Andrew Exeter Archives - North West End UK

Remembrance Monday – Seven Dials Playhouse

29Apr

By Zoё MeeresNo Comments

London

Remembrance Monday – Seven Dials Playhouse

Watching Remembrance Monday, I was reminded of a description I’ve always liked of memories that I read in an interview. The interviewee (it may have been Florence Welch but don’t quote me on that), talked about memories being like photocopies of photocopies, blurring gradually over time as you get further and further away from the original. And so it is with Julius (Nick Hayes), as his recollections of what initially appears to be a regular Monday night with husband Connor (Matthew Stathers) quickly take a much darker turn. In Remembrance Monday, playwright Michael Batten weaves seeds of doubt and confusion very early on, presenting questions about the reliability of Julius’s narration. I’ll keep this a spoiler free zone, but I will say that the twists and unfolding of the plot are perf...

2Nov

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

LIZZIE– Southwark Playhouse

London's Southwark Playhouse is currently playing host to a riveting and unapologetically fierce production of ‘LIZZIE’, the true crime rock punk musical. This fresh and dynamic production of the first UK staging, presented by the accomplished team at Hope Mill Theatre, is edgy, bold, and nothing short of brilliant. It brings a thrilling blend of music, drama, and history to the stage, redefining the boundaries of what a musical can be, and quite frankly goes toe-to-toe with some of the other similar historical productions that are currently playing in the West End and round the globe. Set in the backdrop of the infamous Lizzie Borden murders in Fall River, Massachusetts in 1892, ‘LIZZIE’ weaves a gripping narrative that blends fact, fiction, legend, and female sass, into an intoxicatin...

4Sep

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

LIZZIE The Musical – Hope Mill Theatre

On a late Summer Sunday afternoon when the sun had finally decided to grace Manchester with its presence, I forfeit the chance of barbeques with friends (or beers in the pub garden) to attend the UK rebirth of 'Lizzie', billed as 'A True Crime Rock Musical'. Some two hours later, I emerged blinking into the light having witnessed a 'tour de force' of musical theatre with powerhouse performances and cracking choreography. A production which will stay with me for a very long time, I definitely made the right decision. 'Lizzie Borden took an axe, And gave her mother forty whacks. When she saw what she had done, She gave her father forty-one.' This nursery rhyme is as well known to American children as 'Ring a Roses' or 'Three Blind Mice' is to their British counterparts, and it...

15Jul

By Gemma PrinceNo Comments

London

Millennials – The Other Palace

A pink pop frenzy is the best way to describe Elliot Clay’s new pop song cycle Millennials, which has transformed the Studio of The Other Palace. Written and composed by Clay and directed by Hannah Benson, the musical tells the highs and lows of life as a millennial right now, from crippling social anxiety to first loves, the show packs in plenty in just over an hour. The show features a small but strong cast which includes Hannah Lowther, Luke Bayer, Hiba Elchikhe, Georgina Onuorah, Luke Latchman and What’s Onstage award winner Rob Madge. Designed by Andrew Exeter, the immersive set wowed the moment you walked through the curtain of pink pool noodles. There was a dizzying blend of sparkles, pink lights, inflatables, rubber ducks and slinkies everywhere. Normal seats were replaced wi...

Lady Chatterley’s Lover – stream.theatre

8Oct

By Louise PennNo Comments

REVIEWS

Lady Chatterley’s Lover – stream.theatre

A musical based on DH Lawrence's controversial last novel, Lady Chatterley’s Lover, sounds an interesting prospect. John Robinson – a former engineer and academic who turned composer late in life – has taken the romantic thread of the story, but jettisoned the sex, earthy language, and nudity to make a PG friendly show. Filmed during its two-night run at the Shaftesbury Theatre in June, Sasha Regan's production benefits from a clever two-tier set by Andrew Exeter highlighting the deeply rooted difference in class between Constance, Lady Chatterley (Georgia Lennon), and the rough gamekeeper (Michael Pickering) who had been an officer in the Great War. There is wood panelling and trappings of wealth above, and the rough bark of trees in the wood below. An early number underlines the pa...

BKLYN: The Musical – Lambert Jackson/Stream.Theatre

24Mar

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

REVIEWS

BKLYN: The Musical – Lambert Jackson/Stream.Theatre

Towards the end of Schoenfeld and McPherson’s sidewalk fairytale a character warns that sometimes memories are better than reality. Throughout lockdown the option to stream shows has provided a theatrical lifeline, entertaining audiences whilst providing the theatres and production companies some much needed money. However, sometimes these productions felt like pale imitations of the live versions we crave. BKLYN takes a cinematic swipe at the streamed musical, some of the theatrical trappings are visible (Leo Munby’s tight trio of a band, chunky stage lights at the edge of the action) but the show is carried by Dean Johnson’s attempts to create something more innovative than a love song to an empty theatre. The dilapidated warehouse setting works well with An...

Shane Richie to star in digital revival of Scaramouche Jones or the Seven White Masks

22Feb

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

NEWS

Shane Richie to star in digital revival of Scaramouche Jones or the Seven White Masks

Much-loved and multi-talented stage and screen actor Shane Richie (EastEnders; The Entertainer; One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest; I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here) will take on the role of the titular tragic clown in the digital revival of Justin Butcher’s absorbing solo show, Scaramouche Jones. Filmed in a London theatre, and available to stream on Stream.Theatre from Friday 26th March to Sunday 11th April, this is the latest production from Ginger Quiff Media - the OnCom award-winning team behind the acclaimed revivals of Martin Sherman’s Rose starring Dame Maureen Lipman, and Little Wars (The Guardian and New York Times top picks) featuring Juliet Stevenson and Linda Bassett. Richie swaps the I’m A Celeb Welsh castle for the digital stage, taking on the role made famous by the late...