Die Fledermaus Zu Haus (The Bat At Home) is an abridged version of Johann Strauss II’s “Die Fledermaus” developed during the various lockdowns in the past twelve months showcasing 35 young professional singers and musicians from all over the globe, most of whom have never meant, and who certainly do not share the same first language, but who have one thing in common: work has been very thin on the ground recently! The result is available on YouTube in return for a voluntary donation to Sweet … [Read more...]

The name ‘Denis King’ should be much better known than it is, seeing that not only has he composed more than 200 themes for television including Lovejoy, Black Beauty and Hannay, he also wrote (with Peter Nichols) the Ivor Novello Award prize-winning RSC musical Privates on Parade, the original production of which at London’s Piccadilly Theatre starred the indomitable Dennis Quilley. However, as this very readable, fascinating and amusing book tells us, there is so much more to Denis King! … [Read more...]

We Ask These Questions of Everybody is a 50-minute live and digital operatic event attempting to share disabled people’s experiences of the interview assessments carried out by the Department for Work and Pensions. Most of it takes the form of an interview by the DWP assessor with the person claiming Universal Credit and more practical help to try to understand that person’s needs. As such this ‘opera’ is not only fascinating, it is also quite hypnotic at times, mainly because the writer and … [Read more...]

Beckenham Place Mansion was built 1760-2, since then it has had a multitude of uses including a boys’ school and sanitorium as well as being home for twenty years to the Mander and Mitchensen theatre collection. Today it is owned by the London Borough of Lewisham and is available for community use, having been partially refurbished using a National Lottery Grant. It sits in extensive parkland atop Beckenham Hill and, judging by my visit, is certainly a mecca for those who live nearby. One of … [Read more...]

Potted Panto is the perfect antidote to the recent Covid Lockdown, Brexit and everything we have all been through this year! At its best, it is VERY funny and even if you go determined not to enjoy yourself, as the person in front of me clearly was! you will soon be swept along by the sheer energy of the performances. In theory, Potted Panto consists of seven ( I think) pantomime stories retold by Daniel Clarkson and Jefferson Turner who also perform their own material. In practice, Potted … [Read more...]