North West Archives - Page 158 of 182

16Feb

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

Blood Brothers – Palace Theatre

Before coming to the theatre, I was told by email that due to restrictions and guidelines there were a couple of cast changes to the evenings show. Once again understudies coming to the rescue so that shows can continue to bring joy, laughter and musical theatre to those who wish to seek it. It’s an incredible thing to see and witness before me on stage. The show in question was Willy Russell’s Blood Brothers. A story about The Johnstone twins, like each other as two new pins, of one womb born on self same day. How one was kept and one given away. Mrs Johnstone (Niki Evans) was excited to start her new job as she was living hand to mouth with endless catalogue purchases and 7 hungry mouths to feed with one on the way. Or so she thought. It came to pass that she was expecting twins an...

16Feb

By Max EdenNo Comments

North West

Private Lives – The Lowry

When you put Patricia Hodge and Nigel Havers on a stage together, you already know it’s going to be a great show. Noel Coward’s Private Lives by the newly formed Nigel Havers Theatre Company does just that, and it’s everything you hoped it would be and more! Set in the 1930s, the play tells the story of Elyot (played by Havers) and Amanda (played by Hodge) who were once married and find themselves in adjoining rooms at a French hotel with their new partners, with the unexpected happening and the couple reconnecting. Havers takes on the role taken by Noël Coward himself in the original production in 1930 with a Suaveness we’ve come to expect, the character being delightfully charming but also quite stubborn and obstinate. Olivier Award winning actress Hodge is effortlessly glamorou...

Kevin Clifton: Burn the Floor – Bridgewater Hall

15Feb

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Kevin Clifton: Burn the Floor – Bridgewater Hall

On a wet and windy night in Manchester, former Strictly Come Dancing champion Kevin Clifton is trying to raise the temperature with the delayed revival of Ballroom dancing phenomenon, Burn the Floor. The show is a riotous celebration of dance, fusing traditional waltzes with fiery Latin Tangos; Quicksteps and Rumbas and some good old Rock and Roll to boot. It’s been a two-year wait for tonight’s performance – with Clifton joking at what proved an ill-timed decision for him to quit Strictly for a life in the theatre, just weeks before stages went dark and Covid stole the spotlight. But the show itself has been thrilling audiences for longer than some of tonight’s dancers have been alive, conceived 25 years ago at a birthday bash for Elton John. There’s a slightly contrived start...

15Feb

By Clare ChandlerNo Comments

North West

A Little Requiem – Hallé St Peter’s

This performance marks a special anniversary for the Manchester Collective, it is five years since their first Manchester concert. It is also almost two years since this reviewer saw them on the cusp of the pandemic in the atmospheric White Hotel venue. This evening’s surroundings – a Grade II listed former church where the Hallé Orchestra rehearses – are more refined but equally atmospheric. This venue has Corinthian columns rather than corrugated iron shutters but as ever the Manchester Collective present a programme that duets with the architecture to provide further resonances. A Little Requiem was performed in Bristol the night before but it feels tailor made for this venue, which - like us all - has returned to life following a period of lockdown. A Little ...

14Feb

By Rachel FosterNo Comments

North West

Kattam Katti – The Lowry

Pagrav Dance company comprises of a cast who have Indian heritage, have taken to the road on their latest tour (four musicians and four dancers) who bring their unique take on traditional Indian Kathak dance. Kattam Katti means ‘cutting through,’ and they do that with a mix of dance, singing, music composed especially for the performance and a splice of comedy. The setting is the frenetic energy of the Uttarayan Kite Festival which the performers deftly bring to life with expression and movement. The kites are left to our imaginations, the long strings are shown and woven across the stage creating a barrier or difficulty to dance. While the dancers use performance to illustrate the range of emotions that the kite festival incites. To put into context this festival is such a big deal ...

14Feb

By Johanna RobertsNo Comments

North West

Fern Brady – Unity Theatre

The energy buzzing around Unity Theatre last night was an indication that this was an audience ready to enjoy themselves, and they weren’t disappointed. Fern Brady knows her audience and gave them exactly what they wanted – a night full of gritty but good-humoured observations on this world we all live in. If the aim of comedians is to present us with that world seen from a different angle, pointing out the inconsistencies and the absurdities in the quotidian, the surreal in the real, Fern Brady has a head start. Her recent diagnosis of autism has helped her understand why she has always felt that sense of not quite fitting in, of being on the outside. As she explains, the stage is the one place she feels she can be herself; it is her space, and there is no obligation to fit into anyone...

14Feb

By Brian MaddenNo Comments

North West

An Adventure – Octagon Theatre

It's not very often you're treated to a play with 3 acts and that is exactly what An Adventure is. A three-act play, set in three countries over the space of three hours. First performed in London in 2018, this performance is its northern premiere. The story mirrors a lot of families who immigrated from India to the UK in the 1950s and 1960s. The production begins in 1954, not long after India and Pakistan split to become two separate countries. It follows the story of Jyoti (Saba Shiraz) and Rasik (Esh Alladi). It starts off as a sweet love story with political undertones. The story was inspired by writer, Vinay Patel's grandparents' life. From the moment Jyoti (Shiraz) steps on stage the audience are treated to a fierce, strong 16-year-old who is looking to find a husband. Rasik...

Peep Show Battle Royale – MAKE, North Docks, Liverpool

11Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Peep Show Battle Royale – MAKE, North Docks, Liverpool

Step into a future where the world’s leading game show presents the latest in entertainment: a live show where its contestants-turned-gladiators look to destroy each other across a series of games with their ultimate fate decided by the votes of a live audience. What’s not to like? Get into your booth and let the fun begin… This is immersive theatre taken to a new extreme and whilst it seems initially distasteful in its voyeurism, it is curiously addictive at the same time. As our artificial host, A.I.M.E.E, gets us settled before Sarge (Duncan Cameron) appears to introduce us to tonight’s contestants (Carmen Arquelladas, Leebo Luby, Miwa Nagai, and Simone Tani) and then the games begin, dark and comedic in equal measure. Sat in isolated, grungy booths which encircle the action, the ...

11Feb

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

Chicago – Liverpool Empire

Last night in Liverpool the cast of Chicago set out to give the audience a little Razzle Dazzle as the production kicks off on its tour. This show has a glorious score and a brilliant cast to match. The synopsis of the story is Roxie Hart played by Faye Brookes is arrested for murdering Fred Casely. However, she always dreams of being a show girl. After being arrested she’s put in the Cook County jail we’re she meets shows girl Velma Kelly (Djalenga Scott). Needing to get out of the clink before she is headed for the death penalty, she asks the keeper of keys Matron Mamma Morton (Sheila Ferguson) for help and after a few expensive calls, in comes Billy Flynn (Russell Watson), who for 5000 dollars will represent Roxy. Part of the plan will be to win over journalists one in particular is ...

Mark Watson: This Can’t Be It – Unity Theatre

10Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Mark Watson: This Can’t Be It – Unity Theatre

We’ve all had some pondering to do about the fragility of life over the last couple of years but at almost 42, Mark Watson has it covered – he’s halfway through his life according to the life expectancy calculator app he paid 99p for and is ready to share his overthinking on what life is really all about in this ninety-minute stand-up routine (plus interval). For anyone in the entertainment industry, the pandemic has wiped out pretty much everything from audiences to venues and as Watson is keen to explain, online gigs don’t really work too well when you can only see one member of your audience. To these travails, add a messy divorce and the challenge of bringing up two children as a single dad and he has every reason to be on a downer but with his healthy dose of self-deprecating humou...