REVIEWS Archives - Page 21 of 548

10Oct

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

Cheapo – Traverse Theatre

Cheapo, brought to the Traverse Theatre by Play, Pie and a Pint, follows schoolboy Jamie (known as “Sheldon” to his bullies, played by Testimony Adegbite) as he sets up his travel chess board in KFC, ready for his usual match. Expecting to meet the same friend he plays with every week, Jamie is instead greeted by Kyla (Yolanda Mitchell), one of his bullies. Kyla has a proposition: she wants Jamie to retract his witness statement to the police. In return, her boyfriend and his friends will spare him a beating. As their chess game unfolds, it becomes clear that Kyla is not as cruel as she initially seems—she is frightened, afraid of the consequences of going to court. Likewise, Jamie fears the repercussions of withdrawing his statement, particularly in light of how the police treat young ...

10Oct

By NewsdeskNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Emma – Sheffield Lyceum

Ryan Craig’s adaptation is aptly contemporary in places and unapologetically Georgian in others. The best affectations of Austen’s linguistic prowess are set upon with great effect, creating a poetic environment for the audience to exist in. This shape is shared with characters that feel real, embellished only in earnest moderation. Ceci Calf’s set design is deliberately sparse, leaving director Stephen Unwin with a very minimal arena for the characters to wrestle in. It is adorned only by a backdrop of blue/grey British sky and a couple of trees planted in the recesses of the stage to evoke the abodes of well-off English country families. Despite not being a physically transformative piece either, this feels right for Theatre Royal Bath’s production. So verbose and linguistically remarkab...

10Oct

By Zain RussellNo Comments

London

The Choir of Man – The Arts Theatre

The Choir of Man invites us into “The Jungle” pub, a place where everyone is welcome, and takes us on a lively journey exploring the lives of men in an intricate, authentic pub setting. One of the most unique and memorable features of this production is that the set itself is a fully functioning bar. Before the show begins, audience members are invited onto the stage to immerse themselves in The Jungle, grab a drink, and interact with the cast, whether having a chat or getting caught up in playful pranks around the pub. Throughout the performance, various audience members are also invited to join the cast on stage, further enhancing the immersive experience and making the show feel less like traditional theatre and more like a night out among friends. Even if you’re not one of the...

The Tempest – Shakespeare North Playhouse

9Oct

By Stephanie WiswallNo Comments

North West

The Tempest – Shakespeare North Playhouse

Monsters, sprites, humans, love and angst, sound like a delightful mix of intrigue and mystery. When in fact, you’re witnessing one of Shakespeare's works of art, produced by Tom Dixon and Will Orton. The Handlebards, a group of inspiring thespians who have made it their mission to bring environmentally friendly theatre on a journey to make it accessible for all. The Tempest has a simple set (Ellie Light) which doubles up as different staging props when needed and the group use comedic and creative ways to adapt their scenes and surroundings. The set also has the main protagonist Prospero all over it symbolising his monopolisation of the island and all who inhabit. The music and sound (Guy Hughes) within this production are beautiful and magical, also, a large portion of the music...

8Oct

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Power Cut – Olympus Fish & Chips

For one night only, ‘On The Go Theatre Company’ bring their production of “Power Cut’, a new play by Josie Byrne and Lynda Gray, to the salubrious surroundings of Olympus Fish & Chips in downtown Bolton. Unfortunately, what aspired to be a character-based situation comedy with a political edge proved to be more of a broad 1970s farce with a muddled script, both poorly staged and executed. I have often visited ‘thOlympus’ in Bolton before reviewing at the nearby Octagon, revelling in its camp glory. The bright and spacious Dining Room is complete with potted palms and a dinner jacketed pianist playing show tunes on a grand piano, whilst delicious food is served to pensioners by speedy teenagers in smart black uniforms; I always leave smiling. Their decision to convert the restaur...

