Author: Paul Lewis

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Theatre review: The Brightening Air with Chris O’Dowd and Rosie Sheehy

Outstanding acting as dreams are crushed


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The Brightening Air at The Old Vic

Is The Brightening Air a comedy with a serious message or a drama with humour? Either way, it’s great entertainment showcasing outstanding acting.

If you’re thinking that a mixture of comedy and profundity sounds a bit Chekhovian, you’re right. Indeed, if you’re familiar Chekhov’s Uncle Vanya- and the playwright Conor McPherson certainly is, having directed a memorable production- you may recognise elements of the plot about a dysfunctional family stuck in the past that is forced to confront change by the arrival of a relative.

A mature brother and sister live in a run-down Irish farm in the 80s. Stephen is a failure as a businessman, Billie is unreliable due to what I take to be autism. With them, almost a lodger, is their sister-in-law Lydia, still in love with their long departed brother Dermot.

He is a successful owner of cafes, a business so perfect as a symbol  of the rise of individualised consumerism. His arrival at the farm with a much younger girlfriend Freya in tow, sets off a chain of events that blows apart all the characters’ dreams and self delusions.

There is one other significant arrival, back from the outside world as it were. Uncle Pierre, their father’s brother, is a blind priest, relying on Elizabeth, his housekeeper, companion and a little more besides, who needs a man she can control as much as he needs her care.

Billie is gifted with much insight but is not taken seriously because her autism causes her to shout and go off at tangents, like reciting the details of railway timetables. Rosie Sheehy, after her sensational starring role in Machinal, once again shows her greatness as an actor who can inhabit extreme emotions. For all the strong qualities of the other actors, it is her you can’t take your eyes off.

Stephen, played by Brian Gleeson, is depressed, lamenting his failure both at business and love. Also living in the past is Lydia, forever hoping that Dermot will return to her.

Dermot is cringingly sleazy. Chris O’Dowd is on top form as a self-centred alpha male. Not only has he abandoned the family farm to his younger sublings, he has no ability to commit to relationships, and chases after young women. How old is this one? ‘In her twenties, well twenty… next birthday.’

Since it is the 1980s when Ireland, once a backwater on the western edge of Europe is becoming the Celtic tiger, Dermot could be seen as representative of the booming economy and its detrimental effect on a traditional way of life.

Other members of this superb cast are Derbhie Crotty as the scheming passive-aggressive Elizabeth, Aisling Kearns as a wide-eyed Freya and Eimhin Fitzgerald Doherty as the young exploited farmworker Brendan.

The design by Rae Smith occupies every inch of the huge Old Vic stage. Although a shimmering grey curtain appears every so often at the back, the action is entirely downstage in one perfectly realised room of the farmhouse. I think this might signify the vastness of the world surrounding this small community but for me it had an alienating effect. I suspect the play would work even better if it was done in a more intimate set and auditorium.

After the interval, a metaphorical bomb explodes. I won’t spoil the plot but, suffice to say, all the characters’ lives are turned upside down. All three siblings are forced to reassess their situations and Father Pierre has an experience that’s the polar opposite to St Paul on the road to Damascus. In a tremendous monologue he explains God is a psychopath and that he will lead a new religion. His transformation is one of the highlights of this eventful play, although maybe he doesn’t change that much.

Exquisite comic timing

Rosie Sheehy in The Brightening Air. Photo: Manuel Harlan

There may be a message here, particularly relevant in a country that was dominated by the Catholic Church until this point in time, that there are always people willing to exploit others’ spiritual needs. Played with exquisite comic timing by Seán McGinley, Pierre’s behaviour to others is both hilarious and chilling. I should say, there are several moments in this play where a character’s needs are shaped or satisfied by their belief in mysticism or magic, including for example whether drinking certain water can make someone fall in love

So the characters’ dreams are crushed. The phrase ‘the brightening air’ is from a poem by WB Yeats and refers to the moment dreams meet reality. Another line from the great Irish poet springs to mind: ‘Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold; Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world’.

