London Archives - North West End UK

Unofficial Roxelana – Barons Court Theatre

22Sep

By Gaurav SinghNo Comments

London

Unofficial Roxelana – Barons Court Theatre

It is always exciting to encounter multilingual theatre in London, particularly in a city with such a complex mix of languages, histories and communities. Unofficial Roxelana, performed in Turkish with English surtitles, is an example of the kind of work that can bring a specific cultural history into a shared theatrical space without having to translate away its original language. Written by Turkish playwright Özen Yula, the play tells the story of Hürrem Sultan, one of the most powerful women of the Ottoman Empire. Her journey from concubinage into the centre of the Ottoman court becomes a way of exploring power, gender, political ambition and the ways in which women's histories are remembered and retold. Rather than presenting Hürrem's story as a straightforward historical accoun...

CSI: Crime Scene improvisation – Underbelly Boulevard

22Sep

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

CSI: Crime Scene improvisation – Underbelly Boulevard

Following their success at the Edinburgh Fringe, here comes CSI: Crime Scene Improvisation at the Underbelly Boulevard in Soho London. There’s been a murder and no one knows why, how, what or who did it. It’s up to the audience to decide … everything. Admittedly, I think my audience was a little shy so after some coaxing from our Detective, we finally decided on our scenario and off we go. I wasn’t expecting as much audience participation however it was really welcomed, especially after we had warmed up to a much more involved experience. We followed the actors through the initial discovery, world building scenes to finally coming to the hot seat section where we got to ask our questions. We also got to decide which of our suspects are the most suspicious and therefore definitely did...

The Lover & A Slight Ache – The Questors Theatre

22Sep

By Prateek SonnyNo Comments

London

The Lover & A Slight Ache – The Questors Theatre

Desire, dysfunction, and drama doubled. The Lover & A Slight Ache, directed by David Erdos, is a double bill of classic Harold Pinter plays. While the two plays were written separately, the similarities between their themes create an intriguing convergence when performed together. Erdos' direction and the cast's performances create a sense of continuity between the two plays, making the transition from one to the next feel deliberate rather than a coincidence. The Lover tells the story of Richard (Harry Roebuck) and Sarah (Catherine Luff), a married couple in their thirties. It is soon established that they have settled into a seemingly amicable arrangement where Sarah welcomes her “lover” into their home in the afternoons. Whereas Richard visits his “mistress” after work. It is a s...

22Sep

By Klervi GavetNo Comments

London

Current/y – Coronet Theatre

Current/Y is a genuinely interesting but uneven 50-minute piece exploring our relationship with AI, social media and algorithms. Some sequences offer a genuinely sharp commentary on human experience in the age of technology; others remain so opaque throughout that it becomes difficult to understand what is being watched. Taiwanese dancer Chen Yi performs with motion capture, while an avatar appears on the screen behind her. The opening sequence sees the avatar multiply, followed by a largely silent interaction between performer and screen. Without much framework, it is difficult to know what this interaction is meant to convey: the plurality of our internet presence? Our lack of control over it? The strongest sequence sees Chen Yi become an influencer selling beauty products. Her ava...

18Sep

By Gaurav SinghNo Comments

London

Emma or Emily – Cockpit Theatre

Emma or Emily, written and directed by Moon Kim, with music by Ábel Misha Gille Esbenshade, is an experimental play-opera that brings together spoken theatre, live opera, movement and multimedia. Emily Carmichael plays Emily, a failed opera singer who has retreated into domestic life as a housewife, who’s carefully maintained world begins to unravel when her old friend Emma, played by Eva Stone-Barney, arrives. Her encounters with Emma draws out the parts of herself she has suppressed, and the boundary between the life she has chosen and the life she once imagined for herself becomes increasingly blurred. The opera singer she has tried to silence begins to resurface, bringing her artistic ambitions, insecurities and unresolved sense of identity back into the room. The most striking aspe...

Some Explicit Polaroids – The Tower Theatre

18Sep

By Gaurav SinghNo Comments

London

Some Explicit Polaroids – The Tower Theatre

Some Explicit Polaroids, written by Mark Ravenhill and directed for Tower Theatre by Nick Edwards, was first performed in 1999. The play follows Nick, a political activist released from prison after 15 years, returning to a Britain that has changed considerably in his absence. He encounters Helen, his former partner, and a younger generation of Nadia, Tim and Victor, whose lives are shaped by sex, drugs, consumerism, identity and the search for belonging. Across these encounters, Ravenhill examines connection, disconnection and the changing social and political landscape of Britain at the turn of the century. There is something fascinating about encountering a play written at the end of the 1990s and seeing how its questions around identity, desire, consumerism and connection resonate t...

17Sep

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Sufficient Merit – Canal Café Theatre

Sufficient Merit is a new play by Emma Paige Baker. This short play focusses in on four actors Tess, Emma Baker, Eleanor, Alia Lahlou and Ted, T’ai Hartley and their landlord Bob played by all three characters. Oh, and a fictional Chihuahua; whose lives are entwined through their work, their living arrangements and a shared desire to create the next best play. Their world is turned upside down when Bob delivers the bad news, the not so bad news and the good news to the trio. Their home, and theatre company is under threat from an external investor, AI creatives that could replace everything they had ever known. The foundation of this play is centred around the real challenges faced by the actors of trying to put on a play “which keeps getting roadblocked” by bad news. So, they decide...

17Sep

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

Deep-Heat Rivalry – The Other Palace

This is a farcical musical parody of the popular Canadian TV series Heated Rivalry. It is about two ice hockey players who, while playing for competing teams, actually have a great homosexual attraction for each other. The writers Trevor Ashley and Phil Scott make no claims other than their intention to write an outrageous, adult, raunchy comedy. It was clear from the press night audience that this is exactly what most of them had come for, but for anyone unfamiliar with the Canadian TV series the point of it was baffling. From the very beginning the tone was set by the MC (Ross Chisari) in the role of “Puck”, dressed in a costume revealing his pectoral muscles and bottom. He was hyper-camp with a self-satisfied smug expression most of the time, which rapidly became wearing. Casting him...

The Departure – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

16Sep

By Gaurav SinghNo Comments

London

The Departure – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

In The Departure we encounter Lily, an emerging scientist returning from her mother’s funeral, who discovers Ross, a stranger staying in her flat seemingly without reason. We later discover that Ross knows Lily’s roommate Jules, who had offered him the flat, but a mix-up over the dates means the two strangers unexpectedly find themselves sharing the space. Ross is waiting for his new passport to arrive at the flat, before taking a flight to move to Australia for a job. Trapped together for the evening, they gradually begin to talk, revealing more about themselves and the grief they are hiding within. Ross has learned to deal with pain through avoidance. He puts his problems into his pocket watch, compartmentalising them so that he can keep moving. Lily has become deeply anxious after ye...

Million Dollar Quartet — Arts Theatre, Marble Arch

16Sep

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Million Dollar Quartet — Arts Theatre, Marble Arch

The first thing that strikes you is the incredible attention to detail in the staging and lighting. It instantly transports you back to the rockabilly era, a time when rock ’n’ roll was exploding onto the music scene. There’s a real sense of authenticity in the way the period is brought to life, making you feel as though you’ve stepped back in time and are right there experiencing the excitement of those early days of rock ’n’ roll. Million Dollar Quartet is centred on the 1956 recording session at Sun Records that encapsulates the coming together of 4 greats from the Rock and Roll Hall of fame. Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis; an encounter brought about by Sam Phillips. At the heart of this production is Darren Day’s compelling portrayal of Sam Phillips and...