine

“Why do we get all these feelings and dreams and hopes if we don't ever use them? Why do we get all this life if we don’t ever use it.”

Shirley is a more...

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Past Events

Here are the most recent UK tour dates we had listed for Shirley Valentine. Were you there?

• 2020 Feb 27 Mar 15 2020 Belfast, Lyric Theatre Shirley Valentine
• 2017 Nov 06 Nov 11 2017 Dartford, Orchard Theatre Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Oct 23 Oct 28 2017 Newcastle upon Tyne, Theatre Royal Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Oct 02 Oct 07 2017 Northampton, Royal & Derngate Theatre Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Sep 18 Sep 23 2017 New Brighton, Floral Pavilion Theatre & Blue Lounge Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Sep 11 Sep 16 2017 Blackpool, Grand Theatre Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Sep 05 Sep 09 2017 Norwich, Theatre Royal Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Jul 24 Jul 29 2017 Festival Theatre (Malvern Theatres) Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Jul 17 Jul 22 2017 Brighton, Theatre Royal Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger
• 2017 Jul 10 Jul 15 2017 Shrewsbury, Theatre Severn Shirley Valentine (Touring), Jodie Prenger

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Shirley Valentine review – Sheridan Smith disarms and dazzles with heart and soul

Duke of York’s theatre, London Willy Russell’s 1986 monologue about a neglected woman’s midlife liberation is given new life in this perceptive production

W illy Russell’s 1986 monologue was a forerunner to the Thelma and Louise era of women who find a second lease of life in middle age. Almost four decades on, its portrait of a Liverpudlian housewife’s transformational trip to the Greek island of her dreams could so easily feel dated.

What is striking about Matthew Dunster’s production is that it leans into the sense of a bygone time and is deceptively passé at the start. There are references to the Milk Tray Man, the drachma and the EEC. Jane, who invites Shirley (Sheridan Smith) on a holiday to Crete, is branded a feminist because she has divorced her husband. Paul Wills’s 80s kitchen set mirrors the pastel colour scheme of Shirley’s mint trousers and pink bat-winged top.

It looks like a poundshop Alan Bennett as Shirley giggles conspiratorially with her glass of wine and talks to herself – and to her kitchen wall. The comedy is of the Saturday night kind with lukewarm, slightly predictable punchlines. She tells us marriage is like the Middle East (“there’s no solution”) and that sex is like going to the supermarket because after all the pushing and shoving you come out with very little.

The light and froth is a cunning trick, the play’s core crisis revealing itself in measures. When it does, it feels real and painful. The deeper, existential elements are powered by Smith’s disarming and quietly dazzling performance. She mines every ounce of cheeky comedy but also builds such surreptitious and organic emotional undercurrents that we buy every moment, and the play is eternally relevant.

Shirley is a woman so lonely she has taken to talking to a wall; a wife and mother who has lost her identity in dutifulness, and a pragmatist who long ago learned to turn her life’s disappointments into jokes.

Slowly the play reveals itself to be about identity, ageing, how we betray our own dreams and become people we don’t recognise, and how we tolerate unhappiness for fear of the unknown.

Russell’s script shows a deep and compassionate understanding of a certain kind of working-class woman at a certain age (though 42 seems rather premature for a midlife crisis now). She is judged not only by the men around her but women too – positively at times – though her daughter tells her that two middle-aged women going to Greece is “disgusting”.

In the second act, Wills’s set now a gorgeous abstraction of glowing pink and blue skies, Shirley’s feelgood message to value every minute of life does not sound mawkish when delivered by Smith. Shirley decides to have a bigger, fuller life and reminds us to do so too. Yes, it is too light and romantic a picture of midlife liberation but it gives us the shivers nonetheless.

Like Russell’s play Educating Rita, this is a work we know better through film, but Smith brings its heart and soul back to the theatre.

At the Duke of York’s theatre, London , until 3 June

• Sheridan Smith
• Willy Russell

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Sheridan Smith Will Return to the West End in SHIRLEY VALENTINE in February 2023

Performances begin 17 February 2023.

A new production of Willy Russell 's classic comedy SHIRLEY VALENTINE, starring Sheridan Smith and directed by Matthew Dunster , is coming to London's Duke of York's Theatre from Friday 17 February 2023 for 12 Weeks.

