* Want to get Shakespeare over and done with in one fell swoop? Then get down to Didcot’s Cornerstone on Saturday to catch The Reduced Shakespeare Company’s The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, the longest running comedy in the West End. Thirty-seven plays in 97 minutes, now that’s going some. See cornerstone-arts.org

*Not many people would ask a toddler or teenager the answers to life’s big questions, but Action Transport Theatre did just that, visiting local schools and quizzing hundreds of children on issues that have puzzled adults for centuries. Inspired by the responses that varied from serious to silly, their latest show STATIk was born, serving as a reminder that adults can learn from children.

In development for over a year, the performance at Burton Taylor Studio on Saturday incorporates the collected recordings of children’s voices as a sound track to the show. Call the box office 01865 305305.

* A unique celebration of composer Benjamin Britten’s centenary comes to Oxford Playhouse next Thursday, October 10, when award-winning actor and Playhouse Patron Samuel West will read renowned poet WH Auden’s words between new arrangements of Britten’s songs by Ruthie Culver and the Utter Jazz Quartet. West replaces previously advertised Simon Russell Beale.

Call the box office on 01865 305305 or book online at oxfordplayhouse.com

* Debut dance theatre show Bound is being brought to Pegasus from new company Justice In Motion on Friday and Saturday, a compelling and thought-provoking piece of dance theatre, inspired by true accounts of human trafficking, through a dynamic fusion of storytelling, contemporary circus, music, projection and dance. See pegasustheatre.org.uk/shows/bound/

* It’s Jeremy Hardy’s 30th year as a stand-up comedian and he’s back on the road talking about death, CBeebies, Michael Gove, hip hop, gender, class, ego, Blue Peter, Leni Riefenstahl, misogyny, the American Civil War, capitalism and Lassie on Friday at The Theatre Chipping Norton.

The regular Radio 4 comedian, pictured, also pops up on TV shows like QI, Mock The Week and Grumpy Old Men. Call the box office on 01608 642350 see chippingnortontheatre.com

* A striking new adaption of Shakespeare’s classic play Romeo and Juliet is presented at the Burton Taylor Studio from Tuesday. A cast of two actors in a contemporary setting cut to the very core of the play – the relationship between Romeo and Juliet and the world around them. Call the box office on 01865 305305 or book online at oxfordplayhouse.com