The psychology of Blithe Spirit snaps convincingly into place in Richard Eyre’s production while at the same time it fully utilises every opportunity to make the audience laugh.
‘Short but superb’: A NUMBER – Bridge Theatre
A Number packs a lot of themes, meaning and ideas into just an hour of stage time in a production that asks big questions about scientific progress.
‘Has feeling as well as intellect’: LEOPOLDSTADT – West End
Tom Stoppard’s personal story in Leopoldstadt sees the writer return to form as a commentator of cultural, social and historical patterns.
‘A pin-drop silence falls over the auditorium’: ENDGAME / ROUGH FOR THEATRE II – The Old Vic
Much is to be taken from the strangeness of the settings and fine characterful performances in Endgame and Rough For Theatre II which should please Beckett fans and providing plenty of thoughtful material for the journey home.
‘Jodie McNee’s leading performance burns with energy’: FAUSTUS: THAT DAMNED WOMAN – Lyric Hammersmith
In opening-up the female experience of the era in Faustus: That Damned Woman, Chris Bush reinforces the decision to switch the gender of the central character.
‘Far lighter than the themes of the play might suggest’: UNCLE VANYA – West End
This Uncle Vanya is more roundedly entertaining than other recent productions and while that detracts a little from the emotional undercurrents of the original, the fluidity and richness of Rickson’s production, performed by an excellent cast, ensure a satisfying Chekhovian conclusion.
‘It’s fascinating writing’: THE TYLER SISTERS – Hampstead Theatre
In The Tyler Sisters Alexandra Wood reverses expectations of storytelling and in the process fills a notable gap in charting the experience of just being a sister day-to-day and year-to-year.
Theatre review of the 2019 & what to see in 2020
With a new year fast approaching, it is an interesting time to reflect on small changes across the theatre landscape in 2019 that will continue to shape how UK theatre will look as it moves into a new decade.
‘Don’t miss the chance to see this charming show’: CURTAINS – West End
In a strong year for new London productions, Curtains finishes 2019 on a high with a true song and dance show that glories in its love of the stage and the process of putting on a production.
‘Funny, sad & meaningful’: TEENAGE DICK – Donmar Warehouse
In Teenage Dick Mike Lew has created a version of Richard III that suits the high school context extremely well, asking the audience to consider attitudes to disability, power and social structures that perpetuate all kinds of inequality.
‘Feels as fresh & relevant as ever’: A TASTE OF HONEY – Trafalgar Studios
With its comment on the burden of expectation placed on women, class struggle, race and sexuality, more than six decades on A Taste Of Honey has lost none of its bite.
‘An achingly modern & exciting version’: CYRANO DE BERGERAC – West End
Reimagined for the modern stage with a contemporary cast led by James McAvoy, Jamie Lloyd’s production of Cyrano de Bergerac feels at every moment like theatre at its most exciting, liberating and inclusive.
‘Hard not to be impressed’: MY BRILLIANT FRIEND – National Theatre
Melly Still’s reworking of April De Angelis’ adaptation of My Brilliant Friend gives the show both a flowing and episodic quality as the interior monologue of the protagonist in the books is replaced by fully dramatised scenes.
‘Wickedly funny & quietly moving’: THE BEAUTY QUEEN OF LEENANE – Tower Theatre
The skill with which this production of The Beauty Queen of Leenane has been developed clearly demonstrates a theatre company with a revitalised energy.
‘Takes the building blocks of the genre in a new & unusual direction’: GHOST QUARTET – Boulevard Theatre
If this inaugural show, Ghost Quartet, means the new Boulevard Theatre is setting out its stall for a programme of unusually staged and challenging productions in the future then there is every reason to come back soon.
‘This is a writer with lots to say’: THE ANTIPODES – National Theatre
While the descent into a kind of collective insanity may seem strange in lieu of a plot in Annie Baker’s Antipodes at the National Theatre, as with all her work you find your thoughts returning to it again and again once the curtain comes down.
‘Wonderful connection between Foy & Smith adds an extra dimension’: LUNGS – The Old Vic
Part of the success of Lungs is that it is not the uber-liberal, finger-wagging climate change play you expect it to be, plus both the production’s stars are superb and entirely believable as the central couple.
‘Never less than compelling’: MACBETH – Chichester
It has been a long time since the West End saw a truly great Macbeth so perhaps this is a chance for Simm and Kirwan to buck the trend with impressive performances that offer a different perspective on their characters while creating a potency in their exchanges that is never less than compelling.
‘Engaging & atmospheric adaptation’: BLOOD WEDDING – Young Vic Theatre
Marina Carr’s coherent vision for Blood Wedding delivers a production that is unforgiving, creating a portentous world in which notions of love and freedom will always be trampled by the stronger inheritance of history, violence and family legacy
‘Some of us will just not know what to think’: A VERY EXPENSIVE POISON – Old Vic
In A Very Expensive Poison Lucy Prebble has serious arguments to outlay about the relationship between international governments and narrative misdirection, but the broadly comic approach to presentation feels at odds with the meaning of the play.