This West End revival of smart monologue about drug dealing on the Dark Web is well written if a bit slight.
Audiences & addiction in People, Places & Things
A second, transatlantic viewing proves just how thoroughly the production theatricalises addicts’ experiences in order to generate audience empathy with the struggle to overcome addiction.
THE RED LION – Trafalgar Studios
The tempestuous story of two ideologically opposed, minor league football men and the young player caught between them has little to do with the actual game and has a compelling, emotional narrative.
Submission & Sarah, Sky & Seven Other Guys – #EdFringe
A British Pakistani Muslim tries to reconcile his faith and family with his love of men and clubbing. A gay guy and his straight female BFF share a flat, a mutual adoration for classic films and the occasional man.
ANATOMY OF A SUICIDE – Royal Court
Love her or hate her, Katie Mitchell is surely our most bravely iconoclastic theatre director working in Britain today. If Robert Lepage is the magician who smoothes the cracks between technology and stagecraft, Katie Mitchell is the one who adds tough edginess.
CUSTODY – Ovalhouse
How do we cope when we don’t get what we want? How do we beat a system that is set up to make you fail? Custody asks just these questions, as we are taken on a two-year journey of a family’s struggle for justice for their loved one, twenty-nine year old Brian, who died whilst in police custody.
THE MONKEY – Theatre 503
John Stanley’s dark comedy could easily descend into poverty porn, but he avoids this pitfall with a focus on detailed characterisation and the consequences of drug addiction, both of which can translate to any social class.
LIVING A LITTLE – Vaults
Rob and Paul are best mates, albeit total polar opposites. They share a cozy bachelor pad where they engage in typical mid-20s, male behaviour – drinking, weight lifting, discussing women in graphic detail and fighting off zombies.
THE WILD PARTY – The Other Palace
This revival of Michael John LaChiusa’s musical The Wild Party unfortunately lives up to its original reception. Dripping with sex, booze and jazz, there are some great tunes but little substance.
SHOPPING & F***ING – Lyric Hammersmith
Twentieth-anniversary revival of 1990s zeitgeist play is flashy, loud and fun, but also lacks emotional connection
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Edinburgh Fringe: Mule
Orla and her sister are close. Even when Orla decided to move from their small Irish town to Ibiza for a summer of working and partying, they still texted everyday. After a sudden cessation in her messages and silence that stretches to ten days, her family starts to worry.