London Archives - Page 6 of 158

12Feb

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Dear Liar – Jermyn Street Theatre

Dear Liar, is a play adapted by Jerome Kilty from the correspondence of Bernard Shaw and Mrs Patrick Cambell. It portrays the communication between the writer George Bernard Shaw and actress Mrs Patrick Campbell. A relationship of expression; love, frustration and conflict between the artists. An affair of the heart, battling egos and a collective passion for performance. Their affair captured in a series of personal letters that survived World War two. The prose and context of the play centred around the letters creates a voyeuristic view of how their relationship brought about some of Shaw’s best theatrical work. Pygmalion written in early 1912 was read to actress Mrs Patrick Campbell first in June. Written with Campbell in mind Shaw “this is for you; I wrote it just for you “. Keen t...

Saaniya Abbas: Hellarious – Soho Theatre

12Feb

By Savitha VenugopalNo Comments

London

Saaniya Abbas: Hellarious – Soho Theatre

Watching Saaniya Abbas on stage is like listening to that one friend who has a funny take on just about everything. That’s how well she builds a rapport with the audience. And nothing is too sacred or out of bounds, from politics to religion to personal life. Abbas, we quickly learn, grew up in a conservative Muslim family in New Delhi and studied at a residential school run by Roman Catholic nuns. That in itself offers comedic gold – the restrictions of convention and religion turn into anecdotes of sharp wit. Having then moved to Dubai for work, she found standup comedy, porn, and a British husband, not necessarily in that order. She brings to stage her experiences from all these different aspects of her life as sharp social commentary hidden in a clever script. Take for instance h...

11Feb

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Miles – Southwark Playhouse

The Southwark Playhouse (Borough) was heaving and giddy for the Monday press night of Miles, which swaggers into London after dazzling Edinburgh Fringe last year. Two young women were sat next to me. We chatted before the show started. They are both actors, blessed with good looks, quick wit and youthful enthusiasm. They were amused to hear I’m reviewing the show. Why? One of them turned out to be to be Amelia Bright, Assistant Director on this production. Written and directed by Oliver Kaderbhai, the concept of this show was crafted by globally renowned jazz trumpet whizz, Jay Phelps. He also happens play one of two characters in Miles. Phelps plays a thinly veiled version of himself. His co-star, Benjamin Akintuyosi, plays Miles Davis. Phelps isn’t messing about. The man with the trum...

9Feb

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

The Virgins – Soho Theatre

Oh my god, twist! And shout. Come on and work it on out. For these virgins, that’s pretty much the entire night’s agenda. Best friends Chloe (Anushka Chakravarti) and Jess (Ella Bruccoleri) are headed out for the night to “pull” for the very first time but find their plans needlessly complicated by the simple fact they have no idea what they actually want. Aided and abetted by the persistently peripheral Phoebe (Molly Hewitt-Richards), cool girl/experienced slut Anya (Zoë Armer), a bottle of Absolut vodka, and two liters of lemonade, they’re ready for anything, in theory. In practice, practice is about all they’re up for. Writer Miriam Battye’s playtext is clever and cringe in equal measure, and Jaz Woodcock-Stewart’s direction is funky and fresh, with particular flavour peppered...

9Feb

By Charles PipeNo Comments

London

Digging Up Appearances – Old Red Lion

Inspired by the 90s British sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, this creative horror-comedy play will delight you with macabre hilarity whether or not you’re familiar with the source material. Decades after the sitcom is set, Sheridan is going through a heartbreaking divorce and, through the powers of a magical amulet, accidentally resurrects his dead mother, Hyacinth. Seeing her son’s life isn’t as wonderful as she hoped or expected it would be, Hyacinth takes it upon herself to guide Sheridan and get his life back on track. She also has an insatiable appetite for human flesh. Hilarious horror-comedy antics ensue. I have never seen a single episode of Keeping Up Appearances but knew just enough from cultural osmosis to not be completely lost while watching this play. Some jokes went over...

