Brief Encounters (of the Staged Kind)

As gap years go, this particular production of Noël Coward’s Brief Encounter has had an absolute stonker of a journey. Having premiered at Brum's Rep back in 2007, Emma Rice's production's toured the globe, including a stint on that Broadway you might have heard of, where The New York Times described it as "the most enchanting work of stagecraft ever inspired by a movie", which we reckon means they quite liked it. The production brings footage of the film to the stage, playing behind the live cast. Like in the scene pictured, where real-life protagonist, Laura, reacts to film footage of Alec waving goodbye as his train pulls out. Brief Encounter is at The Rep from Feb 2 to 17. Tickets from £10. Maybe have a blart over the trailer if you're feeling emotional.