REVIEWS Archives - Page 315 of 548

The Pearl Fishers – Opera North at The Bridgewater Hall

9Jun

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

The Pearl Fishers – Opera North at The Bridgewater Hall

Bizet’s first full length opera took six months from being commissioned to being performed in 1863 and whilst receiving a hostile reception from the critics, it was popular with audiences as, set in the then Ceylon, it draws upon its exotic setting to explore issues such as the conflict between love and duty, and jealousy whilst testing out new musical ideas and motifs that were ultimately to come to the fore in Carmen some twelve years later. Zurga (Quirijn de Lang) and Nadir (Nico Darmanin) are old friends who reminisce that despite having fallen in love with the same young women years before, it hadn’t got in the way of their loyalty to each other. With Zurga now the leader of their village, their relationship is about to be tested again with the arrival of a veiled young priestess, ...

Yours Unfaithfully – Jermyn Street Theatre

9Jun

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

Yours Unfaithfully – Jermyn Street Theatre

The Mint Theatre Company of New York specialises in uncovering forgotten plays that deserve to be remembered. In Unfaithfully Yours by Miles Malleson they have uncovered a little gem, which was premiered in New York in 2017 and now UK audiences have the chance to enjoy it at the Jermyn Street Theatre. The play features an outwardly extremely happily married couple, Anne and Stephen Meredith, who secure in the knowledge of the soundness of their relationship are happy for each other to engage in dalliances on the side. However, their intellectual commitment to allowing their partner to do what they like in order to further their happiness is severely tested byte feelings of jealousy which arise. At the time when it was written 90 years ago this would have undoubtedly been a shoc...

8Jun

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Grindr The Opera – Union Theatre

Grindr The Opera (An Unauthorised Parody), directed by the brilliant William Spencer and designed by the visionary David Shields, delivers a bold and innovative theatrical experience at London's Union Theatre. This groundbreaking and highly risqué production explores the intricacies of contemporary gay relationships in the digital age, presenting a thought-provoking adult narrative that challenges societal norms and delves into the complexities of human connections in all of its darkest, dirty and sometimes painful elements. Leading the cast of ‘Grindr’ is the immensely talented Christian Lunn, whose portrayal of the main character, Grindr, is nothing short of exceptional. Lunn's remarkable acting skills, combined with his powerful singing voice, and otherworldly physique, create a capt...

Tony: The Tony Blair Rock Opera – Birmingham Rep

8Jun

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Tony: The Tony Blair Rock Opera – Birmingham Rep

It’s not that long ago “Spitting Image” spat their saucy and sinister satire across the stage of the Birmingham Rep and seeing “Tony! The Tony Blair Rock Opera” has a slight whiff of deja vu - all over again. Where once well-crafted and designed puppets grotesquely caricatured well-known faces now we have real humans in a plethora of wigs (I believe that’s the correct collective noun for wigs) and a gamut of ‘tashes (same note) enacting a biog of the most polarising premier we’ve had for many a day. But unlike “Spitting Image”, which spoofed the news right up the opening night and revised the show thereafter, “Tony” seems to dwell on yesterday’s headlines and, despite occasional nudges towards the contemporary impact of his decisions, all seems a few years too late. Nonetheless it’s a v...

8Jun

By Bev ClarkNo Comments

North West

The Crucible – Gladstone Theatre

A bold, original attempt at this classic, which ascends to a powerful ending. The Crucible is one of the seminal and most popular plays of the mid 20thcentury. Miller’s chilling parable of mass hysteria parallels the Salem witch-hunt of 1692 against The McCarthyism of 1950s America, and it is still examined in school rooms, as well as being performed by amateurs and professionals. It is a play which should feverishly bubble and burn, as it builds from what was a girlish prank, to a community that destroys itself from within with its frantic frenzy of accusations. It is a claustrophobic, intense ‘wailing’ of a play that can fall victim to overflowing and reaching boiling point too soon. The alchemy is in getting the temperature and consistency right as the plot thickens. It is a bo...

