Latest Articles - Page 3 of 736

19Oct

By Carole GordonNo Comments

London

Dog Mom – Southwark Playhouse Borough

Newly-divorced Sarita has been forced to downsize from a house in New Jersey to a tiny New York apartment. She's feeling vulnerable, unsure about her future and overwhelmed with the effort of the move. She just wants to be left alone to get on with her life, neatly ordered by lists. The last thing she wants at that moment is for a stray dog to turn up and refuse to leave. Sarita is definitely not a dog mom. She doesn't want to get involved in dog walking, poop bags, vet visits and the whole messy drama that a playful dog entails. When the dog shelter makes it clear that, as an older dog, it's unlikely that Foster would be rehomed as everyone wants puppies, meaning that Sarita's new friend would be euthanised. So the dog stays, and they become soulmates, to the extent that Sarita and the...

A Play, A Pie & A Pint: Contact by Jonny Donahoe – Traverse Theatre

16Oct

By Kathleen MansfieldNo Comments

Scotland

A Play, A Pie & A Pint: Contact by Jonny Donahoe – Traverse Theatre

Contact is an hour-long exploration of unresolved pain, blame and a yearning for love amid the messy realities of today’s nuclear family. It is caustically funny, filled with bathos and yet heart-felt as we peel away the characters’ anguish. A dysfunctional parent-child relationship is adeptly presented by Blythe Duff (Mother) and Mark Barrett (her adult son). Duff’s depth of expression, conveyed with minimalist physicality and restrained vocal range is hugely engaging. She is cold, verbally acerbic and cruel, yet her tears of frustration and pain are heart-rending. Some might call her descent into grief contrived. Yet, it was moving. Barrett plays the adult child (who feels the urge to build bridges, but ultimately, is as cruel as his mother in a more nuanced way) with an uneasiness th...

16Oct

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Sinatra The Musical – Aldwych Theatre

Charity Gala Performance in aid of Music Therapy Nordoff and Robbins Sinatra The Musical is continuing its run in the West End. This performance was in aid of the Charity Nordoff and Robbins; raising awareness of mental health and the benefits of music therapy. Sinatra is a staged biopic uncovering the ‘truth’ behind the man who captured the nations hearts and navigates the conundrum of his complex life. Supported by a talented cast, the story spotlights those who fuelled his meteoric rise to fame, as well as those who witnessed his turbulent downfalls. At its heart, the production portrays Sinatra as a devoted family man who remained fiercely close to his children—a narrative angle strongly backed by his daughter, Nancy Sinatra, who contributed to the show's development. The journey op...

16Oct

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

London

Gang Of Three – Richmond Theatre

The 1970s were a time of turbulence in British politics. The Labour Party, having held power during much of the 1960s, lost the 1970 general election and entered a period in opposition, struggling to define its identity in a changing world. This play by Robert Kahn and Tom Salinsky focuses on three major characters in that struggle: Roy Jenkins, Denis Healey and Anthony Crosland. It is a play about political ideas, but primarily about the personalities of these three titans of the Labour movement. They understand the importance of working together in order to create a united vision for the Labour Party, but their ability to support one another is undermined by their personal ambitions. One suspects that this is a universal problem with political egos and so makes much of...

16Oct

By Holly LilyNo Comments

London

Blind Spot – Bread and Roses Theatre

Fringe theatre is often compelling because it entertains through socially conscious narratives. Blindspot is no exception to this, cleverly and subtly touching on the prevalent topic of pregnancy, a woman’s body and the power she, her partner and society have over it. Written by Deanna Arthur and directed by Samantha Pears, Blindspot follows a couple, Sky and Noah (Deanna Arthur and Nathan Lwanga), as they take a pregnancy test and are forced to have a long-awaited conversation about the stage they’re truly at in their relationship. The play follows a non-linear structure and jumps between the past and the present, slowly revealing how no matter how much love there may be between two people, it doesn't guarantee their paths are aligned. Deanna Arthur has written a play with a ...

