Stars combine and theatres from east to west collaborate for a digital recontextualising of Oscar Wilde’s seminal novel. But can the Belle Epoch really dance to the tune of the pandemic? Oscar Wilde’s 1890 novel is steeped in scandal, debauchery, and vanity. The life of the naive Dorian is ruined as he is seduced by his own good looks, dangerous ...
From the heart of St Albans (Maltings Theatre to be precise) and shot straight to your home, this production drags the wives of King Henry VIII kicking and screaming into the 21st century. We all know the rhyme, don’t we? Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived, or (less ghoulishly) Catherine, Anne, Jane, Anne, Katherine, Katherine. But who were these women? ...
A psychopath and a shut-in reminisce about a deeply troubled childhood in this over-ambitious yet touching two-hander. Bitching and bloodlust blur the lines between friend and foe as two women grapple with the past. With our oversaturated, desensitised modern minds I understand the challenge faced by a playwright. Staring at their laptops, trying their best to craft the twists and ...
Blending the zany sci-fi humour of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy with the equally offbeat cheeriness of The Good Place, then pour that cocktail of wacky-fun down the phone lines for your enjoyment. That Is Next Time. Having improved considerably on their previous show Claws, Candle House Collective has lightened the tone, choosing comedy over horror, with magnificent results. Their pioneering ...
‘Writing at its most perceptive’ Lolita Chakrabarti’s (prestigious writer with the best name in existence) new piece is concerned with two sadly underrepresented topics: men’s mental health and black masculinity. The bite-sized production, live-streamed from the Almeida Theatre, comes out sprinting, even if by the end it stumbles slightly over its own feet. We are pretty used to digital theatre ...
‘Tasteful exploration of our capacity for regrowth’ With lockdown stretching onwards into the distance like an unwelcome family car ride, what we need at the moment is something hopeful and uplifting! Something to vary the insipid doldrums of another evening in. How about a film about death? Wait wait wait… hear me out. Yes, escapism is a tempting solace for ...
Bones are good, Structural, essential, underpinning. But what if the skin… could do with some moisturising? Streamed from the Southwark Playhouse The Fabulist Fox Sister has some potential deep, deep down, and that’s what counts? Right? With music by Luke Bateman and both book and lyrics by Michael Conley (who is also the lead – alarm bells yet?), this irreverent, dark twist is loosely ...
Silvia Mercuriali’s most recent Autoteatro piece is an experience fit for 2020; isolated, inward-looking, and dripping with…creativity. Get ready to get wet and wild (sorry but I couldn’t resist) in a unique piece, beamed straight into your bathroom. So, with obligatory writer’s puns out of the way, let’s discuss Swimming Home in all its glorious oddness. Originally intended for an audience ...
Filing into the west London cultural hub that is the Riverside Studios, I was ready for an evening of song, laughter, and festive cheer. Pulled in by Ferris and Milnes’ medley for Sondheim Society’s 85th birthday gala (and on YouTube) my hopes were high, but I have to confess to departing somewhat disappointed. Dominic Ferris seated at the gleaming grand ...
After months of isolation Ginger Johnson pulls us out into the stage lights with a festive evening of songs and salaciousness. After all: ”What good is sitting alone in your room? Come hear the music play. Life is a cabaret…”. And hasn’t this year just been the chaotic, unnerving cocktail of good and bad (mainly bad) that cabaret is known ...