Greg Holstead, Author at North West End UK

<strong>Jersey Boys – Edinburgh Playhouse</strong>

27Jan

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Jersey Boys – Edinburgh Playhouse

Twelve months into an epic 18-month tour of the UK and Ireland, Jersey Boys splashes down at Edinburgh Playhouse. The lines are smooth as silk, the choreography is on point, hair is perfect, music is tight and the vocals – well… they are simply fantastic, and from the look of the packed audience, dancing, singing and whooping by the finale there is no denying this slick production is a hit. Having previously seen this musical 3 years ago, my expectations of being slightly bored by what I recalled as a somewhat formulaic juke box musical were quickly blown away by the sheer energy of this new cast with superlative acting and by the imaginative and brilliant staging. The two-storey scaffold set looked simple but with imaginative modelling and brilliant choreography the actors moved around...

<strong>Once Upon a Snowstorm – Traverse Theatre</strong>

12Dec

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Once Upon a Snowstorm – Traverse Theatre

This gentle rendition of Richard Johnson’s wordless picture book, adapted and directed by Jo Timmins, produced by Lyra and with support from Catherine Wheels, is a surprisingly effective Christmas gift, very nicely wrapped and presented on the modified stage, turned grotto of the subterranean Traverse 2. A delicate piece of theatre from talented duo, Adam Tompa and Fay Guiffo, who work closely together to recreate the touching relationship between father and son, and their desperation when they become separated during a snowstorm in the deep woods. Guiffo’s particular gift for electric violin is very nicely integrated into the piece to recreate through sound the snowy textures and dulled stillness of their crystalised world and the animals which inhabit it. The set design by Sophie G...

<strong>The Commitments – Edinburgh Playhouse</strong>

29Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

The Commitments – Edinburgh Playhouse

Two months in to a nine-month tour of the UK, The Commitments lands in Edinburgh Playhouse. The lines are delivered crisply, the music is tight, and the vocals are on point, and from the look of the almost capacity audience, dancing, singing and whooping by the finale, all is well, or is it? It is hard for this not to be a hit, based on Roddy Doyle’s 1987 book set in Dublin and the subsequent 1991 BAFTA Award-winning film classic. The hit ingredients keep coming in the form of over 20 soul classics performed live on stage by a group of committed and talented actor / musicians. If you think there is a but coming, you would be right. Sometimes all of the right ingredients is just not enough, which is …well, disappointing. The story follows James Killeen as Jimmy Rabbitte, a young worki...

<strong>An Edinburgh Christmas Carol – Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh</strong>

27Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

An Edinburgh Christmas Carol – Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

Last performed here in 2019, the Lyceums’ Artistic Director David Greig gives this Edinburgh take on the Dickens classic a well-deserved re-run. And why not, it is an absolute joy to the eyes and ears and will surely be a big hit with audiences old and young alike. The well drilled and very talented cast play out the well-known tale of Scrooge on the cobbles of the old town against one of the undoubted stars of the show, the set; a series of finely painted backdrops of side screens from Edinburgh’s old town, featuring great stone quoins and air scraping tenements, with the castle looming like a constant dark presence overall. The set cleverly mirrors Mr Scrooge’s oppressive domination over the lower elements of Edinburgh, the underpaid clerks, like Bob Cratchit, or poor evicted tenan...

<strong>Cell Outs – Traverse Theatre</strong>

25Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Cell Outs – Traverse Theatre

Two ex-screws take to intimate interior of the thrust stage of Traverse 2 to provide a thought-provoking insight into the British prison system. Glasshouse Theatre Company’s, Harriet Troup and Ella Church play themselves as graduates cajoled into the prison system on the promise of putting their arts backgrounds to good use in rehabilitation, only to find that barely six weeks later they are ‘lambs to the slaughter’ as fully qualified Prison Officers. In a comedic twist the two friends are posted to prisons within waving distance, one to a male prison, the other a female, covering both bases as it were, and provided rich material for this production. Set against a period of government cut-backs and lay-offs, the play takes us from initial recruitment through the ‘breakthrough grad...

