REVIEWS Archives - Page 185 of 341

Elizabeth Fry: The Angel of Prisons – Canning Town Library

27Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

London

Elizabeth Fry: The Angel of Prisons – Canning Town Library

Created and written by James Kenworth, this production is the latest instalment of The Newham Plays. These are locally focussed plays, site-specific and digging into Newham’s history. This collaboration between writer James Kenworth and director Martin Charlton, draws upon the talent from the local schools of Newham, and youth theatre groups, under the guidance of a director and professional actors. Staged at the Canning Town Library, this celebration of the life of Elizabeth Fry, who fought for the improvement of conditions in prisons, especially for women. Fry and her husband lived locally in West Ham and she helped the local gypsy community by giving them food, clothing, and medicine. Elizabeth Fry or Betsy as she was known, is played by three different pe...

David Hoyle: Ten Commandments – Soho Theatre

27Aug

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

David Hoyle: Ten Commandments – Soho Theatre

Humanity is paying a price for not listening to David Hoyle. In the heady ‘90s, when Hoyle performed as the Divine David, he would howl at the crowds, ‘Don’t go to the gym, go to the library’. The message, delivered with smeared mascara, spit and rage was driven by a righteous fear that society’s obsession with external appearance would destroy intellectual evolution and spiritual growth. That sage decree was delivered long before Twitter thirst traps, armies of Instagram charlatans and the quiet destruction of public libraries. Hoyle was a queer canary down the mine. Today, young children are increasingly cursed with eating disorders, Botox is bigger than de Beauvoir and since 2010, at least 773 libraries have closed. Even if we wished to heed Hoyle’s advice, it’s too l...

West Side Story – Theatre Royal Wakefield

27Aug

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

West Side Story – Theatre Royal Wakefield

A Tour de Force of a production in every perceived meaning of the phrase. A long-time favourite of many, West Side Story which is based on the concept of Jerome Robbins – as a modern day telling of Romeo and Juliet - is synonymous with Robbins famous choreographic style. Collaborating with Arthur Laurents as writer and the legendary composer Leonard Bernstein with Stephen Sondheim as lyricist; West Side Story was always going to be a hit. From its film versions in 1961 and 2021 to its innumerable stage productions the musical has engaged people for the last 65 years and continues to do so in Wakefield this week! Set in the 1950’s, the musical resets Romeo and Juliet onto the New York streets and the world of rival gangs, the Jets and the Sharks. Maria, sister of the Sharks gang lead...

Little Shop of Horrors – Liverpool Empire

27Aug

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Little Shop of Horrors – Liverpool Empire

Brimming with camp, B-Movie schtick, damsels in distress and botany with a bite, Little Shop of Horrors has long been a cult favourite. Liverpool Empire’s Youth Theatre group has done itself proud in bringing this quirky and energetic musical to the stage. If you’re not familiar with the story, it follows the nerdishly charming Seymour Krelborn, a flower shop boy who comes into the possession of a strange, exotic-looking plant during a solar eclipse. Seymour wants nothing more than to win the heart of his fellow shop assistant, Audrey, but the plant’s unusual feeding regime soon gives him something far more gruesome to focus on. Surrounded by an excellent set, with spot-on costumes, and supported by a superb band under the ever-reliable baton of Musical Director Paul Lawton, dire...

26Aug

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Fame – The Alexandra, Birmingham

For those of us who grew to what passes for maturity in the eighties it’s almost impossible to hear the theme from “Fame” and not be enthralled by all the joy, freedom and liberation that tune offers. Dancing in the streets! Ignoring your parents! Dodging classes! “Fame” was a watershed moment in our lives and re-invented itself as a watered-down TV show, a stage musical and remake. This new production foreshadows a reunion of the original TV cast soon in Birmingham and brims with all the youthful exuberance which made the original so unique. Boasting all the best in West Midlands talent, it brings together a huge cast of 60 young people between 19 and 24 as part of the Alexandra’s Stage Experience overseen by the imaginative and inventive skills of PollyAnn Turner together with ...

