On LoveLondonLoveCulture, Emma Clarendon rounds up the reviews for Hamlet, the first indoor production of Shakespeare’s play at Shakespeare’s Globe, now running in the candlelit Sam Wanamaker Playhouse until 9 April 2022.
‘There is quite a bit going on but it balances perfectly’: HAMLET – Sam Wanamaker Playhouse
As soon as Hamlet was announced as part of the 2021-22 winter season my eyes rolled so hard I nearly saw the inside of my eye sockets. I was desperately disappointed. But then something magical happened: a Hamlet unlike any other.
‘Great stuff excellently performed’: THE ARRIVAL – Bush Theatre
Director Bijan Sheibani turns playwright in a fine two-hander about family and the crisis of masculinity in The Arrival at the Bush Theatre.
‘Haydn Gwynne in full snarling Hedda mode is something to see’: HEDDA TESMAN – Chichester ★★★
But more and more, there’s a sense in Hedda Tesman at the Minerva that what you are seeing is some damn fine acting in a rather ho-hum play.
‘Blistering, uncompromising stuff’: DANCE NATION – Almeida Theatre
Dance Nation at the Almeida Theatre is a pretty damn fine piece of writing by US playwright Clare Barron, and a damn fine piece of theatre directed by Bijan Sheibani.
‘When Barron focuses on character, she creates plenty of meaningful exchanges’: DANCE NATION – Almeida Theatre
With plenty of influences from across film, there’s still a lot to take from Clare Barron’s play, and as annual dance fever arrives in the UK once again and mingles with a year of female-led stories, Dance Nation is timely if not quite a ten from Len.
NEWS: Cast for UK premiere of Clare Barron’s new play Dance Nation at the Almeida includes Sarah Hadland & Manjinder Virk
The Almeida Theatre has announced the full cast for the UK premiere of Clare Barron’s new play Dance Nation, directed by Bijan Sheibani (running from 27 August to 6 October, with a press night on 4 September).
‘Deftly shows individual moments of grief’: ONE FOR SORROW – Royal Court Theatre
Are morals dropped at the first sign of trouble and civilised people will ‘devour’ each other? Written by Cordelia Lynn and directed by James Macdonald, One For Sorrow examines this hypothesis up close.
‘A play for both your brain & your pulse’: ONE FOR SORROW – Royal Court Theatre
One For Sorrow may run out of steam a bit in its second act, but One For Sorrow remains a play for both your brain and your pulse. Explosive.
‘Raises expectations it doesn’t quite deliver on’: ONE FOR SORROW – Royal Court Theatre
It could be the November 2015 Paris terror attacks, except this time it’s happening in London. And it is also the powerful start of Cordelia Lynn’s new play, One for Sorrow, which has just opened at the Royal Court’s upstairs studio space.
‘Brilliantly maintains a fine balance between tragedy & comedy’: MAYFLY – Orange Tree Theatre
Joe White’s play Mayfly is telling us please, hang on. So much can happen in a day. And the most surprising acts of kindness and generosity can come from the most unsuspecting of sources.
‘Brimming with tenderness & emotional articulacy’: MAYFLY – Orange Tree Theatre
Under the tenure of Paul Miller, the Orange Tree Theatre has shown a fierce commitment to new writing, but Joe White’s Mayfly is the first debut play to be staged there since Miller’s ascendancy, and it’s easy to see why it made the cut.
‘Imperfect writing debut has an understated emotional force’: MAYFLY – Orange Tree Theatre
Joe White’s debut, Mayfly, is a family play that although marketed as “ethereal” is actually much more rooted than that. It also expresses a deep sense of loss. And, with its title in mind, shows how some things can change in a single day.