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Writer: Noel Coward Director: Emma Rice. Reviewer: Gregory Hale and Lucy Cosens When theatre gets it right, it gets it right! Kneehigh’s Artistic Director, Emma Rice, has created a show that is an absolute masterpiece, a quintessential theatrical production, combining breathtaking imagery, sharp physicality and prodigious Knee High resourcefulness. The story follows the brief encounter between Laura (a housewife and mother) and Alec (a married GP) who meet at a railway station café when Alec removes a piece of grit from her eye. After this they arrange to meet every Thursday. The drama then unfurls as Laura deals with this passionate love and attempts to suppress her feelings and remain loyal to her husband. Right from the start Kneehigh generated a rapport with the audience which lasted throughout the whole piece, from playing songs whilst the audience entered the auditorium to the constant flirtatious energy that sparkled throughout, especially through the characters Beryl and Stanley. The stage was beautifully arranged, a resourceful plane upon which all the scenes entwined ergo the whole piece had a seamless beauty, not a staccato stop-start but a bona fide work of art. The set was filled with innovative ideas such as a giant cinema screen (where Laura is emotionally pulled back into her reality), a removable bridge that spans the width of the stage, a built in trampoline and a slag heap for the musicians, to name a few! To maintain the fluidity of the piece the characters sung some songs whilst the set was being changed. The songs were both insightful and amusing and executed by the actors with finesse (particularly Stuart Mcloughlin and Amanda Lawrence). For all this play deals with intense emotion and pained love, it is injected throughout with light hearted humour. The comical and sexual relationship between Myrtle and [...]

Based on book by: Hugh Lofting Book, Music & Lyrics: Leslie Bricusse Director: Bob Tomson Reviewer: Peter Barnett As soon as the curtain rises the audience are transported to a world similar to Disney. An impressive ensemble lead by Conor Michael-Sheridan as Matthew the Doctor’s assistant set the scene of Puddleby-By-The Sea. A name like Tommy Steele will give the show boosts in sales but anyone wishing to see a show stopping performance from the star of the show will be sorely disappointed. What you pay for is to see,Tommy Steele playing Tommy Steele on stage. He is all smiles and happily enjoys his time on stage, speaking through most of the songs Rex Harrison Style but does not deliver the character of John Dolittle as one would expect. “Dr Do-nothing” as he is called by one character in the show perfectly describes what you get for your moneys worth. Apart from Steele the rest of the cast are fantastic. We see a vast selection of memorable characters throughout this simple, enjoyable story. From Alfred Blossom and Gertie the Circus owners to the pompous General Bellowes, each character feels as though they are character from a book jumping straight out at you. A special mention must go to Abigail Jaye who plays the part of Emma Fairfax to perfection. Reminiscent to Mary Poppins and Truly Scrumptious, Abigail has a marvellous Soprano voice captivating the audience with whatever style of song she sings. You get to see an amazing variety of animal puppets throughout the whole show. From a Pushmi-Pullyu ( a two headed Llama) to Elephants and Lions, no-one will be disappointed with what they encounter. The story of Doctor Dolittle is easy for anyone of any age to understand. It is all about the Doctor raising money and going [...]

Writer: Simon Schama Adaptor: Caryl Phillips Director: Rupert Goold Reviewer: John Roberts One has to sit back and admire how well Rupert Goold is doing, but the question is, is he just this season’s hot property or is he here for the long haul? My answer would be if he isn’t either running the national or the RSC within the next ten years then something has surely gone amiss. Aside from that praise has Rupert Goold started to spread himself to thin? After watching his latest production and much deliberation with myself, I have come to the conclusion that Goold has done his utmost to make this a good show, but with the script by Caryl Phillips boarding on Degree based history lecture, Goold was never going to be able to produce anther critical production such as his Chichester production of Macbeth. Rough Crossings tells the heroic story of the resettlement of a group of former slaves in West Africa and of the bruising relationship between Peters and Clarkson, divided by the barriers of race, but united in their ambitions of equality. Moving from the meeting houses of London to the inhospitable terrain of Sierra Leone Philips’ adaptation is one of many facades not knowing if it wants to be a touching moving story or a fact based lecture-drama, but Goold has done his utmost to make the long and over factual play interesting, but unfortunately it isn’t enough to make this play the “masterpiece” it could have been. Goold is known for his inventive and creative abilities and Rough Crossings has many but again I can’t help feeling that even those were helped so much by an extremely creative and at times breathtakingly simple set designed by Laura Hopkins. It would be hard to pick out any actors of [...]

