REVIEWS Archives - Page 40 of 636

Take Me Home County Road – Liverpool’s Royal Court

6Aug

By Daniel CoxNo Comments

North West

Take Me Home County Road – Liverpool’s Royal Court

Galloping into Liverpool's Royal Court throughout August is Take Me Home County Road, the story of Shelly, a County Road local with a remarkable singing talent. Once performing on cruise ships Shelly's world now looks very different. Having swapped the spotlight for a role as a classroom teaching assistant, she still dreams of singing success. When the opportunity arises to enter The Next Big Thing, she embarks on a journey fuelled by friendship, determination and community spirit. What happens next? You'll have to grab a ticket (and perhaps a pair of cowboy boots) to find out. Adam McCoy showcases his talents both on and off the stage, appearing as neighbour Anthony while also making his playwriting debut with this production. The fact that this is McCoy's first play demonstrates an im...

Sara Pascoe: For One Night Only – Underbelly Bristo Square

6Aug

By Ella BeckleyNo Comments

Scotland

Sara Pascoe: For One Night Only – Underbelly Bristo Square

Award winning Actor, Comedian and Writer Sara Pascoe graced the stage of Edinburgh University’s McEwan Hall with her sell-out show for, that’s right, one night only. It’s the first night of Fringe 2026 and there’s a hum of excitement bouncing around Bristo Square, where an anticipating queue snakes around the iconic McEwan Hall, ready to have a laugh. Pints in hand, jackets clutched closely as the sharp Edinburgh breeze whizzes through them. &nbs...

Youth in Flames – Pleasance Courtyard, Bunker 1

6Aug

By Tom ScottNo Comments

Scotland

Youth in Flames – Pleasance Courtyard, Bunker 1

‘Youth in Flames’ makes a triumphant return to Edinburgh following a sell-out run in New York. Last year, Mimi Martin’s brilliant life-enhancing play garnered a Scotsman Fringe First and a hatful of 5 star reviews. The play tells the story of a British teenager, Millie, coming of age as protests erupt in 2019 against the Hong Kong Government’s proposal to extradite criminal suspects to mainland China. Mimi Martin has written a sparkling script which elicits a mesmerising performance from the playwright herself. She grabs our attention from the very first moment as a strong-willed, sometimes rebellious, schoolgirl venting her feelings about her teachers, peers and parents. There are plenty of light moments in the early scenes but things take a serious turn when Jesse, Millie’s clo...

Some of It Might Be True – Etcetera Theatre

6Aug

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Some of It Might Be True – Etcetera Theatre

In The Ugly Truth Productions’ new production, ‘Some of It Might Be True’, writer and performer Justine Martin attempts to place social media, influencer culture, mental health and trauma within an increasingly absurd narrative involving an online scandal, animal-rights activism and a pig-rescue mission. At its core, it is a strange and chaotic comedy with important ideas at its heart, but neither the writing nor the production is sufficiently developed to explore them with clarity. Whilst there is certainly potential in this collision of anxieties, and the comedy is certainly the production’s strongest element, its storytelling is unfocused, jumping between ideas without giving its themes enough space or structure to make a lasting impact. The same lack of control affects the stagi...

5Aug

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

The Lads – Hen & Chickens Theatre

‘Toxic masculinity’ continues to be a fizzing hot topic. In the past few years, it’s curdled from legitimate concern and intelligent discussion to yet another flashpoint in the culture wars. Well meaning and bad faith operators were soon questioning the term, concerned that it reinforced negative stereotypes and might be detrimental to the mental health of young men. Meanwhile, the ‘manosphere’ continues to grow and curdle. The views of provocative influencers are seeping into the mainstream due to the monetisation model of online media and the grim logic of the algorithm. Andrew Tate went from a misogynist freak on the fringe of the Internet to a global pop culture phenomenon. The reasons for that evolution might be complex, but it’s hard not to conclude that the problem is escalat...

