Wonderful, wonderful, most wonderful, Robert Cohan’s choreographic and artistic legacy lives on, passed from generation to generation. And preserved on film. London Contemporary Dance Theatre and School were both founded by Cohan in the late sixties at the instigation of Martha Graham fan Robin Howard. Cohan (1925–2021) had danced with the Graham Company since 1946/7.… Continue reading On the And: Honouring the Legacy of Sir Robert Cohan CBE
Month: March 2023
Devina de Coronation
Drag superstar Divina de Campo will be hosting her own, alternative Coronation celebrations this May. Following performances of Hedwig and the Angry Inch at HOME last spring, Divina returns for two-night solo performance of her new show, Creating a Queen. A stalwart on the UK drag scene, Divina was runner-up on the first season of Ru Paul’s Drag Race… Continue reading Devina de Coronation
Ariadne auf Naxos
Richard Strauss was not one to stand still, and this very different follow-up to Der Rosenkavalier is one of the most curious operas ever written, a mixture of tragedy and buffoonery, serious yet constantly sending itself up. The music too has a sad, sardonic quality, slightly mocking in tone as it moves from a conversational… Continue reading Ariadne auf Naxos
Wearing Colours comes back to Liverpool
John Dillon’s Wearing Colours is to be performed in Liverpool for the first time in 15 years. Set before and in the immediate aftermath of the Heysel Stadium disaster, the work explores the differing reactions of four individuals who attended the game on that fateful night. It was written by Dillon and performed only five months after… Continue reading Wearing Colours comes back to Liverpool
Lord of the Flies
More than 20 years have elapsed since I studied Lord of the Flies at school, and I must admit that it’s not a book I remember particularly fondly. With hindsight, however, I believe this might reveal more about the drawbacks of studying a text for a prolonged period rather than any inherent weaknesses within William… Continue reading Lord of the Flies
North Shields Exchange Theatre faces eviction
In a move that echoes the eviction of VAULT Festival from his usual home in London’s Waterloo, North Tyneside Council is evicting The Exchange Theatre charity in order to bring in a private, more commercial tenant. Performing arts trade union Equity has written to the Mayor, Norma Redfearn DBE (Labour), in a bid to prevent the charity… Continue reading North Shields Exchange Theatre faces eviction
The Dead City / Die tote Stadt
Freud, the Golden Age of Hollywood, Hitchcock’s Vertigo, the surreal, a troubled mind, mad grief—enough to drive you insane… And the ‘dead’ city of Bruges—what is it about Bruges? But this is not Martin McDonagh’s black comedy In Bruges; this is the holier-than-thou pious city based on Georges Rodenbach’s 1892 Bruges-la-Morte. We may know Korngold… Continue reading The Dead City / Die tote Stadt
The Worst of The Tiger Lillies go to Ukraine
The Olivier Award-winning alternative-rock trio The Tiger Lillies are going on tour to mark the release of their new album. With their signature darkly eccentric humour, this collection, The Worst of The Tiger Lillies, is their “best of” album and the concert will include songs such as “Roll Up”, “Danced All Night” and “Boatman” that the oft-called ‘godfathers… Continue reading The Worst of The Tiger Lillies go to Ukraine
Medieval Miracles
This is the last spring tour for outgoing the Artistic Director and founder of Eastern Angles, and so Ivan Cutting has chosen a subject that has engaged him ever since university days: Medieval Mystery plays. In the 15th century, these were often the way people learnt about Biblical stories and certainly one of the most… Continue reading Medieval Miracles
Right down their street
This Monday—World Theatre Day—Unfolding Theatre announces the cast and creative team for its brand new show, A Street Like This. Set and made in Sunderland, it’s written by Alison Carr, directed by Annie Rigby, with music co-written by Ross Millard from The Futureheads and local residents. A Street Like This will première at The Fire Station in Sunderland… Continue reading Right down their street