North West Archives - Page 3 of 190

The Opera Boys: The Farewell Tour – Floral Pavilion

22Sep

By Kevin EcclestonNo Comments

North West

The Opera Boys: The Farewell Tour – Floral Pavilion

There are some concerts where you know from the opening notes that you’re in for an evening of big voices and bigger emotions. The Opera Boys – The Farewell Tour, at the Floral Pavilion on 19th September 2026, did exactly that, with Britain’s Got Talent star Paul Potts joining the group for what is billed as a special farewell tour. The combination of The Opera Boys’ operatic crossover style and Potts’ instantly recognisable voice makes for an intriguing pairing, bringing together classical music, musical theatre and popular favorites in a format designed to appeal well beyond the traditional opera audience. The Opera Boys have built their reputation around bringing opera and classical crossover to mainstream audiences, and their performance combined vocal precision with plenty of pe...

Letter to Brezhnev – Liverpool’s Royal Court

22Sep

By Carole BaldockNo Comments

North West

Letter to Brezhnev – Liverpool’s Royal Court

We begin with quite a dilemma because the curtain rises on one of the most intriguing, complex sets I’ve ever seen - but no wish to spoil the impact, so let’s call it multi-level, multi-layered and multi-purpose, covering a lot of ground, from Russia to the UK: ship and Kremlin to a council house, pubs and the Kirkby Chicken Factory. The set ingeniously changes the scene with fittings sliding in and out, back and forth, or even turned around, while manhandling the props is skilfully done. However, considering so much care has been taken, the devil is in a couple of details: Elaine threatening somebody with using her stilettoes as a weapon when she is wearing flats, and Nan’s 80th birthday party – with no sign of Nan. On the bright side, set in 1985, when two Liverpool lasses meet up wit...

21Sep

By Brian MaddenNo Comments

North West

Cluedo – Blackburn Empire

Blackburn Drama Club’s staging of Cluedo is an absolute blast of nostalgic entertainment. Based on the beloved board game and the iconic cult classic film, this production delivers a fast-paced, laugh-out-loud whodunit that keeps the audience guessing - and giggling - from the opening storm to the final reveal. The premise is as timeless as it is chaotic. On a dark and stormy night, a colourful array of eccentric guests arrives at the ominous Boddy Manor for a mysterious dinner party. With aliases assigned, a sinister butler handing out lethal weapons, and a host who rapidly turns up dead, the iconic roster - Miss Scarlet, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, Reverend Green, Mrs. Peacock, and Colonel Mustard - must race against time to unmask the killer before they become the next victim. Wha...

16Sep

By Stephanie WiswallNo Comments

North West

Barnum – Liverpool Empire

Step right up, step right up and prepare to be entertained, because Barnum has arrived at the Liverpool Empire! Based on the life of the legendary American showman P. T. Barnum, this bright, colourful musical takes audiences through the highs and lows of the man who famously built an entertainment empire on ambition, imagination and the promise of giving audiences “something they’ve never seen before”. At the centre of this production is Matt Rawle who plays the one and only P. T. Barnum. Rawle brings an infectious charisma and an almost childlike enthusiasm for each of his next big ideas. He is the man with the gift of the gab. There is plenty of humour in his portrayal, but contrastingly we get to see more of an edge to Barnum, a willingness to use others for his own gain, to ma...

16Sep

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Cluedo – The Brindley

Taking on Cluedo in a studio space is an ambitious undertaking. With its frantic action, mounting body count and seemingly endless rooms, it’s a play that demands slick movement both on and off stage. Under Ria Green’s direction, Centenary Theatre Company rises enthusiastically to the challenge, delivering an evening packed with physical comedy, familiar characters and plenty of hilarity. Most people will be familiar with the premise - six strangers gather in a grand manor to meet the mysterious Mr Boddy and attend what quickly becomes a deadly dinner party. Sandy Rustin’s adaptation of the 1985 screenplay by Johnathan Lynn relocates the action to England, with our decidedly dodgy collection of suspects drawn from Westminster rather than Washington. Wisely, the cast resist simp...