The play nears its end with another terrific monologue, this time from Billie, talking about the destructive nature of change, and the need for deep loving relationships. ‘In each other, we saw the face of God’ she says, and points out ‘how much of living is really just forgetting’.

Along with the laughs, there’s a lot to think about in this play, maybe a little too much, but It’s a fine piece of writing and wonderfully acted.

The Brightening Air can be seen at The Old Vic Theatre until 14 June 2025.

Paul was given a review ticket by the theatre

Click her to watch this review on the YouTube channel Theatre reviews With Paul Seven

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Theatre reviews roundup: Ewan McGregor in My Master Builder

Another Hollywood star fails to shine on a London stage

Elizabeth Debicki and Ewan McGregor in My Master Builder. Photo: Johan Persson

Lila Raicek’s new play is inspired by Ibsen’s The Master Builder but puts more emphasis on the wife Elena (Kate Fleetwood) and a young woman Mathilda (Elizabeth Debicki) from an earlier relationship, than the ‘starchitect’ himself (Ewan McGregor). The critics found that McGregor’s character was too nice in this version, leaving him little room to show his acting skill, but Kate Fleetwood as a vengeful woman impressed them.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar concluded, ‘The focus on the women is interesting and intriguing, even though it means Henry feels rather spare to the drama. This is a story not of genius men building castles in the air for their princesses but of what destruction they wreak in their homes in so doing. Really, it is the drama of The Master Builder’s Wife.’

Alice Saville in The Independent declared, ‘(the) play sweeps you along, into a breezy study of a great man whose scheming wife gets the last laugh. She noted, ‘Ewan McGregor brings serious charm to the role of the titular architect Henry Solness, but his star power is entirely outshone by Kate Fleetwood’s formidable acting chops as his furious wife Elena, bent on bringing his dreams crashing down to the ground. Ironically, given it’s a play about an architect, she didn’t like the design: ‘Director Michael Grandage and designer Richard Kent’s evocation of this play’s setting on the moneyed Hamptons feels a little stuffy, with an overly fussy attempt at modern architecture cluttering the stage’.

The Telegraph’s Dominic Cavendish found McGregor ‘struggles to attain the intensity required’. It seems the play was at fault: ‘What should deepen and tauten the drama alas throws up inconclusive thoughts on empowerment and a ton of emotional overstatement.’

Andrzej Lukowski of Time Out felt the star casting imbalanced the production:  ‘it feels like McGregor hogs the lines and the stage time, while the women hog the bits where Raicek actually has something interesting to say.’ He dismissed McGregor’s role as ‘just a nice guy blundering through a genteel midlife crisis’.

Olivia Rook for LondonTheatre agreed with the other critics that ‘Despite being the play’s headline star, McGregor is outshone by the women on stage’, however she was kinder than most about the play itself: ‘it remains exciting to see old work interrogated and transformed into something new.’

2 stars ⭑⭑

The Financial Times’ Sarah Hemming called it ‘curiously wooden and inauthentic’ explaining ‘the situation feels oddly contrived and the dialogue often stiff and airless’. She said McGregor ‘struggles to animate some cloying lines’. The Times’ Clive Davis called the play ‘a painfully windy psychodrama…which grinds its way to a wildly implausible conclusion’. He described McGregor as ‘likeable, but anodyne’.

Sam Marlowe of The Stage concluded, ‘McGregor’s Henry ends up as little more than the fraying ball of wool batted about in the catfights…It’s Fleetwood who supplies the stellar turn here, by turns vengeful, maudlin and magnificent. I just wish she had something more flavourful and substantial to sink those sharp teeth into.’

