REVIEWS Archives - Page 10 of 641

Don Black’s From the Heart – Garrick Theatre

9Oct

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Don Black’s From the Heart – Garrick Theatre

A lyricist’s words can become so familiar to us that we forget the person who wrote them. ‘From the Heart’ brings Don Black, one of the world’s most accomplished lyricists into focus, offering a beautifully presented musical revue that traces his career through songs and autobiographical reflections. Directed by Nick Winston, the evening feels carefully assembled, with a thoughtfully curated programme that makes room for discovery alongside recognition. The lesser-known numbers provide an opportunity to appreciate Black’s work beyond the songs audiences can immediately hum, and there is considerable pleasure in hearing these pieces given such accomplished treatment, allowing the lyrics their place in the spotlight. The staging of this revue is equally assured. Sophia Pardon’s minimal...

God Save Us – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

9Oct

By Charlotte MansfieldNo Comments

London

God Save Us – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

French spies, educated women and badly filed paperwork make for chaotic comedy in this new show set in 1066. Only nine months since King Harold had an arrow through his eye, and the French are changing laws and imposing their language and customs on their newly conquered country. Clergymen Theodore (George MacGowan) and Nicholas (Xavier Atkins) have enough problems keeping the villagers in line, and when their French superior arrives and helps himself to a farm at the same time as a woman arrives from Yorkshire claiming the farm is hers, Theodore has his work cut out keeping everyone distracted while he tries to fix the mess. Rabble-rouser, Joan (Julie Joubert), is asked to write a morality play and Yorkshire woman Asa (Lily Blunsom) is given the lead part to keep both of them busy....

9Oct

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

The Void – Traverse Theatre

There are moments in The Void when I genuinely believe I have boarded the Nostromo, and for someone whose youthful infatuation with Sigourney Weaver remains largely undiminished, that is no small achievement. The extraordinary set presents us with an exploded view of the nose cone of a spacecraft, its outer sections peeled back like the petals of some enormous mechanical flower, exposing the industrial structure within. At its centre, a vast circular surface doubles as a rear-projection screen, providing the focus for much of the production's remarkable imagery. But what makes this design particularly impressive is how successfully the whole of Traverse One becomes part of the spaceship. The exposed air-conditioning plant, overhead gantries and cage-like structures of the t...

9Oct

By Brian MaddenNo Comments

North West

King Lear – Royal Exchange

To mark its landmark 50th anniversary, Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre offers an extraordinary, electrifying staging of King Lear. Adapted and directed by Matthew Dunster, this gripping production brings two titan creative forces back to the in-the-round stage: Dunster, in his sixth engagement with the venue, and screen icon David Threlfall, returning to the Exchange after a 27-year absence. The result is a searing, unmissable theatrical event that reinvents Shakespeare’s greatest tragedy for a modern audience without losing an ounce of its power. At the epicenter of this storm is Threlfall’s remarkable performance. Playing a monarch whose vanity blindfolds him to genuine affection, Threlfall portrays Lear’s descent into madness not merely as a loss of reason, but as a total collaps...

8Oct

By Alice RoseNo Comments

London

An Oak Tree – The Other Palace

Tim Crouch’s interesting spectacle is back after a fiercely popular run at the Young Vic last year. Now placed at The Other Palace main theatre and the performance is led by Tim Crouch himself and a different second performer every night. On this evening, we had the wonderful Gwyneth Keyworth. The script doesn’t change but in essence the performance will, having a different actor every night who is unaware of the script or the journey that their character will take. Crouch leads this second performer into the abyss with small scripts on clipboards, headphones linked to his microphone or at some points leading them with ‘now you say…’. This journey follows a father coming to a hypnotist’s (Crouch) failing show to confront him as he accidentally killed his daughter. Through this jo...

8Oct

By Zain RussellNo Comments

London

Oh Zeus! – Queens Theatre

Oh Zeus! literally feels like a fever dream unfolding right before your eyes. We are introduced to three extremely talented and quick-witted actors: Al Dunn, Matt Freeman and Nick Bunt. Between them, the trio take on a range of characters in this fast-paced and wonderfully chaotic production, which sees the Greek gods descend upon the wedding of Hebe and Gregg. As the celebrations unfold, we get to see how the gods react to the unlikely union between a Greek goddess and a mere mortal, with Zeus, played by Al Dunn, in particular, not taking the marriage particularly well. The humour is very much in the style of pantomime, sitcoms and childish comedy, with the production embracing the ridiculous and never taking itself too seriously. At times, the jokes are so absurd that you cannot help ...

8Oct

By Prateek SonnyNo Comments

London

What Would Jarvis Do? – Omnibus Theatre

Absurd, uncomfortable, silly, and hilarious - What Would Jarvis Do? is an intriguing production that draws heavily on the themes of theatre of the absurd while also having its own unique voice. Written by Laura Grillo and directed by Maiya Pascouche, the play tells the story of best friends Didi (Annabel Smith) and GG (Isabel Butt) – superfans of Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker. Through their unconventional therapist, Ms Lacy (Maggie Daniels), they buy a pair of yellow trousers once owned by Jarvis Cocker – only they might not be Jarvis’ trousers at all. The play takes us on an unconventional yet familiar ride that explores the themes of materialism, identity, loss, grief, delusions, and recovery. You will see the shades of Beckett, Pinter, and Ionesco in its nar...

8Oct

By Dan GrimesNo Comments

North West

Rent – 53two

Set in New York’s East Village, Rent follows a group of young artists and friends as they deal with love, friendship, poverty and illness. The characters struggle to balance their creative ambitions and relationships with the realities of their financial pressures, housing insecurity and the impact of HIV/AIDS on their community. As time passes and their circumstances change, tensions grow between their personal choices, responsibilities, relationships and ideas about how they want to live. The themes at the heart of Rent are particularly significant when you consider the story behind the show itself. Jonathan Larson drew on the realities of the world around him when writing the musical, exploring HIV/AIDS, poverty, addiction, relationships and loss at a time whe...

8Oct

By Carole BaldockNo Comments

North West

The Last Laugh – Floral Pavilion

Humour being universal, maybe one of the worst insults is to accuse somebody of not having a GSOH – GOSH that would most certainly be true if you failed to find this show amusing. How could it not be, featuring Tommy Cooper, the surreal clown and shambolic magician who knew his audience so well he was damn near physic, whereas Bob Monkhouse could almost be psychotic, so obsessive, perpetually in search of perfection, maybe because of the tragedies in his personal life. And probably better known as a chat show host; the marmite comic, loved and hated in equal measure. As for Eric Morecambe, what more need be said. How about his being multi-talented, an actor, a musician (over half a dozen instruments) and a writer (over 30 books), including new TV series The Reluctant Vampire. All the mo...

8Oct

By Max EdenNo Comments

North West

Lord of the Dance – Liverpool Empire

Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance has been entertaining audiences around the world for an incredible 30 years and three decades on, this spectacular show proves it has certainly lost none of its magic. Since opening in Dublin in 1996, Lord of the Dance has become a worldwide phenomenon, playing to more than 60 million people across 70 countries, and now the show is back with a special 30th Anniversary Tour celebrating its incredible history. Ive seen the show in various forms over the years and I again got the pleasure of watching the show at the Liverpool Empire as part of this tour and from the moment the curtain went up, this was a fantastic night of pure entertainment. Lord of the Dance has always been much more than simply an Irish dancing show. There is a story, fantastic ...