11Sep

By Carole BaldockNo Comments

North West

Julia’s Song – Epstein Theatre

A setting of white picket fences (?) backed by a row of seemingly terraced houses (?) - in posh Woolton, and Julia breezes in like a breath of fresh air. And she deserves a tribute; my companion compared her with Dolly Parton. Julia too was talented, intelligent, ambitious and free-spirited; vivid, beautiful and vibrantly dressed, but with a mass of red curls. Alison Crawford, in many ways, is the epitome of John’s mother. And in many ways, she would have been described as no better than she ought to be. More accurately, sadly, she never had the chance to better her life; given a break, you could imagine she may well have almost been the next best thing since… The Beatles. Unfortunately, this biography, although accurate (writer and director, Sylvia Hall, was custodian at the childhood hom...

Come From Away – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

11Sep

By Stephanie WiswallNo Comments

North West

Come From Away – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Some musicals are written to entertain, some are emotional and then there's Come From Away, which takes you on a journey through both and leaves you with a sense of hope in humanity. Altrincham Garrick Playhouse's performance is a wonderful reminder of why this extraordinary musical has captured audience’s hearts around the world. Set in the aftermath of the events of September 11th, Come From Away tells the remarkable true story of the small Newfoundland community of Gander, which suddenly found itself welcoming around 7,000 passengers whose flights had been diverted and grounded. What could have been an overwhelming crisis became a story of kindness, generosity, friendship and human connection. What makes the story so powerful is that it doesn't focus on the tragedy itself. Instead...

Dirty Dancing – Winter Gardens Blackpool

9Sep

By Rebecca CaseyNo Comments

North West

Dirty Dancing – Winter Gardens Blackpool

Tonight sees the return of Dirty Dancing, the Musical UK tour here in Blackpool. Dirty Dancing the movie was released back in 1987, starring Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey. The film based on the screenwriter’s own childhood was released to worldwide acclaim, holding the record for the first ever movie to sell more than 1 million copies of the home movie. The soundtrack is also the best-selling album of all time in Germany. There’s no denying its popularity and catchy quotable one-liners such as ‘Nobody puts Baby in a corner.’ I am a big fan of the movie and the soundtrack, but I have never seen the stage show until this evening, I didn’t really know what to expect, but I had high hopes that I would enjoy it as much as the movie. Without wanting to give too many spoilers, the sho...

9Sep

By Katie LeicesterNo Comments

North West

Jersey Boys – Palace Theatre

There is something reassuring about walking into a theatre knowing that within minutes an audience will be singing along to songs they have known for decades. Yet Jersey Boys offers far more than a nostalgic trip through a greatest-hits collection. Twenty years after it first opened on Broadway, the musical continues to demonstrate why the story behind Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons is every bit as compelling as the music they created. At the Palace Theatre in Manchester, the 20th-anniversary gala performance delivers the familiar songs alongside the less glamorous side of life in the spotlight. This isn’t a story where success simply arrives and everything falls neatly into place. It is about four young men chasing a dream, the relationships that suffer along the way, financial pro...

9Sep

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

East Is East – Octagon Theatre

There is something rather unsettling about watching East Is East in 2026. Ayub Khan-Din's celebrated play, first staged in 1996 and set in Salford in 1971, was written at a time when Britain was beginning to confront the contradictions of a multicultural society. Thirty years on, Kash Arshad's new production arrives with the play's questions about identity, belonging, family and prejudice still perhaps too stubbornly relevant. Set above the Khan family's chip shop, the play introduces us to seven children negotiating the competing expectations of their Pakistani father George (Bhasker Patel) and English mother Ella (Samantha Power). George is determined that his children should embrace his version of Pakistani tradition; his offspring, born and raised in England, have rather differe...