Edgar in the Red Room – The Hope Theatre

9Feb

By Charles PipeNo Comments

London

Edgar in the Red Room – The Hope Theatre

All the way from New York, The Shylock Project bring their Edgar Allan Poe - inspired Gothic musical to London. Collaging elements from a variety of Poe’s stories and poems, from his most famous works such as The Raven or The Fall of the House of Usher to multitudinous deeper cuts, Edgar in the Red Room tells an original story exploring the life, death, and legacy of Edgar Allan Poe. Poe aficionados will delight in spotting the various references, while those less familiar with his work will enjoy being exposed to these spooky components for the first time. Poe – played by both Morgan Smith and Sammy Overton – is both narrator and protagonist, but it gradually becomes apparent that he is not in control of the story as it whisks him along on a surreal and frightening journey into the mac...

9Feb

By Charles PipeNo Comments

London

Exhuming Emily – Etcetera Theatre

Monty Bulmer sits at the bottom of Mealt Falls in the Isle of Skye with a compound leg fracture and the tide coming in. Above him, entombed in the frozen waterfall, is the body of Emily. Monty intends to exhume the body. He beseeches God for a miracle. In order to convey to God just how important it is for him to exhume Emily, Monty tells the story of what led him to his current situation. With a heavy focus on his tumultuous relationship with his father, Monty recounts his life story. I don’t want to describe the plot further, so as not to spoil any of the shocking twists and turns. I would suggest that those particularly sensitive to upsetting themes around sexual offences use their discretion when deciding whether or not to see this show. Alex Maslin’s richly complex script...

9Feb

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

Guidelines – New Diorama

The New Diorama presents ‘Guidelines’ by Pip Williams, directed by James Nash. Conglomerate debuts their first show and did not disappoint. We are met in a forest, overhead voices warn us of what we are in for. Starting as a warm and worried mother but slowly distorting and changing into something sinister. This feeling never quite leaves us, always feeling haunted or watched by something. This show explores growing up with the internet at your fingertips, the false promises of safety and how we never quite consent for what we are fed on our ‘for you page’. The setting is never quite clear however as we jump through time we meet a series of people who are all aware of ‘the video’. This town is grieving the loss of innocence for not only who were directly involved but for all the ...

6Feb

By Ralph JeffreysNo Comments

London

The Gambler – Coronet Theatre

This adaptation of The Gambler by Chiten Theatre is an interesting idea but unfortunately is an exhausting experience for its audience. Dostoevsky’s short novel is all about a cast of characters sucked in by the thrill and appeal of gambling and the pursuit of inheritance. Whether it is the central character Alexei (Takahide Akimoto) betting to win his love Polina or the grandmother winning and losing money at the roulette table, everyone seems to succumb to it. This adaptation pairs an absurdist, physical style with large chunks of Dostoyevsky’s complicated text (translated into Japanese). It’s a bold proposition, but sadly it's one that gets quite lost amid the sheer intensity of the production, which leaves the audience inundated. From the very first, the actors’ energy is through...

The Debate: Baldwin vs Buckley – Wilton’s Music Hall

5Feb

By Klervi GavetNo Comments

London

The Debate: Baldwin vs Buckley – Wilton’s Music Hall

Timing is everything they say. The Debate: Baldwin vs Buckley could have not come at a better time. Watching a play that asks "Is the American Dream at the expense of the American Negro?", just days before the Super Bowl, amid conservative outrage over Puerto Rican Bad Bunny being "not American enough" to perform at this all-American cultural institution, and against the backdrop of renewed ICE arrests, makes the piece feel disturbingly real and urgently demanding. The play restages the famous 1965 Cambridge debate between James Baldwin, literary leader of the civil rights movements, and William F. Buckley Jr., America's most prominent conservative intellectual, who took place shortly after the Mississippi civil rights marches. Striking in its simplicity, the staging offers only chairs ...