REVIEWS Archives - Page 17 of 428

31Oct

By Adam WilliamsNo Comments

North West

Frank 4 Sophie 4 Eva – 53two

Of all the politics in the world, sexual politics is perhaps the most difficult to navigate especially when the initial thrill has gone. It is bad enough when sex has become a chore, a lie back and think of England job, where you have to fantasise about Scottish heroes from the 17th century to get you through it. Yet for Frank (Simon Naylor) and Sophie (Alexandra Maxwell) sex isn’t even that. They have completely stopped doing it and are visiting a sex therapist to see if they can sort out their love life. Are sex and love the same thing they ask? Can you have one without the other? Frank is full of one-liners and bravado. He is definitely up for it and can’t understand why Sophie does not want to have sex with him anymore. Why does she fancy Jamie from Outlander and prefer to read ...

Anirban Dasgupta: Polite Provocation – Soho Theatre

31Oct

By Savitha VenugopalNo Comments

London

Anirban Dasgupta: Polite Provocation – Soho Theatre

At the very outset Anirban Dasgupta promises that by the end of the hour, the audience will know a lot more about India than they already do. He stays true to his word, educating the room on the current state of politics of the country, Mahatma Gandhi, the freedom struggle, and the growth of standup comedy and the challenges it faces. While he does eventually segue on to other topics, the best parts of Dasgupta’s set are for the politically aware. It also seems to be what he most enjoys. He brings up some uncomfortable truths about the political and social atmosphere in India with much hilarity. The evening’s show, he says, is “like the Indian media – sold out.” But can he tell these jokes with the same ease back in his home city? Probably not, given what he goes on to tell us ab...

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – Hull New Theatre

31Oct

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – Hull New Theatre

The cheering and clapping started even before curtain up, at the Hull New Theatre on Tuesday evening, as the audience in the packed venue instantly reacted to the very recognisable melody being played by the in-house orchestra. As the strains of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang rang out, the anticipation built to fever-pitch and, a few minutes after 7pm, the curtain rose on a night of rip-roaring fun. The much-loved family favourite (an Ian Fleming story for children, later made into a film in 1968) tells the tale of an absent-minded inventor, Caractacus Potts, who, urged on by his two young children, restores an old racing car - only to discover the machine has a magical mind of its own. Potts (Adam Garcia), a single parent to Jemima (Isla Ithier) and Jeremy (Charlie McGuire), has very li...

29Oct

By Damian RiverolNo Comments

North West

& Juliet – Liverpool Empire

What would happen if Juliet decided not to end it all when she finds Romeo dead? What would happen if when writing Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare’s wife, Ann, has a share of the writing and what we thought we knew about this well-known play is altered completely? For the better? For the worse? Well, we are here to find out. With book by David West Read and Music and Lyrics by Swedish pop song writer, Max Martin and Friends, we are taken on a bright, exciting, loud journey of discovery, love, and the meaning of compromise. The show opens with the company of players milling around the stage, interacting with the audience and treating us to some incredible dancing before an explosion of colour and life hits us and we are thrown into this rollercoaster of a story. Matt Cardle is extrem...

The Wizard of Oz – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

29Oct

By Max EdenNo Comments

North West

The Wizard of Oz – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Altrincham Garrick’s latest production of The Wizard of Oz is a tour de force! I can say with confidence that it’s one of the most impressive productions I’ve seen in recent months. Running until Sunday, November 3rd, this show has been brought to life under the talented direction of Joseph Meighan. The level of detail in every aspect of this production is remarkable, from the lavish costumes to the dynamic set design and breathtaking special effects that fully immerse the audience in Oz’s magical world; including digital projection, lighting and pyro! The cast delivered a polished, professional performance that rivalled any big-touring production. Ciara-Alexandra Booker shone as Dorothy, bringing warmth, innocence, and undeniable talent to the role. Her voice was powerful and filled wi...

