Joseph Meighan Archives - Page 2 of 2

One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

8Feb

By Paul AckroydNo Comments

North West

One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

When Ken Kesey’s debut novel was published in 1962 it was an instant hit and spawned a lauded theatrical production, one of the greatest movies of all time and countless other adaptations. It’s a brave choice then for the Garrick Ensemble to take on One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest for only their second production. A company of 18-to-30-year-old up-and-coming actors from the local area, the ensemble aims to produce a play a year on the main stage at the Altrincham Garrick Playhouse. It’s a chance to see local talent in innovative work before they proceed in their careers. This show certainly has talent in abundance but the ambition to create something fresh may have been lost in the scale and baggage of the story they’ve taken on. Photo: Martin Ogden Randle Patrick McMurphy (Joseph...

Frankenstein – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

18Jan

By Paul WilcoxNo Comments

North West

Frankenstein – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

These are interesting times at the Garrick Playhouse in the leafy south Manchester suburb of Altrincham. Under the aegis of Artistic Director Joseph Meighan, their programming is broadening its appeal beyond the traditional light comedy and murder mystery, into edgier and darker territory. So, we find 2022 kicking off with an absolutely cracking adaptation of the Mary Shelley gothic masterpiece, both chilling and thought provoking and with a simply stunning central performance. Those patrons expecting a hoary old 'Boris Karloff with a bolt through the neck' rendition, would have been disappointed. With Direction and Set Design in the capable hands of Barry J C Purves, this was always going to be a more delicate study on the nature of humanity. By using Nick Dear's 2011 National Theatre ...

The Little Mermaid – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

26Oct

By Hannah WildeNo Comments

North West

The Little Mermaid – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Even if you’re not a Disney aficionado, everyone knows the story of The Little Mermaid: Girl meets boy, girl can’t be with boy, chaos ensues, true love prevails. It’s a true Disney classic. However, love story aside, I was very intrigued to see how a story that predominantly occurs underwater would be portrayed onstage, so when the chance arose to see The Little Mermaid at Altrincham Garrick Playhouse, I naturally had to see it for myself. And am I glad I did! With a dream-team of talent spearheading the dressing rooms – from renowned stage director Joseph Meighan, musical director Mark Goggins, and lesser-known at the Garrick (but still utterly fantastic) choreographer Koda Holland-Smith – it’s no wonder this show was a delight from start to finish. Photo: Martin Ogden Whilst ...

Curtain Up – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

21Sep

By Hannah WildeNo Comments

North West

Curtain Up – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Described on its promotional literature as “a celebratory evening of musical theatre”, Curtain Up at the Altrincham Garrick Playhouse certainly delivered this celebration in spades. As somewhat of a musical theatre aficionado, I have attended lots of musical medleys in my time – concerts, jukebox musicals, shows, and even films that are an ode to the not-so-humble, completely camp and over-the-top art form that is musical theatre. Anything that promises showtunes and jazz hands, I’ll be there. As a result, in my time I’ve witnessed musical theatre homages that really have ranged from the good, the bad, and the ugly. However, this one was definitely not the latter – Curtain Up felt like it had something special. This show marks the first full-scale production in Altrincham Garri...

20Jul

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

Chatroom – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

What would you imagine to be on the agenda for teenagers chatting online? Rating current romantic crushes? How mean mum and dad are for not letting them out past 10? Whether the fat German kid would be more likely to win Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory over Charlie Bucket might not feature on your list, but it is the first vignette of conversation we’re presented with as we join our six teen stars of Enda Walsh’s one-act play Chatroom. Described as a chilling, blackly comic tale, Chatroom looks at themes of online manipulation, cyberbullying and teenage depression, as relatively innocent conversations dissecting children’s literature and pop music are punctured by the arrival of Jim, a young man struggling with suicidal thoughts. This show marks the first production by the Garric...

The Last Five Years – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

8Jun

By Alison BainesNo Comments

North West

The Last Five Years – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The award winning The Last Five Years has got to be one of my favourite musicals. With a stunning musical score by Jason Robert Brown, the one act musical requires actors with a broad range both vocally and emotionally to portray the joy, hardship and heartbreak Cathy and Jamie endure throughout. With a tiny cast of just two actors, and directed by new Garrick Artistic Director Joseph Meighan, The Last Five Years is an intimate look at the relationship between two New Yorkers: a writer and an actress The musical follows their love story in a fresh, modern way, as its unconventional structure tells Cathy’s story in reverse and Jamie’s chronologically. You may have seen Hollywood star Anna Kendrick and Broadway sensation Jeremy Jordan in the film adaptation released in 2014, so Ella- M...

FIRST LOOK – The Last Five Years at Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

7Jun

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

NEWS

FIRST LOOK – The Last Five Years at Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

The Altrincham Garrick Playhouse have today released the first production images and a trailer ahead of their first opening night in over 15 months tonight. Jason Robert Brown’s The Last Five Years is playing until Saturday 12th June, one of the only musicals to be taking place in the Greater Manchester area this week, not to mention any LIVE theatre! Jason Robert Brown’s Drama Desk Award winning musical, The Last Five Years, is an intensely personal look at the relationship between two New Yorkers; a writer and an actress, who fall in and out of love over the course of five years. Image: Martin Ogden Directed by Joseph Meighan, this modern, One Act musical masterpiece is emotionally powerful and intimate with one of the brightest, freshest scores of the new century. The musica...

Romeo and Juliet – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

18Mar

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

North West

Romeo and Juliet – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

"We are two worlds apart." Joseph Meighan's melding of 1990s pop culture with the 16th century tale of two tragic young lovers is a bold and innovative take on what is probably Shakespeare's best-known play. As with much of Shakespeare's work, the story of Romeo and Juliet is timelessly malleable and has been retold in countless formats, including as musicals, opera and on film, since it was written in around 1595. It has been set in any number of time periods and situations with the deep-seated hatred between the Montague and Capulet families reflecting every conflict throughout history, as the cast movingly reference at the end of the play. Everyone knows the plot: Romeo, a Montague, sneaks into a Capulet masked ball and it's love at first sight when he sees the young and bea...

Panto.Demic – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

20Nov

By Paul DownhamNo Comments

North West

Panto.Demic – Altrincham Garrick Playhouse

Pantomime is well and truly a British institution, and although the traditional festive offering might not be playing in theatres up and down the country this year as it normally would, the tradition of Panto has always had the capacity to adapt with the times, and even during a pandemic, the team at the fantastic Altrincham Garrick Theatre continue to entertain their audiences even during a national lockdown with a special pre-recorded ‘Panto-demic’ short for the whole family to sit down together and enjoy! The Altrincham Garrick have a well-deserved reputation for delivering one of the best family-friendly pantomimes in the North West and I’d be the first to say I was thoroughly excited to be sat in those red theatre chairs with a packet of wine gums in hand ready to sit back and enjo...