Yorkshire & Humber Archives - Page 5 of 33

16Aug

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Aladdin – Bradford Alhambra

This classic tale of a poor Arabian boy given three wishes by a Genie in a bottle so he could woo a princess was perfect for an Oscar winning Disney animation, and let’s be honest an obvious choice for a stage production. It’s not surprising this high energy show had been seen by 15 million people worldwide as it cunningly melded 1950s musical tropes with a knowing and often funny book by Chad Beguelin, where the Princess was a feminist, and the old order came under threat. But if you didn’t want any subtle subtexts, then you could just wallow in a warm heated show full of extravagant sets, and some big numbers. The tone was set from One Jump Ahead as Kerry Spark’s streetwise Aladdin jumped around a street market as a big ensemble danced around him. After a slightly shaky start...

1Aug

By Phoebe Olivia Sian HobsonNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Grease – Alhambra, Bradford

Grease is most definitely the word on everyone’s lips after attending last nights show at the Alhambra, as it’s fair to say the withdrawals from the thrill and excitement have well and truly kicked in. There are always high expectations for beloved productions such as Grease, and the performance by the cast and crew exceeded all of them, inviting in younger audiences by bringing fresh new ideas but also reminding those maturer fans of their favourite scenes and songs. The show was impressively enticing, horny and funny with the entertaining representations of the burger bar boys and the pink ladies, the cast hit the nail on the head while capturing these characters, whether it was on their best or worst behaviour the teen groups had the audience in stitches. The show invites you in l...

Lonesome Tonight – Workshop Theatre, Leeds

27Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Lonesome Tonight – Workshop Theatre, Leeds

When Len (Josh Phillips) turns up at the door of his mate Chris (Barnaby St. Giles) dressed in full ‘Elvis in Las Vegas circa 1974’ mode and demanding £35 (£40 if you want the voice), we know this isn’t going to be a quiet night in. Chris is in the throes of a split from his girlfriend Anya (Edith Gray) and doesn’t really need Len’s brand of hearty, macho ‘told you so’ friendship, preferring to wallow in a fantasy world justifying the reasons why he and Anya split to himself in increasingly lurid fashion. Writer and Director Dillon Dawson has devised a three handler that seeks to explore the culture of both male friendship and answer the perennial question ‘What is a Real Man?’ Ostensibly Len is a boorish lout, forcing Chris to drink whisky and play daft drinking games, only as t...

Fringe: The Musical – Workshop Theatre, Leeds

27Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Fringe: The Musical – Workshop Theatre, Leeds

When I was offered the opportunity to preview the ‘Fringe: The Musical’, the latest offering from Chevron Theatre, prior to its forthcoming run at Edinburgh Festival Fringe next month, I jumped at the chance. This Leeds based theatre company have produced some funny and thought provoking new musical theatre for the Fringe over the last few years and I’m pleased to say that ‘Fringe: The Musical’ carries on this excellent tradition. ‘Fringe’ is set in an Essex hairdressing salon, Darren (Zak Muggleton) is struggling to make the business survive, whilst simultaneously bringing up his young daughter Sam (Izzy Peter), following the recent death of his wife. The staff are all supportive of Darren; gossipy Claire and Emma (Alice Gedye & Erin Foster), introverted Gemma (Ava King) and frustr...

Lord of The Dance: A Lifetime of Standing Ovations – Hull New Theatre

24Jul

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Lord of The Dance: A Lifetime of Standing Ovations – Hull New Theatre

From its official debut on July 2nd, 1996, in Dublin, Ireland, Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance has enchanted more than 60 million people worldwide. And on Tuesday evening a packed Hull New Theatre added to that figure when Lord of the Dance: A Lifetime of Standing Ovations came to town. It was a thrill for me to review the 25th anniversary of Lord of the Dance, back in 2022 - a production I was “astounded” and “mesmerised” by. Would Flatley’s revival have the same effect on me in 2024? The answer is yes, with the prefix “more” added. As in 2022, the show opens and closes with on-screen performances from Flatley, who is still definitely the Lord of the Dance. The huge video screen played a very important role throughout, with fantastic scenes of forest fires, flower-fi...

