In the latest edition of The Stage Podcast, Sir Donald Sinden and his son, producer Marc Sinden, talk to The Stage’s Nick Smurthwaite about their new range of DVDs, exploring the West End’s theatres.

The DVD releases, which start next month, see Sir Donald take the viewer on a tour of each of the 40-odd London theatres covered by the Society of London Theatre.

In an illuminating interview, the pair talk about the project, the beauty of some of the venues’ interiors, and impart some of theatreland’s classic anecdotes.

For more information about the DVD series, visit greatwestendtheatres.co.uk or watch the trailer below:

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the original West End production of The Sound of Music, The Stage presents a very special look at the careers of Rodgers and Hammerstein as viewed from the newspaper’s extensive archives.

Using material researched from our digital archive — which goes back to our very first issue in 1880 — we look at how the duo’s musicals made it to the West End stage, how they fared at the hands of the critics and how Rodgers and Hammerstein changed the face of musical theatre. We also examine how Oscar Hammerstein’s legacy lives on in Southwark Cathedral.

Presented by actress Helena Blackman, who also performs extracts from some of the composing duo’s best known songs, the documentary also features opinion from theatre critic Mark Shenton, as well as an exclusive interview with Hammerstein protege Stephen Sondheim.

• To find out more about The Stage Archive and to start your own search, visit thestage.co.uk/archive.

iTunes users

Subscribe to The Stage Podcast in iTunes, and your copy of Rodgers and Hammerstein in London will download automatically. You can also download any of our 80+ previous editions of The Stage Podcast for free.

• Subscribe to The Stage Podcast in iTunes (click the ‘View in iTunes’ button and/or ‘Subscribe Free’)
• Existing iTunes subscribers: Your copy will download automatically, but if it hasn’t yet done so, click the “Refresh” button in the bottom-right of the Podcasts list in your iTunes library.

Download the MP3 version

If you don’t have iTunes, or want to listen to the documentary on your PC or laptop, you can download an MP3 copy of the documentary. Right-click on the link below and select ‘Save/Download File As…’ (or your web browser’s equivalent):

• Download ‘Rodgers & Hammerstein in London’ (MP3 format)

Listen to a streamed version now

You can also listen to the full documentary without having to download it. Click the play button below:

Excerpts from Helena Blackman’s album, The Sound of Rodgers and Hammerstein, are included by kind permission of Speckulation Entertainment.

Birmingham Rep’s Centenary Square base has been boarded up for the next two years while it undergoes a £25 million development. Artistic director Rachel Kavanaugh and executive director Stuart Rogers tell Michael Coveney what audiences can expect when the theatre reopens in 2013.

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.

In a special Olivier Awards preview, Mark Shenton talks to the people behind the awards, as well as some of the nominees.

Mark interviews:

• Julian Bird, chief executive, SOLT
• Josefina Gabrielle, nominated for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Sweet Charity
• Howard Goodall, composer of Love Story, nominated for Best New Musical
• Michael Xavier, nominated for Best Actor in a Musical for Love Story, and for Best Performance in a Supporting Role in a Musical for Into the Woods
• Emma Williams, nominated for Best Actress in a Musical for Love Story
• Nick Starr, chief executive, National Theatre
• Nick Frankfort and Tobias Round, producers of The Little Dog Laughed, nominated for Best New Play
• Nica Burns, president, SOLT

The Stage will have coverage online as the awards progresses on Sunday, with full reports in next week’s print edition.

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.

West End show Jersey Boys has just celebrated its third anniversary at the Prince Edward Theatre. And it will shortly have a major cast change, with nearly half of the roles being recast.

In a break from rehearsals a few days ago, I talked to Matthew Wycliffe, who will be playing Bob Gaudio, Rachael Wooding, the new Mary Delgado, and Jon Lee, who joins the cast as the alternate Frankie Valli.

• Book tickets for Jersey Boys

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.

Sherrie Hewson has had a long career as an actress, since graduating from RADA in 1971 on stage, in television and in film, from The Slipper and the Rose to Coronation Street via Russ Abbot’s Madhouse.

This week, the Loose Women presenter releases her autobiography, Behind the Laughter, going into detail about her professional career and well as some of her personal difficulties. The Stage went down to her dressing room at ITV to talk to her.

Sherrie Hewson: Behind the Laughter is published by HarperCollins. The recommended retail price is £16.99 but it is currently available via Amazon.co.uk at 50% off (prices correct March 3):

• Sherrie Hewson: Behind the Laughter

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.

In this week’s Stage Podcast, Tony Cooke talks to comedians Jim Davidson and Matt Blaize about their new stage play, Stand Up and Be Counted.

Written by Davidson, the play is set in the world of stand-up comedy and examines what happens when an old-school, bigoted comic spends an evening with the cream of the new comedians.

PLEASE NOTE: THIS PODCAST CONTAINS VERY STRONG LANGUAGE THROUGHOUT

Stand Up and be Counted starts a preview run tonight, February 24, at Torquay’s Princess Theatre, before opening at Dartford’s Orchard Theatre next week. For tour dates, see The Stage’s Listings pages and Jim Davidson’s website.

To listen to the podcast:

The preferred way to listen to the podcast is through iTunes. If you subscribe to the podcast series in iTunes, then not only will you get this edition of the podcast, but you will automatically receive further editions, for free, as they are released.

• Listen and subscribe now in iTunes (recommended)

Alternatively, you can listen to a streamed MP3 version below.