The Pirates of Penzance at the Gielgud Theatre

Jo Brand’s plays the Sergeant of Police  in this visually lush production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s Pirates of Penzance.

The big night out at a top West End show may be the highlight of most London theatre breaks, but to make a really memorable experience it’s got to be worth taking in somewhere with a bit of east end culture and history such as the Hackney Empire or Stratford East.

The Mousetrap may have ended it’s record breaking run at London Covent Garden, but Hackney Empire Theatre’s new autumn season sees the Agatha Christie Theatre Company perform The Unexpected Guest at the end of October.

Other highlights later in 2008 include the return of the popular musical “Da Kink In My Hair”, Teatr Licedei’s The Family and a new production directed by Steven Berkoff.

But standup comedy is what I always remember the Hackney Empire in for in London E8. The theatre’s “new act of the year show” used to have a line up which seemed pretty mixed at the time, but within a few years you would find yourself noticing those self same acts, all from the same night, getting their big breaks on mainstream TV.

And so the autumn season includes comedy appearances by Russell Brand, Felix Dexter, Rory Bremner, Jo Brand and Jimmy Carr Then there’s opera from English Touring Opera, the stage show from children’s television favourite Lazy Town, and the return of Clive Rowe in the Susie McKenna-penned pantomime Dick Whittington And His Cat.

Pantomime is a big at both London Hackney Empire and Theatre Royal, Stratford.

Rather than be part of the audience, you could be part of the stage on September 29th when Theatre Royal is host to an open rehearsal workshop exploring THE BLACKS by Jean Genet.

For more about Theatre Breaks in London visit blogs and links such as Theatre breaks in London and don’t forget to head east.