Friday, December 19

Latest Articles

<strong>Stuffed – unity Theatre</strong>
North West

Stuffed – unity Theatre

‘Stuffed’ is a fantastic piece of theatre, there is absolutely no doubt about that. A series of coherent physical theatre and clown sketches serving to highlight food poverty in this country, social attitudes to it, and the regime’s lack of meaningful action. A concept that seems so important, and something we expect the viewing public to be aware of but told in a way that changes everything we think we know about food poverty and the use of food banks. Every bit of the piece made sense and felt meaningful. There were moments where laughter was closely followed by guilt - how can we as an audience make light of such a dire situation? However, when the piece was ready to get serious you could hear a pin drop in the furthest corner of the room. ‘Stuffed’ is very well choreographed and ...
<strong>Opera North: Orfeo ed Euridice – The Lowry</strong>
North West

Opera North: Orfeo ed Euridice – The Lowry

First recorded in April 2021 for BBC Radio 3 when Covid restrictions prevented live performance, Opera North present a concert performance of one of Gluck’s key works in his reinvention, in conjunction with librettist Calzabigi, of opera for his own time, as part of their wider celebration of the Orpheus myth which makes up their autumn season. Orfeo’s (Alice Coote) wife Euridice (Fflur Wynn) is dead, and a chorus of nymphs and shepherds mourn her. Orfeo is inconsolable but Amore (Daisy Brown) appears to tell him that Jupiter has taken pity on him and will grant him safe passage to the underworld where he can return Euridice to the land of the living. There is one condition however: he must not look at Euridice until they have reached the light of day. If he does, he will lose her again...
<strong>Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella – Hope Mill Theatre</strong>
North West

Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella – Hope Mill Theatre

Eight years before Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein famously collaborated on screen with Dame Julie Andrews in 'The Sound of Music', she starred in a 1957 musical version of 'Cinderella' written by the iconic duo specifically for US television. It was a smash hit, during the broadcast the streets of New York were reportedly deserted as around 107 million people tuned in to watch, garnering both critical and public acclaim. Fast forward 65 years and we find another pair of estimable creatives, William Whelton and Joseph Houston the driving forces behind Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, have sprinkled their special brand of fairy dust over the piece, giving us a pre-Christmas treat to brighten a bleak November night. The time honoured story of Cinderella has many variations and can r...
<strong>Vanity Fair – Church Hill Theatre</strong>
Scotland

Vanity Fair – Church Hill Theatre

Vanity Fair is, when it's not inspiring magazine titles, a novel by William Makepeace Thackeray, first published serially between 1847 and 1848. It was memorably subtitled "a novel without a hero" due to its protagonist, Becky Sharp, spending its entire duration trying to better her position in life with little care for the repercussions on supposed friends, (richer) husbands or even her own child. Because of this, the story isn't "just" a period costume drama, and any adaptation has to contend with a cynical protagonist doing unlikeable things while still keeping the audience engaged, and possibly even rooting for her. This aspect, which was previously managed so masterfully by a British TV adaptation, was something the twenty-year-old Reese Witherspoon vehicle film (which cast the TV ...
<strong>Scouse Jack and the Beanstalk – Liverpool’s Royal Court</strong>
North West

Scouse Jack and the Beanstalk – Liverpool’s Royal Court

It’s the beginning of the pantomime season up and down the country and I’m pleased to be welcomed back at the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool to review this year’s pantomime of Scouse Jack and the Beanstalk written by Kevin Fearon and directed by Stephen Fletcher. Deep in Crosby Jack Jones (Micheal Fletcher) is a lazy lad he gets high and wants to find treasure on an adventure, his mum Mrs Jones (Lindzi Germain) is fewmin. The bills are sky high and the milk from daisy the cow (Jake Abraham) is barely enough to cover the rising costs. So, she sends Jack out to get a job. So, he goes off to the Greatie Market. The council have their share of problems to as the city is broke there is no money and the mayor (Liam Tobin) has to make drastic cuts to make the big Eon in the sky happy, with t...
<strong>Witch Hunt – Traverse Theatre</strong>
Scotland