Writer: Monteverdi Director: Chen Shi-Zheng Conductor: Lawrence Cummings Reviewer: Mark Valencia In the primitive operatic landscape of early 17th-Century Italy, Monteverdi was able to write his music dramas untroubled by constraints of form or convention. The operatic rulebook was as yet unwritten so his creativity could prosper unconfined. It is therefore no surprise that the freewheeling character of The Coronation of Poppea lends itself so well to the fluid imagination of Chen Shi-Zheng, a visionary director of Chinese origin who recently scored a bull’s-eye with the same composer’s Orfeo, even though his anaemic Cosi Fan Tutte at a recent Aix Festival revealed limitations in more classical repertoire. The Coronation of Poppea is the second instalment of Shi-Zheng’s Monteverdi triptych for ENO, with The Return of Ulysses due in a year’s time. The astonishing score drips eroticism from every recorder and chitarrone – and this production has its measure. In a glorious scene that out-Puccinis Puccini, Anna Grevelius’s louche Nerone quivers with ecstasy as Lucano (Nicholas Watts) extols Poppea’s beauty, while the opera’s final love duet is breathtakingly lyrical, especially as shared between the distinctively radiant vocal timbres of Grevelius and Kate Royal, a stunning Poppea both vocally and physically. Rarely in its recent history has ENO boasted luxury casting of the depth we have here. Diana Montague as Venus and the great bass Robert Lloyd as Seneca are complemented by a uniformly strong cast that includes the counter-tenor Tim Mead, appropriately vulnerable as Ottone, and a fabulously witty turn from Lucy Crowe as his doting Drusilla, sweet of voice but mischievous of purpose. Christopher Gillett overcomes a ludicrous costume to lend his high tenor to a well-rounded Arnalta, and even the smallest minor roles are impeccably sung. Directing from the harpsichord, Lawrence Cummings maintains throughout an ideal balance between singers [...]

Writer: Christopher Marlowe Adaptor :Rupert Goold & Ben Power Original Direction: Rupert Goold Director: Steve Marmion Reviewer: David Saunders The much vaunted Rupert Goold and his Headlong Theatre Company arrived in Southampton on Thursday bringing with them their new adaptation of Marlowe’s story of Doctor Faustus. The piece has been well received on its tour thus far and has had a run at the Hampstead Theatre in London. The story is told in two contrasting parts. First in Wittenberg, Germany as John Faustus, doctor and scholar, pledges himself to the dark art of necromancy and conjures the devil. Secondly we are in Hoxton, London as Artists Jake and Dinos Chapman are preparing to ‘rectify’ a priceless set of Goya etchings. Both stories deal with the issue of immortality as we move from the world of BritArt to Sixteenth Century Europe and back again. The piece uses an original take on the old story with the Chapman brothers mirroring, in a modern world the deal that Faustus made. The set, designed by Laura Hopkins follows the current vogue in theatre design for minimalist stark moving sets. We see the dark, black study where Faustus spends his time and then as the set folds itself out we are transported to the white box world of the Chapman’s studio. The interaction of the set and the actors adds to the slick feel of this production. Our Faustus in this production (played by Michael Colgan) lacked the vocal power to put across this man struggling with a crisis of faith and the drive of his own ego. The performance of Claire Lams as Helena gave a grace to her role as conscience to the work of the Chapman brothers. She shows a quiet rage in this role which speaks the audiences’ point of view [...]

