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News, Reviews and Features
These are all of our in-house news and features as well as syndicated article excerpts from our 45+ theatre bloggers. You can also access All Our Mates' Posts in comprehensive list form and view individual author pages.
NEWS: Shane Richie will star in a digital revival of Scaramouche Jones
Stage and screen actor Shane Richie (EastEnders; The Entertainer; One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest; I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here) will take on the role of the titular tragic clown in the digital revival of Justin Butcher’s solo show, Scaramouche Jones.
NEWS: Theatres could open in May but distancing rules are likely to remain until June at the earliest
Theatres will reopen subject to social distancing rules in May 2021, the Government has announced, but with no likelihood of operating at full capacity before late June at the earliest.
‘The writing is nuanced & structured’: HYMN – Almeida Theatre (Online review)
In an empty Almeida Theatre, two heavyweight actors – Adrian Lester and Danny Sapani – bring serious male energy to Lolita Chakrabati’s new play Hymn.
Coming out of lockdown: Is it better to wait than to rush to open theatres & risk everything?
Setting a timetable requires Johnson to be a clairvoyant, predicting the future way of a virus that, to be honest, is only really getting started. Yes, vaccines are being done fast (I got my first dose on Saturday), but lifting the lid on Pandora’s box too quickly — by setting a timetable for reopening — won’t benefit anyone’s mental health, if it simply exacerbates the virus and leads to the necessity to shut down again.
‘Simply unmissable’: THE COLOR PURPLE – Curve Leicester (Online review)
I have loved both book and film of The Color Purple for as long as I can remember. Alice Walker’s novel of strong black females in an America which sees them as not just second-class citizens, but non-entities, is a seminal text in both feminist and LGBTQIA+ literature.
NEWS: Pitlochry Festival Theatre & Royal Lyceum Theatre announce casts for next 3 Sound Stage productions
Pitlochry Festival Theatre and the Royal Lyceum Theatre Edinburgh in association with Naked Productions have announced the casts for its three forthcoming Sound Stage plays.
NEWS: The Off West End Awards 2021 winners are announced
The winners of the Off West End Awards 2021, encompassing the Offies, OffFest, OnComm and OneOff Awards, have been announced in an online ceremony on 21 February 2021 via Scenesaver.
‘Right up to standard & terrific fun’: Sherlock In Homes 2: Murder On Ice (Online review)
If you’re a whodunnit devotee and you like plenty of (frozen) red herring then you’ll love Sherlock In Homes 2: Murder On Ice.
‘The audience feels as though it is time-hopping with ease & style’: RECOGNITION – Written on the Waves (Online review) ★★★★★
Recognition is a powerful and fascinating audio drama that I can really see working well as a two hander on stage – definite potential to be explored further and adapted into a live show.
‘You can still savour the atmosphere’: WEST END MUSICAL DRIVE-IN – Stream.Theatre (Online review)
Featuring some amazing song choices and outstanding vocals, the live-stream of West End Musical Drive-In is just what we need right now to lift our spirits
‘Few theatrical terrains are as hotly contested as this one’: Mark Shenton picks his favourite Broadway leading ladies
My weekly ShenTens podcast, in which I count down my top ten favourites in a particular category, is inevitably subjective — but few theatrical terrains are as hotly contested as this one: whom I consider to be my favourite Broadway leading ladies.
‘Perhaps the best one yet’: The Theatre Channel – Episode 5 The Classics of Broadway (Online review)
We are now into a third lockdown, but the Theatre Cafe and Adam Blanshay Productions continue undeterred with the Theatre Channel’s musical theatre spectaculars.
Review Round Up: Hymn at the Almeida Theatre
We round up the reviews for Lolita Chakrabarti’s new play Hymn, starring Adrian Lester and Danny Sapani.
NEWS: Alfred Enoch, Joanna Lumley, Russell Tovey & Stephen Fry are cast in The Picture of Dorian Gray online production
The co-producers of the upcoming digital adaptation of The Picture of Dorian Gray have today announced the production’s full casting and creative team. Joining previously announced Fionn Whitehead, in the title role, are Alfred Enoch as Harry Wotton, Joanna Lumley as Lady Narborough, Emma McDonald as Sibyl Vane and Russell Tovey as Basil Hallward with Stephen Fry as the Interviewer.
‘A hard-hitting fusion of text, images & sound’: AND BREATHE – Living Record Festival (Online review)
Twelve minutes is the average lifespan of a plastic bag, we are told at the start of Mark Conway and Alex Packer’s hard-hitting fusion of text, images and sound, And Breathe.
‘Tinder meets Black Mirror in this entertaining & innovative production’: MANIMALS (Online review) ★★★★
Manimals has a lot to say, and this show is sure to strike a chord with anyone who’s ever subjected themselves to the world of online dating.
‘The emotion flooding from the stage is overwhelming’: THE COLOR PURPLE – Curve Leicester (Online review)
Following on from the immensely successful Sunset Boulevard in Concert, Curve has reunited the company of 2019’s The Color Purple (a co-production with Birmingham Hippodrome) to once again bring a much needed dose of musical enrichment to theatre lovers worldwide.
NEWS: Phoebe Waller-Bridge is announced as Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society President
The Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society has announced that Phoebe Waller-Bridge has been appointed in the role of President. The position, which is the first of its kind, will see Waller-Bridge act as a representative and advocate for the Fringe Society: the charity that exists to support everyone who wants to participate in the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
‘One of the most fun evenings I have had in lockdown’: The Custody Suite: The Online Experience (Online review)
The Custody Suite Online Experience is perhaps one of the most fun evenings I have had in lockdown. It’s interactive, fun, reflects a real-life experience and there is even a prize for the Best Detective.