Shirley Valentine is the joyous, life-affirming story of the woman who got lost in marriage and motherhood, the woman who wound up talking to the kitchen wall whilst cooking her husband's chips and egg. But Shirley still has a secret dream. And in her bag, an airline ticket. One day she may just leave a note, saying: 'Gone! Gone to Greece.'

Shirley Valentine is the celebrated one-woman play written by Willy Russell , winning him his third Olivier Award. Sheridan Smith is a multi-award-winning actress with two Olivier Awards and a BAFTA. Matthew Dunster is a three-time Olivier Award nominated director whose work most recently has been seen on Broadway with Martin McDonagh 's Hangmen and in the West End with 2.22 by Danny Robins at the Criterion Theatre.

David Pugh , the five-time Olivier Award winning and Two-time Tony Award winning Producer said: "Back in 1986 I was lucky enough to see the first ever production of Shirley Valentine in Liverpool. I have begged Willy to one day let me produce a revival of Shirley Valentine when the casting was right. That day is now and both Willy and I believe that Sheridan Smith is the perfect Shirley Valentine."

Sheridan Smith said "As a mum now myself I'm delighted to be playing theatre's best-loved mum and I am honoured to be entrusted by Willy Russell to bring his Shirley to life once again in the West End. Now, to practice cooking chips and egg!"

Sheridan Smith is an award-winning stage and screen actress, whose acclaimed West End credits include playing Elle Woods in Legally Blonde at the Savoy Theatre and Doris in Flare Path at Theatre Royal Haymarket, both roles garnering her Olivier Awards, and the latter the Evening Standard Award as Best Actress. She received further Olivier nominations for her performance as Audrey in Little Shop of Horrors at the Menier Chocolate Factory and Duke of York's Theatre, and Fanny Brice in Funny Girl at the Savoy Theatre. Other notable performances include Hedda Gabler at The Old Vic, Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream at the Noel Coward Theatre, the Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the London Palladium, and her stage debut as Little Red Riding Hood in Into the Woods at The Donmar Warehouse . Amongst her prolific screen roles, Sheridan was Emmy-nominated and won a BAFTA as Mrs Biggs, and further BAFTA-nominated for The C Word and her titular role in Cilla, for which she was also Emmy-nominated. Big screen credits include Dustin Hoffman 's Quartet and most recently The Railway Children Return. She has released two albums, titled Sheridan and A Northern Soul, resulting in two Classic BRIT Award nominations.

Willy Russell is the multi-award-winning writer whose career spans over five decades. His plays and screenplays include Educating Rita, Shirley Valentine and the musical phenomenon Blood Brothers. Never a day goes by when something written by Willy Russell is not being performed somewhere around the world. willyrussell.com

Matthew Dunster is a theatre and film director and writer. He was born and raised in Oldham and now lives in South-east London. Previously an actor, he has directed or written over sixty shows, often with major national companies including RSC, NT, Royal Court, Young Vic , Royal Exchange, Shakespeare's Globe, The Bridge, as well as directing on the West End, Broadway and internationally. He has been the Associate Director of The Young Vic and Shakespeare's Globe. His most recent productions are 2:22 A Ghost Story which has been running in the West End since August 2021, and A Midsummer Night's Dream, the inaugural Shakespeare production at the new Shakespeare North Playhouse.

SHIRLEY VALENTINE is written by Willy Russell , directed by Matthew Dunster , designed by Paul Wills , with lighting design by Lucy Carter , sound design by Ian Dickinson for Autograph and is produced by David Pugh .

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Shirley Valentine

Book Shirley Valentine tickets to see Sheridan Smith in the classic rom-com

Sheridan Smith makes her long-awaited return to the West End stage in 2023, starring in Willy Russell’s uplifting rom-com Shirley Valentine . Smith delivers a joyful performance as the unappreciated housewife who jets off to Greece at the Duke of York’s Theatre . 

Shirley Valentine is a housewife who talks to the kitchen walls as she cooks her husband’s egg and chips. The dreams she had as a younger woman seem like a distant memory, replaced by a family who don’t appreciate her and the drudgery of daily life. But everything could change when her friend wins two tickets to Greece and invites her along. Shirley throws down her cooking utensils in favour of a sunny escape to the Mediterranean, and begins a life-changing adventure. 

Shirley Valentine is Willy Russell’s celebrated one-woman play, which many will remember from its 1989 film adaptation starring Pauline Collins . Playwright Russell’s other work includes Educating Rita and Blood Brothers . 

