A strong lead performance from Bart Lambert impresses in this streaming Oscar Wilde adaptation, but Dorian A Rock Musical lacks a real sense of identity.
Mates blogger: Ian Foster
Ian Foster is one of over 45 theatre bloggers who are part of the MyTheatreMates collective. This page features Ian's posts on MyTheatreMates. Take a look at our full list of theatre bloggers and our aggregated feed of all our Mates' posts. We’re always looking for new theatre bloggers. Could that be you? Learn about how to join us.
Since 2003, Ian Foster has been writing reviews of plays, sometimes with a critical element, on his blog Ought to Be Clowns, which has been listed as one of the UK's Top Ten Theatre Blogs by Lastminute.com, Vuelio and Superbreak. He averages more than 350+ shows a year. He says: "Call me a reviewer, a critic or a blogger, and you will apparently put someone or other's nose out of joint! So take it or leave it, essentially this is my theatrical diary, recording everything I go to see at the theatre in London and beyond, and venturing a little into the worlds of music and film/TV where theatrical connections can be made."
The latest from Ian on MyTheatreMates
‘A visual language that suggests promise’: TWO WORLDS NO FAMILY – Lion & Unicorn Theatre
The Lion and Unicorn Theatre hosts Draft99 Theatre and their production of Ben Reid’s new LGBTQ+ play Two Worlds No Family.
‘The show is definitely best enjoyed with a drink in hand’: SH!TFACED SHAKESPEARE – Leicester Square Theatre
The chaotic Sh!tFaced Shakespeare makes a tipsy Macbeth intermittently entertaining at the Leicester Square Theatre.
‘A sexy & striking surprise’: CONSTELLATIONS – Vaudeville Theatre
The Donmar West End production of Constellations launches its first two casts in Sheila Atim and Ivanno Jeremiah and Peter Capaldi and Zoë Wanamaker at the Vaudeville Theatre.
‘A talented ensemble plays well off the comic energy’: GOING APE! – Union Theatre
The Bible and evolution go head to head in broad and bawdy comedy Going Ape at the Union Theatre. It’s a frippery that takes not a minute of itself seriously.
’It is really packing a punch’: seven methods of killing kylie jenner – Royal Court Theatre
Jasmine Lee-Jones’ award-winning seven methods of killing kylie jenner transfers downstairs at the Royal Court Theatre.
‘Thought-provoking revival’: STAIRCASE – Southwark Playhouse
Returning to the not-so-distant past when same-sex relationships were illegal, this is a thought-provoking revival of Charles Dyer’s Staircase at Southwark Playhouse.
‘Fascinating, challenging, probing theatrical experience’: BAD NIGHTS & ODD DAYS – Greenwich Theatre
Paul McGann and Kerrie Taylor, among others, shine in Bad Nights and Odd Days, a set of four short plays by Caryl Churchill at Greenwich Theatre.
‘Rather rowdily, raucous bit of good fun’: The Frida Kahlo of Penge West – Golden Goose Theatre
The Frida Kahlo of Penge West proves a comic surprise at the Golden Goose Theatre. The level of theatrical in-jokes might deter the casual viewer but there’s such vibrancy in the performances.
‘Sonic screwdrivers at the ready’: DOCTOR WHO – TIME FRACTURE
It’s the end of the universe – so of course Doctor Who – Time Fracture is utterly chaotic. It is also rather good fun.
‘Quietly roars its pain for all the lives lost’: UNDER THE MASK – Theatre Peckham & Touring
Playing at Theatre Peckham before a UK tour, Tamasha Theatre’s Under the Mask – written by a junior doctor – is a haunting revisit of the early days of the pandemic.
‘It is huge amounts of fun’: SHOWSTOPPER! THE IMPROVISED MUSICAL – Garrick Theatre
Showstopper! The Improvised Musical kick off their new West End residency at the Garrick Theatre in their own inimitable style.
‘So many treats’: THE SHOW MUST GO ON – Palace Theatre & Online
Featuring 18 West End musicals, The Show Must Go On is a concert to remember, featuring a whole host of theatrical talent both on and off the stage.
’An entirely seductive mixture’: ABBA MANIA – Shaftesbury Theatre
ABBA MANIA offers uncomplicated and undoubted pleasures with this effervescent tribute concert at the Shaftesbury Theatre.
‘A real sense of live theatre bursts through the screen’: WAITING FOR LEFTY – Two Lines Productions (Online review)
A digital production of Waiting for Lefty, updated to the modern day, breathes some sharp, fresh air into the Zoom theatre form.
‘Marking out just how powerful digital theatre can be’: Still Life: Untold Stories of Nottingham Now – Nottingham Playhouse (Online review)
Julie Hesmondhalgh and Frances De La Tour, among others, star in the heartbreakingly excellent Still Life: Untold Stories of Nottingham Now.
‘Short, sharp stabs of real brilliance’: LIVING NEWSPAPER #6 – Royal Court Theatre (Online review)
Moments of dark humour are scattered throughout Edition #6 of the Royal Court’s Living Newspaper but elsewhere it is a bit more hit and miss.
‘Honouring the profound truths of these stories’: SAFE – Hackney Empire (Online review)
Alexis Gregory’s Safe puts the stories of homeless and at-risk LGBTQ+ young people front and centre.
‘Significant piece of new theatre writing’: THE MOTHERHOOD PROJECT – BAC (Online review)
The likes of Hannah Khalil, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, Sarah Niles and Juno Dawson deliver some excellent work in The Motherhood Project.
‘Identifies how so very much is at stake’: LIVING NEWSPAPER #5 – Royal Court Theatre (Online review)
The Royal Court’s Living Newspaper continues with edition #5 which feels a little less reactive to the headlines and a little more reflective on the state of the world as we find it today.