MT Fest UK reveals line up of new musicals for 2022

New musical theatre festival MT Fest UK has announced its line up of shows for 2022.

The annual festival of new musical theatre will take place from 31 January – 12 February 2022 at The Turbine Theatre in Battersea.

MTFestUK aims to showcase new musicals in development to audiences with a view to staging full productions.

The eight new shows featuring are:

NO LIMITS (3 January – 2 February 2022)

By Sam Thomas

Have you ever felt that you’re behind in life? That you’re not where you want to be, or where you think you should be? “Seems like everybody’s getting married and being promoted and having babies and moving somewhere, but does it really mean you’re losing? You’re not!”

No Limits is an exciting new song-cycle by Sam Thomas that shatters the notion of falling behind in life – because there’s really no such thing. It follows characters as they dare to believe in themselves and strive for a better tomorrow. A show with heart, humour and a message we should all take on board… Know no limits.

HALLS (31 January – 2 February 2022)

By Jennifer Harrison and George Stroud

Halls centres on a diverse group of eight, first-year uni students from different cultural backgrounds and upbringings who are brought together when they find out they’ve been allocated the same exact flat in Halls of Residence: Flat 15B. Over the course of the show, audiences can look forward to some rich character development as they witness these eight lovable students blossom and develop over their academic school year.

The new Halls musical also takes on many themes typical to life at university, including the cost of student living, love and romance, freshers week, flat arguments, cramming the night before an exam, and self-acceptance. Now forced to own up to the decisions they make, will these characters manage to find their footing in the world with the greatest of ease? Or will there be lots of trial and error?

Featuring upbeat, feel-good vibes that evoke feelings of nostalgia for our uni days, Halls is set against the backdrop of a catchy, contemporary, pop-rock soundtrack.

TRAIN ON FIRE (3 – 5 February 2022)

By Annabelle Lee

Kitty Marion just wanted to be a singer. Instead, she became one of the most volatile, violent suffragettes in Britain’s history. Train on Fire is a musical where the feminists of today tell the story of a feminist of yesterday.

WUTHERING HEIGHTS – THE MUSICAL (3 – 5 February 2022)

By Lizzie Lister Mick Lister, & Clare Lonsdale

This is Wuthering Heights like you’ve never seen before, retold through a haunting, filmic score, fusing the classical with the contemporary. We revitalises Brontë’s renowned Gothic romance through a 21st century lens. Wild, whimsical Cathy has grown up on the Yorkshire moors, and when Heathcliff, the young immigrant orphan, is thrust into her life, the pair soon become inseparable This brutally honest retelling of Heathcliff and Cathy’s death-defying love highlights the novel’s most hard-hitting themes, and will harden, break and heal your heart. From the lovelorn Lintons, tyrannical Hindley, to the all-seeing, all-knowing Nelly Dean, this adaptation gives every character the chance to tell their side of the story.

RUNESICAL (7- 9 February 2022)

By Sam Cochrane and Alex Prescot

Sword equipped. Potions ready. High-speed internet connected.

Based on the hugely popular online game RuneScape, join Lance_054 (the first fifty-three were taken) on a quest where YOU, the audience, decide where the characters go next! Whether you’re an experienced player or a total noob, Gigglemug Theatre (The Stage Edinburgh Award Winners) bring you a new multi-pathway musical which will have the whole family laughing from start to finish.

FATHER/SON (7 – 9 February 2022)

by Nick Butcher & Fraser Watt

A beautiful exploration of the relationship between Liam, known as ‘Godfather of the Blues’, and his son Finley, a songwriter chasing the charts.

From adolescence to adulthood, the two musicians endure stadium stomping highs and earth-shattering lows. Together, they discover at what cost they are willing to sacrifice relationships, authenticity, and eventually each other to become ‘King of the Road’.

QUEEROES (10 – 12 February 2022)

Music by Gus Gowland and Leo & Hyde. Book by Victoria Bush and Laura Checkley. An original idea conceived by Paul Taylor-Mills

Queeroes is a celebration of some of history’s iconic queer hero’s. The ones that should have made your history lessons at school … but didn’t. It’s time to shine the spotlight on them and imagine what if. What if Alan Turing ending up in the same room as Frida Carlo. What would they talk about? And… if they could sing… what might they sing. Join us as we celebrate queer history in this irreverent and high octane party.

JEANNE (10 – 12 February 2022)

By Shirlie Roden

A through-composed rock opera, “Jeanne” traces the story of the legendary fifteenth-century Joan of Arc, a young peasant girl destined for greatness, who claims to have been chosen by God to liberate her country and to crown the Dauphin as King of France. The dramatic raising of the siege of Orleans, startlingly recreated on stage, finds Jeanne fulfilling her vision, standing beside the Dauphin as he is crowned.

After failing to retake Paris, Jeanne is later captured and taken to Rouen to stand trial where her destiny is sealed as she is condemned as a heretic and sentenced to be burned alive – the flames a living symbol through the centuries.

You can buy tickets for all shows from The Turbine Theatre website here.