Nick Curtis in The Standard protested at the ‘glib, howlingly pretentious script’ and said McGregor is ‘out-characterised and out-emoted by his female co-stars. Kate Fleetwood plays Solness’s wife Elena in full-on, steel-eyed Valkyrie mode, slashing through every scene she’s in. Elizabeth Debicki…has a cool, languid abandon … and is so tall and slender in a silver dress she resembles a thermometer.’ He ended: ‘I laughed at this star vehicle, not with it.’

Critics’ average rating 2.6 ★

Value rating 28 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price)

My Master Builder runs at Wyndham’s Theatre until 12 July 2025. Click here to buy tickets direct from the theatre.

If you’ve seen My Master Builder at Wyndham’s Theatre, please add your review and rating below

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Theatre reviews roundup: Dealer’s Choice

Revival of gambling play pays off

Donmar Warehouse
Alfie Allen and Hammed Animashaun in Dealer’s Choice at The Donmar. Photo: Helen Murray

To celebrate its 30th anniversary, Patrick Marber’s first play returns to the Donmar. The story of a regular all male poker game in a restaurant basement resonated with critics who enjoyed the tension and humour in its depiction of insecure masculinity.  They praised the cast which includes Alfie Allen and Brendan Coyle but Hammed Animashaun’s performance stole the show.  Such criticism as there was centred on the contrived plot.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

5 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑

Laurie Yule for The Stage called it ‘A gripping production of a play that’s as brilliant as it is enduring.’

4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑

’What a blisteringly good play Dealer’s Choice is!’ proclaimed Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage. ‘A sharply funny, acutely insightful study of male insecurities, of the toxic relationships between fathers and sons, friends and colleagues, of the impulse to gamble a life on the turn of a card.’ She found the revival ‘beautifully cast and the direction taut’.

The Standard’s Nick Curtis felt it ‘holds up extremely well as a savagely comic study of compulsion.’ He was pleased with the latest cast: ‘Allen is good as the underwritten Frankie, a cocksure wide-boy who suddenly snaps. Barklem-Biggs is full of barely suppressed fury as Sweeney, while Coyle has a sleepy menace as Ash…Animashaun’s Mugsy is a delight from start to finish: charming, hilarious, irrepressible even when slighted.’

Claire Allfree for the Telegraph found, ‘Three decades on, Marber’s brutal comedy remains a masterclass portrait of lonely little men wishing themselves into being better people than they are…Dunster’s muscular production gives full reign to Marber’s blokey banter and apparently off-the-cuff wit.’

LondonTheatre’s Marianka Swain called it ‘a gripping portrait of male relationships at their base, competitive level: in order to win, you must destroy.’ ‘Go all in on this darkly entertaining gem,’ she recommended.

The Times’ Clive Davis described ‘On Moi Tran’s sleek set, a revolve allows us to study each player in turn.’ He pointed out ‘Coyle’s body language is extraordinarily eloquent: he may seem a calculating operator on the surface, but his sagging frame and weary glances tell another story about the precariousness of his trade.’

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Steve Dinneen for City AM felt it was a bit predictable: ‘It looks fantastic, with a rotating poker table and dramatic lighting but it plays out pretty much as you imagine, all macho outbursts and bitter recriminations.’

2 stars ⭑⭑

There was one dissenting voice: Ryan Gilbey for The Guardian. Having described the play as ‘superficially dazzling’, he went on to explain, ‘Two-thirds of the characters have no inner life, and half are prone to sudden outbursts which resemble artificial attempts to raise the stakes.’

Critics’ Average Rating 3.8★

Dealer’s Choice can be seen at the Donmar Warehouse until 7 June 2025. Click here for tickets direct from the theatre. 

If you have seen Dealer’s Choice at the Donmar Warehouse, please give your review and rating below

 

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Theatre review: Much Ado About Nothing – RSC

Freema Agyeman scores in football-themed Shakespeare


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Freema Agyeman & Nick Blood in Much Ado About Nothing. Photo: Marc Brenner

Dear England is playing at the National Theatre, and now our second most subsidised theatre, the Royal Shakespeare Company, has a football themed play as well. But did Much Ado About Nothing score or was it a load of balls? And did Freema Agyeman from Doctor Who and New Amsterdam, and Nick Blood from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D as Beatrice and Benedick hit the back of the net?

