London Archives - Page 122 of 147

17Feb

By Robert BartleyNo Comments

London

Broken Wings – Charing Cross Theatre

One of the lovely things about being a theatregoer is seeing a show grow from workshops, through to concert productions, and then being finally fully realised on stage. The joy is even greater when it's clearly a passion project of its creators, and you can feel how much work and care has gone into its creation. Such is the journey of ‘Broken Wings’, a British musical which started life 4 years ago as public readings, before enjoying well-received concerts at the Theatre Royal Haymarket and The Other Palace. Its development continues with a new fully staged production at the London’s Charing Cross Theatre, where it opened this week. With music and lyrics by Dana Al Fardan and Nadim Naaman, ‘Broken Wings’ is adapted from Khalil Gibran’s novel of the same name and tells Gibran...

16Feb

By Khushboo ShahNo Comments

London

TRADE – Omnibus Theatre

“We are…human. They try to make us forget it, but we don’t.” TRADE is a powerful narrative reflecting the issue of sex trafficking in Europe. Performed by Tanya Cubric (Jana), Ojan Genc, and Eleanor Roberts, TRADE is directed by Maddy Corner and written by Ella Dorman-Gajic. Jana, a young Serbian woman, prepares to move to London with her first boyfriend, Stefan, to make a living for her family. Little does she know that life will push her into the deep, dark, gruesome world of sex-trafficking. In the years to come, Jana is faced with several moral choices. Once a victim, she now plays the perpetrator. TRADE unravels the motives behind a young, helpless Jana’s transformation into a compliant trafficker, posing complex moral questions on her journey. The play along with the statistical d...

10Feb

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

Two Billion Beats – Orange Tree Theatre

Orange tree Theatre’s new show ‘Two Billion Beats’ follows two sisters who meet at the bus stop. Both tackling their secondary school experience in very different ways. Asha, the older sister and arguably the smartest in the school is inspired by the revolutionary figures of the past. Bettina, the younger is tackling a revolution of her own, against her bullies on the bus. We meet them at the bus stop, detention and the park as Bettina does her best to avoid being by herself but one day, she asks Asha for help and as their political beliefs and the cause and effect begins to unravel, we question the damage of our actions. Safiyya Ingar and Anoushka Chadha beautifully portray the sisters with such depth and humour, pushing each other’s buttons with rage and burning sisterly love. Their p...

10Feb

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

ENG-ER-LAND – Dulwich College

Given its centrality to the cultural life of this country, it is surprising that there are not more plays about football. ENG-ER-LAND, written and performed by Hannah Kumari, which has just started a 15 venue UK tour in the Edward Allen theatre at Dulwich College in South London, goes some way to remedying that deficiency. The tour is supported by the Football Supporters Association in order to promote inclusivity and combat racism and sexism in the game. It is very much a personal take on football based upon Kumari’s experience of growing up as a female, mixed race, football fan. Many of its themes will undoubtedly resonate with a wider audience since the play is more about the difficulty of forming an identity for those of mixed race then it is specifically about football...

An Evening Without Kate Bush – Soho Theatre

9Feb

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

An Evening Without Kate Bush – Soho Theatre

I discovered quite quickly that I was in a room full of super fans. Now, I’m a fan but mostly through my dad, who now and again will beautifully reminisce to Wuthering Heights as well as the heights of his vocal range. But as I watched a person enter the stage wearing a bird head piece, I knew I was in the hands of an artist who had carefully cherished her craft all of her life: her craft? Kate Bush. Sarah-Louise Young opens her arms to a bunch of strangers every night, but somehow gets us all on our feet and emotionally hand in hand by the time she’s done. Turning it around on us as we not only enjoy watching her have the time of her life but have that for ourselves too. After what seems like the most anxiety inducing and isolating years of our lives, it’s been a long time since I h...

