Southwark Playhouse Archives - North West End UK

14Sep

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Night City – Southwark Playhouse

There’s no doubt that working conditions and employee power have slowly eroded in the past few decades. Secure jobs that are well paid and fulfilling are dwindling like ice caps. Decent employment options are likely to die out with the generation that once enjoyed them. Everyone ditched mini cab firms and black Hackney cabs for the cheap convenience of Uber, which is no longer the budget option it once was. Now, there are few alternatives to Uber, which seems to have a monopoly on the market and appears to be taking advantage of both drivers and customers. In the States, working as an app-based delivery driver is considered one of the deadliest occupations. A landmark report by the advocacy group Gig Workers Rising documented at least 80 app-based workers were murdered on the job betwee...

18Jul

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Firebird – Southwark Playhouse

My friend Eric, an Egyptian Muslim pulled me aside last week. He dragged me out of earshot from his mother, who eyed us both suspiciously while adjusting her hijab. ‘Can I ask you something?’ Eric whispered, fizzing with anxiety. ‘Is it true what they say about Muslim grooming gangs?’ I sighed, weary at a right-wing narrative that’s now fuelling doubt in the community it seeks to demonise. It’s a live situation, unfolding in real time. ‘Yes, Eric,’ I replied, cautiously. ‘But it’s complex and toxic. Sex offenders of Muslim heritage DO exist, but they get outsize media attention. Waaaaaay more than white British groomers. AND it’s a social media shitstorm for clicks and clout.’ Eric could barely look at me. My careworn brain reeled with grisly memories of drunken, ugly fights wi...

30May

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Redcliffe – Southwark Playhouse

While gay life has existed as long as humanity, the British history of homosexuality isn’t recorded in any informative detail until the 18th century. It is via court records and lurid newspaper reports from that period which give colour to London’s bordellos, ‘rent boy’ scandals and the plight of poor men who were executed and pilloried for the crime of sodomy. Anyone interested in Georgian queer life should read ‘Mother Clap’s Molly House- The Gay Subculture in England 1700-1830’ by Rictor Norton. It’s academic and brutally comprehensive, but it’s an absolute banger. It is from this arcane world of blackmail, public hangings and graphic pamphlets that Jordan Luke Gage has found inspiration for Redcliffe, his debut musical. Set in Bristol 1752-53, this eagerly anticipated production put...

The Last Man – Southwark Playhouse Elephant

15May

By Olivia CoxNo Comments

London

The Last Man – Southwark Playhouse Elephant

Deep down in an underground bunker made of concrete and reinforced steel, our unnamed protagonist (played by Lex Lee on press night, alternating the role with Nabi Brown) is seeking shelter from a zombie apocalypse caused by a mysterious unknown virus. As he stocks up his new abode with bulk bought food and supplies, some audience members may feel a shudder of deja vu as there is a touch of the COVID-19 about it all. But not to worry – there aren’t any Zoom quizzes or clashing of pots and pans this time. Photo: Rich Lakos/ArenaPAL Instead, The Last Man, a new English translation of Jishik Kim and Seungyeon Kwon’s Korean musical with dramaturgy from Jethro Compton, follows the protagonist as he reckons with what it takes to survive against all odds and leave the life he once knew behi...

11Feb

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Miles – Southwark Playhouse

The Southwark Playhouse (Borough) was heaving and giddy for the Monday press night of Miles, which swaggers into London after dazzling Edinburgh Fringe last year. Two young women were sat next to me. We chatted before the show started. They are both actors, blessed with good looks, quick wit and youthful enthusiasm. They were amused to hear I’m reviewing the show. Why? One of them turned out to be to be Amelia Bright, Assistant Director on this production. Written and directed by Oliver Kaderbhai, the concept of this show was crafted by globally renowned jazz trumpet whizz, Jay Phelps. He also happens play one of two characters in Miles. Phelps plays a thinly veiled version of himself. His co-star, Benjamin Akintuyosi, plays Miles Davis. Phelps isn’t messing about. The man with the trum...

