Need a boost to chase away any post-Christmas January blues? Check out the following shows, still to look forward to across the county
Theatre
Romance revisited
January 18-22
Noël Coward’s gloriously entertaining Private Lives is the inaugural show from The Nigel Havers Theatre Company and this month it's coming to The Marlowe Theatre, Canterbury. Heart-throb Havers takes on the role of Elyot, originally played by Coward back in 1930, with the wonderful Patricia Hodge co-starring as Elyot's former wife, Amanda. The couple find themselves on honeymoon with their new partners, in the same hotel on the French Riviera, admiring the view from adjoining balconies. Their initial horror quickly evaporates and soon they are sharing cocktails...Book tickets now if you want to discover what the future holds for them. Tickets from £15, marlowetheatre.com
Improvisation
Shakespeare reinvented
Jan 20
The team at ShakeItUp Theatre believe that Shakespeare could do with a hand in coming up with some material for the 21st century. So, using his language, suggestion from the audience and their highly fertile imaginations, they create a brand new Shakespeare play with every performance, complete with live music, songs and plenty of laughs. Catch them - and possibly a show the Bard himself would have been proud of - at Trinity Theatre Tunbridge Wells. Tickets: £18; trinitytheatre.net
Art
Eyes wide open
Until February 20
Make the most of the quieter post-Christmas period with a visit to Turner Contemporary’s Open, a free exhibition of around 450 works, including sculpture, painting, ceramics, film and photography. Selected by four Thanet-based community groups and collectives, on show are works by internationally renowned artists such as Tracey Emin, Rose Wylie and Margo Selby as well as up-and-coming artists, including Matilda Sutton, Joshua Atkins and Lisa Wright. Plenty to feast your eyes upon. turnercontemporary.org
Comedy
Platinum blonde
January 27
Comedian and novelist Jenny Eclair has certainly packed plenty into her 60 years. She was the first woman to win the Perrier Comedy Award at the Edinburgh Festival back in 1995, is a regular on radio and TV, writes novels and co-presents the cult podcast Older and Wiser. Now she's bringing her latest show - Sixty!(FFS) - to The Theatre Royal, Margate. Expect a hilarious look at life and ageing (should she celebrate or crawl into a hole?) and possibly several references to the fact that she is still a year younger than Madonna. Tickets: £20 margate-live.com
