REVIEWS Archives - Page 24 of 342

20Feb

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

I Should Be So Lucky – Hull New Theatre

If you entered Hull New Theatre on Monday evening, in a grumpy mood, I would bet my meagre life savings your grumps would soon evaporate. Stock Aitken Waterman’s feel-good musical I Should Be So Lucky was a riot of fun, joy, colour, not forgetting hit song after hit song - even though the storyline started off on a sad note. The stage setting throughout was all heart, literally. Wonderful heart shapes that changed colour and texture, fronting a video screen when more movement was needed in the storyline - such as balmy Turkish waters, hot air balloon-filled skies and thunder and lightning. Plus, a “hot air balloon” or rather its basket, was an amazing sight to behold as it floated, with its passengers, around the stage. The story centres around soon-to-be-married Ella (Lucie-Mae ...

20Feb

By Eleanor HallNo Comments

London

Dear Octopus – National Theatre

This was a tender play about family dynamics which takes its title from a speech in the second act that praises the family unit as a ‘dear octopus from whose tentacles we never quite escape’. On the eve of World War Two, we bear witness to the reunion of the Randolph family, which forces them and their servants to confront the elements of romance, hatred, jealousy and shame that underscore their interactions. I enjoyed the wit that laced through the piece, as is characteristic of Dodie Smith’s writing. This was present in the conversation of the family quarrels, but also in repeated motifs, i.e. the fact that each character is aware of Fenny’s love for Nicholas, which added a comical touch to the action. A primary issue was the play’s dated narrative; for instance, the reason for Cynth...

Rob Brydon ‘A Night Of Songs & Laughter’ – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

20Feb

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

Rob Brydon ‘A Night Of Songs & Laughter’ – Edinburgh Festival Theatre

Once upon a time in the early noughties Rob Brydon was a cult figure, beloved by those-in-the-know for Marion & Geoff, Human Remains and The Keith Barret Show. Before bobbing up into the mainstream in 2007 via Gavin & Stacey he’d been the voice of countless adverts (following the Megan incident at BBC Radio Wales), the resilience, versatility and humour developed during what was a dark(-ish) period in his professional career and personal life providing ample material for tonight’s show. Of which we wish there’d been more, but… check the title. No-one’s used the words ‘national’ or ‘treasure’ yet but they must be imminent. Accumulated over the years Brydon can draw on such a deep well of honed wit, charm and skill it’s difficult to imagine anything he does failing. Both sure...

Guys and Dolls – Edinburgh University Footlights

20Feb

By Kathleen MansfieldNo Comments

Scotland

Guys and Dolls – Edinburgh University Footlights

When you witness talent, team-work and dedication combined with youth, you know you’re onto a winner. The Edinburgh University Footlights production of Guys and Dolls was superlative. The orchestra was stellar (musical director, Emily Philips assisted by Amelia Brennan), the colourful costumes spot on (Tara Healey), the set so simple yet so effective (Holly Stephens) and the choreography was sharp, varied and hugely entertaining (Rosie Fletcher with Lyss Britton). Then, of course, there were the performers themselves: wonderful characterisation across the board was matched by confident voices and lithe bodies. Director Phee Simpson was blessed with an abundance of talent on this show. Megan Le Brocq as Miss Adelaide in this classic musical cannot be faulted. She has a rich, wide-ran...

17Feb

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

Deathtrap – The Mill at Sonning

What would you do for a great play? In Deathtrap by Ira Levin the answer turns out to be nothing good. With all the aesthetic drippings of a juicy whodunnit and a cast of characters each less winsome than the last, this play is powered by plot twists but never gathers quite enough steam to even fog up a window. Written in 1978 and set in the then not too distant future of 1979 Westport, Connecticut, Deathtrap does little to induce nostalgia in viewers even as it convincingly harkens back to the era of rotary phones, carbon copies, and illicit homosexuality. Fans of the play or film adaptation of Rope will find a dynamic worth exploring here that is ultimately left tantalizingly under investigated by the severely dated script and frustratingly conventional staging. Director Tam Willi...

