Pros: Much deserved applause for all actors that can recite Shakespeare without a breath. Cons: These performers need a bigger stage! Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet is one of my favourite pieces of writing, so I was hugely excited to be watching a live performance of it. If you aren’t familiar with the story of Romeo & Juliet, this is what you have to know. This updated version of the story is set during the warmest months of the year. People outside are celebrating ...

Pros: The cast can sustain tension and passion; it is genuinely moving to watch this less-discussed side of WWI history. Cons: A stiflingly hot venue makes several audience members lose concentration; due to the thrust stage, some lines are hard to hear when actors aren’t facing you. At the end of this month, it will be 101 years since the Battle of Passchendaele began. It lasted until November 1917. Unlike the current British heatwave, Passchendaele started with heavy rainfall, turning ...

Pros: The design is well polished. Cons: Everything else. In 1991, tabloid columnist Andrew Morton was approached by one of Princess Diana’s closest friends with a daunting request that he couldn’t refuse. He was asked to write her biography. Tired of suffering in silence, the wife of the heir to the British throne wanted to expose her husband’s wrongdoings and the devious scheming of the royal family and, to do so, she had chosen a journalist with a background as ...

Pros: By honing in on Höss, Hyland’s play doesn’t choose the obvious Holocaust perpetrators (Hitler, Himmler, Mengele et al). Cons: Crescendos in Höss’ speech become distracting; likewise, proximity to the audience and prolonged emphasis of gestures can overkill the intensity. The term ‘political hygiene’ is a chilling one, especially when spoken by Rudolf Höss, commandant of Auschwitz-Birkenau, a place he has just described as ‘the largest human slaughterhouse in history’. Hearing these words on a hot Saturday night in gentrified ...

Pros: Sharp writing and good performances characterise this collection of scenes set in a tube train Cons: The lack of connection between the stories means we’re constantly having to get to know new characters “Make sure you take your belongings with you when you leave this life.” So runs the announcement that introduces this sharply observational piece set entirely on a tube train. The young cast each play multiple roles, as we eavesdrop on conversations and snatched exchanges between strangers; tight direction ...

Pros: Very entertaining and well acted performance which reminds us how relevant Molière’s plays still are today. Cons: The political point that Furlong tries to make is forced and doesn’t fit the play. In his preface to Tartuffe, Jean Poquelin, better known as Molière, wrote that “if the purpose of comedy is to correct men’s vices, I do not see why any group of men should have special privileges. If this were so, it would have a far more dangerous social consequence ...

Pros: Good to see an early Ibsen being staged. Cons: Early Ibsen sags in the middle. Ottisdotter Productions bring their focus to lesser known and obscure plays that emphasise the role of women in society. Having last been presented at London’s Adelphi Theatre in 1911, Henrik Ibsen’s Olaf belongs amongst the Norwegian master’s lesser known works, falling outside the 12-play ‘Ibsen Cycle.’ The version presented at Barons Court Theatre is an adaptation by ottisdotter of Anders Orbeck’s translation of Ibsen’s Olaf ...

Pros: A brilliantly constructed set is a visually stunning accompaniment to the play. Cons: The disappointingly clipped nine episode format slows the plot down far too often for its own good. The Almeida is one of my favourite theatres so I pounced on the opportunity to see Machinal, by Sophie Treadwell. Both play and author were unfamiliar to me; stylistically Treadwell has apparently been compared to Virginia Woolf and is viewed as a leading purveyor of expressionism. The play, written in 1928, ...

Pros: Brilliant and politically sensitive script, fantastic cast and great direction Cons: Nothing to report A joint research report from Community Care and UNISON from 2016 found that social workers are suffering increasing emotional distress and verbal abuse in their routine work as a consequence of staff shortages and budget cuts. According to the paper the vast majority (80%) reported that during a typical working day they suffered emotional distress, while 40% also described being verbally abused. These numbers represented an increase on ...

Pros: Subtle shifts in tone and mood lace a darkly disturbing atmosphere through a beautifully crafted performance. Cons: Less is definitely more, but I would have relished the tension being cranked up even more! Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper happens to be my favourite short story, so Another Soup’s production at the rustic Omnibus Theatre had high expectations to meet. It did not disappoint. From the start, Gemma Yates-Round’s charming portrayal of Alice has the audience wrapped around her ...