8Jun

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Patriots – Noel Coward Theatre

It’s hard not to be struck by the ironic luxury of witnessing a West End play about Russian politics, as the war continues to rage in Ukraine. The collapse of the Kakhova dam means that up to 42,000 Ukrainians are being displaced while I sip on Aperol spritz outside the Noel Coward theatre. Russian hackers are being blamed for a massive cyber-attack that’s screwed the BBC, Boots and British Airways. There are fears that Putin may bomb the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant, but al fresco revellers at The Salisbury on St. Martin’s Lane appear untroubled at the prospect. Life, and the show, must go on. Peter Morgan’s Patriots arrives with such pedigree at its helm that it’s hard not to be dazzled by the prospect. Morgan is responsible for The Queen and Frost/Nixon on both stage and sc...

8Jun

By Zoё MeeresNo Comments

London

Bounce – The Lion and Unicorn Theatre

We begin at the beginning - so to speak - of a motivational seminar; the lights flash, the music booms and our presenter, Jesse (Nick Robinson), is propelled onto the stage, an energised picture of confidence seemingly powered on his own self-belief. Jesse, a self-help guru and his own personal hype man, is here to tell us how we can own our own destinies by facing forward, not seeing unwanted surprises as problems and pretty much every other self-improvement trope you can think of. If that sounds flippant then that is far from my intention - in this snappy 70-minute show, writer Tom Derrington creates a caricature of self-help culture that pinpoints why so many people are caught in its thrall, and why this is so problematic. There’s a precision to Derrington’s writing that from the sta...

Last Summer at Bluefish Cove – Lauriston Studio, Altrincham

7Jun

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Last Summer at Bluefish Cove – Lauriston Studio, Altrincham

For the final production in their season of LGBTQ+ plays in the Lauriston studio, Altrincham Garrick have produced a masterful retelling of a play that is little known on this side of the Atlantic. Not only is it extremely funny and touching, it should also be seen as an important milestone in the development of queer theatre history. For the first time it allowed gay characters to be portrayed as three dimensional beings, rather than the troubled stereotypes which had populated the theatre prior to its production. We arrive in the eponymous Long Island resort with Eva (Madeleine Healey), recently divorced from husband George, she is emotionally lost and confused and still grieving the loss of her son Lenny six years earlier. She meets Lil (Phillipa Shellard) whilst walking on the beach...

7Jun

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Dirty Dancing – Leeds Grand Theatre

‘Bloody hell’. That was the involuntary cry from the dark as the ripped Michael O’Reilly playing roughneck dancer Johnny Castle peeled off his shirt during one of the steamier scenes in this faithful stage version of the cult classic movie. Like The Shawshank Redemption the celluloid version of Dirty Dancing was a box office flop, but this little B-movie earned cult status playing endlessly on digital TV making it perfect for the stage. And Eleanor Bergstein’s book of her original screenplay has very wisely kept the live version pretty much scene for scene to the delight of a crowd really up for enjoying a cultural icon that has real meaning for them. In truth the romance between working class Johnny and privileged New York teenager Baby is the classic rite of passage piece, with ...

7Jun

By Emma LambeNo Comments

North West

Annie – Liverpool Empire

This timeless classic is about Annie who’s a confident, fiery 11 girl waiting for her parents to come rescue her from Miss Hannigan’s orphanage. Set in the 1930’s during the Great Depression Annie’s optimism shines through when she’s chosen to spend Christmas with famous billionaire, Oliver Warbucks. Of course, Annie is delighted to spend time away from scrubbing the floors and sets out to search for her real family. Knowing there’s a $50,000 reward to find Annie’s real parents, Miss Hannigan hatches a plan with her crony brother to reap the benefits. Any musical that you recognise the songs from without having seen it before shows that it’s iconic. My foot was tapping along with the orphan girls polished rendition of ‘It’s the hard knock life’, if you’ll pardon the pun. This w...