William Shakespeare | Shakespeare House, Derby | Directed by Matt Swan

The plot of Richard II is, at one level, very simple: it’s a play in which one king is deposed and another takes his place. Succession was an Elizabethan obsession and many of Shakespeare’s plays, historical and tragic, examine political, moral, social and psychological aspects of the transition of monarchical power. After James I was crowned in 1603, interest in plays on this theme disappeared almost immediately.

Clare Snape | Quarndon Village Hall | Directed by Clare Snape

‘Inside Out’, which premiered at Quarndon Village Hall from 28^th to 30^th November, is a series of three linked plays exploring personal stories related to imprisonment. Billed as ‘tales of life, death, love, redemption and forgiveness’, they present an emotionally charged and thoughtful insight into some of the complexities which lie behind every individual’s journey to prison.

John Kander and Fred Ebb | Ashby School Theatre | Directed by Ali Jackson

Students at Ashby School deliver a knockout performance of Chicago, rising impressively to the challenge of staging this much-loved musical about celebrity and women getting away with murder. A strong central cast, ably supported by a large and talented ensemble, bring great energy to the stage in this criminally good production of the high school edition of the show, directed by Ali Jackson.

Tennessee Williams | Crescent Theatre | Directed by James David Knapp

The Crescent Theatre’s latest studio production – ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ – powerfully explores the battle between fantasy and reality which sits at the heart of this landmark American play. Director James David Knapp notes that the play presents audiences with a melting pot of questions and an ‘exploration of life at its most painful and raw.’ He has assembled an impressive cast who successfully transport us to Elysian Fields, the run-down French Quarter district in New Orleans in which the play is set.

Anthony Shaffer | Sutton Arts Theatre | Directed by Claire Armstrong-Mills

The setting for Sutton Arts Theatre’s latest winning play – a ‘cosy English country house’ – is far from the snugly warm and comfortable place such a description suggests. Expect twists and turns,mystery, comedy and tension in this clever detective yarn which leaves the audience guessing right up to the final curtain.

John Godber and Jane Thornton | Duchess Theatre | Directed by Neil Scott

You’d be forgiven for thinking that Derby Shakespeare Theatre Company’s latest production, currently playing at the Duchess Theatre in Long Eaton, is some sort of crazy reimagining of a great bard tragedy. Othello on a cruise ship, perhaps, or Macbeth on a beach. Hamlet in a local pub. An inner-city classroom King Lear. Romeo and Juliet on an all-inclusive package holiday in Benidorm.

Shakers Re-Stirred is, in fact, just about as far from Shakespeare as you could get. The play, written by John Godber and Jane Thornton and set in the 1980s, is an hilarious insight into both the working and private lives of four waitresses in a cocktail bar called, you guessed it, ‘Shakers’. In this hugely successful production, director Neil Scott breathes new life into the trendy drinking hole in which the action mainly takes place. It’s a roller-coaster ride of a play, full of the highs and lows which characterise all of our lives.

Rodney Ackland|Sutton Arts Theatre | Directed by Emily Armstrong

Sutton Arts Theatre bring the chaos and frenzied escapism of post-war Soho to life in a fine production of Rodney Ackland’s controversial play ‘Absolute Hell’, directed by Emily Armstrong. Set entirely in La Vie en Rose, a dimly lit private members drinking club, it is one of those plays in which nothing much seems to happen, but everything does. The large cast successfully create a rich tapestry of humanity in all its varied pain, glory and disorder. Spending time in the company of these lost souls offers an engaging and satisfying insight into some of the complex realities of London life in 1945. Blitz nostalgia it most certainly is not.

Phoebe Waller-Bridge|NTLive Broadcast from Wyndham’s Theatre | Directed by Vicky Jones

Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s one woman play, which inspired the hit BBC TV series, is a perfectly formed theatrical pearl.

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins| Donmar Warehouse, London | Directed by Ola Ince

The ghost of a dead father and the brutal history of slavery haunt the ramshackle former plantation house of a dysfunctional American family in the UK premiere of Branden Jacob-Jenkins’ Appropriate at the Donmar Warehouse, directed by Ola Ince. It’s part gothic story, part family drama and part history play.

Thomas Otway| Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon | Directed by Prasanna Puwanarajah

Thomas Otway’s 1682 play is one of the very few Restoration tragedies still staged. In Prasanna Puwanarajah’s production, currently running at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, it receives a “noir twist”, presenting the audience with a ‘Blade Runner meets Mad Max’ cyberpunk vision of a corrupt Venice.