... Heartaches Of An English Pussycat OLD VIC BALZAC IS not the name which springs to mind as the source of visual theatre, but the Paris-based, Argentinian by origin Group TSE have pulled off something of a miracle presentation. The source story is not perhaps the best known of Balzac's tales but its anthropomorphic decoration- hides both a satire on the mercantile and socially aspiring reigns of ...

... Charlie Brown UPSTREAM THE PEANUTS strip cartoon, now apparently as much a favourite this side of the Atlantic as in America, is back at Upstream, packing them in for an extended holiday run. This production is by Jeremy James Taylor with designs nicely in the flavour of the original Schultz by Charlotte Goodchild; choreography is by Gil lian Gregory. Dave Cooke's arrangement of the Clark ...

... The Luck Of The Draw BRIGHTON MAN'S ABILITY to rationalise almost any situation to his own satisfaction is most amusingly encapsulated in A. S. Robertson's Luck of the Draw. In it three committee members ot a North Country social club super vising a Christmas draw are seen going to any lengths to ensure that the proceedings produce the result they desire without infringing the strict rules ...

... Hughie COTTESLOE ONE HESITATES to ask whether a star actor's journey across the Atlantic was really necessary, but Stacy Keach has not been handed a greatly demanding London theatre debut in Eugene O'Neill's Hughie at the Cottesloe. This is a slight piece indeed, which would just about be satisfying at a lunchtime theatre, set around the reception desk at a seedy off- Broadway hotel, behind ...

... Liberty Hall GREENWICH WHAT an intriguing idea Michael Frayn puts before us in Liberty Hall. The 1917 revolution has taken place in Britain, not Russia, which is still a capitalist. Tsarist country, and in the former Royal residence of Balmoral a group of writers. Enid Blyton, Godfrey Winn, Warwick Deeping and Hugh Walpole, have been brought together to scribble away under state control ...

... Mayerling ROYAL BALLET MAKING her debut as Mary Vetsera with the Royal Ballet at the Royal Opera House in Mayerling, Merle Park made a remarkable impact. In her manner she was, initially, lively and irresponsible and head-, strong enough to rush into any challenge that her adored Rudolf (David Wall) might present to her. In her dancing she emphasised the depth of MacMillan's choreography; ...

... Ingegerd Lonnroth ICA WITH Tiger Soul Ingegerd L6nn- roth reasserts her right to be regarded as one of the most gifted choreographers working in Britain today in the field of exploratory dance, and although the work was given last year it seemed even better than before in its recent? mance at the ICA. The choreography shows a con tinuous flow and strength and within the finely sculptured ...

... The Enchantment of Venice SADLER'S WELLS THERE WERE moments during the third of the winter Operetta at the Wells performances when one could almost close one's eyes and imagine one was in Vienna's concert-hall complex on New Year's Day. The audience may not have picked up a rhythmic hand-clap beat but some of them certainly 'sang along' with Vilja. This was an evening of snippets, largely ...

... Cycles Dance Company ICA NO PREVIOUS performance by Cycles Dance Company has so stimulated me as Another Way of Living, directed by Fergus Early in collaboration with the participants, and given at the ICA as part of the Dance Umbrella. It focused on a typical working day in the? ny S louring me, inruwmg cut mc drudge and endless hard work into light relief, and proving both enter taining ...

... Werther ENO THANKS to some excellent singing and some perceptive, sensitive conducting by Colin Davis, bringing out the power, honesty and beauty of Massenet's score, the revival of Covent Garden's English National Opera production of Werther made a musically compelling impact. Debuts in the leading roles gave us Jose Carreras producing a mag nificently firm tone and faultless delivery in ...

... Coronation of Poppea WN0 THE WELSH National Opera s latest production, The Coronation of Poppea, premiered at lheatr Clwyd, Mold, promises to be one of their most exciting and sophisticated productions to date. Monteverdi's opera, written in 1642, is itelf an astonishing original piece. It portrays all the sensual coarseness of Nero's Rome, although Monteverdi may have been sur prised to ...

... The Merry Widow ENO THE 75-year-old Merry Widow can still claim to be the greatest operetta of them all. Certainly its vivacious, rhythmic Viennese spirit and its cluster of unforgettable tunes make it live on, whatever the merits of its plot and its paucity of verbal wit. Colin Graham's new English National Opera production at the Coliseum gives it the splendour and sparkle it deserves, ...