Hope Street Theatre Archives - North West End UK

An Evening of Talking Heads – Hope Street Theatre

7Dec

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

An Evening of Talking Heads – Hope Street Theatre

When Alan Bennett wrote the play Enjoy, in which an elderly couple find themselves being packed up to become a living museum exhibit, there’s a chance he might have been seeing the future for many of his other characters. Tonight, we have three monologues from Bennett’s first series of Talking Heads, first broadcast in 1988. The series, which has become a staple of English literature syllabus’, provides a variety of perspectives on themes such as isolation, guilt, and loneliness. Pieces like these will always present a bit of a challenge to some audiences – those who remember the time-period will find warmth in evocative references to times gone by, but younger audience members may find the idea of regularly writing letters, waiting for a call on a landline, or the 1980s buying power...

7Jun

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

The Dumb Waiter – Hope Street Theatre

Moxie on Fire are certainly that with their production of Harold Pinter’s classic one-act play, considered to be one of his best, and certainly one open to much interpretation depending on who you talk to, with director Kaitlin Howard successfully navigating the potential pitfalls whilst still leaving us with plenty to reflect on at its conclusion. Gus (Gareth Llewelyn) and Ben (Richard Cottier) are hit men who are holed-up in a dingy basement kitchen, waiting to be sent out on their next job. Even from before the start of the play it is clear that Ben is the more senior of the two as they lie on their respective beds – Ben reading the newspaper, Gus seemingly asleep. The unravelling scene captures the uneasy frustration between them as they wait for instruction on their next victim ...

They Don’t Really Care About Us – Hope Street Theatre

3Jun

By Gill LewisNo Comments

North West

They Don’t Really Care About Us – Hope Street Theatre

An intelligent and authentic production with fire in its belly, which does well to tackle complex themes with passionate conviction. Provides an important lesson in the ongoing injustices and experiences of racial and sexist discrimination, leaving room for further development and exploration. TDRCAU is set in the 90s during the immediate aftermath of the murder of Stephen Lawrence. A landmark case in which a public inquiry into the handling of his brutal racially motivated murder eventually exposed institutional racism within the UK police and justice systems. We follow the story of medical student Dinesh Sharma (portrayed by co-writer and co-director, Sab Muthusamy), a local lad of Indian descent who finds himself regularly subject to derogatory racial comments from th...

Accidental Death of an Anarchist – Hope Street Theatre

10May

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Accidental Death of an Anarchist – Hope Street Theatre

One of Dario Fo’s most loved and renowned works, Accidental Death of an Anarchist is based on the true story of the Piazza Fontana bombing in Milan in 1969 and the subsequent death of Giuseppe Pinelli whilst being held in police custody. Director Dan Meigh’s re-imagination of the play places us in a modern-day police station where a mysterious Maniac (Mat Oliphant) has just climbed through the wrong window to be encountered by Inspector Berlozzo (Phil Rayner) and Constable 1 (Noah Cambridge) who are already in possession of a warrant for his arrest. With a history tied to disruption and disturbance across the ages, the Maniac makes his escape to the fourth floor and an encounter with a Chief Inspector (Eleanor Martin), Inspector Pisoni (Connor Wray), and Constable 2 (Cambridge). With...

22Apr

By Paddy Darnell-WalshNo Comments

North West

BOUND – Hope Street Theatre

Theatre placing LGBTQ+ characters front and centre is still a rarity, even in 2024. In times where representation and equality are increasingly important, it is refreshing to come across new theatre centring on a same-sex relationship. BOUND, a new comedy by Phoebe Edmonds, and presented by Grapevine Theatre, follows lesbian couple Dani and Charlotte as they become engaged. What is seemingly a simple tale of wedding planning takes a twist when it becomes apparent that Dani is only willing to marry when The Church of England allows same-sex marriage. Edmonds’ One Act script offered great potential, particularly in its comedic elements. Along with Caitlin Newman, Edmonds directed her own piece and thus was able to fully realise her vision for the play. As the play only had two characters,...

