In the second of our series of Notes From The Front Line, I talk to Grace Church of Guttersnipe Theatre about their process of continuing to develop their devised project in lockdown over Zoom. Grace is a Lecoq-trained theatremaker and burlesque performer from Brighton whose work has been seen at venues and festivals including Wilderness Festival, Edinburgh Fringe, CPT, Wardrobe …
‘Christopher Green is a performer of charisma, with interesting body language & a vision in pink’: NO SHOW – Yard Theatre
I wanted to try out something from The Yard Online’s day of fun, and chose No Show, a Zoom performance which sounded something a bit different.
It’s …
‘Technology can bring us together but also tear us apart’: THE GHOST IN THE MACHINE – A Zoom play (Online review)
This play, written especially for Zoom by John Knowles, looks at a group of people trying to make a seance work when they can’t hold hands.
‘It captured all of the cheesy elements of the real thing’: The Showstoppers’ Alternative Eurovision Song Contest
During a 90-minute livestream, viewers were treated to some iconic performances from around the world in isolation.
The Shows Must Go On: After Andrew Lloyd Webber, lockdown musicals channel turns to The Sound of Music
After six weeks, free-to-view YouTube Channel The Shows Must Go On has concluded its series of Andrew Lloyd Webber stage musicals. The lockdown line-up continues this week with Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music.
‘This is our humanity. And sheer genius’ – Andrew Scott in SEA WALL
Lockdown occasionally spawns some real delights. Like the surprise appearance of a strange creature from the profoundest depths. One of these must be Andrew Scott’s superb performance in Simon Stephens’s Sea Wall.
‘We are made of stardust & dreams’: ELECTROLYTE – Scottish Mental Health Arts Festival (Online review)
This week is National Mental Health Awareness Week and never before has it seemed so needed. Locked away from the distractions of normality, we have been faced with our own four walls for weeks on end, with only social media keeping us connected to those we miss, and those we don’t…
‘A vivid kaleidoscope of culture & thinking’: BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES – National Theatre ★★★★★ (Online review)
You can’t beat the experience of sitting in a theatre watching a live performance, but one of the lockdown-positives is a chance to watch stuff I sadly missed and Barber Shop Chronicles is one of those.
‘A fascinating body of work’: I, Peaseblossom / I, Banquo (Online review)
Tim Crouch’s series of performances as overlooked characters in Shakespeare is a fascinating body of work. He has been developing these one-man shows (with assistance) for more than 15 years.
NEWS: Bristol Old Vic announces streamed shows including A Monster Calls & The Grinning Man
Bristol Old Vic has announced the first three of five titles that will be streamed on YouTube as part of the city-wide lockdown lifeline initiative Bristol Arts Channel.
‘A lovely energy & pace runs right through the production’: BARBER SHOP CHRONICLES – National Theatre ★★★★★ (Online review)
This is a gloriously funny and heartfelt play that offers a fascinating insight into how the barbershop is a place of vital importance for African men.
‘The less respect you have for the Brontes before you watch this, the more you’ll enjoy it’: WASTED – Southwark Playhouse (Online review)
Wasted is about the Bronte siblings from childhood to death, as they attempt to follow their artistic – and romantic – ambitions.
NEWS: After 72 virtual shows, Leave a Light On series concludes with Beverley Knight concert
Leave a Light On, the online concert series launched during lockdown, will draw to a close on Friday 29 May 2020 at 6.30pm with a finale concert by Beverley Knight.
‘A bittersweetly beautiful chamber musical’: PIECES OF STRING – Mercury Theatre (Online review)
Finally, a show I haven’t seen before being streamed! And what a beauty Pieces of String turned out to be.
‘Filled with fun & mischief’: THE MIDNIGHT GANG – Chichester Festival Theatre ★★★★ (Online review)
This lovely musical based on David Walliams’ children’s book is filled with fun and mischief.
‘A tale that has a special resonance at a time of remembrance’: IT IS EASY TO BE DEAD – Finborough Theatre (Streamed Broadcast)
A young man whose life was cut short by the First World War, Charles’ poems marked him out of as one the pre-eminent wordsmiths of his time.
‘Phoebe Waller-Bridge is an inspiration to my generation’: FLEABAG – Soho Theatre (Online review)
“Fleabag Live”, creator Phoebe Waller Bridge’s on-demand performance of her original stage hit, brilliantly mirrors the comedy and unique factors of the hit television show it spawned.
‘Women were sectioned on all sorts of non-medical pretexts’: BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON – Online Fringe Festival
History shows that right up to the 20th century, women were ‘sectioned’ on all sorts of non-medical pretexts.
‘Ralph Fiennes & Sophie Okonedo are well matched’: ANTONY & CLEOPATRA – National Theatre (Online review)
I’ve always found Antony and Cleopatra a bit of a slog. There, I’ve said it. Too many scenes which flit about all over the place, too many minor inconsequential characters, deaths which seem interminable.
The Shows Must Go On: Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1998 film of Cats streams for 24 hours only from Friday
The lockdown streaming schedule for Andrew Lloyd Webber’s free-to-view YouTube Channel The Shows Must Go On will continue this Friday with a broadcast of his global blockbuster Cats.