North West Archives - Page 109 of 174

15Mar

By Bo WarnerNo Comments

North West

Rock of Ages – Opera House, Manchester

The West-End & Broadway juke-box musical ROCK OF AGES, full to the brim with classic rock head-bangers, is making a 2023 farewell tour around the UK. I was lucky enough to catch them at the Manchester Opera House. Rock of Ages is a tongue-in-cheek, sexy, glam-rock romance about two kids trying to make it on the LA strip. Meanwhile, the Bourbon bar is being threatened by the gentrifying influence of German investors looking to make a quick buck. It features nostalgic hits like “I Wanna Rock”, “Dead or Alive” and “Feel The Noize”, pumped up with powerful vocalists and high-adrenaline dance numbers. There’s a reason why this musical keeps coming back after over 15 years of UK and US performances (and why it is one of my guilty pleasure favourites!). The unapologetic campiness of eig...

The Memory of Water – Birkenhead Little Theatre

15Mar

By Ezzy LaBelleNo Comments

North West

The Memory of Water – Birkenhead Little Theatre

Can you remember things that didn't happen? What about remembering other people's memories as if they were your own? The Memory of Water, written by British playwright Shelagh Stephenson, is directed by Brian Dickson and performed by the Carlton Players of Birkenhead's Little Theatre. The play explores the complex relationships between three sisters who come together for their mother's funeral and must confront their pasts, their feelings and the memories they share. Does everyone experience the past the same way? The relationship between the three leading sisters is fractious. Each is striving to make sense of their own identity and grief and each deal with stress and emotion in different ways - the youngest, Catherine (Zoe Howe) has a taste for taking the edge off reality with d...

15Mar

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

An Inspector Calls – Liverpool Empire

Upon writing this review I’m still trying to process what I saw upon the empire stage last. I can’t put into words (ironically) how good it was, but I will certainly give it a go. It also comes with a bit of sadness because usually when I write reviews, I hope that it encourages people to watch however, this run has already completely sold out so if you like what you are reading do check out where it is performing if it’s in your area or an area near you be quick and snap up tickets. I studied ‘An Inspector Calls’ by J B Priestley in school I would say it’s one of the first plays that gripped me and drew me in and got me in to theatre so when given the chance to see it live I was very excited. This production was directed by Stephen Daldry. It was a dark rainy night; children were pl...

Gianni Schicchi – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall

13Mar

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Gianni Schicchi – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall

Gianni Schicchi is one part of Il trittico, a collection of three one-act operas by Giacomo Puccini, with the link in the final work illustrating that each opera deals with the concealment of a death. Whilst originally intended to be played as a set, it has been more usual to play individually or pair with another one-act opera by another composer. Here, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Dominic Hindoyan, serve up a further variation with excerpts from different composers providing the warm-up in the first half before the comic deception of Gianni Schicchi, performed in Italian with English surtitles, is unleashed. Commencing proceedings were a couple of Puccini pairings with La Tregenda (Le Villi, Act II) making for an energetic and frenetic start before slipping ...

Bouncers and Shakers – The Forum Theatre

11Mar

By David S ClarkeNo Comments

North West

Bouncers and Shakers – The Forum Theatre

Written by John Godber. Directed by Jennie Davies and Pete Curran. The first version of “Bouncers” was written in 1977 by John Godber and premiered at the Edinburgh Festival that same year. Originally a two-hander, this play was expanded into its current version by Godber and Jane Thornton in 1980, when it became the piece which we now know and love. The pair of what I would describe as “mini playlets” were well performed by all the cast. Act 2 saw the male bouncers take to the stage whilst the first half was devoted to the cocktail waitresses, the “Shakers” who spend their time on stage observing and commenting on the people who patronise the bar in which they work and share insights into their own lives as they express their personal thoughts and feelings delivered by monologues from ...

