What’s on at Unity Theatre this Christmas

After a packed Autumn season of brilliant shows, Liverpool’s thriving combined arts venue – Unity Theatre – forges ahead with its ever-popular Christmas programme.

Serving as a counterpoint to the mainstream, Unity exist to champion diverse arts and platform underrepresented voices – and this year’s festive shows do just that!

Kicking things off on 3rd & 4th December, a bold new voice in feminist theatre comes to the Unity; Rotten Apple is a raw, poetic exploration of mental health, class, identity and what it means to risk everything for a dream.

The first play in the ‘Windows of a Woman’ trilogy, this debut piece follows the true story of a young Liverpudlian woman chasing her dream of a bigger, brighter life – in the magical setting of a snowy, 1990’s Manhattan.

Queer and non-Binary Artists are shining brightly at the Unity this December, with a delightful variety of shows stuffed full of comedy, acrobatics, drag and puppetry. Perfect for those planning a festive get together, Unity’s Christmas Cabaret will return on 19th & 20th December after last year’s anarchic success, starring cabaret legend, Velma Von Bon Bon. Meanwhile on 17th & 18th December, Merseyside Kings’ Merry Manarchy welcomes holiday heartthrobs for a festive drag king cabaret – expect a ridiculously fabulous camped-out search for what Christmas is all about.

This Christmas, Unity Theatre proudly spotlight the work of RAWD – their Associate Company in Residence – who co-create joyful, inclusive spaces where disabled artists can thrive. A RAWD festive special, To Be Near A Shooting Star, is a sparkly, twinkly, candy-cane story, where Mary and Joseph go on an important quest… expect tinsel, triumphs and three ‘not-so-wise’ kings, with this RAWD twist on a Christmas classic.

A fitting finale for the 2025 season comes in the form of Sleep Can Wait! – a heart-warming, high-energy journey through myths, legends, and imagination – lovingly curated by Unity Theatre and Liverpool-based theatre company, Tmesis Theatre. The jewel in the Unity’s festive crown, this enchanting physical theatre show is packed with fun, laughter, and wonder – perfect for dreamers of all ages this winter season! Showing from 12th – 23rd December, the show is packed with lots of physicality and minimal text – the ultimate family- and neurodiverse-friendly production.

Unity has been behaving radically onstage since the 1930s, with its roots in The Unity Theatre movement – a national theatrical initiative that produced politically left-wing works by and for working class audiences. Throughout the 40s, 50s & 60s, Unity were audaciously radical and experimental, staging politically and socially conscious contemporary works that challenged conventional theatre and addressed themes of workers’ rights, fascism and wider issues of inequality. 

Today, Unity Theatre is the only surviving member of that movement, and the organisation continue its mission with the same sentiment dating back to the 30s – investing in local work, emerging artists and theatre companies – and producing high-quality radical and groundbreaking theatre that platforms underrepresented voices from the local community. 

Unity Theatre has developed into not only a fantastic city-centre performance space but a fully-fledged cultural hub for Merseyside-based creatives and the wider community. Unity’s activity now extends far beyond the world of traditional theatre and programming, with a vibrant exhibition space, music events, film screenings, creative workshops and a dedicated talent development programme for emerging performance artists.

Find out more on the Unity Theatre website.

Find more theatre shows across Liverpool here.

Find out what’s good up North on our new platform, The Northern Guide. 

From the best hotels, beauty spots, days out, food and more up North – visit thenorthernguide.com and follow The Northern Guide on Instagram HERE.