Carlos Acosta’s On Before – Festival Theatre

17Feb

By Nazaret RaneaNo Comments

Scotland

Carlos Acosta’s On Before – Festival Theatre

Carlos Acosta, one of the greatest classical dancers of the modern age, with a career that took him from the backstreets of Havana to the most famous stages in the world, is back in Scotland with his signature show On Before. On February 16th, audiences at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre were transported into Acosta's world - an electric journey through the depths of human emotion and expression. Born from personal experience and his own artistic vision, the show traces back to a pivotal moment in Acosta's life in 2010. Conceived as a homage to his late mother, it represents Acosta's most intimate and deeply personal work. Shaped by collaborations with renowned choreographers worldwide, the show's evolution reflects Acosta's commitment to his craft. As the curtains rise, the audience is invi...

17Feb

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

Vigil – Traverse Theatre 2

Dashing about the flat before heading out, Radio 4’s News Quiz opened with Andy Zaltzman’s tongue-in-cheek introduction announcing the relegation of the human race from the top 1,000 species on the planet. Putting everyone right in touch with the 26,000 endangered species the creator & performer from Mechanimal (Tom Bailey) attempts to dignify via a combination of mime, clowning and some sparse dialogue… Centre stage sits a small glass cube full of assorted skulls and bones, above it a screen carrying the words ‘Colombian Lightbulb Lizard’. Which has everyone chuckling as they take their seats but wait, it’s actually a thing. In Columbia, to boot. AKA ‘Riama Columbiana’. Like a resource dedicated to aspiring bands searching for a name, a cornucopia of Peel-esque nomenclature unspoo...

17Feb

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

Two Sisters – Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh

Writer David Greig, returns to the stage for the first time since taking the reins as Artistic Director of The Royal Lyceum in 2016, with a whimsical exploration of time, memory, love and self-fulfilment. The title might be a nod to Chekhov, but the setting is closer to home ,a rusting and decrepit caravan park, on the shoreline of the Firth of Forth in the kingdom of Fife. Two thirtysomething sisters, Amy and Emma meet up in Holiday Heaven, the favourite holiday location of their youth. Emma is now a successful lawyer and company director who is just looking for peace and quiet and a space to write, on her own, a last chance of self expression before her first child arrives. Amy, leather clad and tottering about in high heals, is a failed rock star, who has jumped from one idea to the...

16Feb

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

Lear’s Shadow – Jack Studio Theatre

The pandemic was, of course, a disaster for theatres and those involved in the performance arts. But it is striking how many of those affected used their time to develop their creative skills and produce new work, which would otherwise possibly never have seen the light of day. One such is Lear's Shadow devised and performed by Colin Hurley, and now performed in the Brockley Jack Theatre. The Jack performance space is almost bare except for a round wooden table and a bench. Enter an old man with dishevelled hair and greying beard, dressed in a dressing gown and long johns, with bare feet. He carries a modern looking box full of his props. Although looking like a Lear, the programme notes make clear that this is not Lear: it is an actor very familiar with the Bard's ...

Haunted Scouse – Liverpool’s Royal Court

16Feb

By Luke StephensonNo Comments

North West

Haunted Scouse – Liverpool’s Royal Court

A new play was upon us at the Liverpool Royal Court Theatre. Haunted Scouse by Gerry Linford, is a tale about husband Charlie (Michael Starke) who has sadly passed away, and he can’t complete his journey to the other side as there is something he needs to deal with first at home. His widow Molly (Lyn Francis) has turned to the bottle something she never used to do she feels alone as their son is in Australia. Molly blames herself for Charlie’s untimely death. All Charlie wants to do is give Molly a kiss and a hug just one more time as he is struggling with being on the other side but his guardian angel or should I say his auntie Peggy (Helen Carter) is on hand to guide him through to what he needs to do to get on to the other side. Charlie doesn’t like the fact that there is another gentl...