We all have bad experiences with teachers; some are worse than others. Jam tells the story of a history teacher named Bella (Jasmine Hyde) who, haunted by a rough past with an old student, has moved towns in an attempt to start a new life. Ten years later, Kane (Harry Melling) visits her classroom in […]
Othello was written 400 years ago but remains shockingly prescient in this day and age. A society unaccepting of a woman falling in love with a black man, does that ring a bell? In Tobacco Factory Theatres’ production at Wilton’s Music Hall, director Richard Twyman takes the modern relatability even further by presenting a distinctly contemporary production […]
I enjoy comic relief in a tragedy. Some say it butchers the essence of the play but I like it. Richard III at the Arcola takes a rebellious spin turning the hunchback king into a leather jacket-wearing sarcastic bad boy played by Greg Hicks. He turns to the audience and speaks in a way that […]
There are times when it can be refreshing to step away from the theatrical realm and explore other forms of artistic expression. It’s Not Yet Midnight has no story, little cohesion and sometimes has too much going on at the same time. Be that as it may, it was one of the most outstanding performances I […]
Beau Brummell, if you aren’t acquainted with this name, was one of the first “celebrities”…
Before we announce the winners of the 2016 MyTheatre Awards, we’re proud to present our annual Nominee Interview Series…
La Ronde is about sex. It’s about the anticipation, the aftermath and the desire of sexual acts. If you walk in without knowing this, even the most open minded of audience members will wonder why the actors always seem to be taking off their clothes ready to pounce on one another in bed. Written and […]
Dirty Great Love Story started as a 10-minute poetry duet featuring the two writers, Richard Marsh and Katie Bonna. It then went on to Vault Festival, Edinburgh Fringe and became a massive success in various theatres across the UK. Poetry in a play? I was reluctant, to say the least. It seems that every time we […]
The whole theatre/pub culture in London is pretty fantastic if you ask me. The first time I attended a performance in one of these venues, I was so amazed by the city’s determination to have quality theatre in as many places as possible. Given that the King’s Head Theatre is the oldest theatre/pub in London, […]
Am I the only person who actually enjoys clichés once in a while? I mean, not every production is the most inventive but is that really the worst thing? When your job title is “critic” it can be difficult to just…. enjoy. Old Red Lion Theatre’s production of Benighted reminded me that sometimes a cliché […]
Patricide is not a subject many people wish to tackle, especially not in the confines of the theatre. Thebes Land tells the story of a man, who calls himself T, writing a play about a patricide named Martin. The show encompasses both the interviews between Martin and T and the rehearsals leading up to the […]
Putting Voltaire on stage is a difficult task: it is easy to think of the philosopher’s work as too sophisticated for musical adaptation. Bernstein and Wheeler’s version of Candide attempts to make the timeless story more approachable—almost too much so. While it follows the original storyline very well, it sometimes fails to have the same […]
The Belarus Free Theatre has taken on a challenge by putting on Tomorrow I was Always a Lion. Portraying mental health onstage, especially schizophrenia, is no easy task. Because many people do not know how to address the issue, it can be a little overwhelming to go see a play that is entirely centered on […]
If there is one subject that makes most people uncomfortable, it is that of homelessness. Rare are those who stop and speak to homeless men and women on the street, let alone go see a play about it. Although it may feel uneasy at first, Cuckoo Bang’s Choosers, written by Holly Mallett, does an excellent […]
If it takes seven people to tell a story, you hope it’s a good story. Luckily, The Ritual Slaughter of Gorge Mastromas is a good story and a gripping performance. At the start of the production, the audience is tremendously confused. There is a guy named George who had bad luck in love and in life, but […]
Second World War stories always seem to be crowd-pleasing, bringing in elements of tragedy, violence, treason and, in this case, …
Runts School can be rough, but one can hope it’s never as rough as it is in Runts. Set in an English state school, it tells the story of a class of girls in a school filled with bullies, uncertainty and cat fights. It depicts the kind of school many parents dread because children don’t feel […]
As the lights come on and the audience listens to Emma Packer onstage, it is clear from the very start that Ctrl Alt Delete will be a great show. Emma is the only actor yet she embodies different characters that make the show come to life. We hear the 10-year-old speaking of her imaginary friend Ben or […]
Quiche Dinner parties rarely go as planned onstage. Quiche tells the story of John and Jenny who are having Jo and Jake over for a quiet night in. But John has other plans for the evening. As the play progresses and it becomes obvious John is attracted to Jo, audiences can tell that nothing good will come […]
Ya’akobi and Leidental It starts out light, but ends on a rather depressing note. Ya’akobi, played by Daryl Green, is sick and tired of living a quaint life with his friend Leidental and so he decides to change things up. He wants to see the world and meet more people. He very quickly meets a […]
From the moment the audience walks into Trafalgar Studios, they know it will be a fun evening. A girl in funky clothing is dancing around the room to pop music and another is sitting and frantically looking at her computer. No one is quite sure what to expect, but the mood is set at the […]
The absurd can be the best escape from reality. People laugh not knowing why but it doesn’t really matter in the end because everyone is entertained. This is precisely how audiences feel as they enjoy How To Win Against History at the Ovalhouse Theatre. As people walk in, there is a large string of lights […]
With a mixture of hope, tragedy, war and even a few laughs, Cargo forces audiences to tackle the subject of refugees and what happens when it hits close to home. The audience feels as though they have literally entered a cargo ship. Even the (tremendously uncomfortable) seats make everyone feel physically in the ship. As […]
Outdoor performances in London can be a gamble. If it rains, all the audience cares about is that they were in a dry, covered space. Luckily, Iris’ Theatre production of Much Ado About Nothing is so entertaining that, even with a little rain, the show must go on and the audience is not too annoyed […]
A mixture of ballet and theatre can be enjoyed at Lilian Baylis Studio until June 29th. Dancing with the Devil tells the story of the famous Russian ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev. Diagnosed with AIDS, he spends the last years of his life hallucinating and dreaming of the past. The audience is able to follow his […]
A mixture of confusion and admiration is felt throughout Iqbal Khan’s production of Macbeth at Shakespeare’s Globe. The admiration is due to the quality of the acting; the confusion has its roots in the particular choices on the director’s part. The first point to mention is the fact that the Macbeth couple has a little […]