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‘About the confrontation between past & present’: THE CITY & THE TOWN – Touring

In Features, London theatre, Musicals, Opinion, Other Recent Articles, Plays, Reviews by Maryam PhilpottLeave a Comment

Playing for a few nights at Wilton’s Music Hall as part of a nationwide tour, Anders Lustgarten’s new play The City and the Town is about the confrontation between past and present, about the consequences of staying and leaving, and whether the ones who leave have any right at all to decide what happens to the ones who stay.

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‘Live entertainment has come back with an encouraging roar’: Alun Hood celebrates his Top 20 new theatre shows of 2022

In Broadway, Features, London theatre, Manchester, Musicals, Opinion, Other Recent Articles, Plays, Regional theatre, Reviews, Touring by Alun HoodLeave a Comment

As somebody who loves a listicle plus a bandwagon to jump on, how could I NOT compile my list of my top 20 new (to me) shows of 2022? It’s been 12 months in which live entertainment has come back with an encouraging roar, although the impending cost of living crisis is inevitably, and understandably, causing anxiety in theatrical circles. Please do get out there, if you can, and support your local venue in 2023.

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‘The fun is in the modern message’: THE WIND IN THE WILTON’S – Wilton’s Music Hall ★★★★

In London theatre, Opinion, Other Recent Articles, Plays, Reviews by Libby PurvesLeave a Comment

For The Wind in the Wilton’s at Wilton’s Music Hall Piers Torday has adapted the up-Thames rural setting of Kenneth Grahame’s book to be an urban take, London’s own stretch of river. And the weasels? You’ve guessed it: the Wild Wood is the City, the weasels and stoats the financiers and developers.

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‘Tremendous energy but misses a trick’: A DEAD BODY IN TAOS – Touring

In London theatre, Opinion, Other Recent Articles, Plays, Regional theatre, Reviews, Touring by Alun HoodLeave a Comment

David Farr’s new play A Dead Body In Taos, briefly in London following performances in Bristol and Plymouth and before moving on to Warwick Arts Centre, is an earnest addition to an underpopulated genre. Undeniably ambitious, but more ponderous than engaging, it doesn’t make a great case for creating stage dramas in this mould.

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‘These are two true artists at the very top of their game’: ONLY AN OCTAVE APART – Wilton’s Music Hall ★★★★★

In Cabaret, London theatre, Opinion, Other Recent Articles, Plays, Reviews by Alun HoodLeave a Comment

Pitched somewhere between cabaret and recital, but most definitely a piece of true theatre, Only An Octave Apart (the title refers to the fact that Anthony Roth Costanzo is a classical counter tenor while Justin Vivian Bond possesses a resonant deep baritone at home singing everything from torch songs to disco… so they literally do sing an octave apart) is a strange and compelling melange of the screamingly funny and just (exquisitely controlled) screaming.

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‘Madeleine MacMahon puts in a spellbinding performance’: A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad) – Silent Uproar (Online review) ★★★★★

In London theatre, Musicals, Online shows, Opinion, Reviews by Kirsty HerringtonLeave a Comment

After the year we’ve all had with the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad) is sure to strike a chord with many people and it provides a voice for those experiencing mental health issues.

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‘Dark story cut through with comedy & songs’: A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad) – Silent Uproar (Online review)

In London theatre, Musicals, Online shows, Opinion, Reviews by Louise PennLeave a Comment

Recorded in June 2021 before a socially-distanced audience at Wilton’s Music Hall, A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad) brings Silent Uproar’s show back to the stage following previous successful runs at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Vaults Festival.