Joshua Pharo Archives - North West End UK

It Walks Around the House at Night– Southwark Playhouse Borough

10Mar

By Charles PipeNo Comments

London

It Walks Around the House at Night– Southwark Playhouse Borough

When struggling working-class actor Joe (George Naylor) accepts a seductively well-paid job offer from an alluring and wealthy man, he is thrust into an increasingly nightmarish situation that has him questioning his sanity. It Walks Around the House at Night blends elements of psychological thriller, Gothic horror, and dark comedy into an atmospheric and entertaining thrill ride. Naylor gives a fantastic performance as Joe, supported by a very strong script from playwright Tim Foley. With a sardonic yet affable charm, Joe immediately wins the audience over, and as a result they are invested and gripped when he is placed into peril. Sometimes Joe’s characterisation is a little inconsistent – one moment he is naïve and credulous, the next he has near-psychic levels of insight – but...

Kenrex – The Other Palace

A true crime story of a still unsolved crime in small town America, KENREX blends genres, true crime, western, music into something far, far greater than the sum of its parts. What begins as an almost true crime podcast style reconstruction of a murder turns into a study of how a small community shapes its own mythology, and how fear, loyalty and silence can outlast the truth. After acclaimed runs in Sheffield and Southwark Playhouse, this transfer to The Other Palace just confirms how brilliant KENREX is. Ken Rex McElroy was a violent bully who terrorised the small town of Skidmore, Missouri, for years. With no sheriff and no police within an hour's drive, the law was never able to stop him. A snake-oil lawyer (with a brilliant introduction that almost adds musical as a genre to ...

Extinct – Theatre Royal Stratford East

As I walked through the exit doors of Theatre Royal Stratford East, two immediate thoughts struck me. First, a growing feeling of being overwhelmed (in a good way) by something I thought I knew but hadn’t fully grasped until just then. Second, a feeling of (self-conscious) irony that washed over me as I looked around for a recyclable bin to dispose of my complimentary-press-night beverage can. Unable to find one, I settled for a general use bin instead (I know, I know) and made my way home. Through this brief and exceedingly casual act that many of us probably undertake everyday without much thought, I was confronted by the central argument the show represents – human indifference in the face of a global extinction crisis. Extinct is a deeply gripping, hauntingly vivid call for action a...