Tom Stoppard’s argumentative, essay-like epic of aspiration, assimilation, and annihilation gives the fragile coexistence of civilisation and barbarism a devastating punch in the face and will leave you shredded and thoughtful. Unlike many a great saga, Leopoldstadt puts its audience through an intellectual wringer first and an emotional one second. The octogenarian author’s much-anticipated work […]
Voices From Home at the Arcola Theatre | Review
A single night showcase at the Arcola, producer and curator Tim Cook, and his co-curator Sophie Drake, presented five short monologue or two-hander pieces featuring new writing from the South East of England. Of the performances, only one, Runaways by David Ellis, made a specific thematic link to its home county origin of Bedford. The […]
Faustus: That Damned Woman at The Lyric Hammersmith Theatre | Review
Chris Bush’s take on Christopher Marlowe’s classic deal-with-the-devil tale feels like a speculative fiction sequel to The Crucible infused with equal measures of Kill Bill and Doctor Who. Like a Heston Blumenthal concoction, the mixture may be a little forced and the cultural cues somewhat heavy-handed, but the experience is actually quite pleasing – in […]
FIX by Julie Tsang at The Pleasance Theatre | Review
With its quintessential Gothic setting of a remote cottage in the woods, Ali Hunter’s heavily misted lighting and unexplained things that go bump in the afternoon, Julie Tsang’s Fix is more Twilight Zone than kitchen-sink drama – despite its promise of emotional intensity and frustration in the pursuit of functioning white goods. Although we initially […]
Three Sisters by Inua Ellams at Lyttelton Theatre | Review
Blistering and apt, Inua Ellams’ re-telling of Chekhov’s 1901 drama finds renewed resonance in its Biafran War setting as well as summons the demons of colonialism, neo-colonialism and tribalism that dwell in today’s national discourse. The net effect is simultaneously energising, hypnotising and haunting as the contemporary parallels with both theatrical eras painfully reveal themselves […]