Thursday, March 26

REVIEWS

Like a Sack of Potatoes – theSpace on the Mile
28Aug By Wendy McEwanNo Comments
Scotland

Like a Sack of Potatoes – theSpace on the Mile

This ‘hillbilly gothic tale’, written and performed by Ric Siler, draws the audience into an Appalachian farmer’s world. The space is small, intimate, with seating on two sides of the stage.  A sign with a greengrocer’s apostrophe, ‘tomato’s for sale’, hangs on a wooden crate.  The old farmer enters, in his checked shirt and worn-out jeans, and genially offers his homegrown wares to a member of the audience.  He is polite, thoughtful, welcoming.  His Appalachian accent, Siler’s own, has a gentle musicality and a stillness that makes you want to listen.  He tells us that he grows pole beans, potatoes, tobacco, and tomatoes on his farm, and that he isn’t afraid of anything – except women, maybe.  However, we learn that he is willing to do whatever it takes to...
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Boom Town – theSpace @ Surgeons Hall
28Aug By Ella CatherallNo Comments
Scotland

Boom Town – theSpace @ Surgeons Hall

‘Boom Town’ is billed as a story of family, morality and feminism. Set during the Gold Rush in a town named Crimson, the show focusses primarily on Beau Barton, the daughter of the town’s sheriff, as she tries to find where she fits in her hometown. The main selling points of this show are the performances by the actors, and the score. Vocally, it is very difficult to fault the actors, who effortlessly knock out incredible solos and ensemble numbers, with some really nice-sounding harmonies. This was also all done while singing in an accent, that was well-executed and consistent both throughout the show, and with each other. With regards to the score, Matilda Booth has managed to effectively fuse classic musical theatre with country-and-western influences, to give an end-product that do...
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Kelty Clippie: The Musical – Greenside @ Nicolson Square
27Aug By Wendy McEwanNo Comments
Scotland

Kelty Clippie: The Musical – Greenside @ Nicolson Square

This lively musical, set in Fife, returns to the Fringe and with memorable characters, delightful songs and plenty of laughs.  The show is based on John Watt’s folk song of the same name and written by Willie Logan and John Murray. The Kelty Clippie is Maggie Blair (Jacqueline Hannan), who follows her dream and becomes a bus conductress in 1970s Fife.  She is excited to wear her uniform and blows her whistle with gusto.  On her first day she meets Boab the Driver (Linton Osborne) and finds herself going weak at the knees when he puts on his sunglasses and serenades her with a sensational performance of Are You Lonesome Tonight – who wouldn’t fall in love with such a man! The bus makes its way through Fife, from Kircaldy to Kelty.  The plot is simple, with a se...
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Descendants: Ghost Written – Museum of Comedy
27Aug By Caroline WorswickNo Comments
London

Descendants: Ghost Written – Museum of Comedy

As a fan of improvised comedy, I was keen to go along to see The Descendants, who are a part of Hoopla Impro’s house team, who on this occasion are offering a long form improvised show, with suggestions being taken at the beginning only.  This style of improvisation allows the performers to make the decisions as to the direction the story will take, but they use the initial suggestions given by the audience. Tonight, the team asked for a place that the play should be, the weather, and a name of a character.  The audience suggestions were a maternity ward, snow and Gill Jacobi, let’s see what The Descendants can make of that little lot! Tina and Colin are having a baby, and Tina is already in labour in the maternity hospital being supported by Donovan, a work colleague who i...
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Elizabeth Fry: The Angel of Prisons – Canning Town Library
27Aug By Caroline WorswickNo Comments
London

Elizabeth Fry: The Angel of Prisons – Canning Town Library

Created and written by James Kenworth, this production is the latest instalment of The Newham Plays.  These are locally focussed plays, site-specific and digging into Newham’s history.  This collaboration between writer James Kenworth and director Martin Charlton, draws upon the talent from the local schools of Newham, and youth theatre groups, under the guidance of a director and professional actors. Staged at the Canning Town Library, this celebration of the life of Elizabeth Fry, who fought for the improvement of conditions in prisons, especially for women.  Fry and her husband lived locally in West Ham and she helped the local gypsy community by giving them food, clothing, and medicine.  Elizabeth Fry or Betsy as she was known, is played by three different per...
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David Hoyle: Ten Commandments – Soho Theatre
27Aug By Stewart Who?No Comments
London

