North West Archives - Page 2 of 185

9Jul

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

Moulin Rouge – Liverpool Empire

Ever wondered what it would be like to enter Paris and be enthralled within a world of Freedom, Beauty, truth and love? Well, now you cancan can. Moulin Rouge the world tour has descended in the iconic Liverpool empire. From the moment they opened the house doors you were immersed from having the house open call in French to entering an auditorium that made you feel like you time travelled to Paris. Having seen the real place myself there wasn’t much that was different every intricate detail was adhered to. The musical by John Logan based of the iconic film by Baz Luhrmann, set in 1899 in the bohemian district of Paris. Where at the club it has a star attraction Satine (Verity Thompson). Where common folk and aristocracy flock to see the beauty and wonder she beholds at the club. The club ...

7Jul

By Amanda HodgsonNo Comments

North West

The Divine Move – King’s Arms

Arthur and Augustus Blackwood (played by Joseph Dawson, and Ole Francis respectively), heirs to a vast fortune, meet at their family estate to spend the summer with the Prescott sisters and friends (played by Katie Jordan-Linton, Mia Shaw, and Polly Graves). What begins as breezy upper-class comedy of manners soon becomes something more agonising, as the death of the Blackwoods’ father turns the family’s expectations on their head. Both brothers are denied the futures they crave; Arthur is pressganged into service as the new head of the family, and Augustus is downgraded and forced to give up the woman he loves. Waiting in the wings is Cora (played by Emma O’Malley), a guest of the Prescott sisters with her own agenda. The Divine Move is a well-produced and acted play that skips alo...

7Jul

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Baby Brain – Salford Arts Centre

Tonight’s show may have a minimal set – just a chair and a table inside our setting of a mother and baby unit – but that is where the restraint ends. Co-written and directed by Tim Clague and Danny Stack, with input from BAFTA award-winning actor Kimberley Nixon, who stars in the show, this one-hour, one-woman play confronts postpartum mental illness with a fearlessness that is both admirable and, at times, very unsettling. Inspired in part by Nixon’s own experiences, the production tackles postpartum psychosis, postnatal OCD, and depression with unflinching honesty. The show comes with a list of understandable trigger warnings for the heavy-duty topics of suicidal ideation, infant death, and severe postnatal mental illness, and rightly so. We meet Cassie, a wannabe stand-up comedian...

4Jul

By Stewart Who?No Comments

North West

Minogueus Sanctus – Crazy Coqs

The excellent 3-part Kylie documentary, currently on Netflix highlighted a sometimes vulnerable, seemingly authentic woman with a sense of humour and winning humility. She’s weathered major personal struggles, with her health and love life, all exacerbated by her celebrity status. The media interest in the movement of Minogue hasn’t waned since the mid ‘80s. Thanks to PWL’s ‘hit factory’, Kylie Minogue became a pop phenomenon on the back of her fame as TV soap actress. She was always a gay icon but cutting edge queens were digging acid house in ’88 and Kylie was the antithesis of the freewheeling rave scene. The Netflix doc shocked younger audiences with its focus on the widespread critical responses to her work. It was mean, misogynist and relentless. Kylie wasn’t cool. She had a c...

Flight: One Man’s Journey – The Squad House, Bredbury

4Jul

By Helen JonesNo Comments

North West

Flight: One Man’s Journey – The Squad House, Bredbury

Flight: One Man’s Journey is a one act, one man show performing at The Squad House in Bredbury as part of Greater Manchester Fringe. It is the story of Maneek, a boy raised initially in a village, surrounded by people he knows and dreams of tigers. Despite his fear of the beasts, he is happy. When his strict policeman father moves them to a city, his life changes. His mother has an affair, and his father throws them both out. He and his mother end up in the slums. However, he plans and manages his escape by gaining a visa to study abroad. It’s not smooth going. Through his life Maneek experiences hardships and struggles with a sense of cultural displacement, but he survives, marries a girl from his home country and ends up working and settling happily in...

