In this one-woman show, writer and performer Beth Burrows fascinates her audience even as she exposes some of the flaws of her famous male subjects: Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra.
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.
Is ‘Zoom in the flesh’ the way to wake up producers’ creativity post-pandemic?
I recently tried a technical experiment with Zoom and believe we may have found a way to harness the power of distance connection with the desire for getting back in a room.
New post-show Q&A: Join Terri Paddock for The Tragedy of Dorian Gray
Mates founder Terri Paddock will chair a post-show discussion for the London premiere of The Tragedy of Dorian Gray, Blue Devil Theatre’s updating of Oscar Wilde’s classic, at the Drayton Arms Theatre on 23 October 2021. Time to get booking!
‘This is a tale of extraordinary injustice’: TOKYO ROSE – Southwark Playhouse & touring
Based on a true story, new musical Tokyo Rose follows the life of Iva Toguri, an American woman who was wrongly convicted of treason in 1949.
‘There is a real understanding of that teenage desire to be someone else’: LATELY – London & Coventry ★★★★
God, teenagers. Don’t you just want to shake them sometimes? Scream at them that their lives are a marathon, not a sprint.
‘Conniving, twisted, lost, confused; I feel sorry for him’: Maximus Polling on Dorian Gray
Maximus Polling reprises his titular performance as the ever-youthful Dorian in Blue Devil Theatre’s award-winning adaptation, transferring to Drayton Arms Theatre from 19 October.
‘Innovative, spectacular, experimental, totally unpredictable’: DRACULA: The Untold Story – Touring ★★★★★
If like me you consider yourself somewhat of an expert on the original story of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, then you’ll be both fascinated and intrigued by Imitating the Dogs curveball of a tale, set in a 1965 London police station.
‘Ensemble comedy in the British up-against-the-odds tradition’: GOING THE DISTANCE (Online review)
This latest star-studded digital offering from Henry Filloux-Bennett and the Lawrence Batley Theatre is a pleasing comedy about the tribulations of putting on a post-pandemic production.
‘Good intentions & a fascinating central figure’: IDA RUBINSTEIN – Playground Theatre ★★
Disparaging somebody else’s passion project is a bit like telling a doting parent that their baby is ugly. This stage tribute to Art Nouveau darling Ida Rubinstein is one such endeavour.
INTERVIEW: What is best for us versus what is best for those we love most? Roger Ajogbe on starring in the premiere of Proud
Roger Ajogbe stars as Roland in Proud, Bren Gosling’s powerful new drama tackling racism and homophobia. He took a break from rehearsals to tell us more about the play.
Why shouldn’t you hate musicals? Adam Lenson’s new book Breaking Into Song has the answer
Director Adam Lenson has something to say about musicals. In this essential text for theatre lovers, he challenges your perceptions of what a musical can, is, and might be.
‘Emotional, thought-provoking & honest’: THE MOUNTAINTOP – Manchester ★★★
Katori Hall’s The Mountaintop, revived at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre by Roy Alexander Weise, is what happens when we examine our heroes at their most vulnerable.
‘Heartbreaking but fiercely essential work’: THE NORMAL HEART – National Theatre
Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart receives a masterful revival courtesy of Dominic Cooke at the National Theatre, starring Ben Daniels.
VIDEO: How far would you go to right a wrong? Snowflakes post-show Q&A
How far would you go to right a wrong? Terri Paddock discussed with the cast and creatives of Robert Boulton’s debut play Snowflakes after a performance at the Old Red Lion Theatre.
NEWS: Noel Coward meets Neil Gaiman in new fantasy drama The Bargain
The Bargain, a new play billed as “Noel Coward meets Neil Gaiman”, gets its world premiere this month at Ye Olde Rose & Crown Theatre in Walthamstow, east London. The Controlled Chaos production runs from 20 to 30 October 2021.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: Back to the Future at the Adelphi Theatre
On LoveLondonLoveCulture, Emma Clarendon rounds up the reviews for screen-to-stage musical, now receiving its West End premiere at the Adelphi Theatre.
‘This actor-musician staging is ingenious’: THE LAST FIVE YEARS – West End
There’s a line in The Last Five Years, Jason Robert Brown’s semi-autobiographical musical two-hander about a relationship breakdown, that gets me every time: “I will not lose because you cannot win.”
‘A telling reminder of this country’s involvement in the slave trade’: THE LONG SONG – Chichester ★★★★
Chichester Festival Theatre’s premiere of Andrea Levy’s moving saga, The Long Song, doesn’t hit a wrong note both as a telling reminder of this country’s involvement in the slave trade and timely contribution to Black History Month.
NEWS: Catfish romance Darling, inspired by a true story, premieres at Hope Theatre, 9-27 Nov
Could you spot a “catfish”? DARLING, an American tale of love, mercy and mail fraud by award-winning US playwright Kathy Rucker, gets its world premiere next month at north London’s Hope Theatre.
VIDEO: What did the Victorians get up to in Vauxhall? The Pleasure Garden post-show Q&A
I was immediately hooked when Glenn Chandler told me he had written a new musical inspired by that history, staged at Above the Stag, which in its current home beneath the railway arches at Albert Embankment, actually borders the Gardens.