Olivier and BAFTA Award winner Sheridan Smith has starred in a host of West End shows including Funny Girl , Little Shop of Horrors and Legally Blonde . On television, she is known for portraying Cilla Black in biopic Cilla , as well as sitcoms Gavin & Stacey and The Royle Family. 

Shirley Valentine in London is directed by Olivier Award winner Matthew Dunster , whose most recent work, 2:22 A Ghost Story , has been wowing West End audiences at no less than three different theatres since 2021. 

Sheridan Smith steps into the globe-trotting, liberated shoes of a rom-com icon for this revival of the modern classic that teaches us all to follow our dreams. Don’t miss her latest star turn, as Shirley Valentine is open for a strictly limited season. 

Child friendly?

Shirley Valentine is recommended for ages 12+, and has some mild language and sexual references.

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Shirley Valentine starring Sheridan Smith extends by popular demand

Sheridan Smith rivals her great friend Peter Kay by announcing an extension to her West End season of Shirley Valentine By Popular Demand.

Will Russell’s Shirley Valentine starring Sheridan Smith will now play for 15 weeks at the Duke Of York’s Theatre from 17 February 2023. Tickets are on sale now.

Shirley Valentine is the joyous, life-affirming story of the woman who got lost in marriage and motherhood, the woman who wound up talking to the kitchen wall whilst cooking her husband’s chips and egg. But Shirley still has a secret dream. And in her bag, an airline ticket. One day she may just leave a note, saying: ‘Gone!  Gone to Greece.’

Producer David Pugh said: “Both Sheridan and Shirley seem to have been taken into people’s hearts, and whereas we might not be playing arenas like Peter Kay, but, like him, we are keeping seat prices down due to the cost of living with reduced price previews and no booking fees, allowing theatre to again be completely accessible to more people.”

Sheridan Smith said, “ I am so chuffed by the response that I’m playing Shirley in the West End. You guys are incredible, and the demand has been so much that I’ve decided to extend for an extra three weeks. So, come and see me as Shirley Valentine at the Duke of York’s Theatre. See you there!”

Shirley Valentine is written by Willy Russell, directed by Matthew Dunster, designed by Paul Wills, with lighting design by Lucy Carter, sound design by Ian Dickinson for Autograph and is produced by David Pugh.

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SHIRLEY VALENTINE PERFORMANCE INFORMATION

Venue: The Duke of York’s Theatre St Martin’s Lane London WC2N 4BG

Season Dates: 17 February – 3 June 2023

Ticket Prices: £20, £25, £45, £60, £75 with reduced price previews.

Performance Times: Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm Wednesday and Saturday at 2.30pm

Douglas Mayo has had a life long love affair with musical theatre. He has authored several books on publicity and marketing for amateur theatre groups. He is in the process of developing a musical based on his original story concept.

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Sheridan smith is shirley valentine..

‍ Shirley Valentine is the joyous, life-affirming story of the woman who got lost in marriage and motherhood, the woman who wound up talking to the kitchen wall whilst cooking her husband's chips and egg. But Shirley still has a secret dream. And in her bag, an airline ticket. One day she may just leave a note saying: 'Gone! Gone to Greece.' Shirley Valentine is the celebrated one-woman play written by Willy Russell , winning him his third Olivier Award. Sheridan Smith is a multi-award-winning actress with two Olivier Awards and a BAFTA. Matthew Dunster is a three-time Olivier Award nominated director whose work most recently has been seen on Broadway with Martin McDonagh's Hangmen and in the West End with 2:22 by Danny Robins. ‍

The Ambassador Theatre Group Limited Registered Address: 2nd Floor, Alexander House, Church Path, Woking, GU21 6EJ

Sheridan Smith is a retro triump

Sheridan Smith disarms and dazzles

Shirley Valentine Tickets

Sheridan Smith returns to the West End in Willy Russell’s one-woman play about a housewife who packs it all in for an adventure in Greece.

Sheridan Smith heads to Greece

Sorry this show closed 03 June 2023, we recommend these similar productions.

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I didn't know how this would work as a one woman show, but it was superb. The only critisism I wo... More

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Willy Russell' Shirley Valentine

On tour 2023, gaiety theatre dublin, inec killarney, theatre royal waterford.

Following its sell-out run at Dublin’s Gaiety Theatre in Oct 2021 & March /April 2022

 treat yourself to an evening of laughter and triumph, as Norma Sheahan,

one of Ireland’s leading dramatic actors, breathes new life into Willy Russell’s effervescent and iconic character

SHIRLEY VALENTINE.