Men Don’t Talk – The Eastgate Theatre, Peebles

28Oct

By Kathleen MansfieldNo Comments

Scotland

Men Don’t Talk – The Eastgate Theatre, Peebles

New theatre writing is always welcome and Clare Prenton’s Men Don’t Talk, produced by Genesis Theatre Productions, tackles an interesting and topical subject: male suicide statistics and how men cope with life when it gets tricky: where are their support systems? How do you cope without turning to pub culture and liver damage? Men Don’t Talk is a one-act play supported by Creative Scotland Touring Funds. It blends tenderness, small talk, heartfelt revelations and huge dollops of laughter. The three actors, Billy Mack (Jimmy), Greg Powrie (Tom) and Dougal Lee (Ken) create a welcoming atmosphere as they interact with the audience, extending to sharing a cuppa as they “chat”. A scattering of sawdust to sop up spilled milk and the set would be perfect. It was perfectly apt that the s...

A Streetcar Named Desire – The Lyceum, Edinburgh

28Oct

By Tom ScottNo Comments

Scotland

A Streetcar Named Desire – The Lyceum, Edinburgh

This is a thrilling production of a great play by Tennessee Williams. It pulsates with raw energy and gripped the packed house at The Lyceum. The Pitlochry Festival Theatre production, directed with panache by Elizabeth Newman, has a stellar cast and an innovative creative team. When 30-something Blanche DuBois unexpectedly turns up at the small downstairs apartment rented by her younger sister, Stella, and her husband, Stanley, she thinks she’s come to the wrong address. Blanche was expecting something better than this poky apartment in a poor area of New Orleans ironically called ‘Elysian Fields’. Blanche has been used to the grandeur of Belle Reve, the family plantation in Mississippi. But although Blanche has a trunk full of pretty clothes, she has to admit to Stella that ...

Gav Cross Storyteller: After Supper Ghost Stories – Norton Priory

27Oct

By Jan MellorNo Comments

North West

Gav Cross Storyteller: After Supper Ghost Stories – Norton Priory

I love to be read stories – I think a lot of us do, something from our childhood- being read to by our parent or grandparents or those nostalgic back and white films, when a family sit in awe round the fire, listening to grandparents tell exciting tales of mystery and suspense. I adore the fact that at the wonderful Norton Priory , unique events are run that embrace the arts and theatre in a way that nourishes the soul and so, as I joined the full-house seats in front of the ancient atmospheric Victorian Porch of the museum’s Atrium (very fitting) ,I was as a child again waiting in anticipation for the intrigue to commence. Our ‘grandfather’ in this instance was Gav Cross - a true storyteller – the physique, the round end- of- nose spectacles and the roaring voice- inviting...

27Oct

By Eleanor HallNo Comments

North West

After the Act – Liverpool Playhouse

Breach Theatre have tapped into the extreme niche that is the verbatim musical (the only other that comes to mind is Alecky Blythe’s ‘London Road’). Directed by Billy Barrett, ‘After the Act’ illuminates the shockingly recent aftermath of Section 28, which prohibited the so-called ‘promotion of homosexuality’ in schools. Photo: Alex Brenner The narrative is replete with first-hand, personal experiences of the Section 28’s harrowing impact, and the wider political conversation, weaving artfully between the two. Given that the show is replete with historical information such as contemporary House of Lords debates and the prevalence of Haringey parents’ protests in the Act’s construction, I came out of the theatre feeling much more informed. Ultimately, the personal accounts are the mos...

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Northwich Memorial Court

24Oct

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Northwich Memorial Court

Ever since Gene Wilder invited us into a world of ‘Pure Imagination’ in the 1971 film, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory has been a story for the ages; a morality tale of the honest and good being (eventually) rewarded and the horrid and greedy getting their comeuppance. With the popularity of other children’s fantasies, such as Matilda, being translated to the stage, this was an obvious candidate for adaptation. For those who’ve lived in Loompaland for all their lives and haven’t discovered Roald Dahl’s long-adored story, we meet young Charlie Bucket, living in abject poverty with his hardworking mother and four bedridden grandparents. He dreams of Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory at the end of the road. Soon Wonka announces a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity – those who find one o...