‘Like layers of an onion’ Everyone loves a wedding, or at least that’s what you’re meant to say. But you know what nobody loves… an oppressive political regime. Sam Holcroft, building from her tremendous success at The National with Rules for Living (2015) provides a dark new drama, set under the gaze of totalitarian baddies. Much is expected from Holcroft ...

‘Little is happening and not much is conveyed’ Central School’s Format Festival kicks off with work by Advanced Theatre Practise MA students. In the depths of a basement in Camden, we get splattered paint, and bubbling desire. Sign me up and then some! Me Looking at Her Looking at Me (or MLAHLAM as it will now be named) has brush strokes of ...

‘steaming hot, fairly priced, freshly made circles crafted by someone who has a passion for the Italian classic’ Is there any greater experience than the smell, taste, and radiating warmth of fresh dough? If that is made by the owner’s own dexterous hands in an unusually decorated pub just down the road from Bethnal Green station, mores the better. Hannah Drye’s ...

‘Undeniably a tough sell’ Grimeborn Festival crashes into the Arcola Theatre for the 6th year, disputing Opera’s elitist title. Homerton Hospital is the setting for a new piece by the mysterious creative duo Muelas+Ward. A micro-tragedy for the modern age. A&E digitally premiered at the Tète-á-Tête Opera Festival in 2020, and elements of the socially distanced staging are kept throughout. Now a physical ...

‘Ingenious pairings’ Sundays are a divisive day. Cherished by some, bemoaned by others. The good lord may have rested but sections of this city demand activity on this once lazy, hazy end to the week. What is this reviewer’s recommendation? Why drink, of course! But before you buy 3 litres of White Lighting and claim a park bench, let me remind you, there ...

‘The menu is to the point, clipped, and easy to understand’ Chicken wings are having a moment, aren’t they? No longer just an abbreviated snack, they have been fused and fancied up, fussed over, and high-fluted to an unrecognisable level. I mean they have a whole festival! Your reviewer even lives above one of these temples to the queen of meat’s limb. Equally ...

‘Dancing the steps of the genres it satirises’ The Barbican has done it again! This savvy receiving house dominates the summer theatre landscape yearly. Cole Porter’s Anything Goes (2022) provided us with the balm we needed for a Covid battered soul. But enough looking backward. A Strange Loop, the award-collecting unstoppable monsoon of intersectionality spins over from Broadway, ploughing ahead at great speed. Beginning ...

‘Irreverent comedy isn’t a shocking thing anymore’ Flapping its way from the Birmingham Rep into The Phoenix theatre, the 80s hit TV show Spitting Image returns. What a flutter of talent, high expectations, and a desperate attempt to prove relevancy. Attempt being the operative word. Aptly this theatre’s origin was a musical hall called The Alcaraz. Idiots Assemble is a rowdy bawdy show ...

‘Sensitive and vibrant slice of life’ Reality TV and artistically-minded documentaries sometimes share a key feature: a predatory hunt for “worthy” subjects to exploit. On the brighter side, they also exhibit a fascination with real people living their unique lives. The approach taken is very much guided by the producer or director. Shamira Raphaela’s latest piece, Shabu, is filled with kindness, ...

‘We jump to our feet enraptured’ Kicking off (quite literally) the 20th year of the Flamenco festival Sara Baras devours the stage. 12 concerts, performances, and shows provide a snapshot of the branching tree that is this enigmatic dance form. What could get you more in the mood for summer than this flash of cultural heat? Baras is a legend ...