REVIEWS Archives - Page 337 of 549

We Wish You Long Life – Synagogue Scratch at Manchester Jewish Museum

4Apr

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

We Wish You Long Life – Synagogue Scratch at Manchester Jewish Museum

Performing as part of Manchester Jewish Museum’s inaugural Synagogue Scratch season, We Wish You Long Life, written by Amy Lever and directed by Helen Parry, explores cultural integration, shared memory, and family ties, when Steven (Robin Simpson), raised Catholic, is brought begrudgingly by his wife, Mary (Orline Riley), to a Jewish house of mourning for a person he doesn’t seem to remember. Father and daughter, David (Danny Ryder) and Katie (Lever), await the arrival of the Irish Catholic side of their family whilst food caterer Karen (Tilly Sutcliffe) begins to wonder if this is the strangest event ever. A Q&A session with the writer, director, and cast followed which provided useful background on the piay which began life as a ten-minute piece as part of a short play festival ‘...

4Apr

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

REVIEWS

Falstaff – Met Opera Live in HD

Behind every great man there is a greater woman and none more so than in Gina Lapinski’s revival of Robert Carson’s 2013 production of Verdi’s final masterpiece, a comic opera drawn from Shakespeare and reimagined in a post-war 1950’s Windsor with a stylish, satirical and slapstick production that fools nobody: it is superb. Caddish knight Falstaff (Michael Volle) informs Bardolfo (Chauncey Packer) and Pistola (Richard Bernstein) that he intends to seduce Alice Ford (Ailyn Pérez) and Meg Page (Jennifer Johnson Cano) but when they refuse to deliver the letters, he throws them out. When the letters are eventually received, Mistress Quigley (Marie-Nicole Lemieux), Meg, Alice, and her daughter Nanetta (Hera Hyesang Park), laugh over their similarity and decide to get their revenge. Meanwhil...

2Apr

By Ella CatherallNo Comments

Scotland

Castle Lennox – Royal Lyceum Theatre

‘Castle Lennox’, presented by the Royal Lyceum Theatre of Edinburgh and Lung Ha Theatre Company, tells the story of Annis, a young Autistic woman who is sent to the titular Castle Lennox, a mental institution, and her interactions with both staff and fellow patients. Where this show shines is in its representation of disabled people. The show features a majority disabled cast, and all disabled characters in the show are played by disabled actors. That this show is able to provide opportunities for disabled creatives is admirable and something I hope to see more of – I’ll definitely be a closer follower of the work of the Lung Ha Theatre Company from now on. Arguably more notable is that the disabled characters in this show are well-developed, full people that exist as more than inspirat...

Beethoven’s Eroica – Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

2Apr

By Ezzy LaBelleNo Comments

North West

Beethoven’s Eroica – Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

The historical and the heroic meet for an evening of bold musical flavours and a mixture of melodies as the Philharmonic Orchestra take you on a journey of strife, struggle, freedom and fervour. Blending the new and the familiar, conductor Joshua Weilerstein leads the auditorium through renditions of 'Ethiopia's Shadow in America' (Florence Price), Violin Concerto (Samuel Barber) and Symphony no.3 'Eroica (Ludwig Van Beethoven). The enthusiasm for the music is clear as he steps out. Passionately describing the background to Florence Price's 1932 symphony, he tells us that she was one of the first female black composers to have their work published and played to an audience. Much of her work was lost for a long time, being rediscovered in 2009, and has therefore not been heard. ...

2Apr

By Marita MatarNo Comments

London

Astoria – Jack Studio Theatre

‘There is so much we will never know’. Astoria written and directed by Tony Britten tells the story of Jura Soyfer, an Austrian political journalist and cabaret writer. His work was smuggled from Vienna and people worked hard to save it and archive it. The play is also the mouthpiece of this archive made visible in a performance. On stage we saw Jura Soyfer/Paul performed by Joshua Ginsberg, his partner Helli (Helene) Ultmann/Gwendolyn/Rosa (Olivia Benjamin,) as well as the group of actors and writers who were striving to keep the theater alive in a time where Germany is poised to annex Austria, in 1937, Jimmy Berg/Pistoletti/ The Applicant (Sam Denia), John Lehman (Taylor Danson), and Martin Miller/Hupka (Benjamin Chandler). Astoria appeared to be challenging modern ideas of a state...

