The likes of Hannah Khalil, Morgan Lloyd Malcolm, Sarah Niles and Juno Dawson deliver some excellent work in The Motherhood Project.
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
‘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.
‘Investigating the world of theatre & film creatively & inventively’: TALKING GODS FESTIVAL – Arrows & Traps (Online review)
Talking Gods sees Arrows & Traps move online with a creative hybrid of theatre and film hoiking Ancient Greek mythology into the modern age.
Album Reviews: Amélie The Musical / Cases / After You
A trio of cast recording reviews covers musicals Amélie The Musical, Cases and After You – each one a winner in its own way.
‘This is contemporary Shakespeare at its finest’: ROMEO & JULIET (National Theatre / Sky Arts)
Jessie Buckley is astonishing as the National Theatre’s Romeo and Juliet makes the jump from stage to screen to extraordinary effect.
‘Possesses an up-to-the-minute urgency’: LIVING NEWSPAPER #3 – Royal Court Theatre (Online review)
The third edition of Royal Court’s Living Newspaper moves online only, with some seriously fierce political writing this time around.
‘Production does wonders’: ORDINARY DAYS – Pickle Productions (Online review)
In Pickle Productions’ Ordinary Days a musical about human connection is given the production full of humanity it deserves.
‘Can’t help but feel more poignant’: TRESTLE – Maltings Theatre, St Albans (Online review)
Stewart Pringle’s beautiful two-hander Trestle is revived digitally and delectably by Matthew Parker for Maltings Theatre.
‘Deliciously wry’: ADVENTUROUS – Jermyn Street Theatre (Online review)
Ian Hallard’s debut play Adventurous finds a gently comic soul in its exploration of middle-aged online pandemic dating.
‘A tale lifted wholesale into the 21st century’: THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY (Online review)
Alfred Enoch and Russell Tovey enliven a digital take on Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray.
‘You’re left with lots to think about’: BIRDS & BEES – Theatre Centre (Online review)
Charlie Josephine’s Birds and Bees captures teenage awkwardness perfectly, in the shadow of a school sexting scandal.
‘Intelligently nuanced & perceptive’: CRIPS WITHOUT CONSTRAINTS PART 2 – Graeae (Online theatre)
Graeae’s Crips Without Constraints Part 2 shows off UK Deaf and disabled artists firing brilliantly on all creative cylinders.
Album Reviews: Marisha Wallace – Tomorrow / Shan Ako – Brave Heart / Soviet Zion
A trio of music reviews with Marisha Wallace’s album Tomorrow, Shan Ako’s EP Brave Heart and the original concept album of Soviet Zion.
‘Theatre of this quality is not that typical at all’: TYPICAL – Soho Theatre (Online theatre)
Richard Blackwood excels in Ryan Calais Cameron’s searing monologue Typical, the weight of its enduring relevance painfully clear.
‘Offers huge entertainment’: Sherlock Holmes An Online Adventure – The Case of the Hung Parliament (Online review)
Taking immersive theatre online in great style, Sherlock Holmes: An Online Adventure offers huge entertainment in The Case of the Hung Parliament.
‘The contemporary lens really sharpens the focus’: THE REGINA MONOLOGUES – Maltings Theatre (Online review)
Before Six, there was The Regina Monologues! Maltings Theatre’s streaming debut offers an interesting set of monologues.
‘Creatively it is a show that is firing on all cylinders’: THE SORCERER’S APPRENTICE – Southwark Playhouse (Online review)
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice brushes up well as a classy and confident new British musical.
‘A different, special atmosphere’: Grimm Tales for Fragile Times & Broken People – Creation Theatre (Online review)
Fresh from winning an ONCOMM Award for their inventive reinvention of Wonderland in Alice – A Virtual Theme Park, Creation Theatre is continuing its exploration of the digital auditorium with their newest production Grimm Tales for Fragile Times and Broken People.
‘There’s a real joy in hearing the 100% live vocals’: WEST END MUSICAL DRIVE-IN – Stream.Theatre (Online review)
This capture of last summer’s West End Musical Drive In delivers much of the thrill of live performance, with Shan Ako and Layton Williams in particularly fine form.
‘Often powerfully affecting’: GOOD GRIEF (Online review)
Straddling the line between theatre and film, Good Grief is a two-hander with moments of searing insight.