<strong>The Time Machine: A Radical Feminist Reworking – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh</strong>

4Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

The Time Machine: A Radical Feminist Reworking – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

Nearing the end of a one-month tour, Feminist Theatre group Jordan and Skinner bring their own take on the H.G. Wells classic tale to Edinburgh’s Traverse No. 1 Stage. On a well-attended opening night, the first priority is to find a seat amongst the predominantly young and female audience. Not easy - squeezing past tightly drawn calves whilst trying not to fall down the cliff of heavily raked seating ultimately, happily, pays dividends. Note to self – come early next time or bring rope! At the start of the play one of the cast asks the audience, ‘if you had a time machine where would you go?’. An interesting question. ‘You would go to visit your favourite painter, or ancient Greece or Rome maybe, you wouldn’t go to the future, it’s going to be sh*t!’. Yes…. well, set against rising ...

Doing Shakespeare – Assembly Roxy Theatre, Edinburgh

24Oct

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Doing Shakespeare – Assembly Roxy Theatre, Edinburgh

Doing Shakespeare at the Roxy for one night only sees Northern Comedy Theatre on the road for a whistlestop tour of Scotland and Northern England bringing David Spicer's laddish take on the canon of the Bard. Part of a series of six plays for six actors, written during lockdown and designed for broadcast over zoom, this is an adventurous, playful and to some extent experimental project piece. However, sitting alongside other titles like Doing the Pub Quiz, Doing Whodunnit, Doing the Bookclub, and Doing the business, you have to wonder about the logic of targeting the world’s most revered scribe. Set in the village of Felching, the local am-dram society meet together again after lockdown to put on a Shakespeare play. Unfortunately, due to miscommunication each of the six members has p...

Don’t. Make. Tea. – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

6Oct

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Don’t. Make. Tea. – Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh

It is a rainy night in Edinburgh. I expect to find a car parking place easily, but to my horror find the streets jammed, there is a rock concert on next door. I park three streets away and jog towards the venue. 3 minutes to spare. If I was disabled, I would be in a right pickle. Appropriate, given that the show tonight is from BOP, a leading force of disability led theatre in Scotland. Established in Glasgow in 1993, Birds of Paradise (BOP) Theatre Company became Scotland’s first touring theatre company employing disabled and non-disabled actors. The remit of the company has always been to produce accessible theatre and to highlight the challenges faced by the disabled community. I am delighted to see that the 250-seater theatre is near capacity and the demographic is refresh...

The Book of Mormon – Edinburgh Playhouse

15Sep

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

The Book of Mormon – Edinburgh Playhouse

As Edinburgh comes down off its narcotic high of hosting the largest arts Festival in the world, and just as it starts to hunker down for the onset of Autumn and Winter, here comes a wake-up of epic proportions as ‘Mormon’ marches unashamedly into town. One of the world’s highest grossing musicals, this multi award-winning show is not to be missed, from the creators of South Park, Avenue Q and Frozen, Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone. This is a show of high pedigree and high quality that does not disappoint and is probably one of the funniest musicals you are ever likely to see. Halfway through a UK tour the cast are drilled, the music is tight, and the laughs are guaranteed! Stripped down this is a buddy road-trip musical, think Abbott and Costello meets the Lion King, that...

16Aug

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Changing The Sheets – Assembly Rooms

A long thin room with raked seating to both sides cascades to a bare stage with two floor-mounted LED multi-coloured strip lights. These are the sheets (of light) between which the two actors, Adam and Eve, if you will, play out the age-old mating ritual. In this retelling it is Adam who bites the apple and Eve who kicks him out of Eden (her dad’s flat). For those of us of a certain age, think When Harry Meets Sally meets Groundhog Day. Or, if you have never heard of these classics (Oh dear!) maybe think Normal People meets Lena Dunham’s Girls. Let’s just say there is a lot of ooing and ahhing on stage. This is intimacy without the mess (thank god!) In a show which is light on production, not a Par Cam or Birdie in sight, my hope is that the script and acting are on point. Happily, I am...