West Midlands Archives - Page 4 of 13

31Jan

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

The Full Monty – The Alexandra

Most people know one thing about The Full Monty, it’s about a group of men who decide to be male strippers. There is however a whole lot more to this brilliant show than that. The themes in this play are as relevant now as they were when the story was first written. As the redundant steel workers struggle to make ends meet and deal with unemployment in their own ways, we are shown a realistic portrayal of the struggles faced by anyone in that position. Each character has his issues, Gaz the laddish, confident rogue played with gusto and heart by Danny Hatchard, who would do anything for his son. Dave (Neil Hurst) dealing with weight problems and rock bottom self-esteem and Gerald (Bill Ward) trying desperately to hide his unemployment from his wife and the world. These and the other men...

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – Wolverhampton Grand

24Jan

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie – Wolverhampton Grand

Everybody’s Talking About Finton! Rarely do you get the chance to witness an understudy triumph in a role, but tonight at the Grand was once such moment. Finton Flynn slipped into the title role with big heels to fill which he did with aplomb. A joyous, buoyant comic performance tempered with a well judged dash of poignancy made this performance in equal parts outstanding and endearing. He exploded with assured confidence and squeezed every drop out of line and every lyric. Certainly, a performer to look out for. Elsewhere Rebecca McGinnis more than held her own as Jamie’s long-suffering mother nailing a beautiful ballad in act two. She forms a great comic partnership with Shobna Gulati whose comic heritage is well-known. And Talia Palamathanan is a total delight as Priti and nails o...

10Dec

By Priya GuptaNo Comments

West Midlands

Peter Pan the Musical – The Old Rep

Go on and join The Old Rep Theatre for something magical this Christmas as Peter Pan The Musical flies into Birmingham. Based on the infamous novel by J.M. Barrie, with book, music, and lyrics by Piers Chater Robinson. This production is produced by the BOA group. Alec Fellows-Bennett returns to head up the creative team as Director, with CiCi Howells as Choreographer, Stephen Watkins as Musical Director, Daniel O’Neill as Set Designer and Leanne Fitchett as Costume Designer. Alongside them is Will Monks as Lighting and Projection Designer and Clive Meldrum as Sound Designer. The story follows a free-spirited, mischievous young boy who can fly and never grows up, Peter Pan spends his never-ending childhood having endless adventures in Neverland as the leader of the Lost Boys, interac...

The Bodyguard – The Alexandra, Birmingham

5Dec

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

The Bodyguard – The Alexandra, Birmingham

Based on the 1992 film of the same name, this award-winning production comes to Birmingham for a four-week run. Rachel Marron is a singing sensation, but is she also in danger from a stalker? Frank Farmer is called in to find out and protect her if she will let him. Will her entourage around her appreciate his interference, as she fights for an Oscar to add to her extensive trophy cabinet? Part concert, part thriller, part romance, this show grabs your attention from the very first moment and holds it. With effects, lighting and sound that wouldn’t look out of place in an arena, you are projected headlong into the action. While the story may be a little thin in places, the vocal performances more than make up for that. With songs showcasing the work of Whitney Houston, it would be...

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – Birmingham Rep

20Nov

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe – Birmingham Rep

This latest reincarnation of The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe explodes with delight, wonder and some truly breathtaking magic which holds its cross-generational audience enrapt for its entire course. From the first moment of a single pianist playing songs from the war through to the final thrilling anthemic chorus (via a plethora of engaging compositions variously described as “crisp beats” or “thrumming cello” by the ever attentive surtitles) Beni Bower and Barnaby Race’s music provides the aural glue holding together this magnificent edifice of a show. A packed theatre was held spellbound throughout.Various previous iterations for stage, television and film of CS Lewis’s iconic children’s book have struggled which it’s Church of England subtext but here we see a more secular and clea...

Jesus Christ Superstar – Wolverhampton Grand

15Nov

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Jesus Christ Superstar – Wolverhampton Grand

Now on its umpteenth resurrection in fifty or so years, “Jesus Christ Superstar” comes to the Grand in Wolverhampton in this very sombre and earnest production from Regents’ Park. The stark set inevitably dominated by a cross is cloaked in darkest from the outset and peopled with gray and black clad actors. We don’t see a fleck of colour till Act Two. The first ten minutes or so has a feeling of grudging obligation which slowly modulates into something more engaging. Of course, it’s splattered with well-known tunes throughout, and each is dutifully deployed under Michael Riley’s tight musical direction with Hannah Richardson as Mary giving us a beautiful rendition of “I Don’t Know How to Love him”, which, as musical aficionados love to point out, bears more than passing resemblance to Mend...

Peter Pan Goes Wrong – Wolverhampton Grand

31Oct

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Peter Pan Goes Wrong – Wolverhampton Grand

Exploding both literally and figuratively on the stage at the Grand last night, “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” follows in the confident footsteps of its predecessor Broadway-smash, “The Play That Goes Wrong”. Riddled with Mischief theatre’s trademark mania, chaos and panto-like pandemonium from the off and a litany of misfires, missed cues, mistakes and madness - the evening provides a string of cracking sight gags and slapstick. Whereas their predecessor opted for a murder mystery to parody here we have the well know family story which, much to the actor’s distress, the audience seem to think is a panto. The joy of Mischief theatre is the dedicated attention to detail, gags woven so adeptly into the script with many callbacks to previous set-ups making for a fantastically joyous evening with no a...

31Oct

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

Twelve Angry Men – The Alexandra

This gripping jury room drama arrives in Birmingham on a national tour. The production has spent time in the West End to great acclaim and brings the 1957 Academy Award Nominated film of the same name to the stage. Following a three-day murder trial, the jury are sent to consider their verdict. Locked in a room, these 12 men from different backgrounds have the difficult task of considering the evidence to convict or acquit the accused. In a State where the death penalty is the sentence for this crime, the decision weighs hard on one man’s mind. Keen to discuss the case and not jump to the ‘obvious’ answer he raises the question of reasonable doubt, the debate begins, and tensions rise. Every Juror (and the security guard) is wonderfully characterised and played with total conviction....

8Oct

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Head Set – Midlands Arts Centre

“Head Set”, Victoria Melody’s autobiographical performance piece of self- examination, seems to inhabit the little chartered hinterland between stand-up comedy and one-person show and feels unsure which camp it truly belongs to. That, however, doesn’t necessarily detract from all the truly positives this show offers. It’s the first date on a 26 date tours so a few minor glitches are to be expected. The stage is scattered with various props and flotsam and jetsam which have little to do with the show and are soon tidied away within the first few moments as Melody introduces her idiosyncratic personality, her mother and her comedy teacher both of whom work as a kind of Greek chorus throughout. The crux of the show is Melody’s inability to perform stand-up comedy. This may be a thinly veiled ...

The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Wolverhampton Grand

27Sep

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Wolverhampton Grand

Without doubt British Author Neil Gaiman (Coraline, Good Omens and The Sandman) is one of the greatest storytellers in the world. His intriguing and beguiling tales are in turns science-fiction, fantasy, surrealism, horror, magic realism and have appeared as novels, comic books, audio theatre, films, television and now stage. Playwright Joel Harwood together with director Katy Rudd have adapted the award-winning book in an equally award-winning play which appeared at the Dorfman, the Royal National Theatre’s smallest theatre back in December 2019 to stunning acclaim and, though the touring version seems a somewhat pared down version of the original, it’s easy to see why it is so popular. Photo: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg It begins with a single man returning to his childhood home, standing...