Jack Studio Theatre London Brockley SE4 2DH | Reviews

America, the land of opportunity where, with diligence and hard work, anyone can be whatever they want. Let's face it, we have all heard of and occasionally wished for The American Dream but is that dream really all it's cracked up to be? Now you can find out with Vanguard Theatre’s adaptation of Nathanael West’s Novel A Cool Million: The Dismantling of Lemuel Pitkin currently being presented at the Jack Studio Theatre in Brockley. Entering the auditorium, we were met by the sight of three … [Read more...]

The miners' strike of 1984/1985 was an incredibly long and bitter fought war between the government of the day and the workers and by early 1985, miners were doing the unthinkable and crossing the picket lines to return to work. This action had massive repercussions for the mining communities, leading to intense and vicious feuds as family turned on family. What better setting than this then for Immersion Theatre’s production of Romeo and Juliet currently playing at the Brockley Jack … [Read more...]

This production of Volpone is, I suspect, either loved or loathed by its audiences. This is a seventeenth century text (re)set in the early twentieth century, with only very minor amendments, mostly to remove minor characters such as unnamed servants, merchants and court officials - I hasten to add that no cuts where conspicuous by their absence. The absurdity of the script left largely unchanged but apparently relevant to another setting more than 300 years after its … [Read more...]

Twice this week I have been shocked to the core to be asked by friends ‘who is Stephen Sondheim and why are you so excited about going to see a show about him?’ After berating them gently I explained who Sondheim is and told them to get themselves down to the Brockley Jack Studio for the revival of “Side by Side by Sondheim” The Brockley has been transformed into a wonderful cabaret bar for this production with the audience sat on three sides and two pianos at the end. Three small chairs and … [Read more...]

Momentous events can often be difficult to comprehend when looked at on the large scale, and often the best way to view a huge event in history is to listen to a single person, a sort of Mr Everyman, to see how they saw what was happening. This then is the premise of Howard Colyer’s play “1938 Hitler Takes Vienna” at the Brockley Jack Studio. In a bar a man sits and drinks. The bar is deserted, the lights off and the shutters pulled down as the elderly gentleman helps himself to another … [Read more...]

It's not easy being a prince and heir to a kingdom. Not only are their royal duties like opening things and continually waving, you are also expected to get married - often to someone you barely know so an alliance can be formed - and produce the desired heir and a spare. But what happens if you are not keen on this idea and really just want to live your life like a common wastrel, appreciating the air and scenery around you? Well then, you have the opening to Georg Büchner’s play “Leonce and … [Read more...]

It really is impossible to write a review of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” without mentioning that it is the tragic tale of star crossed lovers. Now that’s out of the way let’s turn our attention to the Candlefire production currently in residence at the Brockley Jack Studio Theatre. In a darkened room, a man is tortured as he sets the scene for his captors and therefore the audience - ‘Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, from ancient grudge break … [Read more...]