Thursday, March 28

Tag: Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Home, I’m Darling – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Home, I’m Darling – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Opening night for Home, I’m Darling at the divine Altrincham Garrick Playhouse and the audience are presented with a phenomenal set (designed by Charlotte Leigh) of a beautiful 1950’s inspired interior. The stairs, centrally placed, lead up to a simple bedroom, painted in hot pink. Downstairs, on the one side, the yellow kitchen (with a superb Smeg refrigerator) and monochrome chequered floor, on the other, a green living room complete with a 1950’s fireplace and minibar! The set construction team (with Mandy Cooke as Scenic Artist) have excelled in the creation of this authentic looking abode. The aesthetics in this show are key to creating the initial allure of the 1950’s and the costumes did not disappoint; a range of colourful 50’s inspired dresses and suits were worn throughout by...
Bombshells – The Lauriston Studio, Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Bombshells – The Lauriston Studio, Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The Lauriston Studio has been a welcome addition to the Manchester theatrical scene over the last few years, giving the opportunity for the estimable team at Altrincham Garrick Playhouse the opportunity to stage productions with more esoteric appeal than can be staged in the main house. So, hot on the heels of their well-received LGBTQ+ season earlier in the year, comes ' A Season of Female Stories', works written by women, starring women and about women, but hopefully not just appealing to that demographic. The first offering this Autumn is 'Bombshells', a 2004 work by Joanna Murray-Smith comprising six monologues varying from a teenage mother struggling to cope to a 64-year-old widow slowly reacquainting herself with her burgeoning sexuality. As directed by Carole Carr, these stories...
The Shawshank Redemption – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

The Shawshank Redemption – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Upon entering the Altrincham Garrick, I was immediately drawn into the chilling confines of the Shawshank Prison. The stage, impressively transformed for an amateur theatre, mirrors the grim atmosphere of a bleak, metallic prison block, further intensified by dim lighting. This ambiance, paired with the methodical procession of prisoners, sets an undeniable authentic tone. I definitely wouldn’t want to be there, and Director; Joseph Meighan has done an excellent job is creating this dirty world, where new inmates dare not step a foot out of line for fear of receiving brutal consequences. This rendition of "The Shawshank Redemption" offers a fresh perspective on Stephen King's iconic narrative, a tale that resonates with themes of resilience and hope in the face of adversity. A lengthy ...
Altrincham Garrick Show Choir – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Altrincham Garrick Show Choir – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The Altrincham Garrick Show Choir, attached to the amateur company, has not been together that long, and this is only their second full concert held at the building from where they rehearse and take their name.  As such a certain amount of leeway is given as are all giving up their free time to rehearse and perform, and a lack of experience as a choir. The choir, under the musical direction of Dan McDwyer, have obviously been rehearsing hard and sing well, but there are issues with the format as a whole.  Many of the songs were either relatively obscure from musicals such as Come From Away and Out of Our Heads, a pleasure to hear something different, to the overused Bring Him Home from Les Misérables and From Now On from The Greatest Showman.  Good to hear some classics ...
Into The Woods – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Into The Woods – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Ever since the death of Stephen Sondheim in November 2021 there has been a rush on both the professional and amateur stage to produce his works, with every performer and creative wishing to pay posthumous tribute to the most influential voice in musical theatre during the latter half of the last century. As a fully paid up 'Sondaphile', I've therefore been delighted to witness this outpouring of love for the great man with productions of Company and Sweeney Todd and 'A Little Night Music' standing next to his lesser known works (Passion, Assassins and the forthcoming Pacific Overtures) in showcasing his lyrical genius. Tonight we are firmly at the popular end of the spectrum with a production of 'Into The Woods' the 1987 collaboration with James Lapine, as Altrincham Garrick finish their ...
Last Summer at Bluefish Cove – Lauriston Studio, Altrincham
North West

Last Summer at Bluefish Cove – Lauriston Studio, Altrincham

For the final production in their season of LGBTQ+ plays in the Lauriston studio, Altrincham Garrick have produced a masterful retelling of a play that is little known on this side of the Atlantic. Not only is it extremely funny and touching, it should also be seen as an important milestone in the development of queer theatre history. For the first time it allowed gay characters to be portrayed as three dimensional beings, rather than the troubled stereotypes which had populated the theatre prior to its production. We arrive in the eponymous Long Island resort with Eva (Madeleine Healey), recently divorced from husband George, she is emotionally lost and confused and still grieving the loss of her son Lenny six years earlier. She meets Lil (Phillipa Shellard) whilst walking on the beac...
Best of Enemies – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Best of Enemies – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The latest National Theatre Live production arrives at the Altrincham Garrick Playhouse on Sunday 28th May and it’s a real political powerhouse, with stunning central performances from two superb actors at the top of their game. ‘Best of Enemies’ comes from the pen of James Graham, the prolific talent behind This House, Ink and Labour of Love, productions which manage to dramatise recent political British history in an entertaining and illuminating manner. Mining a similar seam to Peter Morgan in the Netflix smash ‘The Crown’, Graham takes real political events (Lib/Lab pact, Rupert Murdoch’s purchase of The Sun newspaper) and turns tinder dry history into unmissable drama. For his most recent success, filmed at the Noel Coward Theatre early in 2023, Graham has crossed the Atlantic and...
Witness for the Prosecution – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Witness for the Prosecution – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Director Mike Shaw has delighted us with his production of ‘Witness for the Prosecution’ a play that has been adapted from Agatha Christie’s 1925 short story "Traitor's Hands". Shaw is no stranger to directing some of Agatha Christie’s having directed at least three others previously as well as other whodunnit and murder mysteries. I have not seen any of Agatha Christie’s greats, so I was entering the theatre as a novice and had no expectations of the play itself. The creative team have done a magnificent job on the staging as the set is that of an authentic court room creating the atmosphere of being in the chambers itself. It’s the atmosphere that they have created that makes this a very unique experience; the echoes of footsteps outside the chamber and the grandeur of the Old Bai...
Our Town – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
North West

Our Town – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Directed by Joe Meighan, 'Our Town' is written by American playwright and Pulitzer Prize winner, Thornton Wilder and is performed at The Altrincham Garrick Playhouse this week.  The Garrick are a very exciting company to watch and with an impressive three acts to the play, ‘Our Town’ is no exception. The story is set in the fictional ‘Grover’s Corners’, New Hampshire and takes place between 1901 and 1913. Despite the era, the entire feel of this story is that it is entirely relatable, focussing essentially on life and death (and all the key moments in between) with reference to the people who live here. It follows the love story of neighbours George Gibbs (Luke Grewer) and Emily Webb (Lauren Robinson) but is actually about so much more. Opening up 10 minutes prior to the m...
National Theatre Live: Good – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse
NEWS

National Theatre Live: Good – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The latest offering from National Theatre Live arrives at Altrincham Garrick Playhouse on Saturday 29 April, offering northern audiences an unmissable opportunity to witness the CP Taylor play 'Good', filmed earlier this year at the Harold Pinter Theatre in London. David Tennant (Doctor Who) makes his return to the West End stage in this powerful political drama, playing John Halder, a 'good German' who gradually finds himself being drawn into the Nazi ideology in the years leading up to the outbreak of the Second World War. His innate liberalism and tolerance is gradually corrupted, eventually leading to the betrayal of his Jewish best friend, Maurice (Elliot Levy), his embracing of fascism and facilitation of the Final Solution and the Holocaust. A show with such intensity and with a...