Latest Articles - Page 88 of 645

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – Festival Theatre

14May

By Nazaret RaneaNo Comments

Scotland

The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – Festival Theatre

As someone who spent a good portion of their childhood half-convinced there might be a secret world hiding at the back of the wardrobe, this production was always going to land somewhere between nostalgia and reverence. And I’m pleased to say, it hit the mark beautifully. Michael Fentiman’s production, adapted from Sally Cookson’s earlier version, is a rich, often dazzling journey into Narnia and one that balances spectacle and substance with real flair. From the opening bars of We’ll Meet Again, underscoring the siblings’ evacuation from London, it’s clear this is not simply a children’s story. There’s grit in the frame, a proper wartime darkness that lends weight to the fantasy. It’s still magic – of course it is – but the stakes feel real. The visual storytelling is a triumph. ...

Cruel Intentions The ‘90s Musical – Hull New Theatre

14May

By Jackie FoottitNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Cruel Intentions The ‘90s Musical – Hull New Theatre

Although an avid movie-goer, the 1999 cinema release of Cruel Intentions, passed me by, so when the musical of the same name came to the Hull New Theatre, I had no clue of what to expect. The theatre was filled far from capacity on Tuesday evening, which was a shame, but those of us who did attend were in for a treat. The many trigger warnings in the press release hinted at themes that may upset some folk, and although “explicit sexual language and behaviour, racial discrimination and drug usage” did raise their ugly heads, I can honestly say they didn’t overshadow proceedings, meaning such events came and went and then we were on to the next scene. That’s not to minimise such gross deeds, but they were so cleverly interwoven as to seem unimportant, if that makes sense. Based o...

13May

By Leanne RushtonNo Comments

North West

& Juliet – Regent Theatre, Stoke

The Regent Theatre was packed out with eager theatre goers ready to watch &Juliet on its first UK tour. The audience was full of people of all ages. On entering the auditorium, the spectacle that this show draws you in instantly. Projecting London landmark names onto all walls and playing instrumental versions of the music your ears will be graced with throughout the rest of this show. The ensemble cast entering the stage and engaging with the audience before curtain up was a really sweet touch. The second you stepped foot into the auditorium you knew that this was going to be a special night and the show lives up to these expectations and more. This Jukebox musical mixes the traditional story of Romeo and Juliet and adds Modern twist. With Shakespeare (Jay McGuiness) and Anne...

Klezmer Klassica: the Men behind the Play with Music

13May

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

NEWS

Klezmer Klassica: the Men behind the Play with Music

It’s always a boon when there is a recording available of a production you’ve attended and none more so than the recently attended Gideon – a play with music, a collaboration between Richard Fay and Daniel Mawson through their company Modalways CIC. Following the life of a magnetic musician and his family facing impossible choices, its factual narrative is accompanied by a delightful fusion of Klezmer, Czech folk, classical compositions, and jazz performed by a live ensemble. My interest was piqued when noting that the recording labelled as Volume 3 was accompanied by a not entirely related Volume 4, raising the obvious question as to what/where were Volumes 1 and 2? Well, a little bit of delving was to unveil a musical goldmine, but first of all we have to take a step back in time. ...

13May

By Peter KinnockNo Comments

West Midlands

Peter Grimes – Birmingham Hippodrome

For many, opera is another country; they do things differently there. Images of armour-clad Rheinmaidens and vain bass baritones with over-inflated girths and egos have permeated popular iconography for decades and not without reasons - in some places those stereotypes have and do exist, but not tonight, not at the WNO. The Welsh National Opera Company is peopled with performers, creatives and technicians clearly with their feet on the ground intent on delivering work which is accessible, engaging and truthful - and a prime example of this is tonight’s offering “Peter Grimes” which, on paper, could read as a dreary, sodden coastal tract but on stage is dances with wit, insight, and perception. The opera, I’m sure I don’t need to remind you, has a libretto by Montagu Slater (a name itsel...

