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An Evening With: Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram’s North-West Mixtape – Shakespeare North Playhouse

3Jul

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

An Evening With: Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram’s North-West Mixtape – Shakespeare North Playhouse

Kicking off a series of conversations at the Playhouse, two of the biggest politicians outside of the Westminster bubble – the Mayors of Liverpool and Manchester - are here to (no surprise given the title) talk about the musical influence of the North-West. It’s no surprise that the evening is a little more freewheeling, inevitably spilling into politics, as well as football, railways and 70s/80s fashion, bookended by two up and coming music acts – Merseyside’s Ni Maxine, a striking and soulful jazz singer, and Manchester’s charming and funny Test Card Girl with a dreamy electro-folk/pop sound. Both Mayors are in a relaxed and chatty mood, with a clear friendship between the pair visible throughout – regular, comical jabs over football rivalries and which is the better city remain jo...

The Drifters Girl extends UK & Ireland tour into 2024

2Jul

By NewsdeskNo Comments

NEWS

The Drifters Girl extends UK & Ireland tour into 2024

Michael Harrison and David Ian are delighted to announce extended dates for the first-ever UK and Ireland tour of The Drifters Girl, the acclaimed new musical which tells the remarkable story of one of the world's greatest vocal groups and the woman who made them. Having played to packed houses and nightly standing ovations at the Garrick Theatre in London's West End (following a triumphant run at Newcastle's Theatre Royal), the production recently announced a UK Tour to open in 2023, with performances beginning at the Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, on Tuesday 12th September 2023. Now, following huge public demand, the tour reveals extended dates through 2024, visiting: Bristol Hippodrome, Bristol; Regent Theatre, Stoke; Venue Cymru, Llandudno; Bord Gais Energy Theatre, Dublin; Gran...

The Pride of Pripyat: Tales from the Chernobyl Disaster – International Anthony Burgess Foundation

2Jul

By Peter RuddickNo Comments

North West

The Pride of Pripyat: Tales from the Chernobyl Disaster – International Anthony Burgess Foundation

Some events are so burned into the general subconscious they can be immediately recollected with just one word. Chernobyl, for example. But how much do we really know about the life of the nearby town - Pripyat - beyond a vague image of an abandoned ferris wheel? American classical music ensemble the Perspective Collective set out to answer just that question in their operetta. Across a handful of vignettes, ‘The Pride of Pripyat’ explores the personal impact of the disaster on the lives of some of those living in the shadow of the doomed power plant. Beginning and ending with the perspective of the city’s chief architect, the show also explores the experience of a local school teacher with a husband at Chernobyl and a pair of nurses unsure how to approach a patient with radiation...

Untitled F*ck M*ss S**gon Play – Royal Exchange Theatre

1Jul

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Untitled Fck Mss S**gon Play – Royal Exchange Theatre

The biennial Manchester International Festival (MIF) opens across our wonderful city this weekend and under its umbrella purports to 'cut across disciplines and blur the boundaries between art and popular culture'. As their offering, in conjunction with the Young Vic and Headlong productions, the Royal Exchange have chosen to give the world premier to Kimber Lee's 'Untitled F*ck M*ss S**gon Play', a coruscating satirical drama about racial stereotyping and casual prejudice towards people from the Asian diaspora. It manages to find both sharp humour and pathos in such a serious subject but may struggle to engage with an audience beyond the esoteric confines of the MIF devotees. Lee takes 1906 as her jumping off point, the year that 'Madama Butterfly’ by Puccini received its US premiere, ...

A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Opera Holland Park

30Jun

By Gonzalo SentanaNo Comments

London

A Midsummer Night’s Dream – Opera Holland Park

Warm weather, love and magic are everywhere in the summer. And we can share a piece of that magic in this entertaining comedy, plus the beautiful music that will come with it. Figure, the historical performance ensemble, brings to life this classic written by Willian Shakespeare and with the music of Felix Mendelssohn. Directed by Sam Rayner, and Musical Direction of Frederick Waxman, this famous story is set on the stage in the Opera Holland Park. The play follows the story of the four lovers, played by Johan Munir as Demetrius, Eleanor Sutton as Helena, Emmanuel Olusanya as Lysander, and Hannah Rose Caton, and the ensemble of actors with Jay Mailer as Bottom, Gail Sixsmith as Quince, Jordan Laviniere as Flute, Susie Coutts as Snout, William Eden as Snug, and Joyce Henderson as Starvel...

