Customize Consent Preferences

We use cookies to help you navigate efficiently and perform certain functions. You will find detailed information about all cookies under each consent category below.

The cookies that are categorized as "Necessary" are stored on your browser as they are essential for enabling the basic functionalities of the site. ... 

Always Active

Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data.

No cookies to display.

Functional cookies help perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collecting feedback, and other third-party features.

No cookies to display.

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

No cookies to display.

Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

No cookies to display.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with customized advertisements based on the pages you visited previously and to analyze the effectiveness of the ad campaigns.

No cookies to display.

Wednesday, April 9

Tag: 53two

<strong>Bricks – 53Two</strong>
North West

Bricks – 53Two

“May artists bare their souls in here” intones poet Tony Walsh, as he launches tonight’s collection of short plays with the first reading of his poem, “These Bricks, they speak…”. Under the brick railway arch that 53Two calls home, we are given six vignettes of the human condition, each 15minute snapshot ploughing headlong into hard-hitting themes of childhood abandonment, illicit encounters, sexual abuse, eating disorders and vengeance. It’s a tough ask for any writer, director or actor to deliver the realism, depth and nuance one might look for in tackling such heavy-duty subjects within the timeframe and for the most part, tonight is more a solid display of modern melodrama, inviting the audience to overlook the fact that we can only lightly skim the qualities of the characters be...
Drowning – 53Two
North West

Drowning – 53Two

After a successful tour in 2020, Dare To Know Theatre’s one-man, one-act show Drowning is back on the road. The debut play by writer and performer Jake Talbot garnered positive reviews on its first outing and this time around the show is taking in larger venues - like 53Two in Manchester. It’s even paying a visit to the nation’s capital. Any fears the team may have bitten off more than they can chew are soon assuaged. This is an accomplished piece of work, performed comfortably by an actor who knows the emotional and humorous beats of his tightly written script inside out. A black stage, empty aside from a square white box, is plunged into darkness. The haunting melodies of The Lathums’ Struggle fades away and a spotlight illuminates Josh. The 16-year-old is lying peacefully, sile...
<strong>Realms of Glory – 53Two</strong>
North West

Realms of Glory – 53Two

As the Christmas Markets and colourful pantomimes take over Manchester’s culture scene, tucked away in a pocket of Deansgate, a seasonal offering from 53two comes in the form of Imaginality Production’s ‘Realms of Glory’, a World War Two-inspired musical. The Manchester Blitz of 1940 sees munitions worker Lizzie entombed in her home at Christmastime by the heavy bombings. Trapped and alone, she reminisces about times gone by. A theatrical festive feast is promised in the show’s synopsis, but a lack of story depth and characterisation leaves little to feed on. The focus is on Lizzie’s ‘love at first sight’ relationship with RAF pilot Robert and their desire to raise a family, with time also dedicated to her friend Mavis, who falls for Jim. What unfolds is simply a series of sombre soa...
JB Shorts – 53Two
North West

JB Shorts – 53Two

There are very few certainties in life. Hardly any in theatre. One constant, however, is that JB Shorts always delivers interesting ideas, great writing and talented acting. For anyone unfamiliar, the showcase of short plays was born in the Joshua Brooks pub more than a decade ago as a way of giving TV writers the space to try out new work. The show has gone from strength to strength in its new home at 53Two and this selection of shorts is no different. Energy bills, the political response to the pandemic, ableism, so-called cancel culture and discrimination. The issues being tackled are overwhelmingly influenced by the extraordinary times we are living through. However, at the heart of each play, are surprisingly well-drawn characters given the brevity of the texts. Zoe Iqbal &am...
Julie: The Musical – 53two
North West

Julie: The Musical – 53two

No one is more deserving of a jaunty, high-octane musical than Mademoiselle Maupin, and so this one-acter celebrates the sword-fighting, opera-singing, understated queer icon that she was. The life of Maupin, also known as Julie d’Aubigny, (Abey Bradbury) and her escapades are retold through comical, lyrical accounts. This tell-all biography-style piece may not be entirely historically accurate, but the events seen on stage are mostly all true. There is a lot to appreciate in Bradbury’s production, starting with representation in the form of an incredibly likeable bisexual heroine. Her script is witty and well-paced, with catchy songs and rib-tickling choreography making the ninety-minute run-time fly by. A slightly clumsy start gives way to a tight, tenacious performance from the...
New space, new writing and new beginnings for 53two as they lay out plans to take them to 2023
NEWS

