REVIEW: Bugsy Malone (Royal & Derngate)
A classic film from my childhood, I’d actually never seen the stage version, so was interested to see how it would work in the theatre. I’ll admit, I was a little sceptical about it, as that many children on stage with American accents can be absolute chaos. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this youth […]
REVIEW: WHEN THE CURTAIN FALLS (Carrie Hope Fletcher) ★★★★
A few months ago I went to Carrie Hope Fletcher‘s debut album launch with the CD titled the same as her upcoming novel ‘When The Curtain Falls‘. On the night of the launch I was given an advanced copy of the new novel which has now just been released. When The Curtain Falls tells the […]
REVIEW: An Officer and a Gentleman (Milton Keynes Theatre) ★★★★
It’s always a risk adapting a popular film into a musical, especially when the soundtrack is so iconic. Sister Act is a classic example of a fantastic film that falls short (in my opinion) in musical form, because the original soundtrack was already perfect. An Officer and a Gentleman on the other hand takes many […]
REVIEW: The Muppets Take The O2 ★★★★★
Describing a gig at the O2 featuring hit singles and a star-studded list of surprise guests implies a Taylor Swift concert; – in reality, it was the Muppets who ‘took the O2’ last night. Written by Kirk Thatcher, Jim Lewis, Andrew Williams and Matthew Barnette, it is a follow-up on the trio performance at the […]
REVIEW: IT HAPPENED IN KEY WEST (Charing Cross Theatre) ★★★
It Happened in Key West tells the story of a man who has spent his life searching for love, only to find it in Elena, who happens to be married and terminally ill. It certainly is a love story, albeit an unusual one. The show opens with the protagonist in a prison cell telling his […]
REVIEW: AS YOU LIKE IT (Open Air Theatre) ★★★★
The first time I saw a professional production of “As You Like It” was as a teenager – the all male Cheek By Jowl production with Adrian Lester as Rosalind and Tom Hollander as Celia no less- it had a great impact on me in the early nineties as an aspiring actress, and this production […]
REVIEW: HELLO, I’M DARLING (Theatre Clwyd) ★★★★
Home, I’m Darling is a fresh, original play from Laura Wade with all the makings of a classic. Directed by Tamara Harvey, it is funny, thought-provoking and, in parts, quite sinister and it certainly leaves the audience with plenty to mull over. Katherine Parkinson plays Judy, a former business woman who has taken voluntary redundancy […]
REVIEW: Grindr The Opera! (Above The Stag Theatre) ★★★★
Grindr the Opera – An Unauthorised Parody is Erik Ransom’s ingenious look at the impact Grindr has had on relationships within the gay community, touching on issues of fidelity and sexual health. With witty lyrics and relatable characters, Ransom unashamedly strips bare the realities of dating in the modern age. As the show begins, out […]
REVIEW: KNIGHTS OF THE ROSE (Arts Theatre) ★
A medieval rock musical with elements of Shakespeare thrown in always sounded like it was going to be a difficult blend to pull off. But if Heath Ledger could do it with the 2001 film A Knights Tale, why not make a go of a musical? Well, the answer is because it doesn’t work, well […]
REVIEW: SARDINES (Drayton Arms Theatre) ★★★
Jenna Kamal’s new play Sardines tackles loneliness in the big city by poking fun at London’s tube etiquette in this single act series of skits and monologues. The cast of Jonty Weston, Alistair Hall, Aaron Peters, Alexandra Laurence, and Riana Duce, play a series of different London commuters who make the sinful decision to engage […]