Theatre
Beyond Bollywood, London PalladiumTuesday, 12 May 2015
It seems almost redundant to critique a show that so ably – if unconsciously – critiques itself. “The power of Bollywood is it’s unique!” cries one character, before squandering that uniqueness in tired East/West fusion; "Dance should have feeling... Read more... |
The Angry Brigade, Bush TheatreFriday, 08 May 2015
Today, terrorism means killing as many innocent people as possible. Fear is created by completely random attacks, so that no one feels safe. But there was a time, in the past, when political anarchists would focus their attacks on selected targets... Read more... |
The Vote, Donmar WarehouseFriday, 08 May 2015
Thank fuck, it’s over. I mean the General Election. No more campaigning, no more leader debates, no more anti-Miliband hysteria. But there’s still no end to theatre gimmicks that exploit public interest in what is clearly one of the tightest... Read more... |
The Audience, Apollo TheatreWednesday, 06 May 2015
As The Queen gains an audience with the latest royal addition, her theatrical alter ego returns to the West End, with Kristin Scott Thomas inheriting Tony-nominated Helen Mirren’s role in Peter Morgan’s updated revival. Callaghan is out; au courant... Read more... |
The Lads In Their Hundreds, Theatre Royal, BrightonWednesday, 06 May 2015
World War One poems can become too familiar. So can the war itself, its five years of centenary commemorations so far suffering from excessive patriotism, a sense of uncomprehending disconnection from the gone generation which lived it, and a... Read more... |
The Apple Family Plays, Brighton DomeWednesday, 06 May 2015
"I hear America singing," wrote Walt Whitman, the American poet whose language playwright Richard Nelson has co-opted for the title of the second (Sweet and Sad) of his remarkable quartet of Apple Family Plays. And those wanting to know what song is... Read more... |
Beyond Caring, National TheatreTuesday, 05 May 2015
Recent plays with the verb “to care” in their titles – another is Michael Wynne’s Who Cares – suggests that the inequalities of life in Britain today can no longer be treated with our habitual indifference. This transfer of Alexander... Read more... |
Lungs, Roundabout at Regency Square, BrightonTuesday, 05 May 2015
A couple stand on the stage, squaring up to each other. They are in the middle of an argument. The Man has just, out of the blue, suggested they have a baby. The Woman, understandably, needs time to adjust to the idea. Particularly as they are in... Read more... |
The Merchant of Venice, Shakespeare's GlobeFriday, 01 May 2015
There’s a certainty, a reassurance that comes with attending a Globe show. You know that however bad things get, however bloodied the stage at final curtain, however bruised the relationships on stage, everyone – corpses and all – will rise and come... Read more... |
Everyman, National TheatreThursday, 30 April 2015
As we stagger towards electoral chaos, isn’t it comforting to think there might be a master plan at work? That Russell Brand’s meddling is preordained, or Cameron’s "brain fade" an act of divine intervention? The second play in Rufus Norris’s... Read more... |
Blood, Soho TheatreThursday, 30 April 2015
Tamasha is a new writing theatre company which specialises in plays — often adaptations or reimaginings of classics — written from an Asian perspective. As the company celebrates its 25th anniversary, it is touring this, the latest play by Emteaz... Read more... |
I Wish to Die Singing, Finborough TheatreThursday, 30 April 2015
Agitprop is a term that seems to have dropped out of use. It has too many negative connotations; it smacks of political rant. Yet artistic director Neil McPherson, whose small and feisty Finborough Theatre at Earls Court receives no public funding... Read more... |