30Jun

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Happy Days – Birmingham Rep

Only on leaving the theatre are you struck by what a phenomenal feat of memory you’ve just witnessed. That alone justified Siobhan McSweeney’s standing ovation from a grateful, and perhaps slightly bemused audience, last night at the Birmingham Rep. Grateful because it is a stunning achievement. Dame Peggy Ashcroft, who had a fair crack at the part herself, describes the leading role, Winnie, as “one of those parts, I believe, that actresses will want to play in the way that actors aim at Hamlet - a summit part.” And bemused, because unlike Van Gogh whose work was misunderstand in his lifetime, but in time came to be embraced, Beckett’s work continues to be defiantly cryptic, mercurial and inaccessible in any conventional sense. We are met with mounds of sands. Location and time unspeci...

30Jun

By Zoё MeeresNo Comments

London

One Way Mirror – The Pleasance

One Way Mirror bills itself as a new interactive story about the art of people watching. It is based on the true experience of writer and performer, theatre maker Jonathan Oldfield, one half of PillowTalk Theatre, and the time he spent living in a property with a one way mirror facing out onto the street. From this vantage point, Oldfield can observe people going about their business, a voyeur of sorts who can see you even though you can’t see him. And the show is largely as billed - it does indeed focus on Oldfield’s experience of people watching and it is interactive in as much as it relies on a degree of audience participation. It’s risky but respectfully and gently done - no one is forced onto the stage to pretend to be a cat or a chicken and the excellent willing participants were giv...

30Jun

By Donna M DayNo Comments

North West

Sixteen Swans – Liverpool Philharmonic

Sixteen Swans was a collection of dramatic and enchanting music, which created a wonderful evening of high emotion played by very talented musicians. Conducted by Roderick Cox, this combination of Strauss, Tchaikovsky and Sibelius is a powerful combination which mesmerised and enthralled the captive audience. The dramatic opening of Strauss’ Don Juan with powerful percussion allowed the flutes, played by Cormac Henry and Helen Wilson, to really shine through with an air of mystery. The tinkling of a triangle provides an air of sweetness before the strings sweep away as gentle melodies contrast well with more intense themes. Accomplished pianist, Inon Barnatan plays on Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1. Another piece with a dramatic opening, staccato piano is complimented by pizzi...

30Jun

By Marita MatarNo Comments

London

Duck – Arcola Theatre

The UK premiere of Duck is written by Maatin, directed by Imy Wyatt Corner, and performed by Omar Bynon. Ismail (Omar Bynon) whose name can’t even be pronounced by his schoolmates and teachers is a vibrant Indian teenager whose love for cricket knows no bounds. The story unfolds in the days leading up to the tragic July 7 terrorist attack that occurred in London in 2005. This devastating event led to the endorsement of Islamophobia and the unfair stigmatisation of individuals with brown skin, beards, or thick hair. Amidst this backdrop, the narrative of “Duck” presents a mundane account that immerses readers in the life of a 15-year-old Indian boy. Throughout his passionate journey in the world of cricket, he encounters subtle instances of racism and discrimination based on his name, sk...

Demon Dentist – The Alexandra Birmingham

30Jun

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Demon Dentist – The Alexandra Birmingham

Neal Foster sustains his formidable reputation as the doyen of commercial children’s theatre with a production of David Walliams’ “Demon Dentist" which fizzes and pops with buoyant joy and good humour. Tearing children from their screens is a huge ask these days, but within seconds of the play starting hundreds of children surrounding me were entranced by the sheer energy, vitality and strength of the show. There’s a naughty tooth thief about the unspecified Northern town, stealing various teeth from under the very pillows of unsuspecting children and replacing them with gross and surprising objects. Who is it? What are they doing and why? Alfie and Gabz set out to find out. A company of commanding performances prove the play’s true strength. Sam Valley as Alfie captures the angst of...