The Guildford Poltergeist – Hope Street Theatre

25Feb

By Miranda GreenNo Comments

North West

The Guildford Poltergeist – Hope Street Theatre

Where to start with this play? It’s 1965 and a dysfunctional family of Irish descent (confusingly called Starbuck - a Yorkshire name) have moved from Manchester to deepest Surrey. Following the death of their father, bright seventeen-year-old Tristan must leave school to support his violent, alcoholic mother, Kathleen, and his neuro-atypical, school-shirking sister, Joyce. They’re already outsiders but they’re just about fitting in. Until the arrival of a poltergeist, which brings them infamy and attracts the suspicion of the local community. It also brings them into contact with a paranormalist, the priest, the press and the plod. Playwright Tess Humphrey has a lot to say about, in no particular order: Catholicism, generational trauma, otherness, racism, sexism, neurodiversity, PTSD...

16Feb

By Miranda GreenNo Comments

North West

Abigail’s Party – Hope Street Theatre

The Northern Comedy Theatre’s Abigail’s Party is another casualty of the closure of the Epstein. Relocated to the Hope Street Theatre, a tiny, intimate auditorium of just 85 cramped seats, located incongruously between a Masonic Hall, displaying the ritual paraphernalia of set squares and compasses, and the excellent Liverpool Arts Bar, the audience are projected almost on to the stage itself. Yet this only serves to foster the claustrophobic, pressure-cooker effect that this play demands. Devised in 1977 by Mike Leigh, the play observes the Classical Unities of time, action and place, depicting a drinks party thrown by the appalling Beverly (Kathryn Chambers) and her husband Laurence (Franklyn Jacks) for new neighbours Tony and Angela. Also present is Susan, who has been invited to ...

5Feb

By Mark DavorenNo Comments

North West

Sus – Hope Street Theatre

Barrie Keeffe’s play Sus exploring the deep-set systemic racism within the Metropolitan Police and society at large premiered over forty years ago yet with the resignation of Commissioner Cressida Dick less than two years ago following her failure to deal with misogyny and racism in the force, this powerful play still resonates. Whilst set on the eve of Thatcher’s landslide election victory in 1979, there are obvious and relevant parallels to Brexit’s ‘taking our country back’ that are reinforced by current-day statistics that tell us that black people are still nine times more likely to be stopped and searched than their white contemporaries. Unemployed father of three, Delroy (Rikki Dallas), has been brought in for interrogation by two police officers, Wilby (David J Williamson) a...

Dirty Old Town & Out Of The Woodwork – Hope Street Theatre

17Nov

By Bev ClarkNo Comments

North West

Dirty Old Town & Out Of The Woodwork – Hope Street Theatre

Dirty Old Town Hope Street Theatre tonight offered up a double bill of theatrical flavours: Marigold Lately in Dirty Old Town: a one woman show as a bitter-sweet starter. Followed by Lee Clotworthy’s new farce Out Of The Woodwork- a tasty meat-feast of laughter. Mikyla Jane Durkan and Lee Clotworthy both Liverpool theatre-makers, collaborated on this shared evening. For me, there was a certain amount of disconnect in styles but if you are looking for variety then you certainly won’t be disappointed. The first half gives us a stand-up routine perhaps more at home in cabaret or a comedy club. There is no doubt Durkan is an experienced performer but sometimes the lines blurred between what was Marigold’s truth and Durkan’s own… or was that the point? There were plenty of ...

The Book of Horror: Volume 1, A Haunting on Hope Street – Hope Street Theatre

21Oct

By Gill LewisNo Comments

North West

The Book of Horror: Volume 1, A Haunting on Hope Street – Hope Street Theatre

A scare fest which gets your pulse racing and heart pumping. 4AM Productions present this diverse scary selection of tales of the most terrible, with a rich blend of horror classics and new writing. We’re trick or treated into watching an assortment of stand-alone ghost stories, which feature some terrific twists and turns. All performed by a strong ensemble of 12, with most doubling up as actors, writers and directors. Our compare for the evening, The Curator (portrayed with gusto by Phil Halfpenny), our gothic garbed host, presents a selection of less than savoury tales to get us in the mood for the spooky season. The Curator and his ever-dependent servant, the creepy Minion (well played by Luke Bennet) deliver some laugh out loud moments and funny audience interactions which reall...