Writer: Bryony Lavery Director/Choreography: Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett Reviewer: Murray Moss Stockholm Syndrome, which provides the central metaphor for this play, is the name for the strong and intimate relationship that perversely can exist between a victim and an aggressor in hostage situations. Stockholm is also the city that Todd and Kali, the two protagonists of the piece, are going to travel to for a dream holiday, part of Todd’s birthday celebrations. So, who is the hostage and who is the aggressor in their relationship? Is Todd held hostage by Kali’s unfeasibly fierce ‘retro-jealousy’ of his past and potentially present lover? Or is she hostage to his potential and possible infidelity? Who is this ‘Louise’ who has tried to call him on his mobile? Why won’t she let him call his mother on his birthday? Frantic Assembly continue their association with great living writers and Bryony Lavery has written a text that skilfully and economically traces and unravels Todd and Kali’s relationship, dissecting their insecurities with an eye and ear as sharp as the row of knives that adorn the back of the kitchen in which most of the play is set. But this is no naturalistic kitchen-sink drama. The sharp and affecting acting is punctuated and driven along with layers of skilfully choreographed dance/movement: the couple show the story of their first dinner together, eating each other with knives and forks; the whole set meal takes place on the top of the electric hob in the kitchen, which serves as the restaurant table, a beautifully inventive and sensual movement section that plays itself out without a drop of wine being spilt. This is a fine example of the ensemble of two’s excellent rapport: Georgina Lamb and Samuel James switch from heightened sex to vicious fight via witty and [...]

Devisors: Matthew David Scott, J.C Marshell & Company Reviewer: Mal Wallace Underground marks a significant first for Yorkshire based theatre company Slung Low. This is the first production they have taken into a theatre having previously created theatrical works for more unusual spaces. The intimate Contact Theatre would appear to be the ideal venue to world premiere this new work. Written by Matthew David Scott and J C Marshall the plot concerns Johnny who, when caught up in a disaster on the London Tube, is catapulted into an alternative reality where he faces the daunting prospect of facing the evil Baron of Baron’s Court who rules over the underworld in order to escape back to his own reality. Incompetently assisted by Bokkie the South African rat and Gergo the Hungarian rat Johnny meets a vast array of characters, original, fictional and historical that both guide and hinder him on his quest. The premise sounds promising but sadly, the production fails to live up to expectations. Whilst the plot development is somewhat baffling and some of the jokes, notably those about Lepers are incongruous, the script is, overall, fairly well written but its potential is never realised. Chief amongst the hindrances is the cast of four who all present extremely restrained and at times amateurish performances failing to make the most of the both the comedic and dramatic opportunities open to them. Dominic Gately as Johnny looks and sounds thoroughly bored from start to finish. Jojo Hawkins and Alys Torrance as the two rats share no chemistry whatsoever so what should have been an amusing comedy double act falls totally flat due in part to no sense of comic timing from either performer and horribly odd accents resulting in some extremely poor diction. Tom Dalton Bidwell plays the largest array of [...]

Writer: Rodgers and Hammerstein Director: Julian Woolford Choreography: Chris Hocking Reviewer: Zahid Fayyaz Halfway through their regional tour, this new production of the Rodgers and Hammerstein production comes to Wimbledon. Set on a south Pacific Island during World War 2, this is the story of a nurse, Nellie Forbush, and her relationship with ‘mysterious’ French plantation owner, Emile De Beque. As with most musicals, the path of true love does not go smoothly, with various external and internal factors getting in their way. There are of course various other supporting characters and subplots, though it wouldn’t be surprising that it’s mainly based on love and trying to get ‘some’. Add a few songs in-between and dodgy dialogue, and that’s the play! In terms of quality, this is not one of the best musicals around at the moment. The songs are pretty good, although it’s nothing particularly memorable or humable. The acting generally static, though the accents are particularly bad in some cases. Dave Willets Frenchman sounds like he comes from Transylvania, and the less said about Bloody Marys sub ‘Born on the Fourth of July’ Vietnamese attempts the better. Helena Blackman’s nurse Nellie is a good lead actress, whilst Christopher Howell’s Luther Billis makes the best out of Luther Billis’s clichéd shtick as a navy con artist with a heart oof gold. The cast did the best to rise above the technical problems and collapsing sets. Generally though, it was just a barely average play with a whole load of predictable plot and emotional twists.