Trapped in a dreary marriage and humdrum life, Shirley wonders when she lost her hopeful, youthful self.

With no support from her demanding husband, snooty neighbour, or self-absorbed teens, Shirley resorts to full-blown (although somewhat one-sided) conversations with her kitchen wall.

So, when a divorced friend asks Shirley to go on a vacation to Greece, she bravely gathers what remains of her dignity and begins a humorous and uplifting voyage of rediscovery.

Shirley with ever-opening eyes, begins to see the world – and herself – in a different light…

but will she ever go back to being “St Joan of the fitted units”?

Starring Norma Sheahan

Directed By Michael Scott Designed By Michael McCaffery

Photos Tom Lawlor

Willy Russell's Shirley Valentine

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Sheridan Smith reanimates Willy Russell’s well-worn monologue

By now we know her well: Shirley, the Liverpudlian housewife who escapes domestic drudgery on a holiday to Greece and sets her sights on a new future of wider, sunnier vistas. Willy Russell’s monologue was first seen in 1986 and arrived in the West End, starring Pauline Collins, two years later. Before the end of the decade Collins had reprised the role on Broadway and on film, and there have been numerous revivals of the play since. This time around, in an eminently capable production by Matthew Dunster, it’s Sheridan Smith wielding the chip pan and the suntan oil – and she could hardly be more radiantly charming, nor display a defter, more persuasive command of Russell’s blend of sentimentality and wry humour. Yet it just doesn’t feel like quite enough.

This is very much a period piece, and Paul Wills’ designs and Lucy Carter’s lighting have a cartoonish brightness. The kitchen, where we find Shirley making her husband’s dinner and talking to the wall in the absence of any sympathetic human ear, is decorated in medicine-pink and bilious blue-green. It matches Smith’s sweatshirt and trousers and, later, her hideous going-away ensemble, complete with batwing sleeves and shoulder pads. The upper storey of the house is mapped out in greyish bas-relief – a poky bathroom, a padded headboard; in Greece, the colours shift to richer shades of sea, sky and sunset. 

Related to this Review

Even allowing for the 1980s context, the more dated attitudes in Russell’s writing jar. There will surely be few modern 42-year-olds who can relate when Shirley frets that she should be “applying for a bus pass and a Zimmer frame”, or wonders why no man has ever been capable of locating her clitoris. Yet the best lines still zing: there’s a choice description of a bitchy neighbour whose lips are so permanently pursed that when she talks it’s “as if she begrudges you the breath”. Smith makes the most of every word, slapping sliced white bread on to a plate for emphasis, turning the word “taramasalata” into a comic aria, and inhabiting each memory, so that we see the effervescent girl she once was, as well as the secretly disappointed, cheerfully coping wife and mother she’s become.

Dunster keeps it all cooking nicely, sometimes literally – we can actually smell the Crisp ’n Dry. And Smith has no trouble winning our hearts. Women like Shirley – working class, middle-aged – are still routinely overlooked, on stage and off. But watching her follow her well-worn path of self-discovery again, I couldn’t help but be reminded of another Russell creation – the mother of Educating Rita’s titular heroine who, at a pub sing-song, reflects desolately that “there must be better songs to sing than this”. There are fresher ways of telling Shirley’s story. There are better plays than this.

Sam Marlowe

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Sam Marlowe is reviews editor for The Stage. She trained and worked as an actor before becoming a full-time arts writer with a special interest in theatre and performance. She has written extensively for the Times, as well as the Independent, the i paper, Time Out, Metro, theartsdesk.com and the Chicago Tribune

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Shirley Valentine with Sheridan Smith reviews

Reviews have dropped for the West End production of Shirley Valentine in London with Sheridan Smith – what did the critics make of it?

Willy Russell’s one-woman-play has been revived with acclaimed actress Sheridan Smith making her return to the West End in the role.

Shirley Valentine is the joyous, life-affirming story of the woman who got lost in marriage and motherhood, the woman who wound up talking to the kitchen wall whilst cooking her husband’s chips and egg. But Shirley still has a secret dream. And in her bag, an airline ticket. One day she may just leave a note, saying: ‘Gone! Gone to Greece.’

