North West Archives - North West End UK

21Jul

By Dan GrimesNo Comments

North West

paywall – The King’s Arms

This was my first trip to The King’s Arms, and this 54-seat black-box venue, nestled in the historic heart of Salford, felt like the perfect setting for this one-woman show, performed as part of the Greater Manchester Fringe. Written and performed by Neysa Killeen, a self-styled Irish storyteller, the play begins in medias res with Lizzie, a 27-year-old woman, making the difficult decision to leave her Dublin flat and return home to the unwelcoming arms of her father. Defeated in her quest to become a hard-hitting investigative journalist by a combination of the stitched-up patriarchy and the cost-of-living crisis, Lizzie’s story charts her personal journey from a small child dubbed ‘cold’ by her aunt on the day of her mother’s funeral to a wrung-out postgraduate struggling to pay h...

20Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

The Boys We Were – The King’s Arms

Nostalgia has become a lucrative commodity. From Take That to Steps, the reunion tour has evolved into a reliable cultural ritual, inviting audiences to relive happier times while asking whether former stars can ever truly recapture the magic. Tom Peters’ The Boys We Were explores that familiar territory, using the reunion of fictional boyband The Boiz to examine friendship, regret and the uneasy transition from fleeting fame to ordinary life. Former manager Max (John Joyce-O’Keeffe) attempts to reunite his fractured protégés for a television special and tour, only to discover that old resentments have never really disappeared. Successful solo artist Jay (Rob Peters) remains estranged from Lee (Tom Peters), whose bitterness over the band’s collapse continues to simmer, while Ry (Bil...

And Then There Were None – Hope Street Theatre

18Jul

By Ben PearsonNo Comments

North West

And Then There Were None – Hope Street Theatre

Ten Little Soldier Boys are whittled down to none in The Woolton Drama Group’s production of Agatha Christie’s thriller, And Then There Were None. Ten strangers are invited to the mysterious and isolated Soldier Island. Each is accused of a crime, and each has no guarantee of surviving the stay. As ever with Christie, it’s a tense and exciting premise. And this production begins promisingly with an ominous reading of the poem which frames the play: ‘Ten Little Soldier Boys’. John Ovington’s delivery dripped with suspense; setting the ground for the twists and turns to come. Sadly, however, this proved to be one of the performance’s high points. As, while the production was entertaining and the script of course strong, there was a noticeable lack of urgency throughout. A thriller ...

16Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Anastasia – Z-Arts, Manchester

Like My Fair Lady wrapped in the fairy-tale romance of Cinderella, with occasional glimpses of the epic sweep and moral gravitas of Les Misérables, Anastasia is an ambitious musical that asks a great deal of its performers. Fortunately for Manchester Musical Youth, this exceptionally talented company proves more than equal to the challenge. There is something fitting about Anastasia becoming Manchester Musical Youth’s 40th production. For well over a decade, MMY has established itself as arguably Manchester’s leading youth musical theatre company, renowned for producing powerful vocal ensembles while continually raising its artistic ambitions. Under the assured leadership of Kimberly and Dave Holden, this milestone production demonstrates a company continuing to evolve, marrying its tra...

16Jul

By Karen Morley-ChesworthNo Comments

North West

Nell Gwynn – Theatre by the Lake

Nell Gwynn is like many women of influence in history, whose name may be known but whose story is. With memories of Barbara Winsor as the orange fruit seller in a Carry On film, I knew very little about the woman. However, Theatre by the Lake bring to life King Charles II’s mistress with a lively, bawdy romp – and tells her story. A collaboration between Theatre by the Lake, Shakespeare North Playhouse and Storyhouse Theatre, this production is as lively and entertaining as anything that may have been performed in the original Globe Theatre. Music, dance and bold, playful banter make this production a joy. The opening scene did have me worried as Burhan Kathawala, began a performance which was so wooden, then the lights lifted, the stage opened up to reveal a play within a play. Kath...

14Jul

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

Waitress – Winter Gardens Blackpool

Tonight’s review comes from Blackpool Winter Gardens and viewing the tour of Waitress starring Les Dennis as Old Joe and Carrie Hope Fletcher as Jenna. Jenna is a waitress in Joe’s cafe that sells 27 pies, all of which are of Jenna’s creation influenced by her mother. She is the cog in so many people’s lives that people go to for advice and a slice of the daily special. However, behind closed doors Jenna is trapped in an abusive relationship with her husband Earl (Mark Willshire) who takes her money and mentally manipulates her. Jenna often day dreams of a better life and makes up pie names in the process. As the show develops she becomes sick and after a pregnancy test it becomes positive. She’s unsure what to do about the baby especially as home life isn’t the perfect place to bring u...

12Jul

By David S ClarkeNo Comments

North West

Grease – The Forum Theatre

Well, seeing as this is one of the most iconic shows ever produced, I don’t think there is much point in my writing a synopsis of this except to say, “Welcome to Rydell”! This is actually by way of a swansong for many of the seniors at NK as a large number will be leaving to go onto further education, whether in the musical theatre forum or in alternative areas of study. I am proud to say that I have followed the journey that many of these young performers have been on for the past 12 years plus and have seen them grow from little 5-year-olds to super confident performers who have developed into outstanding young men and women who all have an amazing stage presence. A nice touch was the section of the programme devoted to the memories of the leavers, where they could each come up wi...

This Machine Kills Fascists – The Empty Space

10Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

This Machine Kills Fascists – The Empty Space

The words “This Machine Kills Fascists” emblazoned across Woody Guthrie’s guitar have become one of the defining images of American protest culture. In David Dunn’s spirited musical—ending a short UK tour as part of the Greater Manchester Fringe—that slogan becomes both mission statement and challenge, asking whether songs still possess the power to confront intolerance, inequality and authoritarianism in an increasingly polarised world. A musical biography of Guthrie could easily descend into reverential myth-making. Dunn wisely resists that temptation. Instead, he presents a man of extraordinary talent, fierce conviction and deeply uncomfortable contradictions. Guthrie’s loathing of racism and exploitation is rooted in a childhood overshadowed by poverty and by a father whose prej...

10Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Fun Home – Royal Exchange Theatre

In the same month that Something Rotten! delights audiences with its joyous Shakespearean irreverence at the Opera House, Manchester welcomes another long-awaited Broadway success whose journey across the Atlantic was delayed by the pandemic. Almost a decade after its Tony Award-winning run, Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron’s adaptation of Alison Bechdel’s groundbreaking graphic memoir finally reaches the Royal Exchange, joining a growing wave of American musicals—including Dear Evan Hansen, Come From Away, Jagged Little Pill and next month’s London premiere of Kimberly Akimbo—that have reshaped the genre by favouring emotional realism over escapism. Its arrival continues the Royal Exchange’s renewed commitment to musical theatre. After years in which the genre appeared only occasionally in...

9Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

East – The King’s Arms

Nearly 50 years after its premiere, Steven Berkoff’s East still has the power to provoke. What was once notorious for its profanity and sexual explicitness now shocks for entirely different reasons. In 2026, it is the casual misogyny, blatant racism and everyday homophobia that land with the greatest force, exposing attitudes that have aged badly while prompting uncomfortable reflection on how much has – and hasn’t – changed. If Shakespeare met Shameless, the result would look much like East. Berkoff fuses muscular, poetic verse with the grit of London’s East End, creating a theatrical language that is exhilarating one moment and exhausting the next. Performed in the intimate surroundings of The Kings Arms as part of the Greater Manchester Fringe, Stir Crazy Productions fully embrac...