Tuesday, August 25

Tag: The Hope Theatre

The Moors – The Hope Theatre
London

The Moors – The Hope Theatre

‘Tis the season for spooky revivals, cobwebbed drama & cheap Halloween tat in the supermarkets. Creeping into this uneven milieu, like fog from an icy lake is the professional premiere of Jen Silverman’s gothic romp, The Moors.  Silverman has taken Bronte as a backbone and given the whole haunted hoo-ha a queer, feminist twist, with a knowing nod to the comedic quirks of the genre. The excellent cast, all graduated from full time actor training in the jaws of the pandemic, with much of their theatrical education gleaned online. It’s a joy to see fresh talent claiming the stage and given an opportunity to flex their chops.  As a venue, The Hope is a prime example of ‘black box’ theatre in a poky room above a pub. In a such an intense, cheek-by-jowl environment, there’s n...
A Good Time Was Had by All – The Hope Theatre
London

A Good Time Was Had by All – The Hope Theatre

A black box theatre, dimly lit, with a lack-lustre dinner table placed at the centre, invites the audience to settle on chairs laid on nearly all four sides of the room. The suspenseful score foreshadows the action in the play and Liz (played by Bethany Monk-Lane) inconspicuously starts setting up the table, arranging it with precision and control. Her serious demeanour yet again foreshadows what is to unfold- stark, bizarre, and powerful. Written and directed by Sam Smithson, A Good Time Was Had by All poses important questions about exercising justice and blows the extent to which one can go to take a stand - “I acted when it mattered.” A dinner party hosted by Liz, who has recently returned from a war zone, for a bunch of university friends quickly turns into a surreal amalgamation o...