Friday, December 5

Tag: Phoenix Arts Club

London

I Screamed a Scream – Phoenix Arts Club

Halloween season is the perfect time to celebrate all things wicked, and I Screamed a Scream embraces that spirit with devilish delight. This cabaret brings together a collection of songs from some of theatre and film’s most iconic villains, alongside a few surprising choices that make you question what really defines a villain in the first place. One of the most unexpected moments of the evening came with the inclusion of Bop to the Top from High School Musical. It’s a fun, upbeat number, but it does make you pause to wonder: are Ryan and Sharpay truly villainous enough to earn their place among such notorious company? Whether or not you think they fit the bill, the song’s addition brought a burst of nostalgia and humour to the night, and that playful unpredictability was part of t...
Caged Sisters Musical – Phoenix Arts Club
London

Caged Sisters Musical – Phoenix Arts Club

Inspired by the Chinese epic Dream of the Red Chamber, this new musical—with book and direction by Sheldon Long—is a diminutive adaptation with much to recommend it but little to actually say. This iteration of the script, which is still under development, runs under an hour and feels more like a presentation of vignettes for audiences already familiar with the source material than a fully realized adaptation in its own right. Mounted by East Meets West Theatre in the iconic Phoenix Arts Club; this production was unfortunately riddled with technical difficulties that interrupted its flow and obfuscated its already difficult-to-follow plot. It tells the story of sisters You Er (Yiting Jian) and You San (Yiqian Shao), although this fact is not revealed until almost halfway through its...