Witch Hunt – Traverse Theatre

One could happily have stayed seated and watched this show all over again. Straight away, not tomorrow night (the second and last night in Edinburgh and, sadly, of the entire tour). It had almost everything; music, dance, poetry, slapstick, puppetry, magic, limericks, puns, double-entendre, songs, nudity, but above all… laughter. Abigail Dooley & Emma Edwards did not name their company ‘A & E Comedy’ half-heartedly. There was even some of the most genuine audience participation yet witnessed though in this day and age it’s pretty cathartic to join in with the refrain ‘It’s a shitshow, an asshole rodeo’. A one-woman show with a twist this Ricket and Rattled along from the opening scene - featuring some ill-fitting dentures and malfunctioning hands - through to the last. There’s H...
<strong>A Christmas Carol – Buxton Opera House</strong>
North West

A Christmas Carol – Buxton Opera House

Charles Dicken’s famous ‘Christmas Carol’ is one of the most memorable and most loved Christmas stories of all time and the Chapterhouse Theatre’s latest touring production of Dicken’s famous festive offering is a true to the book recount. Staged inside the Smaller Pavilion Theatre at Buxton Opera House, The Chapterhouse Theatre have returned once again with their Christmas Carol Production for another year keeping true to the 19th century tale and as a result; it’s the perfect production to go and see if you’re studying Christmas Carol at school or college. It’s quite a stripped back production with quite sparse hand painted props and backdrops which may seem reminiscent of a school production, but this adaptation has real heart and the team use what props and sets they have to get ...
<strong>Opera North: La Traviata – The Lowry</strong>
North West

Opera North: La Traviata – The Lowry

Director Alessandro Talevi’s production is much aided by Madeline Boyd’s sumptuous set and costume design as it relishes its traditional 19th Century roots. At its heart lies a love story which draws upon Alexandre Dumas the Younger’s real-life doomed love affair with well-known courtesan, Marie Duplessis. We open with Violetta (Alison Langer) aided by her friend Flora (Victoria Sharp) hosting a lavish party where she is introduced by Gastone (Gavan King) to his friend, Alfredo Germont (Nico Darmanin), a fervent admirer, who is more concerned for her failing health than her escort, Baron Douphal (James Cleverton). When Alfredo declares his love for her she wonders if he could be the one amidst her desire to be free to live her life. A year on and Alfredo (Oliver Johnston) and Violett...
<strong>La Clique – The Leicester Square Spiegeltent</strong>
London

La Clique – The Leicester Square Spiegeltent

La clique is wonderment, burlesque and excitement. It brings together popular music, extraordinary acrobatic movement and risqué entertainment all in one place. Before the show began, you could sense the enthusiasm and excitement ripe in the air. As the red curtains fall with the Guillaume Tell Overture, we dial back to a forgotten era of charm, poise and curiosity. Clique revels in the forbidden with many classy acts, a burlesque Jesus, a unicyclist putting his clothes on the move, trapeze artists who spin in abandonment, anti-gravity-defying Chinese pole play, and a clown who balances four parasols are some of the magical acts that will leave you spellbound during the show. Each performance bends prim and proper rules; drinking is encouraged in the tent with lots of popcorn and che...
<strong>Beautiful: The Carole King Musical – Liverpool Empire</strong>
North West

Beautiful: The Carole King Musical – Liverpool Empire

It actually felt like I spent an evening at Carnegie Hall, instead of the Liverpool Empire last night. Beautiful tells the story of Carole King. How she became who she was, the peaks and troughs of her career as a songwriter and how that led to her becoming one of the most instantly recognisable artists of all time. The show starts with her famous performance at the prestigious Carnegie Hall, in New York City in June of 1971. We then get taken back to a teenage Carole Klein, writing songs and begging her mother to allow her into the city (from their home in Brooklyn) to try and sell her songs. She manages to sell the song which makes it to number 106 on the Billboard Charts when sung by Bobby Vee. We go through her career and relationship with Gerry Goffin, their friendship and competit...