For every person who is a major fan of a show, there is someone on the other end of the spectrum who doesn’t like it. What would be the fun if we all liked the same things?!
Mates blogger: Sophie Garrod
Sophie Garrod is one of over 45 theatre bloggers who are part of the MyTheatreMates collective. This page features Sophie'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.
Sophie Garrod has loved the theatre since a very young age and always loved to write. Whilst studying journalism, media and cultural studies at Cardiff University, she set up her One Woman West End Show website. She also now works at a theatre, so has insights into how theatres operate and how shows are produced. She writes reviews, as well as opinion pieces that are light-hearted and those that tackle more serious issues such as disability and race in theatre.
The latest from Sophie on MyTheatreMates
My heart goes out to every single member of the theatre community
It really is with a heavy heart that I find myself writing such a piece on theatre. I really didn’t think this day would ever come.
In need of love & positivity? Here’s a selection of musical songs to listen during self-isolation
With everything going on at the moment, I thought one thing that everyone could do with is some positive and uplifting songs.
‘Threatens to sound better than the original’: DADDY LONG LEGS – Cirencester ★★★★★
With direction from Kirstie Davis, the music, choreography, design and talent all coincide for a great production of Daddy Long Legs at the Barn Theatre.
‘A show that the world needs right now’: KINKY BOOTS – Touring ★★★★
Kinky Boots a show that will make you laugh out loud, shed a tear, and have your toe tapping throughout, and mixed with some glitz, glamour and drag queens, what more could you want?
‘A unique kind of theatre that is recommended’: THE GREAT GATSBY – Gatsby’s Drugstore ★★★★
The Great Gatsby Immersive Theatre was a really enjoyable thing to do, a very different piece of theatre to anything I have experienced before and I did have a great time, so I truly would recommend it.
‘Brilliantly told & unbelievably gripping’: MATTHEW BOURNE’S ROMEO & JULIET – Touring ★★★★
I realised very quickly to believe in the critics that have described Matthew Bourne as a wonderful storyteller. Through physical movement, relationships between characters, facial expression and energy (both soft and dynamic), the beautifully tragic story of Romeo and Juliet is told.
Shows to see to celebrate Pride Month
June is widely celebrated throughout the UK as being the month to celebrate Pride. The month is used to embrace a culture that was once suppressed, and what better way to do this than to watch some awe-inspiring theatre that has taken its roots from gay stories and gay culture.
‘Potentially the best piece of theatre I have ever seen’: ELECTROLYTE – Touring ★★★★★
I truly believe that Electrolyte is doing positive things to bring mental health to the surface in a safe space where people can see themselves reflected in art, as well as start important conversations.
‘Brilliant, naughty & outrageously funny’: Avenue Q –Touring ★★★★
As well as the humour, I was also surprised how emotional I became at the lives of these little puppets on Avenue Q; a brilliant show all-round.
‘The talent in the room was huge’: SATURDAY SUPPER CLWB – Cardiff
Saturday Supper Clwbs are described as “your brand-new Saturday out” hosted by Wales Millennium Centre and through my experience I can certainly say that it was a fun one.
Top Ten Tips for West End Live
With just one week to go, I thought it would be the perfect time to put together my Top Ten Tips for attending West End Live and I hope it helps.
Rise Up: Flat 4 Theatre wants to see women being more than one thing on stage
“We started the company because we agreed that theatre isn’t telling women’s stories the way women deserve,” says Flat 4 Theatre.
‘A delicate show with powerful moments, laughs & tears’: WAITRESS – West End ★★★★
Waitress is a delicate show with powerful moments, laughs and tears that I have no doubt everyone will love.
Rise Up: Nathaniel Hall takes a ‘funny & frank’ look at the impact of HIV in First Time at the Edinburgh Fringe
With practice seeking to empower individuals to tell their own stories, Nathaniel Hall is a proudly northern writer, director and producer of inspiring, bold, provocative and socially-minded work, and has been doing so for the last ten years.
Rise Up: Aslant Theatre Company shows a different perspective on the stories that we know
With a name taken from Shakespeare’s classic play Hamlet: “There is a willow grows aslant the brook”, Aslant Theatre Company is interested in producing both new works and imaginative interpretations of classical repertoire.
Rise Up: Liminal Theatre Productions dedicated creates theatre that is unapologetically political
Liminal Theatre Productions (Liminal for short) is first and foremost a theatre for social change. All three of their members passionately believe that ‘theatre can change the world’ and this is what they continue to work towards. These women aren’t messing around.
Rise Up: Just Club Theatre brings the inclusivity of a club atmosphere to theatre
Just Club is a theatre company which produces part stand-up, part gig and part theatre, and they use the fusion of these mediums to tell stories that appeal to wider audiences, rather than stereotyping theatre-going audiences.
Rise Up: Hags Ahoy targets social injustice in new play Right of Entitlement
Steven Todd has written multiple plays in his lifetime, and paired up with wife Melissa, the two formed theatre company Hags Ahoy in March 2018.
Rise Up: Quirkspace continues to create innovative theatre
Quirkspace is a company that was formed in 2018 and has always been about creating bold and exciting theatre. With a range of artists and quirky/unconventional venues, the company has produced theatre in spaces that aren’t really known about and aren’t put to artistic use.
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