Mark Anderson Archives - North West End UK

8Sep

By Coral MourantNo Comments

North West

Waitress – Liverpool Empire

The diner doors are open and excitement is served, as Liverpool Empire welcomes the UK tour of Waitress. And this particular audience got an extra helping of sweetness added to an already superb show. Jenna is an expert pie-baker and waitress, whose dreams of happiness seem a little out of reach. While her friends support her, and a new Doctor in town spices up her love-life, Jenna has to take matters into her own hands; will baking the perfect pie be the solution to her problems? Based on the film by Adrienne Shelley, this musical takes a fantastic score by Sara Bareilles and an inspiring story written by Jessie Nelson and creates a perfectly seasoned piece. (Yes, there are more baking puns to come) This evening, Ellie Ruiz Rodriguez donned the leading lady’s apron for the first ...

Waitress – Hull New Theatre

The first time I reviewed Waitress for this website, in 2022, I wrote: “Sometimes the singing was a wee bit too loud for me to distinguish certain words, but I’m sure my ears were to blame”. Well, those same ears are still attached to my noggin, so how would they fare four years older? I am pleased to say the sound engineers got it just right on Tuesday night, when Waitress started its - 10th anniversary - run at a packed Hull New Theatre. The city’s theatregoers were out in force, maybe with the expectation of seeing the show’s star, entertainer Les Dennis, in action as diner owner, Joe. However, a helpful notice at the box office informed us his role on the night would be undertaken by Dan O’Brien. But any initial disappointment at not seeing the famous name soon disappeared ...

Bedknobs and Broomsticks – Liverpool Empire

As someone who has never seen Bedknobs and Broomsticks (I know, I know, I feel like I missed out on many a cult classic) I was worried that I wouldn’t love the musical as much as someone who has nostalgia on their side. I needn’t have worried. I can hand on heart say that that was one of the most beautiful and magical shows I have ever seen in my life - or beauti-cal as our 3 heroes (Charles, Carrie and Paul) would say. We start the show with a bang, quite literally, in a breath-taking sequence of physical theatre. Beginning with the three children happily in their cosy bedroom, their mother and father saying goodnight before a sudden explosion tears their home, and lives, apart. There’s no time to gather their thoughts as we follow them, silently, as they leave the broken streets...