December theatre shows to see

Three Sisters, National Theatre

After impressing with sell-out Barber Shop Chronicles, Inua Ellams retruns to the National Theatre with a new take on Chekhov's Three Sisters, shifting the classic story from 1900 Russia to 1967 Nigeria.

A Taste of Honey, Trafalgar Studios

Bijan Sheibani's production of 50s play A Taste of Honey comes to the West End after impressing on a National Tour. Jodie Prenger plays Helen, a mother who runs off with a car salesman.

The Duchess of Malfi, Almeida Theatre

The story is time-old, but its themes are timeless: love, marriage and children don’t always mean a happy ending. The Duchess of Malfi comes to the Almeida stage. The Jacobean revenge tragedy is reimagined by director Rebecca Frecknall (Summer and Smoke).

Teenage Dick, Donmar Warehouse

Shakespeare's villainous king Richard III is reimagined in an all-American high-school setting in provocatively named new play Teenage Dick, which makes the Plantagenet king Richard III into the underdog at an American high school.

Swive [Elizabeth], Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

In Swive, playwright Ella Hickson explores the relationship between sex and power in Elizabeth I's reign. Taking its title from an archaic word with a dual meaning (to copulate with a woman or to cut a crop), the play explores examines the monarch's 45 year reign.

Girl From the North Country, Gielgud Theatre

After dazzling in London and New York, Conor McPherson’s poignant ‘play with music’ returns to the West End. It's a five-star delight that weaves Bob Dylan's music into a Depression-era drama.

The Ocean at the End of the Lane, National Theatre

Enter a magical world plagued by dark forces in a new show at the National Theatre. Neil Gaiman, the ever imaginative writer behind Good Omens, American Gods, Coraline and Stardust turns his talents to the stage in new adaptation of 2013 novel The Ocean at the End of the Lane.