Romance Romance, the all-male gay musical which opened at the Above the Stag Theatre in Vauxhall, is a beautiful and ornate chocolate box of a production.
‘Timely portrait’: ANGRY ALAN – Soho Theatre
There’s something very timely in Angry Alan, Penelope Skinner’s portrait of a lost man finding refuge in the “men’s rights movement”.
‘Keep an eye on these two extremely capable clowns’: THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST – Tara Theatre
Oscar Wilde’s comedy of manners is rightly regarded as a classic, so we must give thanks for Ayesha Casley-Hayford and Kudzanayi Chiwawa coming along and giving The Importance of Being Earnest a new lease of life, with the backing of Two Gents Productions and Tara Arts.
‘Some fine comic minds at the height of their powers’: AUSTENTATIOUS – West End
A fixture in London and the Edinburgh Fringe, Austentatious is an eight-strong troupe of comic improvisers, creating a fully improvised story at each performance in the style of Jane Austen.
‘Wears its politics on its sleeve without preaching’: COUNTING SHEEP – Vault Festival
Belarus Free Theatre’s immersive adaptation of Counting Sheep provides a truly emotional, interactive and interesting story whether you lived through it or you are learning about this for the very first time.
’A philosophy which helps us to understand modern times’: THE FIRST MODERN MAN – Hen & Chickens Theatre
Michael Barry’s celebration of a great interrogative intellect, The First Modern Man, can only work if the central performance manages to convey the imagined charm of a florid and thoughtful writer, with enough biographical detail and introspection to round out the thinker. It succeeds.
‘Interactive & thoughtful game’: BRING THEM HOME – Vault Festival
Treehouse’s Bring Them Home describes itself as an immersive game, rather than immersive theatre and it does feel like playing an interactive board game. The role of the audience is to work as a team to ensure the astronaut comes back to earth and chooses their landing base.
‘Stay for the ambitious dance moments’: CAN-CAN! – Union Theatre
Set in Belle Époque France, Can-Can! sells itself as a fun and frivolous new dance musical adapted from Offenbach’s original operetta Orpheus in the Underworld featuring a 17-strong all-singing, all-dancing cast.
‘A production with a lot to offer’: FIGHT NIGHT – Vault Festival
Fight Night is an immersive, underground boxing match as the audience’s actions and reactions determines the winner.
‘A first-rate piece of children’s theatre’: ICARUS – Unicorn Theatre
A first-rate piece of children’s theatre, this retelling of the familiar myth Icarus (by playwright Katrin Lange, directed by Cressida Brown) challenges a young audience to reflect on whether to believe everything they’re told.