Welcome back to the Fringe Focus series of interviews with artistic directors around London. Recently I caught up with Kennedy Bloomer, who has been running the Hope Theatre (above the Hope & Anchor pub in Islington) since January 2020.
‘Slick & expertly formulated in every way’: SHERLOCK IN HOMES: MURDER AT THE CIRCUS – Sharp Teeth (Online review)
There is great attention paid to detail throughout Sharp Teeth’s Sherlock In Homes: Murder At The Circus which ensures that the audience are thoroughly engaged from start to finish.
‘He roams the stage like a cornered bear growling & spitting with fury’: DEATH OF A HUNTER – Finborough Theatre (Online review)
Edmund Dehn is great in Death of a Hunter as Ernest Hemingway, the role of a 20th century icon who lived and died explosively.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: An Evening With an Immigrant at the Bridge Theatre
The Bridge Theatre present Inua Ellams’ play An Evening With an Immigrant as part of its repertoire of one person plays during September and October.
‘A story predicated on equality, mutual support & finding your own path’: ROMANTICS ANONYMOUS – Bristol Old Vic (Online review)
Romantics Anonymous is a story predicated on equality, mutual support and finding your own path as individuals (and as a couple) rather than waiting for someone else to come and save you from your life – implications that after years of rom coms and social messaging is subtly but usefully employed through a charmingly conceived but nonetheless carefully structured story.
‘We had a great time getting to the solution’: SHERLOCK IN HOMES: MURDER AT THE CIRCUS – Sharp Teeth (Online review)
The pleasure of Sherlock In Homes: Murder at the Circus lies in watching half a dozen brains quickly scramble to come up with answers to what can be some pretty left field questions from the audience,
REVIEW ROUND-UP: Sunnymead Court at Tristan Bates Theatre
We round up the reviews for Gemma Lawrence’s play Sunnymead Court, running at the Tristan Bates theatre for a limited time.
‘A whole lifetime of joy & pain packed into this tale’: BEFORE AFTER – Southwark Playhouse
Filmed simply and elegantly in the Little auditorium at Southwark Playhouse, Before After places all our attention on the problems of these two people as they begin again.
‘A family drama which transcends its genre’: BURIED CHILD (Online review)
Buried Child is a family drama which transcends its genre and this excellent production enhances its already considerable reputation.
‘Blends wry reminiscence, personal experience, poetry & music’: AN EVENING WITH AN IMMIGRANT – Bridge Theatre
This is a masterly revival of An Evening with an Immigrant, Inua Ellams’ 2016 autobiographical one-man show which is both poetic and engaging.
‘Irresistibly charming & life affirming’: ROMANTICS ANONYMOUS – Bristol Old Vic (Online review)
Feelgood musical Romantics Anonymous at Bristol Old Vic certainly works on both the level of a light confection and something more robust for the committed chocolatophile/musicophile.
‘Delightfully playful & a sheer joy to listen to’: The Seth Concert Series With Karen Olivo (Online review) ★★★★★
The Seth Concert Series With Karen Olivo is as richly diverse musically as the rest of the series as well as being entertaining from start to finish.
‘Emotions were allowed to develop naturally’: LETTERS – Gate Theatre (Online review)
One of the knock-on effects of the current pandemic is that theatres have had to rise to the challenge of being ever more inventive in terms of form and content; Letters from The Gate Theatre follows this trend.
‘Full of wit, humour & reminiscence’: A MARVELLOUS PARTY (Online review)
A Marvellous Party, commissioned by the Noël Coward Foundation, ostensibly marks the centenary of Coward’s first appearance on stage and has been produced to raise funds for actors on both sides of the Atlantic who are struggling with the effects of the pandemic.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: Pippin at the Garden Theatre
We round up the reviews for Steven Dexter’s production of the musical Pippin, now playing at the Garden Theatre in Vauxhall.
‘The surround sound is disturbingly realistic at times’: Double – Darkfield Radio
A 20 minute audio experience for two people, Double is a psychological puzzle set in any normal kitchen, against any normal kitchen table.
‘Online theatre preserves & does so beautifully’: Martin Sherman discusses the recent online production of his play Rose
John Chapman asks Martin Sherman, the author of online hit Rose, a number of impertinent questions.
‘Offers an uplifting night out in a new setting’: PIPPIN – Garden Theatre ★★★★
The big question is whether the big sound of Pippin translates to an outdoor space on the edge of the Vauxhall one way system. The answer is a resounding yes.
‘The immersive play is a brilliantly fun evening’: SQUAD GOALS – Dagenham & Redbridge FC
Squad Goals tackles the limits opportunities women have to face while the other gender seems to have such vast chances at one of the world most successful and followed professions.
‘Lively, timely & in places hilarious satire’: THE BOSS OF IT ALL – New Perspectives (Online review)
Writer/director Jack McNamara’s clever play The Boss Of It All remorselessly targets the ineptitude of the governing classes and, along the way, takes some delightful pot shots at the pretensions of a certain type of actor.