Opera North: Ariadne auf Nexus – The Lowry

11Mar

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Opera North: Ariadne auf Nexus – The Lowry

Strauss collides with Fellini in Opera North’s co-production with Gothenberg Opera, as director Rodula Gaitanou relocates the action from 18th Century Vienna to a 1950’s Italian film studio, where another collision takes place as an opera company’s heart-breaking tragedy meets the light musical comedy of a commedia dell’arte troupe, and as the two become merged into one, the result is an absolute delight in both sound and vision. Whilst the film shoot of Ariadne auf Naxos is performed in the original German, the Prologue has been translated from Hugo von Hofmannsthal’s original libretto by Christopher Cowell into a multilingual version that sees the opera Composer (Hanna Hipp) deal with the ensuing mayhem in English although reverting to German for personal reflection, whilst Prima Donn...

11Mar

By Andrew LeeNo Comments

North West

Drowning – Royal Court Studio

Oldham Coliseum Theatre Associate Artists Dare to Know Theatre revive their sell out debut play, Drowning. The play centres around Josh, a teenager as British as they come, who starts the play by telling us how selfish suicide is and giving the audience a description of his teenage life. Sex, alcohol, bullies and multiple girlfriends are all par for the course in Josh’s life, but this starts to unravel for Josh, whose world views are challenged rather quickly. Jake Talbot writes and stars, and the key concepts and moments of the story are poignant, clear and relatable. The teenager on the stage this evening was one that we all recognise. The story was gritty, real world and told with clarity - the audience were hooked into it from lights up. Talbot delivered high energy, clari...

Death Drop: Back in the Habit – Opera House

10Mar

By Scot CunninghamNo Comments

North West

Death Drop: Back in the Habit – Opera House

Are they really going to make a habit of this? Get on your knees and say your prayers: another killer comedy in the Death Drop series has descended upon Manchester. Long-serving man of the cloth, Father Alfie Romeo (LoUis CYfer) has been told about strange goings-ons at the St Babs convent. He goes to meet the flock of eccentric nuns, but his holy presence doesn’t necessarily guarantee their safety from ungodly fates. There is a Holly Stars-shaped hole in this sequel, both on-stage and in the script; she established the original Death Drop as an uproarious, Northern powerhouse of a play. With frequent references to ‘The Great British Bake Off’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings’, it seems that Rob Evans’ writing is instead intended to appeal to a much more mainstream audience. That being sai...

Looking For Me Friend: The Music of Victoria Wood – Waterside Arts

10Mar

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Looking For Me Friend: The Music of Victoria Wood – Waterside Arts

As Storm Larisa battered the north of England, the near three hundred hardy souls who braved blizzard conditions to eventually reach the Waterside Arts in Sale were amply rewarded with this hugely entertaining and affectionate tribute to the genius that was Victoria Wood. Paul Martin aka 'Paulus' is our window into the world that Victoria created, using elements of her stand up comedy, sketches, sitcoms and above all songs, to weave an eighty minute show of affable geniality and insight that warmed everyone on a bitter evening. The simple staging without props betrays the Edinburgh Fringe origins of this show but it has developed from its humble beginnings with a confident breadth to the narrative of the production. Accompanied by pianist Michael Roulston, who's tart interjections and h...

10Mar

By Hannah EsnoufNo Comments

North West

Algebra – Unity Theatre

Amongst a packed-out audience, the debut performance of Algebra was well received, and I took the time to appreciate the platform for queer expression that Unity and Stuart Crowther provided. Being a play of two characters, the stage can become a big space. Yet, Stuart and Kieran Mason carried the story with a professionalism and flare, and the space felt perfectly filled. The connection of the actors, and the whole creative team for that matter, was noticeable. Due to the sensitive and intimate themes, it was evident that each artist supported each other in the space, allowing one another to explore the light and shade in the emotional rawness of the story. Sam McKay and Morven Currie chose an uncluttered, open space to frame the story. The plants brought a calmness to the ...