Theatre

CIPHERS

Oxford Playhouse

November 6-9 n Box office: 01865 305305 oxfordplayhouse.com

Justine is found dead. Her sister Kerry sets out to uncover what happened and stumbles into a world of secrets and subterfuge. She becomes ever surer that she is being foiled and followed at every turn, and everything she discovers makes her question who Justine really was. How well can you ever know someone who lies for a living? Dawn King’s debut play Foxfinder was critically acclaimed. Now, in Ciphers, she has written a stunning thriller about spies, double agents, and the opaqueness of the human soul. Blanche McIntyre takes the helm of this world premiere, having directed Foxfinder and the recent five-star production of The Seagull that visited the Playhouse. Out of Joint is an internationally renowned touring company, founded and directed by the legendary Max Stafford-Clark. Its recent visits to the Playhouse have featured such plays as Top Girls and Our Country’s Good.

Musical

THRILLER LIVE

New Theatre, Oxford

November 26-28 at 7.30om

Box office: 0844 8713020 or atgtickets.com

Direct from London’s West End, Thriller Live is a spectacular concert created to celebrate the career of the world’s greatest entertainer, Michael Jackson. Experience over two hours of non-stop hits from pop to rock, soul to disco in a show that pays homage to Jackson’s legendary live performances and innovative dance moves executed with flair, precision and passion. Expect your favourite songs delivered by an exceptionally talented cast and band, including: I Want You Back, ABC, Can You Feel It, Off The Wall, The Way You Make Me Feel, Smooth Criminal, Beat It, Billie Jean, Dirty Diana, Bad, Rock With You,and (of course) Thriller. Seen by more than 2m people in nearly 30 countries, the show continues to moonwalk around the world.

Music

BRITTEN BIRTHDAY CONCERT

Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford

Friday, November 22 at 7.30pm

Box office: 01865 244806 or musicatoxford.com

The English Chamber Orchestra, under conductor Nicholas Cleobury, and soprano Sophie Bevan, join in celebrating the centenary of one of the 20th-century’s greatest composers. The ECO was Benjamin Britten’s ‘house’ orchestra. This concert offers two of his most engaging works, Les Illuminations and Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge, illustrating his mastery of word setting and brilliance of string writing, coupled with his own arrangement of his beloved Purcell’s Chacony in G minor. His debt to other composers is represented by a childhood favourite by Mahler, the spellbinding Adagietto from his Symphony No 5, and Mozart’s youthful Divertimento in D 136. The Birthday Concert is the culmination of the year-long Britten in Oxford celebrat-ion, which has explored all aspects of his genius and involved hundreds of performers and composers of all ages.