David Hoyle: Ten Commandments – Soho Theatre

Humanity is paying a price for not listening to David Hoyle. In the heady ‘90s, when Hoyle performed as the Divine David, he would howl at the crowds, ‘Don’t go to the gym, go to the library’.  The message, delivered with smeared mascara, spit and rage was driven by a righteous fear that society’s obsession with external appearance would destroy intellectual evolution and spiritual growth. That sage decree was delivered long before Twitter thirst traps, armies of Instagram charlatans and the quiet destruction of public libraries.  Hoyle was a queer canary down the mine. Today, young children are increasingly cursed with eating disorders, Botox is bigger than de Beauvoir and since 2010, at least 773 libraries have closed. Even if we wished to heed Hoyle’s advice, it’s too la...
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West Side Story – Theatre Royal Wakefield
27Aug By Paul DownhamNo Comments
Yorkshire & Humber

West Side Story – Theatre Royal Wakefield

A Tour de Force of a production in every perceived meaning of the phrase. A long-time favourite of many, West Side Story which is based on the concept of Jerome Robbins – as a modern day telling of Romeo and Juliet - is synonymous with Robbins famous choreographic style. Collaborating with Arthur Laurents as writer and the legendary composer Leonard Bernstein with Stephen Sondheim as lyricist; West Side Story was always going to be a hit. From its film versions in 1961 and 2021 to its innumerable stage productions the musical has engaged people for the last 65 years and continues to do so in Wakefield this week! Set in the 1950’s, the musical resets Romeo and Juliet onto the New York streets and the world of rival gangs, the Jets and the Sharks. Maria, sister of the Sharks gang leade...
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Little Shop of Horrors – Liverpool Empire
27Aug By Lou SteggalsNo Comments
North West

Little Shop of Horrors – Liverpool Empire

Brimming with camp, B-Movie schtick, damsels in distress and botany with a bite, Little Shop of Horrors has long been a cult favourite. Liverpool Empire’s Youth Theatre group has done itself proud in bringing this quirky and energetic musical to the stage. If you’re not familiar with the story, it follows the nerdishly charming Seymour Krelborn, a flower shop boy who comes into the possession of a strange, exotic-looking plant during a solar eclipse. Seymour wants nothing more than to win the heart of his fellow shop assistant, Audrey, but the plant’s unusual feeding regime soon gives him something far more gruesome to focus on. Surrounded by an excellent set, with spot-on costumes, and supported by a superb band under the ever-reliable baton of Musical Director Paul Lawton, direc...
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Fame – The Alexandra, Birmingham
26Aug By Peter KinnockNo Comments
West Midlands

Fame – The Alexandra, Birmingham

For those of us who grew to what passes for maturity in the eighties it’s almost impossible to hear the theme from “Fame” and not be enthralled by all the joy, freedom and liberation that tune offers. Dancing in the streets! Ignoring your parents! Dodging classes!  “Fame” was a watershed moment in our lives and re-invented itself as a watered-down TV show, a stage musical and remake. This new production foreshadows a reunion of the original TV cast soon in Birmingham and brims with all the youthful exuberance which made the original so unique. Boasting all the best in West Midlands talent, it brings together a huge cast of 60 young people between 19 and 24 as part of the Alexandra’s Stage Experience overseen by the imaginative and inventive skills of PollyAnn Turner together with A...
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Janet – Etcetera Theatre
26Aug By Caroline WorswickNo Comments
London

Janet – Etcetera Theatre

I have to say that I was not sure what to expect when reading the summary of the show, as it does sound absurd to make a character from a piece of bread dough.  I am pleased to say, that the unique skills of performer, Helen Ainsworth and director, John Mowat left me in no doubt that this unusual approach to puppetry is very entertaining. The story begins with Ainsworth wearing her chef’s uniform and hat, incorporating a mask, as she begins to bring the characters alive.  Beryl is a packet of French bread flour, Keith is a rusty lidded water jug, and Lady Jane Grey is a posh sounding teapot from Sheffield.  The show begins with Beryl and Keith consummating their relationship, by mixing together their flour and water to create Janet, their beloved offspring, the French bre...
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