Caroline Worswick

Mrs Peacock’s Feathers – Alexander House, Auchterarder

21Dec

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

Mrs Peacock’s Feathers – Alexander House, Auchterarder

In the depths of the Scottish countryside, I attended the birthday party celebrations of a close friend. Alexander House was the perfect setting to host such an event, and in the evening, it functioned as the stage for quite a different theatrical experience. The challenge for this company of actors, was to entertain the seventeen guests with a murder mystery evening, without prior knowledge that they were entertaining a theatre reviewer, and two police officers! The theatre company that was booked for the evening were ‘Can You Catch The Killer?’ a company specialising in staging murder mystery events at a location chosen by the client. Our remote house added another layer of eeriness to the proceedings, which were completely managed by the company. The evening c...

Seven Dials Playhouse – To be, or not to be…?

1Dec

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Blogs

Seven Dials Playhouse – To be, or not to be…?

As the campaign to reinstate The Actors’ Centre grows in intensity, with a lack of comment from the Seven Dials Playhouse’s trustees and CEO, it is concerning to hear that another London theatre is struggling with financial pressures. The Seven Dials Playhouse has been known by other names, but the ones that most people will be familiar, are The Actors’ Centre, and the Tristan Bates Theatre. Did you know that this theatre was once a thriving centre for actors to attend workshops, try out their work, and hone their acting skills using the previously named Tristan Bates Theatre as their launchpad? As we mull over the future of this theatre space, let us look back at why the theatre is now in this position. In 1978, The Actors Centre was founded as a charity by Clive Swif...

Joanna Carrick, writer, and director of The Ungodly at Southwark Playhouse Borough

24Oct

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Interviews

Joanna Carrick, writer, and director of The Ungodly at Southwark Playhouse Borough

As we move towards winter with its dark nights; Halloween, or to give it its Celtic name, Samhain; is our first festival to celebrate ‘as the dead walk the earth’ according to ancient myths. Witches have become a part of this festival, undoubtedly due to the witch trials, and the many ‘witch’ deaths. The Ungodly delves into the mid-17th century era of the witch trials, focusing upon Witchfinder General, Matthew Hopkins’ stepsister Susan Edwards. North West End UK’s Deputy Editor, Caroline Worswick, discussed the witch trials with the play’s writer and director Joanna Carrick. The Ungodly begins its story in 1645, set in the village of Mistley, on the Stour Estuary. Can you explain how the Witch Trials were introduced into 17th-century England? It was a t...

The New Real – The Other Place, Stratford-Upon-Avon

11Oct

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

West Midlands

The New Real – The Other Place, Stratford-Upon-Avon

David Edgar’s 10th premiere at The Other Place follows on from The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde (1991), Written on the Heart (2011), and A Christmas Carol (2022), and continues his relationship with the RSC following on from his appointment in 1989 as an Honorary Artist. The New Real, is a bringing together of Headlong, the RSC and David Edgar to produce a new political drama, staged in the RSC’s studio theatre, The Other Place. Set in a former communist country in Eastern Europe, two American political strategists are working for competing candidates and predict that they will teach the East how to do elections, but the tables are turned… Globally, we witness diplomacy a time when the Right competes with populist politics, as seen in Britain’s recent election wit...

Interview with Stella Powell-Jones, Director of Eurydice at Jermyn Street Theatre

5Oct

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Interviews

Interview with Stella Powell-Jones, Director of Eurydice at Jermyn Street Theatre

North West End UK’s Deputy Editor, Caroline Worswick, discussed Jermyn Street Theatre’s exciting new production of Eurydice with director Stella Powell-Jones. A play written by Sarah Ruhl, it draws its inspiration from the Greek mythical tale of the beautiful Eurydice and the musically talented Orpheus, whose doomed relationship has been re-told by many ancient storytellers, including Ovid and Plato. Eurydice was written in 2003 by Sarah Ruhl, why do you feel that now is good time to re-imagine the play? On one hand, Eurydice is about something pretty eternal: love and earth. How do we deal with death? Does love survive death? What would we do if we got a second chance? Sarah wrote the play while mourning her own beloved Father. My own Dad died unexpectedly when I was young...

17Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

South East

The Marlowe Sessions – Marlowe Theatre

Two years ago, I went along to watch the recording of Tamburlaine II, intrigued by this ambitious plan to record all seven of Christopher Marlowe’s plays in quick succession, here is the link to my interview with one of the cast members Alan Cox - https://northwestend.com/spotlight-on-actor-alan-cox-and-the-marlowe-sessions-at-the-malthouse-theatre-canterbury/, which sheds some light on this project. Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593) the poet/playwright, was controversial to say the least, his open homosexuality during a period of gay sex being outlawed, atheism, and his involvement as a spy for Sir Francis Walsingham, are evidence enough of his unorthodox thinking. This spilled over into his plays, the blood thirsty Tamburlaine, the gay Edward II, and the ambitious necromancer, Doc...

8Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

Dionysa – C Arts Aquila

I am on a roll with Greek tragedies at the 2024 Edinburgh Fringe Festival, and the Wellington College Theatre Collective’s take on Euripides’ ‘The Bacchae’ is interesting. The company have loaded the play into a time machine and moved it into the 20th Century, 1920 to be exact. This play written by an Athenian playwright was set in Thebes, this remains the same, but we have a gender change, as the original play is based around Dionysus, a Greek god (also known as Bacchus to the Romans), of whom was originally a Thracian god, later adopted by the Greeks. This gender change makes Dionysus become Dionysa! The basic storyline is that Dionysa (Cressida Massey-Cook), is a god, born from a union between her father Zeus and her mortal mother Semele. Dionysa is enrage...

The Sex Life of Puppets – Pleasance Courtyard

8Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

The Sex Life of Puppets – Pleasance Courtyard

An interesting title, and an even more interesting show. Brought to the stage by Blind Summit Theatre, the play does exactly what the title suggests, it gives an insight into the private lives of a selection of puppets which sounds a wee bit twee, but this play is anything but twee! The puppets are not string puppets but hand-held puppets, which I assume would make them easier to manipulate for the subject of the show. The puppeteers use a table to sit the puppets down and the rest is down to the script and the puppeteers’ imagination. The puppets are all human puppets whose characters are brought to life by their handlers, they discuss subjects such as sexual wellbeing, what they like to name their genitals, nursing home sex, lesbian sex and many more. ...

After Shakespeare: Richard III – the Space Triplex

7Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

After Shakespeare: Richard III – the Space Triplex

We have heard many tales of Richard III, not many of them are favourable, and Shakespeare wrote the play Richard III casting Richard in a bad light too. Theatre and film company Slade Wolfe Enterprises Ltd wish to look at Richard through a kinder lens, he had much to contend with, but was he the villain that he was made out to be by Shakespeare. This play analyses the period between 1464-1485 charting the period of boyhood, through to his death…he was only thirty-two years old when he died in 1485, when fighting as King, he died at the Battle of Bosworth Field. This period is history was remarkably busy for coronations, as the monarchy changed five times, Edward IV, Henry VI, Edward IV (again), Edward V and then Richard III himself. The War of the Roses ensur...

Witch? Women on Trial – Greenside @ Riddles Court

7Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

Scotland

Witch? Women on Trial – Greenside @ Riddles Court

The Edinburgh Storytellers tell the stories of our past, in this case, the witch trials in Scotland which began in the early 16th century. Our storyteller is Natalie, who enthusiastically draws us into the world of witches. Just to give you a taster of some of the material spoken about, Natalie told us about Janet Cock, who was sent to jail for drunken behaviour, but was then released due to her daughter’s efforts, but a couple of months later she was re-arrested on new charges and was convicted and sentenced to death for witchcraft. Between 1590-1662 executions took place for witchcraft, and many trumped up charges were used to suppress women’s vitality, to quieten those who were outspoken or would not conform. The prosecutors were men, and we see this theme...