REVIEWS Archives - North West End UK

29Oct

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Non-Ordinary Service – Coronet Theatre

Living in south-east London means that Notting Hill can feel as distant and awkward to access as Cornwall or the Shetlands. Even Carnival can’t tempt me these days, but you know what can? The Coronet Theatre. It opened in 1898. Ellen Terry and Sarah Bernhardt have both graced its stage. It’s a bijou Victorian space, rather than grand, but it has the best theatre bar in the UK, maybe the world. Dimly lit, with a sloping floor, it’s a bohemian carnival of vintage charm and maximalist eccentricity. The theatre has an impressively experimental programme. A previous jaunt to The Coronet was to see the lovely Lemm Sissay read from a collection of poems. The streets of Notting Hill were once again witness to my presence due to a contemporary dance piece by a Chuang Po-Hsiang, a critically acclaim...

29Oct

By Kathleen MansfieldNo Comments

Scotland

Rollers Forever – King’s Theatre

The Bay City Rollers were a 1970s phenomenon hailing from Edinburgh. They had huge popularity with their catchy tunes, and the band travelled the globe selling an estimated 120 million records world-wide. Rollers Forever, written by Danny McCahon, is a light-hearted trip down memory lane. The story pivots around two women, Susan (Chiara Sparkles) and Jenny (Fiona Wood) who relive their teenage dreams of meeting and marrying Woody and Alan and upgrading their lives. Their dream never materialises but their happy fiction and their efforts to nab the boys before they get too famous and every girl on the planet wants them is recognisable to anyone who’s been a teenage fan or known one. It is a charming, witty, bright and lively musical. The leads are strong and the whole cast can sing an...

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time – Grand Opera House York

29Oct

By Adam CraddockNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time – Grand Opera House York

Last night I had the pleasure of being invited along to the always wonderful Grand Opera House York to review the latest leg of the UK tour of “The curious incident of the dog in the night time”. I have only seen this play once before in a rather wonderful amateur production at the Minack Theatre in Cornwall, so I was very much looking forward to seeing a professional company take on this famous script and I have to say they more than delivered. The plot follows 15-year-old Chris Boone, a young girl with autism who discovers her neighbour’s dog murdered and decides to investigate who killed the dog. This production offers a fresh twist on the story as classically Chris is a boy but, in this production, they have switched Chris to being a girl. My partner particularly appreciated this chang...

28Oct

By NewsdeskNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Burlesque – Sheffield Lyceum

Fourteen years after it debuted on screen, audiences got their first glimpse of Burlesque on stage in 2024. Now it’s Sheffield’s turn for the final week of October 2026. Whilst Burlesque promises to be big, however, it often falls short. This ‘big new musical’ is extravagant and flashes lights in your face and blasts sound into your ears but there is so little behind the curtain you’re forgiven for second guessing its credentials. Behind the bombast and frills, this is a poor musical theatre show. I’m happy to give the production its flowers where it earned them. Faye Brookes is great as the matriarchal Tess. Ryan Carter’s Sean is brilliant, and Vanessa Ela Young is formidable as Nikki. Tyler Davis offers a particularly layered performance as Jack and Macy Dermody Blythe commits well to...

28Oct

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Paranormal Activity – The Alexandra

Boo! There that’s got that out of the way to begin with. Lurking in the shadows so close to Halloween is an unsettlingly spooky play whose title is “Paranormal Activity” a reincarnation of the film of the same name, but with a whole new plot line and characters. I’ve no idea why but perhaps as the evening inflicts its creepy self upon the unsuspecting folk in the darkness of the Alexandra theatre, we may find out. The 2007 movie from which this was spawned was created by Oren Pell as an independent picture purporting to use “found footage” and shot for $15,000 - not much but could certainly pay off a chunk of my mortgage. Dreamworks got their claws on it and tweaked and adapted the movie and it’s ending for $200,000 - which could pay off me and most of my friend’s mortgages - and ended up ...

28Oct

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Legally Blonde – Hull New Theatre

Bruiser Woods had us in the palm of his hands, appearing as he did quite early on in the musical, Legally Blonde, which started its run at the Hull New Theatre on Tuesday evening. I should say the palm of his paws as Bruiser is a teeny chihuahua, performing as Sprout, the pet of the star of the show, Elle Woods (Amber Davies). We, in the packed theatre, melted instantly as soon as he appeared. Also eliciting “ahs” from the audience later on was a real bruiser of a dog called Rufus, playing the part of Rocco. Two gorgeous pooches - what's not to love? This new production of Legally Blonde, based on the award-winning 2001 film, centres around University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) student, Elle, who, expecting a marriage proposal from her boyfriend, fellow student Warner (J...

28Oct

By Grace LeicesterNo Comments

North East

Waitress – The Lowry

Celebrating the tenth anniversary of its Broadway debut, Waitress continues to prove why it remains such a popular audience favourite. At The Lowry, Salford, this hugely enjoyable production serves up a tempting mix of laugh-out-loud comedy, heartfelt storytelling and sensational musical performances, while carrying a serious message about finding the courage to change your life. Waitress follows Jenna Hunterson, a gifted pie maker trapped in an unhappy and abusive marriage. Working in a small-town diner, she dreams of a better future while navigating friendship, motherhood, an unexpected romance and the possibility of rediscovering herself. At the centre of this production is Lucie Jones as Jenna, and what a magnificent performance she delivers. No stranger to the role, having previ...

27Oct

By Angela KellyNo Comments

North West

Jersey Boys – Regent Theatre

It’s always interesting to see a musical that, prior to going, you have heard so much about. From being awarded Tonys to a Grammy, plus an Olivier for best new musical in 2009, ‘The Jersey Boys’ has been seen by millions all over the world and tonight welcomes the audience to The Regent Theatre in Stoke. Directed by Des McAnuff and based on a book written by Marshall Brickman and Rick Ellis, The Jersey Boys is essentially the story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons. The title refers to the place they called home- New Jersey. It tells the story of four blue collar kids, the sons of Italian immigrants, who became one of the biggest ‘boy bands’ in the world. The fast-paced story flows effortlessly amidst hit after hit. From the beginning there is a sense that this musical is a...

26Oct

By Shivangi NigamNo Comments

London

BU21 – Lower Marsh Arts Club

This ensemble forces the satire, tragedy, and hypocrisy of Stuart Slade’s BU21 directly into the faces of an audience seated in an intensely packed space. The charge in the room is not built up slowly over time—it is raw, immediate, and electrifying from the opening moment. The narrative explores the aftermath of a catastrophic terrorist attack in which a commercial airliner is brought down over Fulham. The production feels so instant that you can practically see the flames engulfing the performers as they recount witnessing the crash and processing its devastating impact. Director Karen Holley places the audience on the same plane of vulnerability as the actors, transforming this intimate staging into a confrontational, direct conversation. Stripped of elaborate sets or heavy dr...

26Oct

By Naina SidhuNo Comments

London

Dolly – Omnibus Theatre

Defining ‘Dolly’ as a play about sexual assault is reductive. What Dolly achieves is nothing less than a crushing experience that refuses to soften its blows. The dark comedy, written by Charlotte Ashton is anything but linear, combining stand-up comedy, police interview recordings and a splintered narrative. Its result is a very pointed and urgent confrontation of the criminal justice system’s failure in protecting and defending women. The show opens with the titular Dolly (Jessica Clark) performing what appears to be a stand-up set, convincingly authentic with sharp and attentive comedic timing. A waitress by day and comic by night, Dolly interestingly interacts with the audience. As her set continues, material covering sexual harassment emerges as more prominent until it becomes ...