Pros: Light hearted King Kong romp which should keep older children amused for an hour and a half. A couple of ‘for the parents’ moments. Cons: Old jokes delivered in a shouty style which started to be annoying towards the end. On arrival at the small underground theatre, The Vaults, we sat on the old cinema-style seats listening to an eclectic mix of appropriately themed music (The Banana Splits, The Monkees – you get the picture). I had no idea there were so many ...
Read More »Comedy
Lonely Planet, Tabard Theatre – Review
In an US town in the 1980s, the owner of a map shop and his off-beat and flighty companion try to come to terms with the increasing loss of many of their friends to an unspecified disease in this important production.
Read More »Dirty Work (The Late Shift), Battersea Arts Centre – Review
If you like fatalist humour, this is the play for you.
Read More »Double Double Act, Unicorn Theatre – Review
Plenty of fun for very young theatre-goers.
Read More »Le Misanthrope, Drayton Arms Theatre – Review
Pros: A skilled ensemble whose evident enjoyment is infectious. A great soundtrack featuring the great Gainsbourg. Cons: Cluttered staging and an auditorium that (on one of the warmest evenings of the year) was like being at the centre of the earth. Celimène drunk, throwing up in a bucket, Acaste and Clitandre hoofing coke off a studio desk, Éliante and Philinte sharing a tender moment on the breakfast TV couch. Yes, obviously, it’s Le Misanthrope, Molière’s satire on the 17th century French ...
Read More »A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Omnibus Theatre – Review
Pros: Imaginative, energetic and really entertaining. Cons: The performance is quite long and requires some serious stamina. The other night I had a funny dream. Accompanied by three other people, I was exploring the streets of Clapham Old Town, visiting estate agents, entering empty Italian cafes and interacting with some odd individuals. I had headed to Clapham Common to attend a performance of William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream but, instead of the theatre’s address, I was told to wait ...
Read More »I Know You Of Old, Hope Theatre – Review
While a stripped down version of Shakespeare may not satisfy the purists, I Know You Of Old is nevertheless a strong reimagining of a much performed play.
Read More »Tristan & Yseult, Shakespeare’s Globe – Review
An oddly hilarious adaptation of a tragic love story, Tristan & Yseult triumphs as an exuberant, energetic and irreverent production.
Read More »Tape Face, Garrick Theatre – Review
A mime comedy show blending the styles of Buster Keaton and the Marx Brothers, Tape Face provides a selection of updated, not-so -silent film, silliness.
Read More »Roller Diner, Soho Theatre – Review
Pros: Adorable, hilarious characters in a fun and vibrant roller-diner setting (minus roller-skates). Funny moments are in abundance and the cast are superb. Cons: The politics behind the show are very blatant, but its comment is ambiguous. Roller Diner, the winner of the Soho Theatre’s prestigious Verity Bargate Award for new writing, is set in Eddie Costello’s authentic American diner… in Birmingham. It is a hub of sticky ketchup and family spats (but not customers, as it would seem). When ...
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