Pros: Excellent performances by the three cast members.  Cons: The ending is a bit of a damp squib. So the Vault Festival is in full swing beneath Waterloo station. With its interesting spaces and buzzing atmosphere it is well worth a visit. Looking at the eclectic mix of shows available you will surely find something that takes your fancy.  With some planning it may even be possible to see more than one per visit. But one of the problems of ...

Pros: Nicely menacing Gothic atmosphere. Cons: Shallow characterisation and a complete lack of variation in tone A word of warning to anyone planning a visit to Notre Dame de Paris at London Coliseum. Brace yourself. Brace for histrionics. The breast-beating starts early, with the first big number, Les Sans-papiers, and never really lets up for the rest of the show. The understandable anguish of the outcasts, the vulnerable and the falsely accused is rendered with the same power ballad intensity ...

In Part One of our Access Articles Sidonie explained what Theatre Access Schemes are, in Part Two she explained what a visit to the theatre is like to as an Access Customer.  Now in the third and final part, Sidonie uses her experience both as a customer and from working in theatre to examine how Access Customers can work with venues staff to ensure they are best served. Serving Access Customers As I’ve previously discussed, it can be difficult to ...

Interesting and compelling debut by Warden which imagines the effects of a Harvey Weinstein type on the women closest to him - his daughters and wife

Pros: Tremendous acting, wonderful writing, and a fantastic look into the past of an incredible woman. Cons: There are some slight questions around the character development. If you ever needed a reason to venture into South East London, Gentleman Jack at the Brockley Jack theatre is it. This true story of a remarkable female pioneer is inspiring, absorbing, and deserves a full house at every performance. The story of Anne Lister is set across three different decades in the 1800s, ...

Pros: The set. The sound design. The projection. The lighting. Cons: Far too many people in the audience filming the show on their phones. A silvery particle spins and tumbles from above, setting in train an evolutionary journey from primordial soup to space exploration. Well that’s the idea, anyway. More prosaically, Totem is a high-spec review show, in which circus acts, loosely themed around ideas of man’s evolution and environment, are interspersed with quirky comic vignettes. The circus acts are ...

A powerful drama brought to life by an outstanding cast.

Part One of our Theatre Access Series looked at what exactly Access Schemes are and what it can mean to be an Access Customer. In Part Two, Sidonie shares her experience as an Access Customer while attending a recent performance. As with Part One, we hope this gives more insight and understanding as to why it’s important Access Schemes exist. Experience as an Access Customer So, what’s different for an Access Customer when they attend a performance? In many ways nothing, in ...

Pros: The unique format, which combines gaming and immersive theatre, gives everyone a chance to get stuck in and kick some Nazi arse. Cons: This is not the kind of immersive theatre where you can just hang back and tag along, so if you’re not up for getting actively involved, this one’s not for you. During the Second World War, Bletchley Park was the home of the UK code breakers, the most famous of whom was computer pioneer Alan Turing. ...

Pros: The beguiling Kimberly Nixon mastering some tightly packed dialogue. Cons: The script is occasionally patronising, diminishing what is otherwise a smartly observed piece. I always feel a quiet burst of pride when among the first to see a new play. So I can now say I was there for the Original Death Rabbit at the Jermyn Street Theatre. Rose Heiney (of Fresh Meat fame) adapted her original Radio 4 play for the stage and has produced a dark and ...