The Jungle Book – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

2Apr

By Katie LeicesterNo Comments

North West

The Jungle Book – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The Easter holiday’s production of ‘The Jungle Book’ commenced at the Altrincham Garrick Playhouse, headed by the super talented Artistic Director Joseph Meighan. Following the success of last year’s ‘George’s Marvellous Medicine’ Ros Greenwood agreed to direct this imaginative production based on Rudyard Kipling’s eponymous collective works from 1894. Most of us remember the Walt Disney’s animated film from 1967 titled ‘The Jungle Book’ where we see Mowgli a human boy guided by the animal guardians, who is set on a journey of self-discovery whilst evading the threatening evil Shere. Ros Greenwood’s production of ‘The Jungle Book’ is that of Stuart Paterson’s adaptation where this classic is brought to life with a cast who fills the stage with the voices and bodies of all the animals...

31Mar

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Opera North: Tosca – Hull New Theatre

It was drama from curtain up, on Thursday evening at the Hull New Theatre, when Opera North’s Tosca came to town, thrilling us with the sight of escaped political prisoner, Cesare Angelotti (a very brave Callum Thorpe), dropping from on high via a rope, on to the stage and, with split-second timing, the rope falling unattached to the floor. Phew! Aided and abetted by wonderfully atmospheric music played by the talented members of the Orchestra of Opera North, the drama never let up throughout a longish evening of opera. Angelotti’s entrance, through a beautifully decorated cupola in a family chapel, finds him in the company of his friend, artist, Mario Cavaradossi (Mykhailo Malafii), who gives him food and the key to his villa, advising him to hide in a secret chamber down a well in ...

31Mar

By Anisha PucadyilNo Comments

London

You Bury Me – Orange Tree Theatre

‘You Bury Me’ unearths a young woman's longing for hope, her city and love. Don’t miss the show for its heartfelt performance and fantastic script. Ahlam's 'You Bury Me' is a coming-of-age love letter to adolescent curiosity, revolution and cities. Set in Cairo, it captures the life and times of young teenagers a few years after the Arab spring revolution. The Paines Plough co-production, interspersed with vigorous ensemble choreography and pop culture references, realistically brings on stage friends, bloggers, and students' lives, expressing themselves against the backdrop of an almost invisible oppressive regime. Set to the noise and chaos of a bustling city portrayed through its soundscapes and poetry. Cairo is like the character for the author, a muse and a longing. The team's c...

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Edinburgh Playhouse

31Mar

By Dylan MooneyNo Comments

Scotland

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Edinburgh Playhouse

Come to Edinburgh Playhouse and you'll be in 'a world of pure imagination' with the first ever UK and Ireland tour of Charlie and the Chocolate factory directed by James Brining and written by David Greig with music and lyrics by Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. Adapted from Roald Dahl's children's story of the same name, this production is sure to be a hit with the whole family! With vibrant and colourful lighting by Tim Mitchell and mystifying video and illusion design from David Callanan and Chris Cox respectively, the show lives up to the expectations of the book as well as the two movie adaptations from 1971 and 2005. A notable moment where it is as though you are watching the film live in front of your eyes comes from the four grandparents. Although not on stage as a full four i...

31Mar

By Roger JacobsNo Comments

Scotland

How Not To Drown – Traverse Theatre

This might not be the best production one sees this calendar year but it’s a shining example of why theatre itself, companies like ThickSkin and venues like The Traverse are so important. Having said that, the village and/or town halls of middle England might benefit from a tour, the front five rows reserved for Daily Mail readers. It’d be nice to think this ninety minutes would prove more nourishing than the three-word-slogan diet they’ve been addicted to for the last seven years. For amongst the complexities of what constitutes home or how essential the family is, the key message here is that conditions and circumstances exist in some countries of which plenty have no concept. It explains, at the very end, why Dritan’s father took the shocking decision to send his 11-year-old son on a ha...