16Oct

By Paul ClarkeNo Comments

North West

Team Viking – HOME Mcr

SPOILER ALERT – the main character in this funny and profoundly moving monologue dies. Most of us when we shuffle off this mortal coil can expect a short eulogy, and possibly some curled up sandwiches at the wake, but not Tom who got a full fiery Viking Funeral thanks to his two best friends. One of them was James Rowland who in a one-hour monologue took the audience through an intense childhood friendship with Tom and his neighbour Sarah. They became a close knit team as their childhood games revolved around the classic 1958 Norse melodrama, The Vikings, starring Kirk Douglas and Tony Curtis as they acted out different roles from the movie. They agreed to a pact where when one of them snuffed it they would each get a Viking funeral where they floated away on a fiery longboat, whi...

16Oct

By Zandra OdetundeNo Comments

London

Baby – Brixton House

Pearl Mackie takes on a whole cast of characters in Baby, with three chairs and a doll providing most of her company. Written by Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti and directed by Milli Bhatia, the Brixton House and Clean Break production brings a woman’s struggle to keep her child onto a stage that needs very little to make her world feel full. Mackie plays Baby, whose name suggests a degree of care that her life has rarely delivered. She wants to keep Bliss, her own baby. Having experienced abuse and involvement with the criminal justice system, she turns to the audience in the hope that someone might help. There is something of Kafka in the distance between the person seeking help and the system’s ability to understand them, although Bhatti approaches that frustration through a mother’s desire ...

Uncle Monty’s Antique Shop – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

15Oct

By Prateek SonnyNo Comments

London

Uncle Monty’s Antique Shop – The Lion & Unicorn Theatre

Spooky season is here, and it has brought with it a spine-tingling play. Uncle Monty’s Antique Shop is an anthology of psychological shorts written and directed by Alexander Wright and Nina Atesh. The production unfolds through the items in an antique shop, each introduced alongside its grim history. As we enter the space, Monty (Nicholas Benjamin) sits at his desk, unbothered and sipping his tea. A sense of unease is established almost immediately. When a tourist (Nina Atesh) accidentally wanders into the shop, she discovers that nothing is for sale. Monty’s unhinged, at times amusing, demeanour emerges as he enthusiastically presents his collection of disturbing objects. The first story, ‘The Photographer’, centres on a ruthless political leader (Ryan Williams), his photographe...

15Oct

By Tracey BellNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Come From Away – Montgomery Theatre

Ellesmere MTC had the pleasure of premiering the Sheffield amateur production of Come From Away, one of the longest running One Act Musicals! And the Rock highlighted more than a few precious gems within the cast, musicians and production team. Sparkling bright, the multi role playing twelve strong cast are polished and multi-faceted in their interpretation of Irene Sankoff and David Hein’s Book, music and lyrics. Come From Away is a real-life story of the power of humanity, against the backdrop of tragedy of 9/11. 38 planes were diverted on that fateful morning to the little Canadian town of Gander in Newfoundland, doubling the town’s inhabitants, the traumatised passengers had to rely totally on the hospitality and goodwill of these islanders. From the opening mundane video footage...

The Cherry Orchard – Harold Pinter Theatre

15Oct

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

The Cherry Orchard – Harold Pinter Theatre

When you think of Anton Chekhov you expect a play of undefined logic and conflicting perspectives. Whilst mixing comedy with suffering often leaving the questions unanswered. The Cherry Orchard is one of Chekhov’s most recognisable plays and his last before his death. Written in 1903 published in 1904 it has been adapted and remastered for audiences over the years. This new adaptation by Conor McPherson has arrived at the Harold Pinter Theatre with a stellar cast, Stephen Mangan as Lopakhin, Kristen Scott Thomas as Lyubov Andreevna (Luba) and Ruby Bentall as Sharlotta. Act one is slow to form as the story takes time to build; there is an air of uncertainty at the end of this Act questioning, does McPherson and Ian Rickson’s adaptation work. Act two improves, the cast rel...