The thing is, you can’t fault the acting in Jitney at the Old Vic – the actors are superb. And Tinuke Craig’s expert direction means the cab office setting doesn’t feel static or forced. But the play takes a long time to get to the interesting stuff and then leaves a lot hanging.
Mates blogger: Rev Stan
Rev Stan is one of over 45 theatre bloggers who are part of the MyTheatreMates collective. This page features RevStan'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.
Revstan really is a reverend (it's amazing what you can buy on the internet) but not a man (the Stan bit is a long story). By day, she is a freelance editor and copywriter; at night, she escapes into the world of theatre and has been blogging about it at theatre.revstan.com since 2007. She says: “I'll watch pretty much anything, from something performed on a stage the size of a tea tray to the West End and beyond. The only exception is musicals. Tried 'em and they just don't do anything positive for me.”
The latest from RevStan on MyTheatreMates
‘A gripping yarn’: BRITANNICUS – Lyric Hammersmith ★★★★
While elements of Britannicus at the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith feel like hollow embellishment, as a family drama about a toxic family who happens to be the ruling class it is a gripping yarn.
‘You feel Amy Adams’ absence when she is not on stage’: THE GLASS MENAGERIE – Duke of York’s Theatre ★★★
Amy Adams’ Amanda is a matriarch full of bustle and bristle in Jeremy Herrin’s production of The Glass Menagerie at the Duke of York’s Theatre. She is an irritating spark to her despondent and bored son and pushes her shy, nervous daughter Laura further into her own world. And, she is such a spark that you feel Amanda’s absence when she is on stage.
‘It is refreshing to see a play like this’: THE MINISTRY OF LESBIAN AFFAIRS – Soho Theatre ★★★★★
The Ministry of Lesbian Affairs at the Soho Theatre is one of those plays that unashamedly bursts off the stage, much like the lesbian choir around which the story revolves.
‘A slow burn’: THE BREACH – Hampstead Theatre ★★★
There is a stillness that descends over a theatre audience when they are gripped and fidgeting when they aren’t. In the first half of The Breach at Hampstead Theatre, the audience was fidgeting.
‘Has some interesting things to say about some of life’s struggles in an unfair society’: SAD – Omnibus Theatre ★★★
Gloria has taken refuge in her attic, distracting herself from the dark winter months and grief by playing punk and dictating entries for her memoir into her laptop.
‘Modern families, money & the morals of genetics’: THE FEVER SYNDROME – Hampstead Theatre ★★★
The family at the centre of the story is that of Richard Myers (Robert Lindsay), an eminent geneticist who now has Parkinson’s Disease.
‘Is it a dark comedy, a thriller or a horror?’: UNDER THE RADAR – Old Red Lion Theatre
In Jonathan Crewe’s play Under the Radar, female journalist Lee Stilling (Eleanor Hill) is profiling male inventor Martin Christensen, who has built his own submarine.
‘I was gripped in the presence of two great artists & gripped by their stories’: THE COLLABORATION – Young Vic Theatre ★★★★★
Anthony McCarten’s new play The Collaboration at the Young Vic kicks off as you arrive in the auditorium with an 80s DJ set. It’s toe-tapping, hip and creates a party, edgy, youthful yet nostalgic atmosphere.
‘Kit Harington is nuanced, often quiet & considered’: HENRY V – Donmar Warehouse ★★★★★
Henry V opens with a burst of energy at a club with a worse for wear party prince. It’s lifted from Henry IV part 2 and is an important reminder of Henry V’s past and subsequent transformation into a serious king.
‘Like looking at broken mirror pieces’: THE FOREST – Hampstead Theatre ★★★★
The play follows Pierre, a successful surgeon who’s married and the father of a grown-up daughter, as he juggles his professional and family life with having a mistress.
‘Surreal & almost cosmic’: THE GLOW – Royal Court Theatre
Alistair McDowall’s The Glow at the Royal Court is a play I’ve had to ponder – a lot – and I still don’t have any firm conclusions.
‘Shades of Scandi humour on the slopes’: FORCE MAJEURE – Donmar Warehouse
The Donmar Warehouse’s stage has been converted into a French ski resort for Force Majeure.
Force Majeur…
‘Laugh-out-loud funny & highly entertaining’: PEGGY FOR YOU – Hampstead Theatre ★★★★
Peggy Ramsay is a play agent, but she is more famous than the playwrights and the work that she represents.
‘It envelops you into the landscape of serious athletics’: FAIR PLAY – Bush Theatre ★★★★
Fair Play is set in the world of female athletics. Ann joins a running club, meets Sophie, and the two bond over their love of running.
‘One of the stars is for the staircase, which was great’: MANOR – National Theatre ★★
As the stage was plunged into darkness at the end of Manor on the National Theatre’s Lyttelton stage, I was thinking: What was the point?
‘Arthur Darvill is stand-out as a filthy rich businessman’: RARE EARTH METTLE – Royal Court Theatre ★★★★
Al Smith’s new play Rare Earth Mettle at the Royal Court is a meaty piece that covers a lot of ground.
‘Emotions are kept dialled to practical’: ‘NIGHT, MOTHER – Hampstead Theatre ★★★
The play is set in rural America, where a mother (Stockard Channing) and daughter Jessie (Rebecca Night), who has epilepsy, live together.
‘A fun, frothy play in part carried by its status as a West End institution’: THE MOUSETRAP – West End
Are you allowed to call yourself a theatre fan if you haven’t seen The Mousetrap, the West End’s longest-running play? Possibly. But I’ve ticked that box now.
‘A gripping & affecting piece’: THE NORMAL HEART – National Theatre ★★★★★
The Normal Heart is a play of fights. Set in the early 1980s in New York, gay men are dying, but gay activist Ned Weeks is struggling to get anyone to do anything.