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<strong>The Commitments – Edinburgh Playhouse</strong>

29Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

The Commitments – Edinburgh Playhouse

Two months in to a nine-month tour of the UK, The Commitments lands in Edinburgh Playhouse. The lines are delivered crisply, the music is tight, and the vocals are on point, and from the look of the almost capacity audience, dancing, singing and whooping by the finale, all is well, or is it? It is hard for this not to be a hit, based on Roddy Doyle’s 1987 book set in Dublin and the subsequent 1991 BAFTA Award-winning film classic. The hit ingredients keep coming in the form of over 20 soul classics performed live on stage by a group of committed and talented actor / musicians. If you think there is a but coming, you would be right. Sometimes all of the right ingredients is just not enough, which is …well, disappointing. The story follows James Killeen as Jimmy Rabbitte, a young worki...

<strong>The Mousetrap – Opera House, Manchester</strong>

29Nov

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

The Mousetrap – Opera House, Manchester

At the conclusion of every performance of Agatha Christie's 'The Mousetrap, the murderer steps forward and asks the audience to 'keep the secret of whodunnit locked in your heart', an appeal that has proved remarkably resilient given that this tour marks its 70th anniversary and it remains the longest continuously running show of any kind in the world. With nearly 29,000 performances since its premiere in 1952 you could forgive audiences if they tired of it, but a packed opening night in the vast Manchester Opera House, is testament to its enduring popularity. Confession time, as a critic who has been attending theatre for well over 40 years, I have never seen 'The Mousetrap', the rodent has eluded me all these years and whilst it will never be on my theatrical bucket list, the completi...

<strong>Cinderella – Theatre Royal, Stratford East</strong>

27Nov

By Anisha PucadyilNo Comments

London

Cinderella – Theatre Royal, Stratford East

The festive family shows at Stratford East have been happening for 130 years! It opened in 1884. Nine times performed, Cinderella returns to the stage but with many a twist and twirl. This year's production was a fitting tribute to Jo Melville, known popularly for her role in Eastenders but a mentor for so many in the community with her infectious enthusiasm for the Arts. For the third year in a row, the Stratford East is recording and taking theatre into hospitals to the community who could use a laugh. The play sets Cinderella near the pyramids! With exceptional puppetry skills, Kathryn Bond has you hooked with her all-knowing Sphinx cat. All the talented performers brought new avatars of familiar old characters to life. Gigi Zahir served Cleopatra with Zesty and feisty razzmatazz. Pa...

<strong>Jack and the Beanstalk – Lyric Hammersmith Theatre</strong>

27Nov

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Jack and the Beanstalk – Lyric Hammersmith Theatre

Widely acknowledged as a staple part of the festive celebrations, pantomime has a long theatrical history in the UK, performed up and down the country during Christmas and New Year, with the expected, cookie cutter format, with singing, dancing, cross-dressing and slapstick humour, along with a healthy dose of topical references and audience participation. It’s not often you would describe a pantomime as quality theatrical production, they are usually lots of fun, something for the kids to enjoy, and a mixed bag of talent, but the creative team at the Lyric Hammersmith has raised the bar this year with this year's production, ‘Jack and the Beanstalk’, written by Jude Christian and Sonia Jalaly, and directed by Nicholai La Barrie. The team has kept all of the essential pantomime elements bu...

<strong>A Double Helping of Talent – Melrose Hall</strong>

27Nov

By Bev ClarkNo Comments

North West

A Double Helping of Talent – Melrose Hall

Both drama and music were on the bill at Melrose Hall, Hoylake tonight, Friday 25th November. Presented by the multi-talented Calli Hughes, this was a showcase of first, her directing talent and then her well-known talent as a local singer. The first half of the evening gave us an award-winning drama and in the second half Calli was joined by her equally talented husband Mark for a ‘Songbirds’ session – the music of Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie. Melrose Hall is a bijou venue seating around 80-100 in the heart of the Hoylake community. On this occasion it was set cabaret style and the audience could bring their own drinks. The first Act, a three-hander ‘Effie’s Burning’ originally directed by Calli for the Leverhulme Drama Festival last year. This powerful drama was written as a ...

