REVIEWS Archives - Page 21 of 456

Queen Extravaganza – Edinburgh Playhouse

12Feb

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

Queen Extravaganza – Edinburgh Playhouse

If you love Queen… scratch that, if you like Queen just a bit… don’t miss this. A sell-out crowd was clearly up for it but the first ‘act’ began with a peculiar, muddy version of ‘We Will Rock You’, the band in dull, pub-band regulation black and as the following two tracks travelled past the chief positive was that the sound clicked sharply into place. Though hang on, that vocal pirouette Gareth Taylor dropped at the end of ‘Somebody To Love’ was a bit special, wasn’t it? Then came ‘Under Pressure’, a lump in the throat reflecting that this was written before mental health was a thing; we all had stuff going on, it just wasn’t ok to talk about it. Except that David, Freddie and the band did, producing an epic four-minute pop song that resonates more heavily every single year si...

12Feb

By Klervi GavetNo Comments

London

The Screen Test – Seven Dials Playhouse

Bebe Cave’s one-woman show The Screen Test is a bonkers, non-stop romp offering a vivid glimpse into the tragicomedic life of fictional Betsy Bittersly—a neurotic, self-absorbed actress struggling to make her mark in 1930s-40s Hollywood. In a desperate bid for stardom, Betsy bends over backwards to meet every soul-crushing demand of a man-dominated, consumer-obsessed industry, even rebranding herself (from Betsy Bittersly to the cocktail-sounding Betsy Bitters) in an effort to be instantly palatable. Writer and performer Bebe Cave takes us on a wild ride from her very first screen test to her final one. Over the course of an hour, the ever-delusional Betsy encounters — and entertains, with a big, unflinching smile — every variety of perv and power player the industry has to offer. H...

12Feb

By Tracey BellNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Ghost Stories – Sheffield Lyceum

Psychological Horror with a twist! Tension… Suspense…Atmosphere… Imagination… Unsettling to say the least! Ghost Stories the theatrical experience has recently been made into a film but still remains something unique in its ‘here and now’ form on the stage. This One Act production was written 15 years ago by Jeremy Dyson (Co-writer of the much acclaimed League of Gentlemen) and Award winning Actor/Director Andy Nyman and has played in eight different far flung countries and now Ghost Stories is once again currently touring the UK. Reviewers of Ghost Stories are asked not to divulge the plot or secrets of the show, and I will certainly adhere to that. Thus, Ghost Stories remains a rare thing; in a world of information technology; a modern experience you have to see ‘spoiler free’. ...

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...

12Feb

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

An Inspector Calls – Hull New Theatre

As curtain raisers go, there can’t be many more dramatic than that which I witnessed on Tuesday evening, when a National Theatre production of JB Priestley’s classic thriller, An Inspector Calls, exploded on to the stage. Hull New Theatre seemed to be packed to the gills, especially after the arrival of hordes of school leavers and their teachers. All soon settled and then the fun began a few minutes after 7.30pm. The explosive start of a very stormy night, with real water falling as rain that little street urchins splashed in, took part outside the impressive home of the wealthy Birling family. This stage setting - a telephone box, street lamp, a distant urban backdrop and the house - changed very little throughout. But when it did, my goodness it was ear splitting. All the ac...

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 (...

10Feb

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

The Years – Harold Pinter Theatre

This is a very engrossing and imaginative dramatisation of Annie Emaux's partly autobiographical book. It charts the progress of a woman's life chronologically from 1941 to 2006. The woman is unnamed, as are all the men and women that she comes into contact with. The play uses five actresses of different ages to sequentially play the different periods of her life as she experiences childhood, adolescence, early sexual encounters, including a rather horrific abortion, and then moves through marriage, motherhood and divorce. The changing social mores, political events, technological changes and the evolving consumer society of those 80 years are the accompaniment to the changes in her own life. The Years was formerly presented at the Almeida Theatre to great critical acclaim. The stagi...

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 Olivia CoxNo Comments

London

Heaven – Southwark Playhouse

Of all the events in the social calendar, there are few with such potential to cause rifts, drama, and an onslaught of confusing emotions as a family wedding. In Eugene O’Brien’s Heaven, it’s this event that offers us a lens through which to observe the floundering marriage of long-time spouses Mal (Andrew Bennett) and Mairead (Janet Moran). While both characters are featured throughout, we never see them interact, instead hearing their differing accounts of Mairead’s sister’s wedding through a series of alternating monologues in which both characters speak candidly to the audience. As well as painting a colourful picture of the wedding, dancefloor scraps and dodgy speeches included, Mairead and Mal give the audience highly personal and often vulnerable insights into their lives and ...

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...