I’m Every Woman: The Chaka Khan Musical – Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre

5Aug

By Olivia CoxNo Comments

London

I’m Every Woman: The Chaka Khan Musical – Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre

With everyone from Tina Turner to Frank Sinatra getting the jukebox musical biopic treatment as of late, it’s no surprise that “Queen of Funk” Chaka Khan wanted to get in on the action. But what is a surprise, sadly, is how her magnetic star power and iconic discography has been boiled down to such a muddled, lacklustre production as this. After teasing us with a few bars of the title track, the show starts by transporting us to a rehab session for Chaka (Alexandra Burke), attended by her loved ones. Before long, we’re sent back on a whistle-stop of her life and traumas, including her relationship with her heroin-loving father, her Yoruba naming ceremony, her affiliation with Fred Hampton and the Black Panthers, her two failed marriages, and her spiral into drug addiction. The problem i...

5Aug

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Bathroom – Etcetera Theatre

‘Bathroom’ is a beautiful, deeply affecting piece of theatre, defined by vulnerability and an acute understanding of what happens when love is strained by emotional distance, language and cultural difference. Written and directed by Yijing Zou, this intimate two-hander explores the challenges of living and working abroad as a non-native speaker. Its storytelling is compassionate without becoming sentimental, gently confronting racism, the expectations we place upon our partners and the cumulative toll of navigating a multicultural environment. Inspired by Edvard Munch’s 1896 painting “Separations”, the production asks a painful question: “what remains when love can no longer bridge the space between two people?” Jinyu Dan, playing Siwen Yao, and Bowen Sun, as Shiming Liang, are e...

The Alternative to Living – Baron’s Court Theatre

4Aug

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

The Alternative to Living – Baron’s Court Theatre

‘The Alternative to Living’ is an ambitious piece that aims to explore uncomfortable themes through deeply fragmented storytelling and experimental theatre. The central concept has genuine promise, inviting the audience to reflect on their very existence, their digital identity, and the way we construct meaning from fractured modern life experiences, however unfortunately, the execution and underdeveloped script struggle struggles to realise the potential at the heart of the idea. The writing feels intentionally disjointed, with dialogue frequently delivered in half sentences and broken thoughts. While this may have been a deliberate artistic choice from writer Fenn Telfer, it creates a barrier rather than a sense of intrigue. Instead of building tension or emotional depth, the frag...

White Bitch Bingo – Baron’s Court Theatre

4Aug

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

White Bitch Bingo – Baron’s Court Theatre

Caroline Cole's ‘White Bitch Bingo’ is less a stand-up comedy than a warm and fuzzy, confessional storytelling hour, wrapped around a game of bingo and sprinkled with just the right amount of audience interaction. Billed as an exploration of privilege, identity and the contradictions of modern America, it never becomes preachy, instead it relies on Cole's natural warmth and self-deprecating humour to keep the audience firmly on side. The bingo element proves to be the evening's strongest theatrical device, and it gives the audience a genuine sense of participation creates an easy rapport and reminds us that everyone enjoys the simple thrill of winning and walking away with a prize! Those interactive moments inject welcome energy into what is otherwise an extended personal monologue....

3Aug

By Holly SewellNo Comments

London

Ophelia — Etcetera Theatre

Ophelia by TheArchive is, in the company’s own words, not an adaptation; not a rewrite; it’s a reckoning. In Samuel George-Thomas’ new script, co-directed with Ava Benkova, the eponymous tragic heroine is given the opportunity to explain what really went down between her and Hamlet during the collapse of their relationship in Shakespeare’s play. TheArchive’s beautiful production steers clear of the cliché and contrived sass which sometimes accompany feminist retellings of famous stories, and instead leans into the poetry of Shakespeare’s language, the sincerity of Ophelia’s character, and the impossible double-bind of existing as a woman in a man’s world. The action of Ophelia takes place broadly over the same time period as Hamlet, often behind the closed doors of Ophelia’s room. I...