Run At It Laughing – Wilton’s Music Hall

13May

By Caroline WorswickNo Comments

NEWS

Run At It Laughing – Wilton’s Music Hall

Produced by Run At It Shouting and Flying Colours Productions, playwright Mark Ravenhill is behind a fund-raising event, raising money for the Hackney based NIA Project, who help women and children who have suffered abuse. Ten plays have been developed and directed by Ravenhill using Italian stage actor Flamingo Scala’s collection of scenarios first published in 1611. These fifty scenarios of commedia dell’arte plays pre-date Shakespeare and his Renaissance theatre contemporaries and were published under title ‘Il Teatro delle Favole Rappresentative’, in which one was a tragedy, nine were fantasy, and the remaining forty were comedies, and the shows that we have seen over the weekend came from the latter category. Scala, provided Ravenhill with the framework to work with,...

Simon Boccanegra – Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

13May

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Simon Boccanegra – Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

Director PJ Harris’ dramatic concert staging of Verdi’s 1881 version of Simon Boccanegra for Opera North is an absolute joy, a true sensory delight for the ear and eye. A Prologue establishes that Boccanegra (Roland Wood), a plebeian, is about to become the first elected Doge of Genoa. But he loves – and has secretly had a child with – Maria, the daughter of his political rival and sworn enemy, Jacopo Fiesco (Vazgen Gazaryan), a patrician. When Maria dies, the baby disappears. Fast forward 25 years and Fiasco is in hiding under the alias Andrea Grimaldi and plotting his revenge against Boccanegra who is still in power. He has become guardian to an orphan girl named Amelia (Sara Cortolezzis) who it later transpires is his missing granddaughter. She wants to marry Gabriele Adorno (Andr...

Cavalleria rusticana / Pagliacci – St George’s Hall, Liverpool

13May

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Cavalleria rusticana / Pagliacci – St George’s Hall, Liverpool

North Wales Opera Studio’s welcome return to Liverpool to perform a one-act verismo pairing became a little disjointed as director Anne Williams-King was unable to take full advantage of the venue’s performance space. Cavalleria rusticana and Pagliacci or, more familiarly, Cav and Pag is an archetypal one-act opera pairing, and it’s hard to imagine two more closely matched pieces even though it was not the result of any concerted strategy on the part of the two composers, Mascagni and Leoncavallo. Composed just two years apart, these two dramas of jealousy, passion, and murder, show obvious similarities as early exponents of Italian Opera’s Verismo movement towards greater theatrical reality involving supposedly realistic settings and the dramas of ordinary people as an...

10May

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

Marie & Rosetta – Rose Theatre Kingston

The story of sister Rosetta Tharpe and Marie Knight is not a well-known one. Rosetta played by Beverley Knight was known as the ‘Godmother of Rock and Roll’ in the 1930’s and 40’s taking Gospel music to a whole new level. Donned with an electric guitar she moved with swing and soul influencing artists like Chuck Berry, Little Richard and well before the uprising of Elvis, Hendrix and other rock roll greats. Rosetta’s drive was to be true to herself with her music creating a fusion of her faith and soulful blues rock. Ntombizodwa Ndlovu debuts as Marie Knight a young woman married to a preacher man with two children who teams up with Rosetta to create a partnership that would prove to be more than just creating music. The women become aligned to each other’s strengths,...

Ní Liomsa an Teach Álainn Seo (This Is Not My Beautiful House) – Shakespeare North Playhouse

10May

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Ní Liomsa an Teach Álainn Seo (This Is Not My Beautiful House) – Shakespeare North Playhouse

Described as a story of myth, legend, and identity, whilst Anna Ní Dhúill's play is certainly ambitious in exploring what it means to be non-binary, it ultimately comes up short. Cult Collective’s show revolves around an unnamed artist (Seoirsín Bashford) as they wait in their studio for their partner to come home so that they can reveal their secret and finally come out as non-binary. As they wait, they begin to delve into their recent obsession with an old Irish legend about a bull that caused an all-island war many centuries before. When the bull comes alive, a battle of monologues begins, as they fiercely debate whether it is better to live as your true self and potentially be alone for it, or to exist only in other people’s expectations and remain a legend. Whilst the pre...