30Jan

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

Ballad Lines – Southwark Playhouse

It's hard not to be inspired and astounded at the confidence, devotion and commitment that Finn Anderson and Tania Azevedo have shown in getting Ballad Lines onto the stage. It's been about a decade in the making, with Anderson delivering the music and lyrics while collaborating with Azevedo on the book. From workshops in Chicago and tentative stagings at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (2018), this show has evolved and finally landed, due to a lot of hard work and determination. Ballad Lines was first produced by KT Producing and Macrobert Arts Centre as A Mother's Song and was originally commissioned by the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and American Music Theatre Project. It should also be noted that Azevedo and Anderson aren't a pair of chancers who've winged it and landed on their f...

The Olive Boy – Southwark Playhouse Borough

20Jan

By Olivia CoxNo Comments

London

The Olive Boy – Southwark Playhouse Borough

In Ollie Maddigan’s The Olive Boy, he tells us how his mum used to compare him to the stoned fruit not only because he was born with a condition where his skin looked green, but because he is “pure and sweet”. Of course, Maddigan thinks this is “bullshit” — everyone knows olives are bitter and too salty. This story feels like the perfect way to summarise Maddigan’s solo show, now playing at Southwark Playhouse Borough. In his portrayal of his 15-year-old self, over 70 minutes we see classic teenage delusions, selfishness and crassness slowly melt away to reveal a truly sweet heart at the centre of this very funny show about love and grief. As the sole performer on stage, with nothing more than a chair for a set piece, Maddigan is an absolute firecracker who immediately has the au...

30Nov

By Stewart Who?No Comments

London

The Grim – Southwark Playhouse

There are some of us who aren’t enthusiastic supporters of the supposed joy, goodwill and generosity which accompanies the season of Christmas. Whether this cynicism stems from resistance to consumerism, despair at an absence of spirituality or justified fear of family, one soon learns to limit such sentiments. Especially around children. This minority of Yuletide miseries tend to be cheered enormously when the usual cavalcade of schmaltz and plastic tat gives way to tales of horror or paranormal happenings. For the dark-hearted, the macabre is a comfort. With that in mind, three cheers for whoever commissioned The Grim for a run at Southwark Playhouse. First performed at Underbelly, Edinburgh Festival, the play enjoyed a sell-out season, before a critically acclaimed run at the Old Red...

The Soon Life – Southwark Playhouse Borough

20Oct

By Michelle KnightNo Comments

London

The Soon Life – Southwark Playhouse Borough

The Soon Life opens with precise staging, a brightly lit room with a sofa, table and garniture you would expect to see in any home. However, this was different a birth pool was inflated and positioned to one side of the room. Birthing books visible, a moses basket assembled, a sign of welcoming a new life, a baby. This was a planned home birth during a time of unknown risks from Covid 19, and hospital considered an unsafe place to give birth. Phoebe Mcintosh is Bec a mixed-race young woman, pregnant and in the early stage of her labour. Whilst bouncing on her birthing ball in a zen state, calm, in control, listening to direction from her headphones, in walks the ‘ex’, Alex, (Joe Boylan). This disruption sets the tone of the play and the couple’s timeline in their relationship which brou...

The White Chip – Southwark Playhouse Borough

13Jul

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

The White Chip – Southwark Playhouse Borough

Sean Daniels’ semi-autobiographical play ‘The White Chip’ has arrived in London for its UK premiere at Southwark Playhouse Borough. Having enjoyed a successful 2019 stint Off-Broadway, directed by Matt Ryan, and produced by Danielle Tarento and Tony Award winner Annaleigh Ashford, ‘The White Chip’ is a cleverly constructed play, widely noted for its darkly comic take on painful realities. It chronicles the painful descent and recovery of Steven, a high-functioning alcoholic US theatre director, presented through fast-paced, vignette-driven, and monologue heavy script that, whilst offering insightful clarity to the character’s journey through addiction, at times sacrifices any real depth and dynamic, and as a result this production doesn’t quite land the emotional punch it clearly aims for....