2Jul

By Kevin EcclestonNo Comments

North West

Strawberry Jack – Floral Pavilion

As a part of the Paradise Heights series Strawberry Jack comes to the Floral Pavilion, New Brighton 28th June. Written and directed by Joe O’Byrne, Strawberry Jack is one of those shows that grabs you by the collar from the first moment and refuses to let go. Joe O’Byrne’s Paradise Heights universe has always thrived on grit, heart, and a touch of the supernatural, but this one digs even deeper. It’s a bruised, beautifully bleak character study that feels as raw as a scraped knuckle and as tender as the moment after the fight, when the adrenaline fades and the truth starts to sting. At the centre is Jack Grundy — “Strawberry Jack” to the locals who once whispered his name with a mix of fear and admiration. Once the War Horse of Paradise Heights, Jack was a wild child who grew int...

2Jul

By Coral MourantNo Comments

North West

Miss Saigon – Blackpool Opera House

A musical masterpiece that has garnered loyal fans, Miss Saigon will always bring in an audience to be entertained and devastated in equal measure. This new touring production has been reinterpreted “for a new generation”, but with a track record of box office success, does it really need to be changed? I wouldn’t consider myself a theatre purist, I believe shows should have the opportunity to be re-imagined and reworked. However, this particular adaptation left me nostalgic for its predecessor. Perhaps I am remembering the London revival as perfection, but in comparison, I found myself not fully immersed in this one. Although the technological advancements have served the plot well, I fear the overall impact of the piece has been watered down. Loosely based on Puccini’s opera Madama...

2Jul

By Damian RiverolNo Comments

North West

Rocky Horror Show – Storyhouse

Rocky Horror Show stops off at Storyhouse this week as part of its UK tour, and it opened with a bang. If it’s a party evening you’re after, this is the show for you. With brilliant music, fantastic costumes (not just on the stage), great lighting and a cast that gives you everything and more, Rocky Horror Show ticks all the right boxes. With songs such as Sweet Transvestite and The Time Warp. Brad and Janet are on their way home from a wedding when their car blows a tyre so they go to the nearest castle to ask if they have a telephone they can use and come across a ‘different’ group of people where they find themselves dragged into a series of interesting events as the real identity of those living here become apparent. The set designed by Hugh Durrant is very creative, all wi...

25Jun

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

North West

Something Rotten – Opera House

Manchester does it again! A city that gives birth to so many musicals that go on to conquer the world, Something Rotten is the latest UK premiere to grace the Opera House stage and this one is something special! Something Rotten! is a high-energy comedy set in 1595, where struggling brothers Nick Bottom and Nigel Bottom compete with rock-star playwright William Shakespeare. Desperate for success, Nick consults a soothsayer who predicts the future of theatre—and invents the musical, complete with singing, dancing, and jazz hands. What follows is a rapid-fire blend of wordplay, tap numbers, and affectionate parody of Shakespeare, musical theatre clichés, and creative jealousy. With show-stopping ensemble pieces, heartfelt sibling rivalry, and relentlessly silly humour, the show celebrates...

Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man – The Lowry

24Jun

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man – The Lowry

On the hottest day of the year in the UK, the return of The Car Man to The Lowry feels almost too perfectly timed. As the temperature in Manchester soars, the heat radiating from the stage proves every bit as intense, transporting us to the sultry, sweat-soaked corner of small-town America where passions burn dangerously out of control. Inspired by Bizet’s Carmen, with an extended version of Rodin Shchedrin’s orchestration, The Car Man remains one of Bourne’s most intoxicating creations. Moving the action to a 1960s Midwestern diner and garage in the fictional town of Harmony, the production pulses with desire, jealousy and betrayal, all underscored by Terry Davies’ thrilling arrangement of the famous music. At the centre of the drama, the chemistry between the lead performers ...