Based on the original play by the incredible Tennessee Williams, this modern take on the classic, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof wows at the Royal Exchange Theatre.
‘Stripped to the bare essentials’: HAMLET – Bristol (Cinema Review)
The fat has been cut from this Bristol Old Vic production of Hamlet, leaving the meat of the play. There is no Fortinbras subplot, the ghost and player scenes are stripped to the bare essentials.
‘Irresistible, awful, immortal’: HAY FEVER – Sonning ★★★★
I don’t always make it through the Oxfordshire lanes to the gorgeous, eccentric, water-wheeled Mill at Sonning, but the thought of Issy van Randwyck as Judith Bliss in Hay Fever lured me. Caught the show en route to the airport, so I started writing this on a Croatian long-distance bus.
‘Fun, educational & interactive’: GEORGIA & THE ICEBERG – Touring ★★★★
Dorset Bred’s Georgia and the Iceberg is currently on tour. I would highly recommend taking the family to watch this. It’s suitable for all ages and an important topic that we should all be concerned about.
VIDEOS & PHOTOS: ABBA, friendships, the joys of fandom & paying tribute to Paul O’Grady – Terri Paddock hosts a The Way Old Friends Do post-show Q&A
Following the news of Paul O’Grady’s unexpected death, this specific performance of The Way Old Friends Do at London’s Park Theatre was dedicated to the comedian and drag legend, whose voice opens the show. Writer and star Ian Hallard paid tribute to O’Grady before curtain-up, and we started the post-show talk with Ian and director Mark Gatiss recalling how enthusiastically O’Grady recorded his voiceovers – despite not loving ABBA.
FROM DOWN UNDER: Siegfried in Bendigo
The abundant musical and artistic quality impresses again as Melbourne Opera presents Siegfried, third instalment in their mighty Bendigo Ring Cycle. Seen last September in concert, Siegfried comes to rich dramatic life in its fully staged production. Led by sturdy heldentenor Bradley Daley in the title role, the opera begins gradually with domestic drama before surging on to dragon slaying, a helpful singing bird, and the romantic rescue of Brünnhilde.
‘Chaotically energetic, honest, raw & wild’: LORD OF THE FLIES – Leeds ★★★★
Leeds Playhouse and Belgrade Theatre Coventry’s co-production of William Golding’s Lords of the Flies is brought to the stage and re-imagined 70 years after it was first written. Nigel Williams’ adaptation and Amy Leach’s direction of this production realistically correlates to the world many live in.
‘A blistering experience’: A LITTLE LIFE – Harold Pinter Theatre
Anyone who has read the book will know what to expect or if you haven’t then there are enough content warnings to prepare you at least for some of what is to come in Ivo van Hove and Koen Tachelet’s stage adaptation of Hanya Yanagihara’s A Little Life. In practice it is a blistering experience that realigns the source material to create a more integrated theatrical experience using plenty of techniques that van Hove more usually applies to working with his Dutch company.
‘You have to admire Jameson’s chutzpah’: TEN DAYS – The Space (Online show)
Taking as his central text American journalist John Reed’s seminal book Ten Days That Shook The World, Matthew Jameson’s “labour of love” project Ten Days (it has taken a mere 10 years or so to get this work finished) provides a convoluted history lesson which sets out the main events in some detail and introduces a whole gallery of historical figures who played their part in the process.
‘Feels less spicy & naughty than once it did’: HAY FEVER – Sonning ★★★
Seeing Hay Fever at the lovely Mill at Sonning, not far from the Thames-side village Cookham, where Coward’s play is actually set, feels almost like immersive theatre. It also feels a little like stepping back in time to a gentler era. Some people may find it a little staid, but it’s not hard to see why it proves so perennially popular.
‘An excellent group of actors convincingly play off one another’: FARM HALL – Jermyn Street Theatre
This scenario is a ready-made play, a situation where some of the greatest scientific minds of their time are confronted with the consequences of their personal and political actions. The transcripts of the Farm Hall recordings were published in the 1990s, and other plays have been produced using their contents. However, Katherine Moar’s play, which has its first full production at the Jermyn Street Theatre, makes good use of the material to create a compelling drama, in which a large cast is handled well.
NEWS: Peter Pruyn brings his autobiographical play Up: One Man’s Journey to Feminism across the pond to the London Fringe
What does it take for a man to become a feminist – and why does it matter? In seven diverse and poignant vignettes from his own life, Peter Pruyn (pronounced “prine”), an American trauma therapist who works with female survivors, takes the audience on his journey in Up: One Man’s Journey To Feminism on the afternoons of 31 March and 1, 2, 7 and 9 April 2023 at London’s Hen & Chickens Theatre.
‘Too messy to fulfil its ambition’: BLACK SUPERHERO – Royal Court Theatre
In Olivier Award-nominated actor and activist Danny Lee Wynter’s Royal Court debut, the attractively titled Black Superhero, the ambitious theme of black queerness is explored through the conceit of hero worship in a show whose cast is led by the author.
‘Anne Reid does an uncanny turn’: MARJORIE PRIME – Menier Chocolate Factory
Artificial intelligence and robotics have long been a boon to us ethical-scifi buffs, films like AI and I, Robot mercifully saving us from rocket ships and aliens called Xzxvyvrgg. In Jordan Harrison’s play Marjorie Prime at the Menier Chocolate Factory it is inner space – and a recognisable world – which gets invaded by parasitic cyberthink.
‘It’s brilliant to see underrepresented voices brought to life’: ALFIE’S FIRST FIGHT – Touring
Oliver Sykes’ debut children’s novel is inspired by growing up as a keen amateur boxer in a single parent family on the breadline. Having long been a passionate advocate for underrepresented voices, Sykes brings his own personal experiences to the page in Alfie’s First Fight, which promises to be a cross between Jacqueline Wilson and Rocky Balboa.
‘The cast is clearly having a (disco) ball’: THE WAY OLD FRIENDS DO – Touring
Expertly directed by the ever dependable Mark Gatiss, The Way Old Friends Do at the Park Theatre is a surprising delight which does what it says on the tin, and then a bit more.
‘Celebrating its 80th birthday with an update’: THE GOOD PERSON OF SZECHWAN – Sheffield & Touring ★★★★
Originally written in 1941 by Bertolt Brecht, The Good Person of Szechwan was first performed in 1943 – and this year celebrates its 80th birthday with an update by Nina Segal.
‘A haunting story told in a magical way’: FURTHER THAN THE FURTHEST THING – Young Vic Theatre
Empathetic revival of Zinnie Harris’s 2000 play about a lost world and small island longings
The post Further Than the Furthest Thing, Young Vic appeared first on Aleks Sierz.
‘Sets a crisp pace & witty tone’: BLACK SUPERHERO – Royal Court Theatre
“I’m holding out for a hero” is Bonnie Tyler’s famous song, and it could be the theme tune for David (Danny Lee Wynter) in Black Superhero. He’s long held a torch for friend King (Dyllón Burnside), who is playing superhero Craw in a low-brow movie franchise.
‘A celebration of hard won opportunity that must never be torn away’: WALDO’S CIRCUS OF MAGIC & TERROR – Touring
Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror is advertised as a new musical, and it does have songs in, but it also has much more. To me, it feels like a play with music, dance, creative access design, and circus acrobatics mixed together. And the combination is very effective. The show is powerful, with funny moments, beautiful moments, and devastatingly sad moments as it reminds us of terrible things that have happened to people who are considered ‘different’ through history.