26Aug

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

London

Janet – Etcetera Theatre

I have to say that I was not sure what to expect when reading the summary of the show, as it does sound absurd to make a character from a piece of bread dough. I am pleased to say, that the unique skills of performer, Helen Ainsworth and director, John Mowat left me in no doubt that this unusual approach to puppetry is very entertaining. The story begins with Ainsworth wearing her chef’s uniform and hat, incorporating a mask, as she begins to bring the characters alive. Beryl is a packet of French bread flour, Keith is a rusty lidded water jug, and Lady Jane Grey is a posh sounding teapot from Sheffield. The show begins with Beryl and Keith consummating their relationship, by mixing together their flour and water to create Janet, their beloved offspring, the French br...

25Aug

By Carole GordonNo Comments

London

Patience – Wilton’s Music Hall

Gilbert and Sullivan's biting mockery of the aesthetic movement, the fickleness of love and infatuation and the worshipping of celebrities has never been better or more wittily presented than in Charles Court Opera's current production. Played gloriously tongue-in-cheek, this show is a joy from start to finish. Patience is an over-the-top satire with contemporary relevance to today's shallow celebrity culture and the ephemeral nature of fleeting trends. Patience, a young barmaid, is unschooled in the ways of love and is confused to see that three women of varying maturity who profess to be in love with the poet, Bunthorne, are desperately unhappy because of it and have taken to drink. They already have three upstanding military men, including one who is a Duke, as suitors but fin...

25Aug

By Brian MaddenNo Comments

North West

Family Tree – Kings Arms, Salford

Peripeteia Theatre Company have created a show with a worthy cause at its heart - a same sex couple wanting to bring a baby into already overpopulated and polluted world. This is a strait-laced two-hander play which is inspired by Lungs written by Duncan Macmillan. When I arrived at the Kings Arms and was greeted to individual tables with fairy lights and a good soundtrack, I had high expectations. However, when the baby-faced actors (Layla Hopps and Rebecca Gray) stepped on stage there was just no energy and sadly it never really picked up. Perhaps it was a case of first night nerves? While the plot is good and writer (Adam Cachia) gave the team lots to work with, sadly a lot of this potential was not realised. The synopsis in the program included words like ‘political unrest’,...

Your Dad’s Mum: Tonight at the Social Club – Underbelly, Bristo Square

25Aug

By Dylan MooneyNo Comments

Scotland

Your Dad’s Mum: Tonight at the Social Club – Underbelly, Bristo Square

Your Dad’s Mum: Tonight at the Social Club is an intimate, audience participation-filled show that brings together actors Kevin Dewsbury and Bexie Archer as Pat Bashford and Cheri-Anne respectively. The show is filled with games and prizes and is sure to bring about many laughs. The skill of Dewsbury and Archer shouldn’t go unnoticed. They are able to consistently create a hilariously awkward atmosphere throughout the piece, with many long silences. They both stay in character throughout the entirety of the production, never breaking the illusion that they are actually playing characters. The multitude of jokes delivered by Dewsbury range from risqué to plain dreadful but every single one warranted some form of reaction from the audience, whether that be fits of laughter or groa...

25Aug

By Kat CliffordNo Comments

Scotland

Plague – theSpaceTriplex

Plague is a tongue in cheek, silly and somewhat bizarre dive into one of the darkest parts of history. The show jumps between a fuddy-duddy professor, a doctor and a Yorkshire farmer, in the modern day, explaining some of the science and history of the plague and a historic telling of the fictional village of Bogsfield set in the 1300’s. It was quite an interesting way to tell the story and helped to break up the more morbid pieces of the historic parts. The songs were nicely composed and very well performed, and this show was really all about the big chorus pieces which the large cast pulled off with skill and mastery. The composition of ‘Dance for God’ both musically and visually were very cohesive and I appreciated the symbolism of the priest commanding his desperate flo...