A new piece from Matthew Bourne is always a talking point and a treat to get dance fans excited. I’ve been a fan for around a decade now.
Mates blogger: Not Exactly Billington
Not Exactly Billington is one of over 45 theatre bloggers who are part of the MyTheatreMates collective. This page features Not Exactly'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.
Launched in 2012, Not Exactly Billington is a Leicester-based theatre blog run by Adam and Jasmine, who are keen to explore and promote the arts on a national scale while maintaining the importance of regional voices, perspectives and creative endeavours. The couple share blogging responsibilities and often collaborate on reviews, thus giving a broader response. For three years, they also successfully ran the #ReadaPlayaWeek initiative. Each week, they championed a different play, ensuring there was equal representation of male and female writers as part of their advocacy for gender equity and diversity in the arts. They tweet at @NoBillington.
The latest from Not Exactly on MyTheatreMates
‘A tear-jerking and heart-warming ode’: EVERYBODY’S TALKING ABOUT JAMIE — Leicester Curve & Tour
This past weekend saw the return of the much-loved West End Live in Trafalgar Square. A free festival for theatre lovers, the event has increased in popularity each year (I still remember the early years when everyone was crammed into Leicester Square and only a handful of shows took part!), and eventually it will outgrow its current home too (where next? Hyde Park?).
‘Provocative & rousing, nostalgic & contemporary’: EAST IS EAST – Birmingham Repertory Theatre
Twenty-five years after its first performance at the Rep, Ayub Khan Din’s comedy about a British-Pakistani family in 1970s Salford returns home to Birmingham. In Iqbal Khan’s production for the Rep and National Theatre, East is East feels like both a modern classic and as fresh as a new play.
‘Evokes the heat & intensity of the setting’: CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF – Curve Leicester & Touring
Anthony Almeida has created not only a highly entertaining piece of theatre in Cat On a Hot Tin Roof at Curve Leicester, but a tableau of family life that can still resonate with modern audiences.
‘Every song is a certified banger’: THE MUSIC OF ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER – Curve Leicester
The songs featured in The Music Of Andrew Lloyd Webber have become standards for a reason and it is a pleasure to hear them performed by an excellent cast.
‘The emotion flooding from the stage is overwhelming’: THE COLOR PURPLE – Curve Leicester (Online review)
Following on from the immensely successful Sunset Boulevard in Concert, Curve has reunited the company of 2019’s The Color Purple (a co-production with Birmingham Hippodrome) to once again bring a much needed dose of musical enrichment to theatre lovers worldwide.
‘Shows no signs of slowing down’: THE MOUSETRAP – Touring
Now in its 68th year in the West End, The Mousetrap is also touring and shows no signs of slowing down. And whilst the play is more than a bit of a warhorse, it has become a staple of British theatre.
‘Spectacular in the truest sense’: THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA – Touring
This production of The Phantom of the Opera is spectacular in the truest sense and even the most curmudgeonly of spectators will find something to enthuse over.
From Come From Away to The Antipodes: Top 10 Shows of 2019
Here’s our Top 10 list for 2019 with three musicals – Come From Away, Curve’s West Side Story and the touring production of Amelie dominating the top spots.
‘The performances are uniformly excellent’: WEST SIDE STORY – Leicester
Nikolai Foster and co. have wrung West Side Story for every last drop of emotion, intellect and topicality. It has been given the full blooded revival it merits and I would love to see this production have further life beyond this initial run.
‘Feels fresh & is performed with conviction’: ONE UNDER – Touring
Winsome Pinnock’s 2005 play One Under has been revived in a co-production by Graeae and Theatre Royal, Plymouth, now touring the UK.
‘It is with a heavy heart that you have to leave the characters behind’: A TASTE OF HONEY – Touring
Bijan Sheibani’s production of A Taste Of Honey is entertaining without being flashy, showcasing Shelagh Delaney’s text in all its humour, honesty and melancholia.
‘Engaging, warm & thought-provoking’: MY BEAUTIFUL LAUNDRETTE – Touring
In a co-production with Belgrade Theatre Coventry, Everyman Theatre Cheltenham and Leeds Playhouse, Nikolai Foster and the Curve company’s adaptation of My Beautiful Laundrette has shone a spotlight on the wrongs of yesteryear at a time when, more than ever before in my lifetime, the country seems to be in a state of sinfully wilful regression.
‘A masterpiece in theatrical storytelling’: WAR HORSE – Touring
The National Theatre production of Michael Morpurgo’s novel War Horse is both the most visceral depiction of war I’ve seen on stage and a masterpiece in theatrical storytelling.
‘Brings a freshness to the piece’: GREASE – Touring
Nikolai Foster’s 2016 production of Grease returns to Curve as part of a major tour, and, while it doesn’t quite have the pizzazz of three years ago, the show remains a solid, thoughtful and energetic version of a much loved classic.
‘Prescient time for a revival’: THE ENTERTAINER – Touring
The Entertainer is an interesting state-of-the-nation play, and although a period piece, it’s undeniably a prescient time to revive it.
#ReadaPlayaWeek: Texts from John Osborne, Christopher Shinn, Abi Zakarian, E.V. Crowe & Alice Birch
Not Exactly Billington has set themselves a challenge to read a new (to them) playtext every week. In August, their #ReadaPlayaWeek titles included John Osborne’s Luther, Christopher Shinn’s Dying City, Abi Zakarian’s This is Not an Exit, E.V. Crowe’s I Can Hear You, and Alice Birch’s Revolt. She said. Revolt again.
‘A community production that balances balanced whimsy & grit’: BOLLYWOOD JANE – Leicester
Making use of the intimate studio space, director Siobhán Cannon-Brownlie recreates the indie movie theatre setting of the play, while a cast of locals dive head-first into the dazzling world of Bollywood.
‘Absorbing family comedy’: THE END OF HISTORY – Royal Court Theatre
What’s so great about Jack Thorne’s play The End of History (as well as his consistently interesting use of stage directions) is that it has made me pause to think but is all wrapped up in this absorbing family comedy.
‘Irresistibly moving & thought-provoking’: THE COLOR PURPLE – Leicester
Celie’s journey from despair to belief, love and hope is, in T’Shan Williams’ hands, a believable and rewarding experience in The Color Purple.