Theatre
A musical for mothers with teenage daughters – males avoid
High School Musical is a stage version of the 2006 Disney TV film set in a fictional seat of learning,…
A fascinating curiosity at the National Theatre
Helen Edmundson has given her new play an ingenious title, Some Woman. The phrase may be admiring, ‘that is some…
Don’t miss this Cherry Orchard
Where are we? That’s the question raised by Ian Rickson’s version of The Cherry Orchard adapted by Conor McPherson. The…
Rent has not aged well
Rent is a show about mortality haunted by the untimely death of its author, Jonathan Larson. On the eve of…
The Standard of Living didn’t make me feel anything
James Graham’s new play is a biography of John Maynard Keynes, known as ‘Mennid’ to his friends, which feels like…
The problem with Sting’s musical
The Last Ship, a musical written by and featuring Sting, is touring Europe, Australia and America. The show is a…
One for hardcore fans: Golden Boy reviewed
Golden Boy, written by Clifford Odets in 1937, feels like a Norman Wisdom movie. A talented boxer wants to become…
A sumptuous set that’s too good for the play
The Children by Lucy Kirkwood is a life-or-death drama about three ageing boffins invited to fix a broken atomic power…
Why has the National chosen to put on this cumbersome old play?
The National Theatre’s latest show, written in 2003, has bundles of energy and ideas. A thrusting young reporter, Yvonne, investigates…
Marilyn Monroe was a bore
Who Killed Marilyn? is a new show about an old subject. Sharleen Cooper Cohen’s play examines the circumstances surrounding Marilyn’s…
A classic Alan Ayckbourn that’s made for Roger Allam
How the Other Half Loves is the play that established Alan Ayckbourn’s name as a writer of farce. Frank and…
The star of the Fringe
Attention spans at Edinburgh are brief. With thousands of shows on offer, the punters have to make a split-second decision…
The slow death of the Edinburgh Fringe
The Edinburgh Fringe is getting bigger. Last year’s total of 3,893 shows is surpassed this year by 4,206 productions. More…
An enjoyable circus show masquerading as education
Brainiac Live! is a ‘family science’ show based on a popular Sky TV programme. It’s ideal for children under 12…
The Trainspotting musical is made for cruise ships
Plenty of critics have mocked Trainspotting – the musical (with lyrics and music by Irvine Welsh and Stephen McGuinness, respectively)…
This J. Edgar Hoover musical is destined for Broadway
Here Comes J. Edgar! has a brash poster featuring a cross-dressing FBI agent in fishnet tights with his thighs splayed…
A funny, unorthodox Much Ado About Nothing
You may need to do a spot of homework before attending Tilly No-Body at the Arcola. Acted and written by…
Springwood is a waste of time
Springwood, set in June 1939, looks at a series of tricky meetings between the American president FDR and George VI…
A Sinatra musical for hardcore fans
Sinatra: The Musical dramatises the star’s career during a minor wobble in the early 1950s. After falling from grace, Sinatra…
The power of Glengarry Glen Ross
The Old Vic presents an eccentric new version of David Mamet’s ultra-masculine play, Glengarry Glen Ross. Director Patrick Marber populates…
A play that shows Iranian society is like our own
Under the Shadow is a timely drama set in Tehran in 1988 during the Iran-Iraq war. Saddam’s missiles are raining…
Michelle Terry is ferocious in Brecht’s simplistic tutorial
Bertolt Brecht’s classic, Mother Courage, is about a female war profiteer who drags a wagon of supplies through no man’s…
Are we ready for the truth about Judy Garland?
End of the Rainbow feels like a prison drama set in London in 1969. Judy Garland is about to give…
Haphazard and bitty but Rosie Holt is superb: Churchill’s Urinal reviewed
When Rachel Reeves became Chancellor she found a lavatory in her private suite which had been used by Churchill in…
Why is this Tudor drama full of swearing?
1536, by Ava Pickett, is set in a wheatfield near Colchester during the final months of Anne Boleyn’s life. Three…
