Schools are very evocative places. Walking into a classroom, smelling the chalk dust and PVC glue, seeing the brightly coloured poster paint artworks, hearing the scrape of a small chair being pulled out from under a small desk, most of us would be hit by a powerful wave of memories; some good, some bad. For Brian and Donna, summoned to meet their son’s teacher, Mr … [Read more...]
Honk! The Musical by George Stiles and Anthony Drewe
The winner of the 2000 Olivier award for Best Musical, Honk! has spent the last twenty years slipping quietly into suburban obscurity. In 2017 it was revived to great acclaim at the Union Theatre, and has since been workshopping at The Arts Centre Hounslow, from whence it will launch its national tour. It is hard not to draw parallels between the play and the venue … [Read more...]
Shit-faced Shakespeare® – The Taming of the Shrew | Review
Take a bunch of classically trained yet not entirely serious actors, rehearse a play then feed one of them half a bottle of gin just before curtain up and what have you got? Come on, you can do better than that! I said, WHAT HAVE YOU GOT? SH!T FACED SHAKESPEARE! That’s right! Birthed from under one of the more outrageous skirts of the Edinburgh fringe, this group … [Read more...]
The Last Will and Testament of Henry Van Dyke at the Tabard Theatre
When a play’s title is almost longer than the play itself, warning bells start to chime. Often it augurs an evening of tedious, hollow, pretentious pomposity in the name of “Art”. The Last Will and Testament of Henry Van Dyke (henceforth to be known as Henry Van Dyke to save my fingers) is certainly about “Art”. Thankfully, though, there is nothing pompous or … [Read more...]
The Grand Expedition from Gingerline | Review
Reviewing a Gingerline evening poses a problem - how to describe a production that you are not allowed to tell anybody about? Location, menu and details about the performance are all a ferociously guarded secret that we are under strict instructions not to reveal, in order to preserve the aura of mystery and element of surprise that is so key to these … [Read more...]
Th’Importance of Bein’ Earnest at Drayton Arms Theatre
In theatreland, the term “re-imagining” is a tricky beast, filling one with an uncomfortable mixture of hope and dread. If done well, it can breathe new life into a hackneyed production. If not, as is unfortunately often the case, you leave the theatre determined to hunt down the director and yell at him: “Why?? Why did you mess with it? Just leave it … [Read more...]
Out of Step at The Drayton Arms Theatre | Review
The programme for Out Of Step, by Untied Productions, presents a dichotomy. It is professionally designed and printed, on good quality paper, but rather than being neatly bound it is held together with staples. The theme of great potential baffled by lack of attention to detail extends, unfortunately, to the production itself. The scenario is promising. A … [Read more...]
Hivemind presents: Lord of the Game of the Ring of Thrones
The intimate atmosphere of the theatre at the Museum of Comedy is perfect for a performance of this genre. And when I say intimate, I do mean intimate; each audience member, by the end of the show, knew their immediate neighbours better than their own family. Thankfully everybody was in a happy frame of mind, so rather than inducing claustrophobic panic, the … [Read more...]
Review: Losing Venice at The Orange Tree Theatre
The revival of Losing Venice, a 1985 surprise smash hit in Edinburgh which has since sunk beneath the theatrical waves, is a typically bold choice for the Orange Tree. Today, playwright Jo Clifford is better known for her work “Jesus, Queen of Heaven” which has been inspiring protests across the globe; it is, therefore, reasonable to expect something equally dramatic … [Read more...]