North West Archives - Page 36 of 174

14Feb

By Katie LeicesterNo Comments

North West

Blithe Spirit – Hope Mill Theatre

Director Hannah Ellis Ryan of Her Productions illuminated Hope Mill Theatre with her production of Blithe Spirit. Ellis Ryan has had some fabulous successes in her previous direction of ‘Vignettes’ and ‘Taming of the Shrew’ at Hope Mill, so I was thrilled to be asked to review her latest masterpiece. Blithe Spirit is a High-Spirited Comedy by the Masterful Noël Coward, the play was first seen in the West End in 1941 and ran for 1,997 performances, which was a new record for a non-musical play in London. It also did well on Broadway later that year, running for 657 performances. The play was adapted for the cinema in 1945; a second film version followed in 2020. The plot relates to Charles Condomine (Peter Stone) a novelist, and his wife Ruth (Ntombizodwa Ndlovu), who have invited the...

14Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Sweet Revenge – Rainhill Village Hall

Sophie Brogan has selected a real cracker for her directorial debut which plays to the strengths of both the company and their venue with an almost full house for opening night. Francis Durbridge is one of Britain’s most popular crime novelists and playwrights, and while it was his last play, Sweet Revenge is considered to be his best. Dr Ross Marquand (Rick Young) has it all: a high-flying career as a cardiac consultant, a wonderful home, and a beautiful wife, Fay (Alison Mawdsley) as well as the respect of medical colleague Sam Kennedy (George Lowe), businessman Bill Yorke (Tom Nevitt), and assistant Judy Hilton (Liz Munro). In spite of the immediate support of her brother Alan (Peter Cliffe) and close friend Marian (Angela Vose), Fay is not a happy woman, more so since she met...

Escaped Alone & What If If Only – Royal Exchange

13Feb

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Escaped Alone & What If If Only – Royal Exchange

Caryl Churchill has been feted amongst the theatrical fraternity for over half a century. Through her associations with The Royal Court and Joint Stock companies and their exploration of feminist themes and sexual identity, she was in the vanguard of gender politics, her style of writing and staging drawing comparisons with Samuel Beckett and Harold Pinter. My exposure to her work has been limited to a production of ‘The Skriker’ at this theatre for the Manchester International Festival a decade ago, so I was keen to delve deeper into her worldview with this presentation of two of her later works as a double bill. Photo: Johan Persson Helmed by Sarah Frankcom, who, as the acclaimed former Artistic Director of this theatre, knows the opportunities and pitfalls of directing in this uni...

13Feb

By Peter RuddickNo Comments

North West

Hold On To Your Butts – The Lowry

Some theatre shows can be appreciated by being described. Others, on the other hand, just need to be experienced. Hold On To Your Butts is a prime example of the latter. On paper, a screen to stage adaptation of the dinosaur classic Jurassic Park shouldn’t work. Not without a big animatronics budget, the latest in visual effects and a host of instruments to recreate that iconic John Williams score. As the name suggests, the Recent Cutbacks ensemble have none of that. However, this is a joyous, silly and, surprisingly, accurate retelling of Spielberg’s masterpiece. The trio of performers on stage rely on physical theatre, the bare minimum of creatively used props and sound effects. They create magic. Anyone with an aversion to lo-fi storytelling might well be concerned to take t...

12Feb

By Brian MaddenNo Comments

North West

The Girl on the Train – The Lowry

Bringing a psychological thriller to the stage should create an atmosphere of tension and intrigue, but The Girl on the Train struggles to maintain the suspense that made the novel so compelling. While the adaptation is faithful to the source material and the performances are solid, the production lacks the gripping intensity needed to keep audiences engaged. The script efficiently condenses the book’s plot, ensuring that key events unfold at a steady pace. However, the rapid transitions between scenes leave little room for suspense to build. The mystery remains intact, but it feels more like a retelling of events rather than a story unravelling in real time. Moments that should feel tense or shocking often pass without much weight, making it difficult to feel fully invested in the twis...

10Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Madama Butterfly – Empire Theatre

Ellen Kent’s current revival of her original production adds layers of tone and colour to further enhance this sensitive and moving portrayal of Puccini’s devastating tragedy about a young geisha who falls in love with an American naval officer. Marriage broker Goro (Ruslan Pacatovici) shows US naval lieutenant Pinkerton (Davit Sumbadze) around the home he will share with his bride-to-be in Nagasaki, although American Consul Sharpless (Iurie Gisca) warns him of the tragic consequences that may follow. The Butterfly duly lands in the form of young Japanese girl Cio-Cio-San (Elena Dee) supported by maid Suzuki (Yelyzaveta Bielous), and they are married by the Commissioner (Vitalii Cebotari). Her love makes her willing to sacrifice everything which sees her disowned by her uncle, a Bonze (...

8Feb

By Katy GilroyNo Comments

North West

Beyond the Barricade – Floral Pavilion

There’s nothing like quite the magic of the musicals to brighten up a cold and grey Friday in February, and when the UK tour of Beyond the Barricade stopped off in New Brighton, it was set to be a fantastic evening. The UK’s leading musical theatre concert tour, which has been running since 1999, is usually made up of Andy Reiss, Katie Leeming, Sarah Ryan and David Fawcett – but with David unwell, the group had called upon theatre legend Norman Bowman to step in. As the name suggests, there is a strong Les Misérables theme to the show; all four group members, and Norman too, have played principal roles in the mind blowing musical based on Victor Hugo’s heart wrenching story. Beyond the Barricade opened with a Les Mis number, sung by the quartet, before diving into a world of both cla...

8Feb

By Stephanie WiswallNo Comments

North West

Exposed – Hope Street Theatre

Exposed (written, produced and performed by Laura Tellwright and wonderfully directed by Faye Caddick) is a painful but powerful performance which documents the ups and downs of life through the depths of grief. Don't be fooled into thinking this performance is going to be depressing and morose. Although, yes, you do need tissues in parts, this story really does have you crying, laughing and crying laughing. Very rarely do I see an audience so captivated, entranced and mesmerized. Yes, all similar words but I feel it needs to be shown just what an amazing performance this really is. You feel every emotion, you understand those emotions, you can relate with what is happening on stage, from the raw grief to the comedic take on dating, therapy and sometimes grief itself. By the e...

6Feb

By Alison BainesNo Comments

North West

Here You Come Again – Opera House

Here You Come Again… yes, it is indeed another musical featuring the hit songs of country icon Dolly Parton. If it wasn’t enough to bring Dolly’s movie, 9 to 5, to the stage, here’s another Dolly musical to wet your whistle. If you’re expecting a musical about Dolly’s life and music, then you may be thoroughly disappointed. Instead, the plot takes us back to a time that none of us want to re-live… the COVID-19 pandemic. Kevin, played by Steven Webb, finds himself on the wrong side of 40, heart-broken, living back at home in the attic of his parent’s house, unemployed and in a bit of a ‘p-hole’ (that’s a pity hole for those who have not yet seen the show). Just when things hit rock bottom for Kevin, the queen of country herself, and Kevin’s idol, appears to show him the way. Who bette...

The Merchant of Venice 1936 – Liverpool Playhouse

5Feb

By Hannah EsnoufNo Comments

North West

The Merchant of Venice 1936 – Liverpool Playhouse

The authenticity in this production is what struck me at rst, with the Jewish culture and language centre-stage for the preamble. And it didn’t matter that we may not understand what they were saying or doing, it was unapologetic. A sentiment carried through the whole production, which was a novel idea, as it gave the relic script a new tenacity and sense of place in the present which is far removed from when Shakespeare was writing. That authenticity is also what made me realise that this piece really was an example of how these celebrated plays can be relevant to today and still teach us something about the human condition. The cast, albeit small, was able to take on the responsibility of a much larger selection of characters. Their ability to multirole was not only impressive but ...