Category: Reviews

For years, the only opportunity for theatregoers to see The Mousetrap was during a visit to London. As such it has the status of a tourist attraction like Madame Tussauds as much as a play: something to be visited during a holiday or a seasonal treat. This places limitations upon directors who, aware that audiences expect to… Continue reading The Mousetrap—70th Anniversary Tour

Who doesn’t love a Christmas show, especially one performed by two of our favourite nursery rhyme characters, Nero the cat, who plays the fiddle, and Lazzo, a little dog who loves to laugh? The show takes the form of a cabaret, set in a nightclub with a piano, which serves many different charming purposes and… Continue reading Hey Diddle Diddle

Headlong’s disturbing take on Henry V, directed by Holly Race-Roughan, shines a light on the way weakness and insecurity in a dictator, a King, can generate bullying, murder and sexual abuse. The end section of this production is a real kicker that I would like anyone who is even thinking about Henry V to see.… Continue reading Henry V

Baghdaddy opens with flashes of light and loud explosions, the sound of war, before revealing a dad and his loved daughter Darlee celebrating her 8th birthday in McDonald’s. He is telling her about his boyhood in Iraq: picking dates on the street as he went to school, the sun always shining though it didn’t burn… Continue reading Baghdaddy

Thirteen years ago, the Lyric Hammersmith heralded a new chapter in its history by bringing pantomime back to its stage. Jack and the Beanstalk kicked off this bright new era, which is still going strong as the venue revisits the title for a fourth time. As ever, the Lyric’s show is vibrant, dynamic and bursting… Continue reading Jack and the Beanstalk

The annual festive show at the New Vic in north Staffordshire is usually something special and the 2022 offering is no exception. The theatre’s artistic director, Theresa Heskins, has returned to a production she adapted and directed in 2011, Alice in Wonderland, which bears all the hallmarks of a typical New Vic show: committed acting, a slick,… Continue reading Alice in Wonderland

Pete Carruthers is a man on a mental health mission. As writer, director, producer and an actor in this absorbing studio production he’s also clearly developed an effective marketing, promotional and publicity expertise that would shame many larger theatre production companies He’s mined personal experience, as well as the help of professionals in the field… Continue reading The Possibility of Colour

Headlong’s disturbing take on Henry V, directed by Holly Race-Roughan, shines a light on the way weakness and insecurity in a dictator, a King, can generate bullying, murder and sexual abuse. The end section of this production is a real kicker that I would like anyone who is even thinking about Henry V to see. The key to… Continue reading Henry V

New Creation is the latest troubled piece from Brazilian choreographer Bruno Beltrão, famed for radicalising hip-hop and street dance by scooping it off the kerb and into a contemporary dance space. The choreographer aims to create a “socio-political” plea for change within a society gripped by “ultra-right forces” through the form of urgent movement. Whilst… Continue reading Bruno Beltrão: New Creation

The Orange Tree has a well earned reputation for revivals of Bernard Shaw’s plays and this is another delightful example which Paul Miller directs as his last production as Artistic Director. This 1894 comedy comes up fresh as a button and makes a great Christmas treat. It is set in the home of the Petkoffs,… Continue reading Arms and the Man