In light of the most recent government advice due to COVID-19, The Original Theatre Company’s production of Alan Bennett’s The Habit of Art, which was due to open at Devonshire Park Theatre, Eastbourne on 18 March 2020, will now perform a closed filmed performance on the same day 2pm.
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: The 2020 Olivier Awards are cancelled
This year’s Olivier Awards with Mastercard, which were due to place on 5 April 2020 at the Royal Albert Hall, have been cancelled.
NEWS: Coronavirus pandemic – An update on theatre closures in the West End & across the country
My Theatre Mates have been collecting official announcements of theatre closures up and down the country in the Twitter thread below and will continue to add updates as they come in.
NEWS: West End & UK theatres to close with immediate effect
In light of the continued coronavirus emergency and advice from Prime Minister Boris Johnson that people should avoid “pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues” during the pandemic, SOLT and UK Theatre has announced that member venues will close from the evening of Monday 16 March 2020.
Text of the Day: I Think We Are Alone
Random and topical thoughts and quotes gathered by My Theatre Mates contributor Aleks Sierz, first published on www.sierz.co.uk.
Rehearsal photos: Preparations continue for the premiere of In Search of a White Identity
With all government-advised precautions in place, the Actors Centre continues its preparations for this month’s strictly limited premiere run of Cliffordkuju Henry’s powerful new play In Search of a White Identity. What have the cast been getting up to in rehearsals? Check out our gallery.
‘Outstanding’: BACK TO THE FUTURE – Manchester ★★★★★
Olly Dobson is amazing in Back to the Future. He sounds, looks and even has the mannerisms of Marty, the portrayal is so well done I don’t think anyone else could have done a better job.
NEWS: Finborough postpones Hockey Mom & Women Without Men runs during coronavirus crisis
Amongst the rising tide of news about closures due to the coronavirus pandemic, London’s Finborough Theatre has postponed two of its forthcoming fortieth-anniversary-year productions, which had been due to run from this month until the end of July.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: Love Love Love at the Lyric Hammersmith
We round up the reviews for Mike Bartlett’s play Love Love Love, running at the Lyric Hammersmith until 4 April 2020.
‘Tackles very real issues faced by young people today’: CRONGTON KNIGHTS – Touring ★★★★★
Crongton Knights is a completely unique performance in both the storyline and the atmospheric use of sound.
‘All his work is relevant & touches almost everyone’s own experiences’: David Tudor talks to us about John Mortimer and The Dock Brief
Theatre veteran and The Dock Brief director David Tudor tells us about working with John Mortimer, why his writing is timeless and what he’s learned over the years.
‘Inherently intriguing’: Nuclear War / Buried / Graceland – Old Red Lion Theatre ★★★★
This triptych of plays – Nuclear War, Buried and Graceland – is a highly enjoyable and challenging evening for its audience, provoking emotion and thought through nuanced and skilled performances
‘A powerful account of female middle-class anxieties in Britain today’: SHOE LADY – Royal Court Theatre
Shoe Lady at the Royal Court is not the most involving play in the world, but it does have an evocative resonance.
‘Flamboyant & fun piece of musical theatre’: ONCE UPON A MATTRESS – Upstairs at the Gatehouse ★★★★
Once Upon A Mattress is a lively and vibrant musical based on Hans Christian Andersen’s famous Princess and the Pea.
‘Guaranteed to occupy your thoughts long after the stage lights dim’: PEACE IN OUR TIME – Union Theatre
A fascinating historical curio, Sasha Regan’s production Peace In Our Time is also a fine piece of speculative drama, imbued with Coward’s gift for eloquence and waspishness.
NEWS: The London premiere of Vanya & Sonia & Masha & Spike is postponed
Producers have announced that the London premiere of Christopher Durang’s Tony Award-winning Best Play comedy Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, due to start previews at Charing Cross Theatre on 21 March 2020 will not now go ahead as planned. It will be rescheduled later in the year.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: Back to the Future at Manchester Opera House
The reviews are in for the world premiere of this new musical based on the hit film Back to the Future.
‘Does exactly what it says on the tin’: CIRQUE BERSERK – Touring ★★★
Newbury-based circus company Cirque Berserk! appears at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre as part of its 2020 tour. The company brands itself as ‘Real Circus made for Theatre’ and it does exactly what it says on the tin.
NEWS: Adam and Eve come to the Union Theatre stage in new comedy Going Ape!
Religion meets evolution in Andrew Corbet Burcher’s new comedy Going Ape!, which makes the Union Theatre its Garden of Eden next month. Time to book your tickets!
‘Gives its audience a complete picture of Forrester’s life’: THE WATERS OF LIVERPOOL – Touring ★★★★
This adaptation of Helen Forrester’s By The Waters of Liverpool by Rob Fennah gives its audience a complete picture of Forrester’s life.