9Feb

By Carole GordonNo Comments

London

Blood Brothers – New Wimbledon Theatre

Willy Russell's Blood Brothers is back and it's back with a bang. In the 40 years since the show was first performed in Liverpool, Blood Brothers has garnered global acclaim and success. The themes are broad - the class divide, nature versus nurture, poverty, friendship, sibling rivalry, family relationships. Twins Mickey and Eddie are born to working class mother Mrs Johnstone, already a mother of five, who is struggling to feed and clothe them all. Living on the "never-never", she has bailiffs at the door, so in the depths of her despair, she agrees to give up one of the new-borns to the wealthy Mrs Lyons who has been unable to have children. Mrs Lyons has one major condition in this arrangement; the boys must never find out that they are brothers. As the tale unfolds of the ...

Dirty Dancing: The Classic Story on Stage – Dominion Theatre

9Feb

By Samantha CollettNo Comments

London

Dirty Dancing: The Classic Story on Stage – Dominion Theatre

It’s hard to believe it’s been 35 years since Dirty Dancing first hit our screens, but the nostalgia stakes are high when it comes to this theatrical production of the iconic American romantic drama dance film. ‘Dirty Dancing: The Classic Story on Stage’, is, I am pleased to report, rather faithful to the original film. It features the original dialogue and script by Eleanor Bergstein and the much-loved songs and dances every Dirty Dancing fan will expect and appreciate. Set in 1963, the story is a triumphant tale of young love. Frances ‘Baby’ Houseman (Kira Malou) is on holiday with her parents at the upscale Kellerman’s resort, when she falls in love with a dance instructor, Johnny Castle (Michael O’Reilly). Photo: Mark Senior Beneath the polished veneer of all things respect...

9Feb

By Khushboo ShahNo Comments

London

SAMAADHI – Riverside Studios

SAMAADHI, performed by Mohit Mathur and Ivanity Novak at the Riverside Studios as part of the Bitesize Festival, depicts India’s most significant and lamentable colonial event, the Jallianwala Baug Massacre. The audience is welcomed into the auditorium by an ongoing audio news report on the heart-wrenching episode blended with Indian instrumental music. While the news report seems befitting, direct, and aptly contextual, the melodious music does little to set the stage for a rather dark, traumatic, and painful performance to follow. The ‘show in development’ opens to a desolate stage with Mathur dragging a suitcase packed with burnt papers, a winter coat, a piece of cloth, a bullet, and a long stick summing up the minimalistic prop list for the show. The duo uses physical theatre and sp...

9Feb

By Khushboo ShahNo Comments

London

Sunday Morning – Riverside Studios

Mat, a successful, middle-aged photographer takes the audience on a heart-warming, epiphanic journey in the one-man show, Sunday Morning. Directed by Jenine Collocott and written by Nick Warren, it was performed by James Cuningham at the Riverside Studios as part of the Bitesize Festival. On learning that his girlfriend is pregnant, a stunned Mat goes for a jog in his neighbourhood to do some “thinking.” The stage with some grey blocks covered with Sunday newspaper collages turned into a neighbourhood in Johannesburg with vivid descriptions offered by Warren and skilfully articulated by Cuningham. The show was delightfully packed with Mat’s reflections on success, independence, and the uninvited role of becoming a father in his 40s. Without making Mat sound like a man-child, Warren’s...

Faulty Towers Dining Experience – President Hotel, London

8Feb

By Samantha CollettNo Comments

London

Faulty Towers Dining Experience – President Hotel, London

It may surprise you to learn that Fawlty Towers, ranked first on a list of 100 Greatest British Television Programmes, had just two series of six episodes in 1975 and 1979. The power of the show, written by John Cleese and Connie Booth, was in its character creation. From the pomposity of Basil Fawlty to his bossy wife Sybil, to the hapless, linguistically challenged Spanish waiter Manuel, the trio cast a spell in their unforgettable ways. Which is why, decades later, I found myself sat in The President Hotel, Bloomsbury about to enjoy the Faulty Towers Dining Experience. The plot of the original TV series was the Fawlty’s attempts to run a hotel amidst farcical situations – and so the dining experience is much the same. This is a two-hour interactive production set in a restaurant wher...