The new production officially opened at the Duke of York’s Theatre this week and the reviews are out…

Shirley Valentine London reviews

The Guardian- 4/5 “The deeper, existential elements are powered by Smith’s disarming and quietly dazzling performance. She mines every ounce of cheeky comedy but also builds such surreptitious and organic emotional undercurrents that we buy every moment, and the play is eternally relevant.” – Read the full review

The Independent – 5/5 “Sheridan Smith and Shirley Valentine: it’s a match made in theatre heaven. Willy Russell’s 1986 one-woman play is a beloved British classic; Smith is a national treasure. It sounds like it should work, and it really, really does” – Read the full review

Financial Times – 5/5 “Smith single-handedly commands the stage in a transcendent performance as the disillusioned Liverpool housewife determined to unstick herself from a life glued to the kitchen.” – Read the full review

Daily Mail – 5/5 “So loved is Smith as Shirley that when she appears before the interval with suitcase and dressed for the airport, the sight of her costume alone wins a cheer. ” – Read the full review

The I- 4/5 “It’s a mighty ask for one performer to power through more than a hundred minutes of solo speaking on a West End stage, but one of Smith’s many triumphs is the way she looks up and around to make every tier of the audience feel so included.” – Read the full review

London Evening Standard – 4/5 “Willy Russell’s award-winning and hugely popular 1986 monologue about a Liverpool housewife finding herself in Greece now looks like a museum piece. It requires Smith’s specific talents to make it work and she turns it into a charming showcase for them” – Read the full review

The Telegraph – 4/5 “If we loved Smith before, we’re going to fall in love with her all over again. Playing a woman turning over a new leaf, she bustles about her spotless kitchen with consummate ease and vivacity, confiding her manifold unfulfilments as a wife and mother by way of a quirky address to the “wall”. It’s continuously enrapturing.” – Read the full review

Shirley Valentine plays Duke of York’s Theatre, London currently booking through to 3 June 2023.

Book Shirley Valentine London tickets here »

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SHIRLEY VALENTINE

“I loved her completely”

Gary Smith, The Hamilton Spectator

Mar 6, 2024 to Mar 23, 2024

140 Minutes Including Intermission

• Cast & Creative Team

WRITTEN BY WILLY RUSSELL

Directed by: Tracey Flye  

Starring: Shauna Black

FIND YOUR SELF  Shirley Valentine is a Liverpool housewife – lost in marriage and motherhood and spending far too much time talking to the kitchen wall while making her husband’s evening meal of “chips and egg”. When she gets the chance of a lifetime to fly to Greece- is she ready to step outside of her comfort zone and take a chance? Shirley Valentine is a beloved, joyous and life-affirming reminder that it’s never too late to rediscover your purpose and passion.

ARTWORK BY:  Kieran Daly Kieran Daly is an illustrator and graphic designer. She uses a wide range of both traditional and digital media and focuses on stylized portraiture, narrative, and editorial work.

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Includes mature content and sexual references.

IN CONVERSATION

PRE-SHOW CHAT:  Join Shirley Valentine ‘s Director Tracey Flye and Theatre Aquarius Artistic Director Mary Francis Moore for a pre-show chat in the Michael & Jane Schwenger Director’s Lounge on Thursday, March 7, 2024. Ask questions and learn more about the iconic Shirley Valentine !

March 7, 2024, at 6:45 pm Pre-Show Chat in the Director’s Lounge

POST-SHOW TALK BACK: Join the Shirley Valentine ‘s Shauna Black for a post-show talk back on the mainstage on Tuesday, March 19, 2024. Ask questions and learn more about the iconic Shirley Valentine !

March 19, 2024 Post-Show Talk Back

Shauna Black as Shirley Valentine. Directed by Tracey Flye. Set and Costume design by Scott Penner. Lighting design by Logan Raju Cracknell.

PHOTO BY Dahlia Katz

“Will you love Shirley Valentine? I think so. It starts with a terrific play, coaxed to life by an actress who is at the very top of her game.”

THE HAMILTON SPECTATOR

“Shauna Black’s Shirley Valentine will make you laugh, cry and be glad you are in the theatre.”

Shauna Black

Shirley Valentine

Tracey Flye

Logan raju cracknell.

Lighting Designer

Scott Penner

Set and Costume Designer

Sound Designer

Gillian Saunders

Dialect Coach

Grace Batten

Stage Manager

Delaney Small

Apprentice Stage Manager

OTHER EVENTS

Jonas and barry in the home.