Opera North & Phoenix Dance Theatre: Susanna – Leeds Grand Theatre

6Oct

By Mark HumphreysNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Opera North & Phoenix Dance Theatre: Susanna – Leeds Grand Theatre

On a night when Storm Amy lashed Leeds with wind and rain, Opera North’s Susanna offered a different kind of tempest — one of moral reckoning, emotional intensity, and artistic boldness. Handel’s oratorio, reimagined through opera and dance, became a mirror for society’s treatment of women, power, and truth. The audience, braving the elements, were rewarded with a production as courageous in its staging as it was timely in its themes. Susanna belongs to a genre born of necessity and ingenuity. During Lent, staged operas were forbidden in 18th-century England, prompting Handel — ever the commercial opportunist — to pivot to oratorios. Though unstaged, these works were operas in all but name: dramatic, character-driven, and rich in musical storytelling. Susanna (1749) is a prime example, ...

Chisato Minamimura: Mark of a Woman – The Lowry

6Oct

By Helen JonesNo Comments

North West

Chisato Minamimura: Mark of a Woman – The Lowry

At the start of the performance Chisato Minamimura introduces herself as a deaf Japanese woman. She is also a beautiful contemporary dancer and mime artist. Using dance, mime and sign language (with a pre-recorded audio) she explores and celebrates the history of women and tattooing. The show also uses something called woojer straps, a vibrating belt designed to offer an additional sensory experience. While the reviewer did not partake, her companion did and has offered their thoughts. During the performance Minamimura looks at various historic and often personal accounts of female tattooing. Starting with the Japanese practice of hajichi, a hand tattooing done by the Ryukyuan women on Okinawa island. Initially done as a rite of passage into adu...

Troilus And Cressida – The Globe Theatre

6Oct

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Troilus And Cressida – The Globe Theatre

Troilus and Cressida is a lesser-known play by Shakespeare influenced by Grecian context and features characters from Greek Mythology. It centres and draws on the Trojan war.” Inside the walls of Troy Prince Troilus, Kasper Hilton-Hille tells Pandarus he loves Cressida her niece”. In a sequence of match making events by Pandarus the deed was done made simple by the fact, that Cressida confessed she had secretly betrothed herself to Troilus. In act of bad luck Cressida’s father, Calchas a defector to the Greek camp has offered her to the Greeks in a twist that changes everything for the young lovers. The heart of the story is centred around the two camps; the Greek and Trojan soldiers lying idle in their ways and flouncing their combat battle talk to wage war with each other. The Trojan ...

6Oct

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

HER – Traverse Theatre

What would you do if you knew explicit photos of a young schoolgirl were being leaked? Would you do anything? Have you done anything? We’ve all witnessed situations like this before—it’s an all-too-common scenario, so common in fact that most people wouldn’t bat an eye. HER, produced by Strange Town and written by Jennifer Adam, confronts the audience directly, urging us to stand up and take action. The play insists that there is no such thing as an innocent bystander. Fast-paced and quick-witted, we are swept into the heart of the school by our two schoolkid narrators, B1 and B2, played by Zara-Louise Kennedy and Alex Tait. The pair move deftly through a multitude of characters, from teenage bams to ostentatious patrons of the fancy restaurant where HER (Eleanor McMahon) works. While t...

6Oct

By Oliver GigginsNo Comments

Scotland

War Horse – Festival Theatre

Based on the 1982 novel by Michael Morpurgo which was later adapted into a film by Steven Spielberg in 2011, the show was adapted for the stage back in 2007, on which it has been more or less ever since (factoring in for Covid). The eponymous War Horse is Joey, young farmer Albert’s beloved equine companion, who gets sold to the Cavalry and shipped to France in 1914 during mobilisation. Soon he and Albert who, despite being too young, followed him into war a few months, are caught up in enemy fire in No Man’s Land. Despite having followed Joey explicitly to find him, there seems little hope of reuniting, or even surviving the War that was meant to be over by Christmas. Featuring life-sized horses by South Africa’s Handspring Puppet Company and projection on a tear-like screen by Nico...