Monday 26 July 2021 at Leeds Playhouse. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ There’s no doubt that Edith Piaf’s life and talent were extraordinary. With such tragedy in her life, it makes perfect sense that such melancholy should have found its way under her skin and into her music, but this take on her life story from Pam Gems certainly... Continue Reading →
Review: Miss Julie (Touring)
Tuesday 22nd June 2021 at York Theatre Royal. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ August Strindberg’s original took on the politics of gender and class; Amy Ng’s new adaptation, set in 1940’s Hong Kong, adds colonialism and deep-rooted war scars into the mix. As the daughter of the British Governor, Miss Julie displays the worst flaws associated with a spoiled... Continue Reading →
Review: HOW I LEARNED TO SWIM
Saturday June 5th 2021 - streamed via Jermyn Street Theatre. Somebody Jones is back with a new short play, and as with BLACK WOMEN DATING WHITE MEN, what shines through this piece is its reflective tone and observant writing. In HOW I LEARNED TO SWIM, we have a personal story front and centre, but Jones... Continue Reading →
Review: The Greatest Play in the History of the World (Touring)
June 1st, 2021 at York Theatre Royal. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ A good story told with great charm, that’s what The Greatest Play in the History of the World... is. It’s energised storytelling which refuses to let any lulls form and instead, ploughs onwards with a combination of great comic delivery and a recurring sense of gravity nestling... Continue Reading →
Interview: Julie Hesmondhalgh Talks Returning to the Stage in “The Greatest Play in the History of the World”
Currently back on our screens in the BBC drama “The Pact”, Julie Hesmondhalgh is also returning to the stage this month in Ian Kershaw’s “The Greatest Play in the History of the World”. Here, she talks about her love of theatre, her screen roles and returning this ‘universal love story that celebrates the human race... Continue Reading →
Review: Bored of Knives
Online, 17th February 2021. TW for this production: abuse & violent references. Ever wonder what became of the kids you spent your childhood with? The ones who moved away sharpish or just moved on? Ever wonder what became of the old-before-their-time or the painfully immature types? Whether the worldly wise ended up better off than... Continue Reading →
Review: Leeds Playhouse’s A Christmas Carol
Leeds Playhouse (At Home) Having rehearsed A Christmas Carol with live, socially distanced audiences planned, Leeds Playhouse has been hit with ‘COVID-closure’ once again. Pivoting swiftly, they’ve taken their show online and audiences now have the opportunity to watch Dickens’ classic tale from their sofas. So, what’s Dickensian Leeds like from sofas in front of... Continue Reading →
Interview: Eleanor Hibbert & Mischa Jones Talk Rocket Box Theatre’s A Christmas Carol
Make no mistake about it, offering up a new rendition of the eminent Charles Dickens classic A Christmas Carol is no tame feat... But it’s exactly what Rocket Box Theatre are offering online audiences this December: a fresh, richly layered audio adaptation of the tale beloved by many. With their radio play launching online come... Continue Reading →
Interview: Lisa Howard Talks Park Bench Theatre, Every Time a Bell Rings & Life in Lockdown
Guest interview: Steve Pratt chats with Lisa Howard ahead of her work with Engine House Theatre’s Park Bench Theatre season in York. Lisa Howard went back to the land during lockdown. “I went allotmenting, growing stuff and trying to feed the world from my allotment. I was imagining the worst, that there would be no... Continue Reading →
Spotlight On: All-Time Top Ten Shows*
*to date... August 2020 Remember when going to packed, bustling, lively theatres was a thing? You know, we’d collectively shut out the world with the closing of the doors and the dimming of the lights; we’d spend more than twenty minutes without a phone in hand; we’d let ourselves be completely taken in by the... Continue Reading →