Sep 27, 2023 to Oct 14, 2023

BOY FALLS FROM THE SKY

Oct 25, 2023 to Nov 4, 2023

BEAUTIFUL SCARS

Apr 24, 2024 to May 11, 2024

'Shirley Valentine' review – Sheridan Smith casts a spell in this endearing, if dated, one-woman play

Read our three-star review of Shirley Valentine at the Duke of York's Theatre, starring Sheridan Smith, running through 3 June. Get Shirley Valentine tickets on London Theatre.

Watching Sheridan Smith connect with an audience is truly mesmerising. Even while holding a West End stage, she makes every single person in attendance feel as if she’s sat at the kitchen table with them, chatting away like a lifelong friend.

It’s a magic power ideally suited to Willy Russell’s 1986 one-woman play Shirley Valentine , which relies on us investing heavily in his title character’s domestic troubles and modest, but ultimately cheer-worthy, ambitions.

Shirley is a working-class Liverpudlian housewife whose two children have left home. Her marriage barely exists; her belittling, semi-abusive husband only notices her when she makes him the wrong dinner (Smith actually cooks chips and egg live on stage). At 42, she’s completely lost her sense of self, and it takes a chance encounter with an old schoolmate to make her question: whatever happened to Shirley Valentine?

Thankfully, her pal Jane (recently divorced, budding feminist) intervenes to give Shirley, who has never been abroad, a golden opportunity: a two-week holiday in Greece, without her family. Will Shirley find the nerve to go, and will the trip prove transformative? Well, suffice to say this isn’t a story that ever confounds expectations.

Russell’s piece operates like a direct-address monologue, although technically Shirley addresses her kitchen wall rather than us - indicative of her desperate loneliness. It’s an irritating but effective device, giving us a strong sense of how this relentless and isolating routine has ground her down over the years.

However, several elements of Russell’s script are inescapably dated. In particular, I felt bludgeoned by the endless old-school comic one-liners: “Marriage is like the Middle East - there’s no solution”; “Sex is like Sainsbury’s - overrated.” There’s also an interminable riff on the discovery of the clitoris, which feels hopelessly tame in a post-Fleabag world, and a nativity anecdote that would only really interest you if it was about your own child.

But when Russell switches gear and has Shirley candidly, painfully expose her vulnerabilities - like recalling how a cruel headmistress damaged her confidence, making her feel that dreams were only for the clever or moneyed pupils - Smith (who has had her own struggles with mental health, famously during her run of Funny Girl ) is in her element. She gradually dims Shirley’s determinedly sunny facade, conveying a wealth of emotion in just a wavering smile.

Annoyingly, Russell’s overwritten piece doesn’t trust her - or us. Just as we’ve inferred something obvious, like that Shirley pretended to hate everything in her teens because she hated herself, or that she hasn’t left her husband because she’s scared of the unknown, the script spells that out for us. It starts to conflict with the characterisation: if she’s so au fait with every feeling, as though she’s gone through years of intense therapy, why is she so paralysed? It would make more sense if she was telling this story in retrospect, but it’s meant to be played in the present.

However, judging by the numerous chuckles and murmurs of recognition on my night, plenty of Russell’s observations still chime with people — including the suspicion when a woman is sitting on her own in a restaurant, or (groan) the embarrassing antics of Brits abroad. The tale’s brief use of a fantastical Greek lothario is rather wince-inducing, though, and I longed for more grit. With Smith’s chirpy telling lacking the acid moments of Pauline Collins’s original Oscar-nominated version, it risks descending into broad sitcom-meets-cloying wish fulfilment.

But then perhaps that cosiness is a tonic right now — and there’s no doubting the kitsch charm of Matthew Dunster’s production. Paul Wills supplies a 1980s mint-green kitchen (matched by Shirley’s trousers) and later a dazzling splash of blue sky, melting into a pink sunset - shimmering in Lucy Carter’s luscious lighting design. It’s basically Mamma Mia! without the ABBA.

But, even if the lessons about learning to love yourself and how (gasp!) women, too, can enjoy sex feel rather hoary, the core message of not leaving any “unused life” resonates deeply after Covid. And it’s a pleasure to see Smith back centre stage, once more casting her spell.

Shirley Valentine is at the Duke of York's Theatre through 3 June.

Photo credit: Sheridan Smith in Shirley Valentine (Photo by John Wilson)

Originally published on Mar 2, 2023 00:27

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