Originally performed in 2000, Bare: a Pop Opera is starting to show its age.  Set in the senior year of a private Catholic school somewhere in North America, it is centred around a relationship between two teenage boys Peter (Daniel Mack Shand) and Jason (Darragh Crowley).  Jason is the self-confident golden boy, whilst Peter is more reserved and cautious.  They have, so far, hidden their relationship from the rest of their year group, most of whom have their own issues ...

It’s the impossibly distant year 2020, and the world is on the brink of nuclear war. King Nigel Farage rules the Disunited Kingdom of England and Northern Ireland, and Trump’s popularity is higher than ever: “He gave us our jobs back,” exclaims one satisfied voter, “I’m now a full-time Muslim hunter.” Trump The Musical plays, as the central character tells us, to “the biggest musical theatre crowd there has ever been”. A riotous evening of song and dance, satire and ...

A celebration of life, and a reminder that the fight is far from over.

The posters displayed around the always welcoming lobby of Waterloo East Theatre ask the questions “Love Kylie? Love the 90s? Love Soap?”. The worrying thing is I can confidently state the answer is “no” to two of these questions; as for the 90s, I have vague recollections of them, usually of being in some dark dingy venue watching long forgotten bands. So even before taking my seat I was a little concerned I was not the shows target audience. Thankfully ...

An eccentric, joyful celebration of musical theatre, Operation Mincemeat adds to the fine British tradition of clever people doing silly things in the name of entertainment.  The fact its poster image seems to borrow Monty Python stylings is surely no coincidence. Make no mistake, members of Spitlip, the musical theatre collaborative that write and perform, are very, very clever people.  The high-quality word play in the show’s songs is honestly worth the ticket price alone. Of course, Hamilton comparisons are ...

This production could easily be dropped into a West End venue

Having only lasted two weeks on Broadway in 2002 Amour has finally moved across the pond to try its luck closer to its French setting, with its London debut at the Charing Cross Theatre. Its hard to work out who to attribute blame to in this stoney production, but with moments of brightness it isn’t a completely wasted evening. Following bank clerk Dusoleil (Gary Tushaw), whose lonely existence is transformed by the ability to walk through walls, the story is ...

The Astonishing Singing Fish! is sweet, charming, and tremendously funny.

This musical will make you smile!

OVO Theatre’s Twelfth Night opens with Viola and Sebastian performing their dance double-act on a cruise ship. This scene sets up many of the themes and problems that continue throughout the show. These include raucous humour that’s like jazz hands tirelessly shaking for 95 minutes, with the plot being used as a means of taking a step towards the next laugh, the next spectacular event of debauchery. Also a lack of consistent focus; seemingly clever suggestions that subtly reveal some ...