<strong>An Edinburgh Christmas Carol – Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh</strong>

27Nov

By Greg HolsteadNo Comments

Scotland

An Edinburgh Christmas Carol – Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh

Last performed here in 2019, the Lyceums’ Artistic Director David Greig gives this Edinburgh take on the Dickens classic a well-deserved re-run. And why not, it is an absolute joy to the eyes and ears and will surely be a big hit with audiences old and young alike. The well drilled and very talented cast play out the well-known tale of Scrooge on the cobbles of the old town against one of the undoubted stars of the show, the set; a series of finely painted backdrops of side screens from Edinburgh’s old town, featuring great stone quoins and air scraping tenements, with the castle looming like a constant dark presence overall. The set cleverly mirrors Mr Scrooge’s oppressive domination over the lower elements of Edinburgh, the underpaid clerks, like Bob Cratchit, or poor evicted tenan...

<strong>Mozart’s Requiem – Liverpool Empire</strong>

27Nov

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Mozart’s Requiem – Liverpool Empire

Two composers, two very different backgrounds, yet both with stories swirling with intrigue and rumour. As the Glyndebourne returns to the Empire for its annual residence, tonight is an interesting showcase of arias from composer Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, sometimes nick-named the ‘Black Mozart’ alongside the legendary Requiem of the main man himself. Part one focuses on Bologna, who may not have reached the heights of fame that Mozart would eventually achieve but still impressed many of his contemporaries with his abilities (Beethoven was reportedly a particular fan). Director Simone Ibbett-Brown has cleverly combined elements of Bologne’s remarkable story – a Creole sone of a slave-woman Nanon and her Plantation owning master who travels to France to make his ma...

<strong>Puccini’s Messa di Gloria – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall</strong>

27Nov

By Johanna RobertsNo Comments

North West

Puccini’s Messa di Gloria – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall

I’ve often wondered what factors go into the decision of programming classical music concerts. Apart from the logistical decisions, on an artistic level, there must be well-known and well-loved pieces to attract the audience’s attention and guarantee ticket-sales, while also drawing in audiences by offering something new and/or challenging. Last night’s concert at the Liverpool Philharmonic managed to resolve this conundrum by a combination of two well-known and one far less well-known piece while triumphing in all three. That said, Debussy’s symphonic Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune and what he called the "three symphonic sketches” that form La Mer, now familiar to and much loved by audiences around the world, were new and challenging for the audiences that first heard them in ...

<strong>Henry V – Shakespeare’s Globe</strong>

27Nov

By Akshay RahejaNo Comments

London

Henry V – Shakespeare’s Globe

When Henry IV dies, his son takes over the crown. The new king has risen to power in fragile and uncertain times. He is provoked by an insult from the French Prince Louis. His brother and his uncle elicit him to prove himself. Henry V decides to invade France. Henry V has popularly been received as the celebration of an uncompromising nationhood and the eminence of imperial ambitions. But this production seems to offer several counter-narratives that exist within the story. Such as the story of Pistol, Bardolph, Nym and a young Boy, who are all caught up in the patriotic fervour and join Henry's army, hoping to enrich themselves in the chaos of invasion. Their narrative brings to light the indifference of the kings towards their infantry and the unfair imbalance of power structures that...

<strong>Elf the Musical – Dominion Theatre</strong>

25Nov

By Zoё MeeresNo Comments

London

Elf the Musical – Dominion Theatre

Ask anyone what their favourite Christmas films are and Elf will inevitably be up there. Buoyant Will Ferrell, singing and silliness and just the right amount of schmaltz to give you the festive feels - it ticks all the boxes. So as a self-confessed enthusiast for all things Yuletide and a long time musical fan, I was made up at the chance to see Elf the Musical. To say festive cheer has been in scant supply this year would be an understatement, and so with a month to go until the big day I was absolutely ready for Buddy the Elf and friends to send some joy my way. And there was much joy to be had. The staging is top notch; with ever shifting back drops, moving scenery and a sleigh that gives Back to the Future’s Delorian a run for its money, the action shifts seamlessly from Santa’s No...