Yorkshire & Humber Archives - Page 13 of 43

7Nov

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

The Book of Mormon – Bradford Alhambra

Most of us have heard the doorbell go and opened it to find a pair of earnest Mormon missionaries keen to discuss their faith dressed in their trademark white shirts and black name badges. Imagine if two of those naïve teenage missionaries were dispatched to Uganda to spread the word of Mormon founder Joseph Smith to a nation ravaged by brutal warlords, poverty and AIDS, and there you have The Book of Mormon. Along the way, devout Elder Price and nerdy Elder Cunningham find out that the local population are just a tad cynical that any god will help them, but somehow through the violence and a not a few moments when their faith is sorely tested manage to find some common humanity. It all sounds a bit grim, but this ribald musical is the brainchild of South Park creators Trey Parker...

An Officer and a Gentleman – Hull New Theatre

5Nov

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

An Officer and a Gentleman – Hull New Theatre

An Officer and a Gentleman the Musical got off to a delayed start on Monday evening with a voice emanating from the nether regions of the Hull New Theatre stage, informing us that “due to unforeseen circumstances the show will now start at 8pm”. We’d all taken our seats ready for curtain up at 7.30pm, so 30-minute delay sort of dimmed or excitement. No matter, I just hoped the show was worth waiting for. It most definitely was, so that delay I mentally grumbled about, was very soon forgotten. I had seen the movie (of the same name) upon which this musical is based, way back on its UK release in 1983, and could only remember its star, Richard Gere, resplendent in white naval uniform, doing something so breathtakingly romantic that the scene has stayed with me all these years later....

2Nov

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

How To Be Brave – Hull Truck Theatre

The Godber Studio was very well-attended on Friday evening, when Hull Truck Theatre hosted How To Be Brave. Writer Louise Beech cleverly intertwined the lives of the two main characters in this true-life drama - one a Merchant Seaman in the Second World War, the other a 10-year-old girl. And, despite the 64-year gap in their stories, the two had an undeniable connection. The Able Seaman, Colin Armitage (Jacob Ward), was Beech’s grandfather, and the girl her daughter, Katy. And it’s her storytelling to young Katy of Armitage’s horrific ordeal during the war that proved to be of huge benefit for her daughter, who had been diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes; helping her to accept and cope with her condition. Five very talented performers brought How To Be Brave to life, on the small s...

31Oct

By Phoebe Olivia Sian HobsonNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Ghost The Musical – Bradford Alhambra

This musical makes you finally realise what Frankie goes to Hollywood has been singing about, the power of love. Passion, tears and heartbreak were left on that stage on Tuesday night, truly a sensational story about the afterlife of modern day Sam Wheat played by John St Clair, alongside his living soulmate Molly Jenson (Rebekah Lowings).Their love affair takes a terrifying turn splitting them apart, but Sam’s soul lingers and the love continues, the performance was remarkable in portraying the passion between the pair despite his death. Photo: Alastair Muir Bruce Joel Rubin’s famous narrative was displayed on that stage beautifully with grace, leaving the audience in awe of the talent that was shared with them. The show was a credit to the deeply loved original but also featured ne...

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – Hull New Theatre

31Oct

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang – Hull New Theatre

The cheering and clapping started even before curtain up, at the Hull New Theatre on Tuesday evening, as the audience in the packed venue instantly reacted to the very recognisable melody being played by the in-house orchestra. As the strains of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang rang out, the anticipation built to fever-pitch and, a few minutes after 7pm, the curtain rose on a night of rip-roaring fun. The much-loved family favourite (an Ian Fleming story for children, later made into a film in 1968) tells the tale of an absent-minded inventor, Caractacus Potts, who, urged on by his two young children, restores an old racing car - only to discover the machine has a magical mind of its own. Potts (Adam Garcia), a single parent to Jemima (Isla Ithier) and Jeremy (Charlie McGuire), has very li...

23Oct

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Art – Sheffield Lyceum

Yasmina Reza’s comedy Art is a renown work and this production shows than signs of downing tools and allowing its acidic wit to pale. Three friends Serge, Marc and Yvan deconstruct their own friendship whilst attempting to assimilate an objective verdict on Serge’s new £200,000 baby – a ‘blank’ white canvas. Or as Serge puts it, a canvas with shades of grey, thin lines and spots of red. This red is certainly not to be seen, nor is the profoundness of the work as Marc sardonically blasts the piece and Serge’s heinous modernist taste. This ignited the fuse between the two, catching the somewhat neglected Yvan in the process, who certainly tries his best to mediate. Seann Walsh, Chris Harper and Aden Gillett play masterfully across a majestical yet understated set design. While Wals...

23Oct

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Frankenstein – Hull Truck Theatre

A cast of six brought the world’s most famous monster to the Hull Truck stage on Tuesday evening with a thought-provoking adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. As the 1818 thriller, now set in the war year of 1943, begins its second major UK theatre tour, would its producers, Tilted Wig Productions, have a monster hit on their hands? Stage settings are always something to look forward to at this popular local theatre and Tuesday evening was no exception. Though dark, unfussy and dimly lit, with sparse furnishings, the interior of a wooden cabin perfectly set the tone for the well-known horror story. I found the theatre itself was very cold on the night, which, though uncomfortable, added to the atmosphere. The cabin’s shabbily-dressed occupant, Captain (Basienka Blake - wh...

22Oct

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Chicago – Bradford Alhambra

There is no better opening in musical theatre than Chicago as a troupe of ripped and toned dancers shimmy, strut and shoulder roll their way round the stage in perfect unison as vaudeville performer turned murderess Velma belts out All That Jazz. Originally choreographed by the great Bob Fosse this is a show full of ‘jazz hands’, which is a concept that many people sneer at, but as Craig Revel Harwood constantly points out on Strictly strong hands make for great dancing. There is something really elemental about a simple move like a hand roll, and the dancers in this cast nail some of the toughest and naughtiest routines in any show. At heart Fosse’s wonderfully cynical book is both a tribute to the exuberance of vaudeville and to the nature of fame, aided by the med...

16Oct

By Tracey BellNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Hairspray – Sheffield Lyceum

It’s Welcome to the 60’s as Hairspray sprays the Sheffield Lyceum this week and You Can’t stop the Beat with this high energy, high octave musical. With the original screenplay by John Waters and the Musical Productions book by Mark O’Donnell and Thomas Meehan, the composer and co-lyricist Marc Shaiman and lyricist Scott Wittman collectively created a modern day classic - with all the ingredients to give Hairspray the longevity and wide spread appeal is deserves. Under the direction of Paul Kerryson and Brenda Edwards with top notch choreography by Drew Mconie this current UK tour easily equals, and I think surpassed its predecessor. With minimum set (Takis) and lavish caricatured costume the vast stage of the Lyceum is filled with an incredible cast which has a heart as big as its storyli...

NOW That’s What I Call A Musical – Bradford Alhambra

16Oct

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

NOW That’s What I Call A Musical – Bradford Alhambra

Back in the eighties when CDs first came on the market NOW That’s What I Call Music! compilations packed full of mega chart hits dominated the hit parade, so it’s no shock that a jukebox musical version is on the road. We’re back in 1989 with Brummie best mates livewire April and sensible Gemma, who for some reason is in love with Jay Osmond, but years later like many intense teen friendships they have drifted apart until a school reunion. Shock, horror - it’s all soundtracked by the sort of middle of the road bangers featured on the NOW collections. Pippa Evans' slightly flabby book is full of eighties inspired gags, but she does cleverly weave the narrative from 1989 to the reunion, and then backwards and forwards. Evans makes some good points about the fragile nature of friendship...