REVIEW: Orpheus and Eurydice (Bridewell Theatre) ★★★★★
Is it possible to take the overblown art form that is opera and present it stripped back and (whisper it) in ENGLISH??!! The Time Zone Theatre Company’s production of Orpheus and Eurydice at the Bridewell Theatre shows not only is it possible, it is imperative! The classic Gluck opera of the heart broken Orpheus descending […]
REVIEW: Madagascar The Musical (Sunderland Empire) ★★★★
It’s not every show where a monkey warns you not to take photos or else it will throw poo at you. But it made the many children in the audience laugh and laid the tone for the rest of the show. Based on the Dreamworks film of the same name, Selladoor’s production of Madagascar tells […]
REVIEW: Queens of Sheba (Underbelly Cowgate) ★★★★
Following huge success at Edinburgh Fringe, Queens of Sheba returns to London at the New Diorama Theatre for the start of September. It is an entertaining, powerful and ambitious exploration of black women’s experiences of racism and sexism. Threading through the centre of the performance is the story of four women going on a night […]
REVIEW: Next Lesson (Above The Stag Theatre) ★★★★
2018 marks 30 years since Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative Government launched its controversial legislation that came to be known as ‘Section 28’, which banned the ‘promotion’ of homosexuality by local authorities and in schools across Britain. ‘Next Lesson’ is the poignant creation of playwright Chris Woodley, a play set over a number of years following the […]
REVIEW: Sister Mary’s Playtime @ Teatime (Frankenstein Pub) ★★★
Some shows only make sense at the Edinburgh Fringe; think ‘Cat photos set to music’, ‘Shitfaced Shakespeare’ and ‘Chasing scenes’. Sister Mary’s Playtime @ Teatime is one of these shows. It is a fringeful mash-up of a hairy nun in a medieval tavern leading the audience in everything from Mary Poppins to rap between comedic […]
REVIEW: Daughter (CanadaHub @ King’s Hall) ★★★★★
Raw, unsettling and far too close for comfort, Daughter forces its audience to look darkness in the eye. Adam Lazarus centres as the unnamed father in this solo performance, produced by Quiptake and supported by Canada Hub. Sporting fairy wings and a pink bandana, Lazarus opens as a loving, good-humoured and, at points, vulnerable father. […]
REVIEW: THE RISE AND FALL OF LITTLE VOICE (Park Theatre) ★★
Jim Cartwright’s 1992 play The Rise and Fall of Little Voice opened at the National Theatre starring Jane Horricks and Alison Steadman, in the leading roles of Little Voice and her foul-mouthed mother Mari. The play was then adapted into a major film in 1998 where Jane Horrocks reprised her role as the shy quiet […]
REVIEW: I Wish That My Life Were Like A Musical (Live at Zedel) ★★★★
Alexander Bermange‘s musical cabaret I Wish That My Life Were Like A Musical returns to Live at Zedel after a smash hit run earlier this year. The musical comedy see’s Wicked star Suzie Mathers return to the show, along with new cast members Madalena Alberto, Cedric Neal and Lucas Rush. This award nominated, musical comedy cabaret, […]
REVIEW: Big Girls Don’t Cry (Lyric Theatre) ★★★★
Since The East Coast Boys erupted onto the scene back in 2008, they have been coined one of the most authentic Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons tribute bands this side of the Atlantic. In shrewd suits and slicked hair, the plucky young men perform an assortment of different hits including Walk Like a Man, […]
REVIEW: ELEPHANT STEPS (Arcola Theatre) ★
Stan Silverman, the composer of Elephant Steps describes the theme of his and Richard Foreman’s 1968 avant-garde opera as ‘the search for spirituality and enlightenment’. It’s true that the show does offer a 75 minute stretch where you can completely zone out and consider your fragile place on this earth, or just relax if you […]