London Archives - North West End UK

25Apr

By Gemma PrinceNo Comments

London

What (is) a Woman – Arcola Theatre

Set across four decades, the one-woman play tells the one woman’s story of sex, love and identity as she matures from schoolgirl to woman. From critically acclaimed West End and TV actress Andrée Bernard, best known for her roles in Holby City, Hollyoaks and Kiss Me, Kate, the piece is written, composed and performed by Andree herself, directed by Michael Strassen and asks the question of what it means to be a woman of the Modern Age. Bernard expertly commands the stage from start to finish, the audience were enthralled as she encapsulates the various characters in the story, from wide-eyed university student to an overbearing Drama teacher, she does a brilliant job of quickly adopting these characters, showing her versatility. Bernard playing her character’s sh...

24Apr

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

You Are Going to Die – Southwark Playhouse

It was noteworthy that the Southwark Playhouse was fizzing with an unlikely joi de vivre for the launch of You Are Going to Die. On a Monday? For a ‘nail-biting descent into existential anxiety’? The bar was jumping with a young, up-for-it crowd, and it was mystifying and exciting to be among them. Who told them and why are they here? As a long time supporter of the avant garde, I’ve endured excruciating boredom, genuine fear and questionable thrills, but the audience at such events always leans towards the gothy fringes of artistic society. That crowd were oddly absent and in their place were fresh faced Londoners, keen to party and free from the frosty demeanour of the serious aesthete. In attendance was Michelle Greenidge, who plays Lola, Mandy’s best friend in Diane Morgan’s BBC co...

20Apr

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

1884 – Shoreditch Town Hall

What makes a house a home? What makes a hall a theatre and what makes a game play? Conceived by theatre-maker Rhianna Ilube and brought to life by immersive game-theatre makers Coney, 1884, is a hoot and a half. Split into two parts, the first running around two hours that go by in a flash and the second making less of a second full act than a stunningly complex coda, this experience doesn’t waste a minute of the time it takes from you. Intriguingly complex, Jacob Wu’s set design is as functional as it is whimsical and establishes the playfulness of the environment being curated right from the get-go. Audience members self-select seatings of seven to begin the game and from these small pods communities are born. Each activity is thoughtful, engaging, and accessible. Sound designer, Mwen, ...

Boys on the Verge of Tears – Soho Theatre

20Apr

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Boys on the Verge of Tears – Soho Theatre

As a society, the debate around toxic masculinity continues to rage and curdle. The emergence of male social media influencers with unhinged and criminal intentions towards women runs in tandem with alarmingly low conviction rates for men who sexually assault women. Just 2 in 100 rapes recorded by police between Oct' 2022 and Sep' 2023 resulted in someone being charged that same year. Let alone convicted. Into this worrying manosphere drops Boys on the Verge of Tears by Sam Grabiner. It offers no solutions, but by opening a a window onto the brutal evolution of boys to men, it certainly shows why we keep ending up here. Boys on the Verge of Tears was selected from 1,500 entries to the Verity Bargate Award, which is sponsored by Character 7, producers of The Night Manager and Culprits. ...

20Apr

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

The Glass Menagerie – Rose Theatre

Directed by Atri Banerjee and designed by Rosanna Vize, this stylized performance of Tennessee Williams’ iconic family drama both juices up and strips down the physical environs of a timeless story, but its enduring appeal is undulled by theatrical innovation. A restaging both faithful to its formidable script and imbued with a magic of its own, this production is truly enchanting. Geraldine Somerville scintillates as the reluctant matriarch Amanda Wingfield whose erstwhile husband “fell in love with long distances” and hasn’t appeared in more than a decade save in his grinning portrait on the family’s mantle. This production’s rendering of the Wingfield family home places this mantle on the invisible fourth wall which is neither broken nor ever explicitly mended in this staging but ra...