New space, new writing and new beginnings for 53two as they lay out plans to take them to 2023

53two launch first ever season in their new home with world premieres of new writing, the return of JB Shorts and opportunities for Greater Manchester talent to share their work as a part of several new platforms supporting multi-discipline creatives. 53two, only just over a year old in their new venue, are making moves to change the face of independent Manchester Theatre with a line-up of new writing and events that will champion their ethos of ensuring theatre and the arts are for everyone. For creatives and audiences alike, access is key. In September, the space affectionately known as ‘the arches’ will open its newly expanded 150-seater venue with brand new writing from Joshua Chandos. The one act, two hander will be brought to life by the venue’s Creative Director, Simon Naylor ...
If This Is Normal – 53Two
North West

If This Is Normal – 53Two

Being young is a wonderful thing, isn’t it? All you can remember, as you look back at those carefree days and that glorious summer before going to university, is the sunshine and the happy times, yes? Those heady days when everything seemed possible and all you had to do was to go out and enjoy yourself with your mates. Wasn’t it fantastic? Yet was it? Because when you get older you tend to forget all the confusion, the insecurity, the vulnerability and the sheer emotional nightmare we all went through when we were young.  It is a very confusing time and If This Is Normal captures all that angst perfectly. Writer Lucy Danser’s play is, like most teenagers, full of verve, energy, sprit, fun and emotion. It follows the friendship of three young people, siblings Madani and Maryam w...
Chatback Theatre’s If This Is Normal to be<br>published by Methuen as Liverpool date added to<br>the UK Tour
NEWS

Chatback Theatre’s If This Is Normal to be
published by Methuen as Liverpool date added to
the UK Tour

Chatback Theatre’s coming-of-age hit If This is Normal, will be published by Methuen next month and will be available at all venues during their UK tour this April. The news comes the team announce an exciting new stop at Liverpool’s Royal Court Theatre. Critically acclaimed at Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2019 and VAULT Festival in 2020, the show follows a trio of teenagers navigating the no-man’s land between childhood and adulthood, complicated by unfiltered access to technology and pop-feminism. The full cast returns from the previous Edinburgh Fringe Festival and VAULT festival runs with Aoife Smyth as Alex (On Railton Road, Brixton Base; If I Can Get This Part Right At Least, Nottingham Playhouse), Isambard Rawbone as Madani (Midnight Hustle, Rogue Productions/ VAULT Festival, Ham...
Bamalam Productions: All The Bens – 53Two
REVIEWS

Bamalam Productions: All The Bens – 53Two

I was lucky enough to be invited to 53Two in Manchester for Bamalam Productions’ launch of their new audio drama, All The Bens. Bamalam Productions is a company providing a platform for new and creative talent: they create a collection of audio dramas written by contemporary writers and performed by new acting talent. The company was created by James Steventon and Lauren Sturgess who, after graduating as actors from the Academy of Live and Recorded Arts in 2017, have gone on to produce many audio plays and podcast series, some of which have starred famous talents such as Julie Hesmondhalgh (who you might have known as Hayley Cropper in Coronation Street), as well as emerging artists from across the UK. All The Bens is their latest audio play and their first back, following the two ye...
53two launch charity auction to continue their journey in supporting underserved artists & developing their accessible venue
NEWS

53two launch charity auction to continue their journey in supporting underserved artists & developing their accessible venue

In May, 53two opened the doors to its bar/café arts venue – a hub for creatives across Greater Manchester to meet, work and play together. At the end of June, their pop-up ‘Studio’ space was opened for theatrical and event bookings. The 60-seat studio space, designed to be a stop-gap, will house short-plays, new writing nights, intimate gigs and events until they can open their 150 seater venue early next year. Whilst they are open and functioning, they still have some way to go to make the venue as brilliant and accessible as they possibly can. For this, they’re looking to you! Manchester giants have donated auction items for you to view and bid on over the next couple of weeks. From Damon Albarn tickets at Manchester Central & Parklife Weekend VIP Passes, to Afternoon Tea i...