Theatre Review Archives - North West End UK

28Sep

By Amanda HodgsonNo Comments

North West

Cryin Air – 53two

Lauren Bugg’s play Cryin’ Air is a wonderful tour de force exploring emotions of loneliness, grief, and friendship. Following a break-up with her indifferent boyfriend, innocent but ultra-anxious Grace (Milly Overland) seeks support from multiple over-the-phone therapists, but this provides little relief for her. She decides to book a city break to Amsterdam as a “solo female traveller” to escape her troubles, even though she is terrified of flights, travel, strangers and just about everything. Meanwhile, following the death of her father, Kerry (Ella-Maria Danson) decides to follow through on her promise to take a trip and scatter his ashes in an exotic city. Cue a (much delayed) flight to Amsterdam, where our two protagonists meet and become fast friends. Their newfound friendship will b...

24Sep

By Alan Stuart MalinNo Comments

London

Present Laughter – Richmond Theatre

There is something wonderfully appropriate about a comedy concerned with theatrical excess being given a production that barely seems willing to sit still. Lindsay Posner’s ‘Present Laughter’ arrives at Richmond Theatre with energy to spare, giving Noël Coward’s comedy a confident contemporary shake-up without losing the delicious absurdity at its heart. At the centre is Tracy-Ann Oberman as Geri Essendine, a celebrated actress whose success has brought her everything except the possibility of being left alone. Her home is less a sanctuary than a human traffic junction, with friends, employees, admirers, lovers and unwanted visitors passing through while Geri attempts to maintain control over a spectacularly crowded life. The production’s most significant departure from Coward’s orig...

24Sep

By Annette NuttallNo Comments

West Midlands

Twelve Angry Men – Birmingham Rep

Based on the 1957 Academy Award Nominated film of the same name, this production visits Birmingham as part of a National Tour following previous West End success. Following a three-day murder trial, the jury are sent to consider their verdict. Locked in a room, these 12 men from wildly different backgrounds have the difficult task of considering the evidence to convict or acquit the accused. In a State where the death penalty is the mandatory sentence for the crime committed, the decision weighs hard on one man’s mind. Keen to discuss the case and not jump to the ‘obvious’ answer he raises the question of reasonable doubt, the debate begins, and tensions rise. From the moment the lights go up on the jurors in the court room to the end when the final verdict is reached you are transpo...

The Silence of The Lambs – Festival Theatre

9Sep

By Beth EltringhamNo Comments

Scotland

The Silence of The Lambs – Festival Theatre

If you are unfamiliar with The Silence of The Lambs as a book or movie, there’s still a very good chance that you are familiar with the name Hannibal Lecter and his masked faced that has freaked out many a generation since the 1991 movie starring Anthony Hopkins. This production delivers us a wonderfully disturbing and pulse raising performance in which every detail has been thought of. The Silence of The Lambs follows trainee detective Clarice Starling as she is sent to deliver a questionnaire to infamous killer cannibal Dr.Hannibal Lecter, however the interaction leads to Lecter building an interest in Starling and in order to learn more about her, delivers intelligence on the current serial killer known as “Buffalo Bill”, to keep her around. Meanwhile we see James Gumb (aka Buffalo B...

Operation Mincemeat – Leeds Grand Theatre

9Sep

By Adam CraddockNo Comments

Yorkshire & Humber

Operation Mincemeat – Leeds Grand Theatre

Last night I had the pleasure to be invited along to the always wonderful Leeds Grand Theatre to review the latest leg of the UK tour of “Operation Mincemeat”. I was very much looking forward to this one, I’m a massive World War 2 history buff and I have always found the story of “Major William Martin” fascinating but didn’t know too much about some of the background players in the story so this was definitely right up my street. My only holdup going into it was how it was going to translate as a musical and now seeing the program littered with ex members of Mischief Theatre I have to say… it translates perfectly. The plot follows a struggling MI5 trying to come up with a plan to invade Sicily. We see various plans to kill Hitler thrown out until an unbecoming scientist pitches “O...

Love’s Labour’s Found – Greenside Riddles Court

18Aug

By Oliver GigginsNo Comments

Scotland

Love’s Labour’s Found – Greenside Riddles Court

To avoid being fired, modern poetry lecturers Jackie and Kate tell their employers they discovered a long-lost play by William Shakespeare, Love's Labour's Found. The lie quickly spirals out of control when they’re invited to perform the “new” work at the 45th Shakespearean History International Teaching Conference (notice the acronym) the next day, aided and thwarter by a collection of zany characters such as one of their mothers, an actor, their boss and the dean, who is called Dean. Written and performed by members of the Newcastle University Theatre Society, the ensuing farce has its moments but unfortunately lacks the internal reality to properly build from. To properly spiral, one must have a centre to start from (or finish with), and Love's Labour's Found, which chose its tit...

I F*cked You In My Spaceship – King’s Arms

11Aug

By Lou SteggalsNo Comments

North West

I F*cked You In My Spaceship – King’s Arms

There may be barely a spaceship in sight in Louis Emmitt-Stern’s sharply witty Queer comedy-drama, but there’s certainly plenty of sex, relationships and increasingly blurred boundaries. Played in the round with no conventional set or props, the Kings Arms’ studio is transformed with a simple overhead rig of paper-lantern ‘planets’, star garlands and one solitary paper rocket. Bathed in pink and purple light as the strains of 2001: A Space Odyssey’s opening theme echoes around the room; we first eavesdrop on the romantic machinations of couple Leo (Ciarán Lockwood) and Dan (Ben Bradfield). As an attempt at alien role-play is hilariously undermined by asthma, we have our tone set for a play that places awkward, authentic conversations inside decidedly offbeat scenarios. In parallel, w...

1Jul

By Leanne RushtonNo Comments

North West

Bat Out of Hell – Regent Theatre, Stoke

The streets around stoke were graced with a huge roaring sound as the pavements were lined with Harley Davidson’s and excited musical theatre fans alike in honour of the Meatloaf inspired musical Bat out of Hell speeding on to the Regent theatre stage. Having grown up with a father who loved Meatloaf’s iconic music I knew the power of the songs I was about to hear but I didn’t know the extent of just what an electrifying show I’d let myself in for. The auditorium on entrance was hazy and dystopian setting an eery ambience of what was to come. The set upon entrance was striking. Gloomy but engaging. The show used a mix of traditional and virtual set which really added to the futuristic tones in the show. I must compliment the lighting in the show too it was unbelievable some ...