REVIEWS Archives - Page 4 of 563

18Feb

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Dear England – Alhambra Bradford

It's always struck me as odd that for a nation that invented football there hasn't been more plays written about the beautiful game that is such a central part of so many of our lives. James Graham's Dear England puts that right with an intelligent and emotionally charged piece that genuinely captures the visceral nature of our national obsession with the game. It's a drama as much about human relationships and the unbearable pressures of holding a nation's hopes on the shoulders of 11 young men, as it is about kicking a football about. Thankfully Dear England eschews too much of the cheesy onstage attempts to replicate playing at the very highest level that all too often blights football plays. Once upon a time Gareth Southgate was famous for missing a penalty that dumped England ou...

18Feb

By Zain RussellNo Comments

London

Deep Azure – Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

Deep Azure, written by the late Chadwick Boseman, who tragically passed away in 2020, is a haunting and deeply moving play. Inspired by the real-life killing of Boseman’s university peer, Prince Jones, the production chooses not to dwell on the events leading up to the tragedy, but instead explores its profound impact on friends, family, and peers. In today’s climate, the themes feel especially resonant, confronting grief, loss, and systemic injustice in a way that is both raw and intimate. Selina Jones delivers a remarkable performance as Azure, the grieving girlfriend struggling with an eating disorder. Her portrayal is both heart-wrenching and compelling. The screams and sobs she unleashes, particularly at the end of the first act, are unforgettable. They are heightened by the acapel...

Space by Luxmuralis – St Martin-in-the-Fields Church

18Feb

By Charlotte MansfieldNo Comments

London

Space by Luxmuralis – St Martin-in-the-Fields Church

It's notoriously difficult to see the stars if you live in London, so it's no surprise that there was a stream of people pouring into last night's opening of Space by Luxmuralis. Following a sold-out tour of the UK, this sound and light show has landed in St Martin-in-the-Fields church on Trafalgar square for five nights only. Luxmuralis is an artistic collaboration between Peter Walker (sculptor) and David Harper (composer) creating large-scale art, light and sound installations, designed to bring cathedrals and sacred spaces to life and transform the way we interact with them. In Space, the creators have used humanity's curiosity about the cosmos as a basis for their immersive show. The experience begins outside the church, where Renaissance drawings of the heavens and calculations...

18Feb

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Spanish Oranges – Playground Theatre

Former Bond girl, Maryam D’Abo is the star turn in Spanish Oranges, a new piece of writing by Alba Arikha, currently showing at the Playground Theatre in W10. The play forms part of Women's Voices: A Celebration (WVAC) an arts festival which is inspired by International Women's Day. This world premiere is D’Abo’s first stage role in 26 years. Instead of seeking the bright lights and glitz of a West End venue, this theatre is a former bus depot that requires a rather lengthy schlep from Latimer Road tube station. D’Abo co-wrote the book Bond Girls Are Forever (2002) and in 2004 she co-produced the documentary film Bearing Witness, about five female war reporters. She had surgery for a brain haemorrhage in 2007 and after recovering, met up with other survivors and produced a 2009 document...

17Feb

By Maani WayNo Comments

London

The Bodyguard – New Wimbledon Theatre

This romantic thriller, adapted from the 1992 film of the same name starring Whitney Houston, returns to the stage this year, reviving her iconic music for a new audience. It follows former Secret Service agent Frank Farmer (Adam Garcia), hired to protect global superstar Rachel Marron (Sidonie Smith) from a dangerous threat. While the pair anticipate a clash of personalities, neither expects their professional relationship to give way to an unexpected and compelling romance. This show is bursting with energy from the start, a loud bang jolting the audience straight to attention at the beginning. The jump scares do not cease, and they present themselves at later points in the show, which work well, particularly when the threat is introduced to us as an obsessed stalker (James-Lee Ha...

17Feb

By Damian RiverolNo Comments

Wales

Glitch – Theatr Clwyd

Written by Zannah Kearns and directed by Gareth Taylor, Glitch is the story of a sub-postmistress, Pam Stubbs, whose life is left in tatters after she is falsely accused of deceiving the Post Office out of thousands of pounds. But with meticulous bookkeeping and the strength to keep fighting for what is right when she knew she had done nothing wrong; she finally receives a positive outcome. But at what cost? Glitch takes us right into the centre of one of the biggest “scandals” when the Post Office brought in the Horizon computer system and when Pam Stubbs, back in 2009, moved into a portacabin while the building underwent a redevelopment. The monthly Trading Statements produced shortfalls on the Horizon system and the Post Office demanded Stubbs pay it back, even though she ha...

17Feb

By Kira DanielsNo Comments

London

Much Ado About Nothing – Theatre Deli

Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more. A wet and wild production of Much Ado About Nothing has rolled into town to take you for a ride. Without a shirt on its back or an ounce of pretension in its other dressings, this wantonly accessible production throws the audience right into the thick of it. Shakespeare's most obnoxious lovers are back on their bull. Beatrice (Bobby Hughes) and Benedick (Zak Rosen) are capricious, ridiculous, captivating rivals locked in pursuit of the audiences' laughter with hearts bound to fall no matter how much they kick and scream on the way down. This high octane production, rehearsed and performed in only a handful of hours, is relentlessly energetic and powered exclusively by the forceful charisma of its cast. Without a set, costumes, or pr...

17Feb

By Jessie MartinNo Comments

Scotland

The Flames – Traverse Theatre

The much loved over 50s ensemble group, The Flames return to the Traverse theatre with another verbatim-style, mixed medium show. Produced by Tricky Hat Productions, The Flames uses each ensemble member’s personal memoirs to collate together a story. In this case, the connecting theme of all these individual memoirs was jealousy. Alongside the candid monologues, video and text was projected onto the back wall of the stage. Quotes, presumably taken from the ensemble, were projected - each providing a different outlook on how they define jealousy. As well as this, black and white video of the ensemble was also projected. From raw close-ups that captured a wide-range of expression and emotional depth, to wide shots that artfully superimposed its subjects as...

16Feb

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

(UN)LOVABLE – Traverse Theatre

Scratch nights are, by their very nature, uneven affairs, messy blue prints or gluey models rather than finished buildings. And [UN]LOVABLE at the Traverse Theatre embraced that spirit fully, five short pieces circling the theme of love’s absence, distortion, or bureaucratic assessment. Some were works in progress in the truest sense, one felt ready to walk straight back onstage tomorrow. Clown Divorce Written by Russ Russell and directed by Sarah Docherty, this dark comedy about a clown navigating marital breakdown opened the evening with energy and a knowing wink. Performed solo by Chris Viteri, the piece invited us into a surreal domestic world where divorce proceedings involve greasepaint and emotional pratfalls, and where the profession runs in the family, mother a...

16Feb

By Holly SewellNo Comments

London

Sweetmeats – Bush Theatre

In the aftermath of grief, it’s a long and difficult lesson to re-learn: we’re better off with people than without them. Relationships are tedious, those we love exasperating; loss deepens with age, caution grows. It takes courage to start again when experience tells you the best days are past. Sweetmeats’ Hema and Liaquat, a widow and widower who become unlikely friends when they are forced to pair up as the ‘scary Indian woman’ and ‘irritating Pakistani man’ at their diabetes support group, are no strangers to the pain of love. Character-wise, they complete each other. Shobu Kapoor’s Hema is anxious, health-conscious, self-sufficient; as Liaquat, Rehan Sheikh is a joker, childish, indulgent despite his diagnosis. Playwright Kharim Khan makes fun of them with a brilliant, musical wit; ...