London Archives - Page 85 of 111

19Feb

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

London

The Forest – Hampstead Theatre

French playwright Florian Zeller describes his plays as ‘little labyrinths in which we can get lost, and sometimes, find ourselves’. This play is a masterpiece by the writer, in which its cleverness holds your mind hostage so that it is cornered and coerced into exploring the avenues that the plot leads you down. Written in French, translator Christopher Hampton has interpreted Zeller’s nuances and according to Zeller, their collaboration comes from his deep respect for Hampton’s great sensitivity and precision. It is important to explain that the cleverness of this play is not only due to the writing, but the director Jonathan Kent’s interpretation of the writing, which encourages designer Anna Fleischle to create a three-set stage to enable the cast to play out this ...

17Feb

By Aditi DalalNo Comments

London

Saturday Night Fever – Peacock Theatre

A homage to the 1977 film, Saturday Night Fever musical makes a comeback on the West End. Produced and directed by Bill Kenwright, the stage adaptation is by Robert Stigwood in collaboration with Bill Oakes. The show traces the story of a young Tony Manero (played by Richard Winsor) as he navigates through his day job and complications in his personal life while aspiring to be the king of disco. He is confronted with the discovery of the personal life of his dance partner, Stephanie (played by Olivia Fines), messy relationships with his friends and a complicated atmosphere at home. Holding potential for nuance, the storyline is quite basic - it is the music and dancing that hold the show together. The iconic music is given its due credit, with Jake Byrom, Oliver Thomson and James Hudson...

17Feb

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

London

Steve – Seven Dials Playhouse

The newly refurbished Tristan Bates Theatre (now renamed Seven Dials Playhouse) is the perfect setting for this play in which the first scene takes place in a Joe Allen restaurant, and the New York bar setting of the theatre compliments this perfectly. The writer Mark Gerrard has (rather annoyingly) called three of the characters similar names, Stephen (Joe Aaron Reid), Steven (David Ames), and their son Stevie, who we do not see, but who is talked about extensively. The annoying aspect is that it does take some time to understand who is who at the outset, so some of the nuances of the first scene may be lost as you figure out which Steven/Stephen/Stevie, they are talking about. Five old friends meet at Joe Allen’s to celebrate Steven’s birthday, Carrie (Jenna Russell...

17Feb

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

Splintered – Soho Theatre

Splintered is a ‘part-play, part-cabaret’ which explores and celebrates the queer joy and coming out in a homophobic culture. Chanté Faucher, Melissa Saint and Alice Vilanculo grab our hands and pull us in as we hear the real words of Caribbean people telling their coming out stories and seeing how they keep that part of themselves secret due to the culture surrounding them. But this show promises queer joy and where people might find themselves with no hope, there is always something to celebrate ‘despite, IN SPITE’ of their oppressors. Emily Aboud, writer and director has created something beautiful. From the moment the lights go down, the audience were edging forward, clapping their hands and beaming from ear to ear. It is a show that you can only sit back in your chair after the bow...

The Addams Family – New Wimbledon Theatre

17Feb

By Lewis DownhamNo Comments

London

The Addams Family – New Wimbledon Theatre

The hit musical The Addams Family transports you to Central Park for an evening of wild entertainment for all, with renowned songs such as ‘When You’re An Addams’ and the famous Addams Family theme song featured in the overture that fans love and adore. Along with witty jokes and spectacular sets throughout. Directed by Matthew White and choregraphed by Alistair David, this show immerses you within the beautiful design created by Diego Pitarch and transports you into the quirky and strange Addams Family household. The story follows The Addams Family, Gomez (Cameron Blakely) and Mortcia (Joanne Clifton) the perfect husband and wife, Wednesday (Kingsley Morton) the beloved daughter who has a secret about Lucas Beineke (Ahmed Hamad) and keeping it could be more difficult than it seems with...

17Feb

By Riana HowarthNo Comments

London

Running With Lions – Lyric Hammersmith

Running With Lions is a colourful, vibrant and life-affirming celebration of family, which also addresses the dark shadows lurking in the corners, where things have been swept away and repressed. Gloria returns to her parents’ home where her daughter has been staying whilst she has been away at a mental health clinic. She struggles to get through to her parents, who feel too ashamed to acknowledge her condition. Problems ensue as desires clash and as the family grapple with the past and the underlying tensions between them. The play begins with Gloria’s perspective but then widens into others showing the inescapable intermingling of worlds. Carter’s writing is very true to life, reflecting conversations which I feel like I have witnessed or had with my own family. She doesn’t compromise...

The Ballad of Maria Marten – Wilton’s Music Hall

17Feb

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

London

The Ballad of Maria Marten – Wilton’s Music Hall

Set in the 1820’s, writer Beth Flintoff and Artistic Director Ivan Cutting were keen to tell this age-old story of the death of Maria Marten from the viewpoint of the victim. The story has been told in many ways previously, but tended to look at the murderer, William Corder, rather than taking an interest in Maria Marten’s life. Maria (Elizabeth Crarer), lived in a small rural village called Polstead where she had grown up in poverty losing her mother at an early age. This led to her looking after the house at age 10, until her father met and married Ann (Sarah Goddard) who was kindly and took over many of these tasks, so that Maria could finally have a childhood. She played with her friends who formed a club called the ‘hazard club’, in which they dared each oth...

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...