The appealing concept of TeatroLatino's The Orchestra - with its promise of entertaining jealousies and witty repartees between musicians - never really gets going in this disappointing production at the Omnibus Theatre. The final blackout in …
Grace Chilton brings an intensity that adds layers to the incisive writing of Brooke Robinson’s Dangerous Lenses, culminating in a performance that is bursting at the seams with tension. Played by Grace Chilton, the lone Ann shuffles …
Papercut Theatre’s Lola is an impactful examination of powerplay, gender politics and the literal male gaze - with a story that twists and turns to reveal the complexities of culpability and desire. Lola is an 18-year-old …
An accurate depiction of the everyday struggles in the underfunded and under-resourced world of mental health support in the NHS, Hearing Things boats a talented cast and excellent direction. Philip Osment’s Hearing Things follows the story of …
The Arcola and Dippermouth's revival of The Daughter-in-Law goes to great lengths to meticulously portray a moment in (working-class) history, but to questionable avail. It's a long-winded and somewhat frustrating 140-minutes, which I'd find very difficult …
The strong performances and creative potential of Jack Ivimy’s Dialektikon is undermined by a bizarre concept and over-ambitious, confused content. The world is cruel, unjust and relentless: one of my main takeaways from Jack Ivimy’s 90-minute …
Patrick Barlow's The Messiah relies too much on repetitive and unsophisticated humour to be a hit. The exaggerated mime, malapropisms and 'talking-like-a-ten-year-old', that make up the bulk of The Messiah, are safe comic bets for a brief …
The layered dialogue and mesmerising central performance in Luke Culloty's Jailbirds is weighed down by a disjointed pace, unnecessary staging decisions and a disappointing ending. As audiences walk into the Etcetera, Culloty's ensemble are already onstage - …
Some strong performances and deliciously catty one-liners ensure The Crumple Zone is an enjoyable and inoffensive 75-minutes, but the flimsiness of the writing becomes a bit of a barrier to really feeling able to rave about …
Flux Theatre's production of Chutney is slick, stylish and self-aware - with assured direction and promising performances. I just wasn't mad about the play itself. The sanguinary premise of Reece Connolly’s Chutney is rich, both in dramatic possibility …
Christopher York's metatheatrical reimagining of The Pit and the Pendulum transposes its central characters' dire fate on an unnamed but real-life Iranian activist. When a peaceful Iranian protestor becomes a prisoner, she (meta-theatrically) finds herself in Christopher York’s …
Valiant performances and an interesting, expressionist design are not quite enough to elevate A Pupil's lethargic writing. Lucy Sheen wheels on to stage as Ye, an utterly dejected former musical prodigy. Ye occupies a sparse bedsit that’s littered …