West Midlands Archives - North West End UK

The Great Big Dinosaur Show – Midlands Arts Centre

3Jun

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

The Great Big Dinosaur Show – Midlands Arts Centre

“Never work with children and dinosaurs” is a paraphrased old showbiz adage and a well-worn warning passed down the years to caution well-meaning performers against the inconsistent vagaries of both - you never know what children may do and dinosaurs tend to go extinct. So it takes a strong poet and his gecko to face the daunting two-headed hybrid of the Dinokid, but in the reliable hands of both Simon Mole and his buddy, Gecko, who, I was disappointed to discover, was not a gecko, these old showbiz platitudes can be safely tossed aside. “The Great Big Dinosaur Show” emerged from the primordial soup of the combined imaginations of these two talented performers via Mole’s 2023 book, “A First Book of Dinosaurs” from Walker Books illustrated by Matt Hunt and evolved into something unique, ...

13May

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Peter Grimes – Birmingham Hippodrome

For many, opera is another country; they do things differently there. Images of armour-clad Rheinmaidens and vain bass baritones with over-inflated girths and egos have permeated popular iconography for decades and not without reasons - in some places those stereotypes have and do exist, but not tonight, not at the WNO. The Welsh National Opera Company is peopled with performers, creatives and technicians clearly with their feet on the ground intent on delivering work which is accessible, engaging and truthful - and a prime example of this is tonight’s offering “Peter Grimes” which, on paper, could read as a dreary, sodden coastal tract but on stage is dances with wit, insight, and perception. The opera, I’m sure I don’t need to remind you, has a libretto by Montagu Slater (a name itsel...

The Marriage of Figaro – Birmingham Hippodrome

9May

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

The Marriage of Figaro – Birmingham Hippodrome

So what have Eddie Murphy and the Welsh National Opera got in common? Give in? I’ll tell you - the famous music at the beginning of his movie “Trading Places” is the overture to The Marriage of Figaro presented tonight by Welsh National Opera. See? We’re all connected in little ways and it only goes to show the manner in which Mozart has permeated our cultural DNA on nearly every level. I’m sure there are many other examples of his music seeping into films, TV and commercials, because they are a) cracking tunes and b) out of copyright. Mozart took up his quill in 1786 to match his music to the words of the eccentric Lorenzo Da Ponte (who himself deserves an opera all about his life) and between them presented a solid gold, 100% perfect classic full of melodies you don’t know you know but y...

6May

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

An Inspector Calls – The Alexandra

There are not many of these old theatrical war-horses left, you know. Those familiar, reliable, well-made plays which stomped across the provinces for year in, year out have now been replaced by newer, younger models targeting the cutting-edge, ground-breaking yoof market. There are fewer and fewer Agatha Christies, Ray Cooneys and hardly any Terence Rattigan. And no one has touched JB Priestley for years. Apart from Stephen Daldry. Priestley’s dour, northern wordy world has been given a fresh new slant in this production which itself is knocking on a bit having premiered way back in 1992 yet feels a fresh as a daisy - which is oddly the name of a character in the play. It’s appropriate that a play about social responsibility and the evils of capitalism should have started in Russia in ...

Titus Andronicus – Swan Theatre, Stratford Upon Avon

30Apr

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

West Midlands

Titus Andronicus – Swan Theatre, Stratford Upon Avon

Director Max Webster arrives In Stratford to direct his first production for the Royal Shakespeare Company hot on the heels of recent critical and popular success with Macbeth at the Donmar and ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ at the National Theatre. For his debut with the company he has given us a glorious interpretation of ‘Titus Andronicus’ which, whilst sparing none of the blood and gore associated with Shakespeare’s bloody revenge tragedy, also manages to encompass the filial love at the heart of the play. The Costume Design by Joanna Scotcher places this ‘Titus’ somewhere in the present; a gorgeous grey-black palette suffuses the stage with long luxuriant coats and smart suits replacing the martial uniform of Imperial Rome. Scotcher also designed the set, the action played out o...

17Apr

By Robert BartleyNo Comments

West Midlands

Kinky Boots – Birmingham Hippodrome

Undeniably the best musical ever to be set in Northampton, the story of ‘Kinky Boots’ first came to the nation’s attention back in 2005 in the non-musical film version. Although brilliant, it always felt that this story was born to be brought alive with sequins, sparkles, and as its leading diva describes them, “a gaggle of fabulous Drags”. So just shy of a decade later, Broadway legend Harvey Fierstein and icon of pop Cyndi Lauper got their hands on it, and turned it into the glittering musical that we know and love today. One of the rare examples of a musical adaptation being better than its original source material, the story of the failing shoe factory that turned its fate around by manufacturing outrageous boots for drag queens has seen great success both on Broadway...

3Apr

By Robert BartleyNo Comments

West Midlands

Dear Evan Hansen – Wolverhampton Grand

The West End production of ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ was one of the biggest casualties of the pandemic, forced to close 6 months into its run and then unable to gain back its momentum after its eventual re-opening, despite 3 Olivier wins (a mis-judged film adaptation released around the same time probably didn’t help either). Its fate is somewhat ironic, given the themes of isolation and longing for connection that run so deeply throughout the show, themes which were heightened during those Covid times. Fortunately, the musical has found a new lease of life with a well-received touring production which kicked off in Nottingham in September 2024. Now 6 months in, the tour has connected strongly with audiences, and rekindled the fire that burned all too briefly in the West End. ...

2Apr

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

Ghost the Musical – The Alexandra

The popular romantic thriller film from 1990, Ghost, has been adapted into a musical. This current production takes to the stage in Birmingham for the week. Sam and Molly are a young couple with their lives and many adventures ahead of them. All this changes with Sam’s untimely death. Trapped between two worlds Sam enlists the help of psychic Oda May Brown to contact Molly. Can they both move on and find happiness again? Although songs and dances have been added, the musical remains pretty much faithful to the film, the favourite moments are all there. The characters are faithful to the original without trying to imitate the film’s stars, each member of the cast make the roles their own. The standout performance of the night was Rebekah Lowings as Molly. She pulled out every emoti...

27Mar

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Dragons – Birmingham Hippodrome

Set amidst an effusive of silver piping which wouldn’t look out of place in an industrial park, “Dragons” is a bright, engaging and slightly potty amalgam of dance, movement and physicality which, despite lacking plot, character and much we can get a grip on, proves itself a shining and engaging piece of theatre. South Korean choreographer, Eun-Me Aha, who’s company’s first appearance in the UK this is, presents herself as a book-ended sage opening and closing the show between which six buoyant young dancers carry the bulk of the performance - Gaon Han, Deokyeong Kim, Hyekyoung Kim, Seven Kim, Doohee Lee, Hyeonseo Lee and Yongsik Moon. The energy is palpable and the joy tangible as we are presented with a fluctuating series of vignettes rooted in ancient dance culture but living very much ...

12Mar

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

War Horse – Wolverhampton Grand

Galloping across the country like the noble steed it is, “War Horse” stops off momentarily at the Grand Theatre for some water and hay staying long enough to regale us once more with the stunning and breathtaking tale it has been sharing since it first staggered out of its stable back in 2007. Though initially a book by Michael Morpurgo it was playwright Nick Stafford who trained and groomed it for success with this adaptation at the National Theatre. Handspring Puppet Company have transcended their art and produced creatures which are beyond anything we've before seen - they live, they breathe, they gallop. I defy anyone to see the work and not come away thoroughly convinced they have been amongst real animals. It’s uncanny. You can almost smell them. The image of Joey is now iconic ha...