Pros: First-rate writing and direction, a stellar cast, thoughtful staging and a heartbreaking story. Cons: It is quite long (three hours). It’s Armagh, 1981, and the Carney family, abundant with elders, children, and a goose, are preparing for the annual harvest in a time rife with uncertainty. Seamus Carney’s body is found in a bog, with a bullet in his head, which leads his family down a slippery slope, whether they are aware of it or not, to a potential ...

Pros: An engaging and meticulously researched script, combined with superb performances, make for a genuinely harrowing story. Cons: Needless sound effects and some unwieldy dialogue diminish the overall power of the piece. To my shame, this was my first visit to the Jermyn Street Theatre. On the strength of this visit, it won’t be my last; the theatre is welcoming, comfortable and damned accessible by public transport. Interestingly, to get to the theatre’s toilets you actually have to go across the stage and through ...

Pros: An interesting view on love and war Cons: Some questionable karaoke that might not be to everyone’s taste It is 1944 in occupied France. Two teenagers exchange laughter and kisses and find love in spite of war. The story follows Elodie (Hannah Millward) and Otto (Bradley Hall) an unlikely but electric pairing; Elodie is a whimsical and playful French girl, while Otto is a German solider regimented, and brainwashed by Hilter’s rhetoric. The two find comfort and joy in each other’s company while ...

A surreal, precise and joyous piece of theatre with room for more questions and more answers about the issues it addresses.

Dark satire delivered in bright, breezy and impressively physical style. 

Pros: Sophisticated and unusual storytelling Cons: A lack of clear narrative intention 38 performers! That’s how many are credited in the programme for The Treatment. I counted them as I waited for the show to start, wondering would be presented with an all-singing, all-dancing chorus? No. But the imaginative use of this large cast is one thing that makes this otherwise rather indistinct play special. Behind the main action of the play, which is mostly set in an office and a ...

Pros: Some great performances and a pitch-perfect design Cons: The main storyline seemed less subtle than its tributaries I know Chickenshed Theatre for its big, glorious, all-ages Christmas shows, and for being pretty much the only thing that sweetens the bitter end of the Piccadilly line, at Cockfosters. But Chickenshed is so much more than that: it’s an industry leader in inclusive theatre, with a full professional programme of devised and scripted work, alongside a drama school, a popular cafe/bar, ...

An intricate thriller that keeps you guessing – but half an hour too long.

Pros: Eve Steele’s performance is raw, funny and unforgettable, capturing every side of her complicated character throughout his life. Cons: Final sections of the play could spend more time referencing how the main character’s actions affected everyone around him, and what the future might hold for them. You’d be forgiven for thinking a one-woman play about a thief in the grip of drug and alcohol addiction wouldn’t be a laugh a minute. You might assume that this character, James Joseph ...

So cleverly brought together, the partnerships between direction, creation and performance result in a show that’s both hysterical and touching.