North West Archives - Page 34 of 174

27Feb

By Paddy Darnell-WalshNo Comments

North West

Bat Out of Hell – Palace Theatre

Bat Out of Hell is back in Manchester… and it’s back with a bang! The rip-roaring, high-octane Meat Loaf musical returns to its roots, the home of the show’s premiere, for a limited run. Showcasing the iconic anthems from Meat Loaf’s thumping debut album, with music and lyrics by the wonderful Jim Steinman, this production is a real crowd pleaser from start to finish. Set in the post-apocalyptic, fictional city of Osidian, Bat Out of Hell is loosely based on Peter Pan, following Strat, leader of ‘The Lost’, a group of misfits frozen in time as 18-year-olds. Strat has fallen in love with Raven, daughter of Falco, Osidian’s tyrannical ruler. With a Romeo and Juliet-esque narrative, crossed with an epic rock concert, the show is brilliantly bonkers and unapologetically over the top. Gle...

Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake – Liverpool Empire

26Feb

By Grace AnnabelNo Comments

North West

Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake – Liverpool Empire

Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures company returns to revive the timeless classic ‘Swan Lake’ on the 30th Anniversary Tour. Bourne names the production ‘next generation’ for a distinct reason. This production brought Swan Lake into the new age, which included amending characters to reflect a truthful modern-day production (such as the prominent character of the Swan/The Stranger being played by a male performer rather than female, executed seamlessly by Jackson Fisch). If you attend the show expecting to see an exact replica of the original Swan Lake, this show might not be for you, however it may just be even better. As the house lights dimmed and the show began, I was thrilled to hear the addition of a live orchestra for this production, which was a treat. There is something so specia...

26Feb

By Adam WilliamsNo Comments

North West

The Merchant of Venice 1936 – The Lowry

The timing of this production could not be better, setting as it does one of Shakespeare’s most problematic plays amid the rise and fall of Oswald Mosley’s British Union of Fascists in mid-thirties England. With certain tech giants performing “Roman salutes” and the frightening rise of fascist political parties taking place across Europe, we seem to be returning to the dark days of the 1930s. This adaptation of Shakespeare’s play powerfully brings to life the vicious remorselessness of bigotry and how it can be fought and defeated. Projected onto the back wall were the sensationalist antisemitic headlines of the day, newsreel clips of fascist marches and Mosley’s call for “Britain First.” The frightening echoes of what is happening now were stark but the play also reminded us that th...

26Feb

By Louise KershawNo Comments

North West

Ghost Stories – The Lowry

It was with a definite buzz in the air that I settled into my seat at Salford’s Lowry Theatre for the opening night of Ghost Stories. The packed theatre hummed with excitement and anticipation and a slightly nervous edge could be felt in the air enhanced by gentle, quietly eerie music With the Safety Curtain still lowered, all that could be seen was a trim, modern lectern holding small glass of water and a light awaiting a lecturer to come along a breathe life into it. As the opening moment screeched into the auditorium the audience screamed their response and 90 minutes of captivating theatre began. Photo: Hugo Glendinning Entering the stage as leading parapsychologist we meet Professor Goodman who immediately took control of the space and the narrative. Clad in the corduroy armo...

Oppenheimer – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

25Feb

By Angela KellyNo Comments

North West

Oppenheimer – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

This week The Altrincham Garrick Playhouse bravely take on the beast that is ‘Oppenheimer’. Most will have first become aware of Oppenheimer in 2023, as it was Christopher Nolan’s award winning movie. It is likely then, that in relation to its film success that this version, directed by John Cunningham and Carole Carr will naturally cause audiences to compare the two, although it seems that both offer something very different. Written by Tom Morton-Smith, the play depicts the years between 1930 and 1945 and centres around the lead character, J Robert Oppenheimer. It essentially relates to the legacy he left in the world of physics in his development of the atomic bomb. However, more specifically, the story is very much a personal one and relays the human behind the science. ...

25Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

La Traviata – Opera House

Ellen Kent’s current revival of her original production relishes its traditional 19th Century roots and delivers a truly musical feast to dine upon at whose heart lies a love story that draws upon Alexandre Dumas the Younger’s real-life doomed love affair with well-known courtesan, Marie Duplessis. We open with Violetta (Viktoria Melnyk), aided by her friend Flora (Yelyzaveta Bielous) hosting a lavish party where she is introduced by Gastone (Ruslan Pacatovici) to his friend, Alfredo Germont (Davit Sumbadze), a fervent admirer, who is more concerned for her failing health than her escort, Barone Douphal (Vitalii Cebotari). When Alfredo declares his love for her she wonders if he could be the one amidst her desire to be free to live her life. A year on and Alfredo and Violetta have be...

25Feb

By Adam WilliamsNo Comments

North West

Madama Butterfly – Opera House

Every betrayal begins with trust and curiously this production of Madama Butterfly became more powerful simply because of where the orchestra came from. As they say on the telly when the football scores come on look away now if you don’t want to know the essential twist in the plot of this opera. Many will be aware of how this story unfolds but if you don’t want to know, stop reading now. I usually avoid giving the plot away in my reviews but the intersection of life and art that this production unwittingly brought means I have to mention it to do it justice. At the centre of the play is a betrayal by an American and the music for this production was played by the Orchestra of the Ukrainian Opera and Ballet Theatre, Kyiv. I hate to bring politics into a work of art but the betray...

22Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

La Bohème – Opera House

Ellen Kent’s current revival of her original production perfectly captures the emotion and drama at the heart of Puccini’s timeless masterpiece of unforgettable music that tells of love, friendship, and death, under the direction of maestro Vasyl Vasylenko. Set in the Latin Quarter of Paris in about 1830, it is Christmas Eve when we meet four struggling bohemians living in a garret: a poet, Rodolfo (Davit Sumbadze); a painter, Marcello (Iurie Gisca); a philosopher, Colline (Valeriu Cojocaru); and a musician, Schaunard (Vitalii Cebotari) who arrives having had some good fortune and they agree to celebrate by dining at Café Momus. They are interrupted by their landlord, Benoît (Eugeniu Ganea) but cleverly trick him into revealing he has been playing around which allows them to throw him o...

22Feb

By Codie WrightNo Comments

North West

Bing’s Birthday – The Lowry

If you have little ones who love Cbeebies, you’ll know of Bing - the bunny who often gets things wrong (and let’s be honest, is a pretty accurate portrayal of toddlerhood), who lives with the tiny and endlessly patient Flop. (I was partially hoping that today’s show would explain a) what animal Flop is and b) what his relationship is with Bing. But spoiler alert: that did not happen). This show brings the joy of the cartoon favourite onto the stage under the guise of it being Bing’s birthday. I have seen quite a few children’s favourites on the stage, and they don’t always hit the mark. Some of them seem rushed, created without care, or love for the source material and are nothing more than an overstimulating cash grab. Thankfully, Bing is not one of those. As soon as we walked in...

20Feb

By Grace AnnabelNo Comments

North West

The Parent Agency – Storyhouse

This evening, I had the immense privilege of watching the world premiere of ‘The Parent Agency’. A BRAND-NEW musical at The Storyhouse based on the best-selling book by David Baddiel with music by Dan-Gillespie Sells and direction by Tim Jackson. The hilariously entertaining production follows the story of eleven-year-old Barry Bennett who dreams of having “better parents”, those who give him everything he has ever wanted! Barry’s wishes come true, and he is transported to the United Kid-dom, where he is taken to the Parent Agency to find the mum and dad of his wildest dreams - however he quickly finds out that all of this is easier said than done and we follow his trials and tribulations along the way. The set and staging by Jon Bausor was spectacular, yet minimalistic in certain as...