‘Orange Juice’ capturing the mood of the British millennial: A Review
Thoughtful and witty, Orange Juice refreshingly questions how a young British Pakistani Muslim can find his place in the world. For a short play, standing at around thirty minutes in its present form,...
View ArticleIn ‘Festen’ respectability conceals a foul underbelly: A Review
The impressive surroundings of the Maths Institute, with its white, glacial interior, works well as a choice of venue for Festen, a Danish drama that revolves around a night in the life of the affluent...
View ArticleDeath Grip: Bracingly Brave and Honest
In just 45 minutes, Death Grip manages to give a humorous, but honest, insight into depression in a gay relationship. Adam has lived in his boyfriend Jay’s bedroom for, what is later revealed, to be an...
View ArticleReview: ‘The Trojan Women’ an engaging and modern production
‘The Trojan Woman’ is an engaging and moving piece, in this production of Caroline Bird’s ‘after Euripides’ the original play is brought to life for the modern age. Set in the aftermath of the Greeks’...
View Article‘A delightful opera sure to put a smile on your face’ Albert Herring: A Preview
Albert Herring, Britten’s comic masterpiece, gleefully revels in an operatic middle ground. A whimsical plot that is set against a surprisingly complex score, Britten’s provincial chamber piece teases...
View ArticleReview: the beauty and suffering of Frankenstein
This adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic novel ‘Frankenstein ‘s both emotionally gripping and beautifully put together. Nick Dear’s script is engaging and transports the gothic story to modern day...
View Article“Perfectly frivolous” Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonses: A Review
Adapted from P. G. Wodehouse’s The Code of The Woosters, Jeeves and Wooster in Perfect Nonsense is the perfectly frivolous antidote to long November nights and the melancholic morale left in fifth...
View Article‘Tastefully Executed, Intimate and Brooding’ Summer and Smoke: A Review
This production of Tennessee William’s ‘Summer & Smoke’, the first in the UK in ten years, is tastefully executed and does due justice to the work of a true master. The play charts the tumultuous...
View ArticleThe Unsettling Beauty of It Felt Empty: A Review
The gentle sound of bird wings flapping, gradually increasing in pace towards a frenzied panic that suddenly stops. The death of a pigeon is our introduction to It Felt Empty, in which the unsettling...
View ArticleThe Skriker: Eccentricity at its Finest
The Skriker, a play about a baby-snatching ancient fairy, was always set to be bizarre. Yet, Blank Canvas Production’s performance of this play was absolutely magnificent in its wild peculiarities. It...
View ArticleAn Ordinary Relationship, Extraordinarily Performed: A Review
Stage writer Katrina Gaffney finds The Last Five Years to be a five star performance. Beautiful, charming and at the same time heart-wrenching, The Last Five Years is a musical for anyone who has ever...
View ArticleDates is a Clever and Unforgiving Parody: A Preview
“Pray, what means this aubergine emoji”, asks a suitably bewildered Tudor singleton as she browses Tinder for eligible bachelors. You’d be forgiven for thinking this the invention of some nonsensical...
View ArticleA Plot as Labyrinthine as the Streets of Madrid Jealous of Herself: A Preview
This production of ‘Jealous of Herself’ is a nuanced exploration of the male gaze that manages to both poignant and comic. Sarah Grunnah’s adaptation brings the first English language performance of...
View ArticlePrepare to Leave Your Comfort Zone In The Republic of Happiness: A Review
This family drama turned dystopia is a four star performance for Katrina Gaffney. Arriving at the Burton Taylor for the opening night of the second ever production of ‘In the Republic of Happiness’ I...
View ArticleHave our Own Eyes Been De-veiled? Jealous of Herself: A Review
Jealous of Herself is a five star performance that ends the term on a high. The audience walks in to face the traverse stage, innovatively fashioned so that the audience is situated on the either side...
View ArticleThe Pillowman ‘Promises to Confound Expectations’: A Preview
Termed by its directors, somewhat shockingly, as ‘a comedy about child murder’, I was dubious to see how ‘The Pillowman’ would pull off such a seemingly impossible genre. However, any concerns I had...
View Article‘Naked Is the Realm’ is an Unprecedented Play: A Review
Betty Yang finds Naked Is the Realm to be a four star performance I have never seen a play like this one before. For a start, the premise is utterly fascinating: based on a true story of a 16th-century...
View Article‘Moments of Brilliance’ Emerge in The Pillowman: A Review
After an enthusing experience at the preview for ‘The Pillowman’ on Sunday, I was excited to see whether the production would live up to its promises. In its full length, Macdonagh’s script is...
View ArticleBang Bang You’re Dead is Commendable, but Setback by its Script: A Review
William Matrosimone wrote ‘Bang Bang You’re Dead’ to be performed ‘by kids, for kids, for free’. While the play poses serious questions about the disastrous consequences of school shootings, its...
View ArticlePreview and Interview: Illuminated
Georgie Murphy speaks with Emmy Everest-Phillips, Choreographer of Illuminated and Director of Quicksandance. The show is being marketed as a dance show themed on light – can you tell me about this?...
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