20Apr

By Klervi GavetNo Comments

London

Banging Denmark – Finborough Theatre

A fun, modern take on a romcom classic with a sociologist twist… Management consultant Jake Newhouse (Tom Kay) enrols super-duper feminist Ishtar Madigan (Rebecca Blackstone) to help him seduce the gorgeous, Danish, and totally unreceptive librarian of his dreams (Maja Simonsen). Now here’s the rub. Newhouse also goes by the name of Guy DeWitt, a powerful, misogynistic dating coach, pickup artist and deep voiced podcaster who recently sued Madigan for defamation. Unable to prove DeWitt sent his bros-before-hoes trolls out to destroy her reputation, her mental health and her mailbox, Madigan was forced to sell everything she owns to pay the settlement agreement. She now sleeps in the copy room of her university, a shadow of her glorious self - an alcoholic, paranoiac, horny PhD sc...

19Apr

By Olivia CoxNo Comments

London

F**king Men – Waterloo East

When Tony Award-winning playwright Joe DiPietro first started writing his all-male adaptation of Arthur Schnitzler's La Ronde, he didn’t think anyone would be interested in producing it. So, he gave it what he considered to be an ‘un-producible title’: F**king Men. As the title of this review gives away, the play not only went on to be produced, but it was a runaway success. Debuting in London over 15 years ago, F**king Men became a fringe classic, and DiPietro’s updated version is back for a six-week run at Waterloo East Theatre until 26th May. Drawing back the curtains on the interconnecting sexual encounters between ten different men, F**king Men offers the audience a glimpse into the lives of modern gay men navigating sex, love, and monogamy in a world that still too often discr...

Ushers: The Front of House Musical – The Other Palace

18Apr

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

Ushers: The Front of House Musical – The Other Palace

A new musical housed in The Other Palace, Ushers: The Front of House Musical. We are introduced to the characters who make the theatre run. A newcomer Lucy (Danielle Rose) starts her shift, disrupting the well working machine to try and slot herself in this odd little family. As the evening runs, backstage dramas unfold between relationships, Gary (Cleve September) finally landed a role and is moving to Austria for the year while his boyfriend Luke Bauer (Ben) stays here, still front of house. Rosie (Bethany Amber Perrins), a very funny but creepy TikTok fanatic obsessed with leading men is preyed upon by the failed Opera star ‘Manager’ Robin (Daniel Page) desperate for a raise, money and the little power that comes from overworking your equals. Lucy gets to know this team over the evenin...

15Apr

By Zara OdetundeNo Comments

London

The Comeuppance – Almeida Theatre

The Comeuppance is the first offering of the Almeida’s 2024 season as a thought-provoking piece of theatre that will leave the audience reflecting on their own lives. The Comeuppance takes place at the pre drinks of a circle of high school friends who reunite before they attend their 20th high school reunion. Many haven’t seen each other for years and each person is at a different point in their lives, as they reconnect and share old memories and inside jokes, another presence is hovering on the outskirts. Death. Branden Jacobs-Jenkins writes a play in which the characters are exploring their perspective of mortality and maturity. They have all grown up since they have last seen each other and have started to reflect on their choices and the consequences of them, all the what ifs an...

13Apr

By Anisha PucadyilNo Comments

London

Giselle Remix – Pleasance Theatre

Giselle Remix leaves you feeling inspired. Dare I say hopeful and courageous? You don't have to be gay or queer or pining for unrequited love. You come for the debauchery of cabaret but stay for the heart wrenching poetry of Raison d'être of life. Giselle Remix arrives at the Pleasance Theatre after a sold-out premiere at the Royal Opera House. Giselle, considered a masterwork of the classical ballet canon created in 1841, has been brought to many a stage in the past 183 years. This brainchild of the Pleasance Associate Artist Jack Sears and Royal Ballet Soloist Hannah Grennell has created a rapturous thunderclap in its universality of emotions and expression that is timeless. Before anyone comes on stage, the lights and orchestra fill it up. The music of an era gone by fil...