16Jul

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Paranormal Activity – Leeds Playhouse

All of us have a personal deep, dark fear – mine is enclosed spaces – we’d run a million miles from, but it says something about human nature that most of us volunteer to be scared half to death watching horror movies. When the Courtyard theatre went totally dark there was a deep sense of both excitement and unease as we waited for this theatrical adaptation of the classic horror movie Paranormal Activity. There are two types of horror – splatter or psychological – and life long fan of the macabre Levi Holloway’s adaptation was most definitely on the creepy side, messing with our minds rather than splashing us with blood. Fans of the wildly successful Paranormal Activity franchise will enjoy this, but there’s plenty for people who never saw them at the flicks to enjoy as Holloway had...

12Jul

By Tracey BellNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Chariots of Fire – Crucible Theatre

Chariots of Fire is the stage adaptation by Mike Bartlett of the 1981 Oscar winning motion picture. This Sheffield Theatre production is cleverly directed by resident award winning Artistic Director Robert Hastie and unfortunately, his last Sheffield production in the role. Hastie with Associate Director Lilac Yosphon and Assistant Director Chantell Walker re-imagine what was first performed at the Hampstead Theatre in London in 2012. In the Olympic year of 2024, this production marks 100 years since the Paris Olympics of 1924 when this extraordinary real life story takes place and is subsequently dedicated to Sheffield Olympians past and present. It would seem the circular stage (theatre in the round) of the Sheffield Crucible is the perfect location to house a production that requires...

10Jul

By Tracey BellNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Come From Away – Sheffield Lyceum

Musical Theatre does not get any better than this! It has a heart and Soul, so buckle up on the soaring flight that lands exactly where it should - in the hearts and minds of its audience. Pure Perfection! Direct from the West End this award-winning musical ‘that welcomes the world’ is written by Irene Sankoff and David Hein and Directed by Christopher Ashley, Musical Staging by Kelly Devine. With Scenic Design by Beowulf Boritt we are greeted by stage that is versatile yet warming and welcoming. With the trees aligning the wings and a wooden slatted wall upstage, the only other set is movable and mismatched tables and chairs which are manipulated by the cast with a choreographical magic to behold. The band are visible upstage left as they interact with the cast and seamlessly perform the...

10Jul

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

The Syndicate – Hull New Theatre

Hull New Theatre was far from full on Tuesday evening, as it hosted the world premiere of Kay Mellor’s stage adaptation of The Syndicate, a BBC TV series that ran for four seasons. As the curtain rose, a realistic stage setting showing the interior of a small supermarket greeted us, giving a colourful first glimpse of proceedings. Manning the till is Denise (Samantha Giles of Emmerdale fame), a motherly figure who dutifully collects the lottery money each week for the syndicate she and her four co-workers have joined. While Denise goes about her business serving customers, single mum Leanne (Rosa Coduri-Fulford) half-heartedly sweeps the floor. This peaceful scene is interrupted by the arrival of shop manager Stuart (Benedict Shaw) who rushes in, barging into the manager’s offi...

Into The Woods – Hull Musical Theatre Company

9Jul

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Into The Woods – Hull Musical Theatre Company

Members of Hull Musical Theatre Company it was a pleasure and an honour to see you in action, during your rehearsal for Into The Woods. It’s a brave crew who invite theatre critics to witness a production in which there are little, if any, props, not too many costumes and no microphones. And as I entered the Derringham Bank Methodist Church, in Hull, where the rehearsal would take place, I was more than curious to see how this local group would perform. After being introduced to the company’s chairman, Jane Bradley, and the show’s director, Martyn Payne, and our seating placed in a prominent position for us to view proceedings, we reviewers were made even more welcome by the arrival of coffee and biscuits. I could think of worse ways to spend a Sunday afternoon. Classed ...