A thought-provoking, funny and sympathetic one-man show about how employment – or lack of it – can sometimes be linked to identity and how one man tries to cope with it.

A simple premise, almost flawlessly executed by a talented, young troupe. The writing makes for a provoking social commentary and the raw delivery gives it a refreshing edge.

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 ...

The complex theme is just too academic to be entertaining and fails to deliver a coherent message.

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.

If you like fatalist humour, this is the play for you.

Pros: Its well-researched and original approach to the dark times of Irish history. Cons: Being unfamiliar with the topic, I found the play difficult to enjoy. If you’re familiar with Irish history and the troubles, The Passion of the Playboy Riots gives a valuable insight into the role of theatre at the origins of the IRA. Spanning 24 years, the play is based on the published writings of William Butler Yeats and Lady Gregory, founders of the Irish Literary Theatre, and Patrick Pearse, ...

Plenty of fun for very young theatre-goers.

An enchanting piece of new writing with songs. The original subject matter makes this piece even more interesting, and the gorgeous set, costume and lighting will carry you away.

Pros: A forgotten play gains new resonance in this timely revival. Cons: It’s very wordy, and the first act takes quite a while to pick up momentum. On Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays, a visit to the Finborough Theatre will take you back to 1950’s rural Scotland. To be precise, it will drop you into the fictional mining village of Crult, where Mr Gillie is the headmaster of the small school, and where his radical ideas about education are not always ...