First of all, spoiler alert, I will be talking about the plot of Much Ado About Nothing. You won’t be surprised that this production doesn’t set Much Ado About Nothing is set in modern times. Some people object to reimagining Shakespeare’s plays in other times and places. Personally, I find it can offer helpful insights, and this particular Shakespeare play needs them. Let me explain.

There are two parallel love stories in Much Ado About Nothing- a comic one which is probably what makes it one of the most popular of Shakespeare’s comedies, and a serious plot which can be a problem for a modern audience to comprehend.

Let’s look at the light-hearted element first- the relationship between Benedick and Beatrice, two people who are wary of hitching themselves to a partner. So, in all the time they’ve spent avoiding marriage, they’re become quite mature, and able to present a front of cutting cynicism. Shakespeare leaves no doubt there is something in each of them that is attractive to the other, except they won’t admit it, and they cover this by insulting each other. So the fun is in the way they’re eventually tricked by their friends into admitting that they do love one another, and then how love changes them. Benedick finds himself having to choose between his love and his comrade.

Freema Agyeman has only recently returned to theatre after a long spell acting on American TV but she is already building a reputation as a stage actor, and this performance will undoubtedly cement it. She speaks the lines beautifully. Her Beatrice gives as good as she gets, and offers apparent confidence to mask her inner emotions.

Nick Blood is a likeable Benedick with an appropriate swagger. However they don’t bounce off one another as much as you might hope: They should be like two Premiership footballers repeatedly tackling each another. Instead their dexterous verbal sparring never goes beyond a Sunday morning kickabout.

The darker plot concerns a young couple called Hero and Claudio- and it’s a can of worms, because it conjures a highly misogynistic society, which is hard to relate to, even though Shakespeare exposes the sexism among the men, and the unfair treatment of women.
We meet a veteran footballer Don John who’s essentially a mischief maker, someone who has no clear reason for causing trouble, and no complexity or depth. This makes him less interesting than many of Shakespeare’s villains, who are given motives or redeeming qualities. To be fair, this production does suggest that he’s jealous of his young rival Claudio, but that’s not pursued. Nojan Khazai plays him with an alpha male charm.
Don John uses deception- and this is a play that involves a lot of chicanery- to ensure that the relationship between two young fiancées- is torn apart on the eve of their wedding. 
He does this by tricking Claudio into believing Hero, far from being faithful, has a lover. As an audience, we find it hard to believe Claudio, even as a credulous young footballer (they’re not always renowned for their intellect) and her father, who both profess to love her, have so little faith in her. Even more unlikely is the moment when all is revealed (after even more trickery): he says ‘sorry’, she forgives him.
Daniel Adeosun gives a solid performance in the thankless role of Claudio. Eleanor Worthington-Cox does an excellent job as Hero. another difficult part as she is presented for much of the play as a voiceless victim- she doesn’t even defend herself against the false accusations. She does show a lively disposition in earlier scenes, where she is given more to do than in the original Shakespeare with some added songs, and at the end is given some added ambition.

Shoots but doesn’t score

It’s hard for a modern audience to comprehend such a misogynistic, male dominated society. So that’s the problem directors face: to find a modern parallel that we can relate to.  Michael Longhurst, fresh from his Shakespearean success with the David Tennant/Cush Jumbo Macbeth, has chosen the world of elite men’s soccer as the setting- not the English Premiership which surely is a league of gentlemen after Gareth Southgate’s tenure as England manager (I know because I’ve seen Dear England.) No, Italian football.
After all, Shakespeare’s play is set in Messina and perhaps the men’s behaviour fits, no doubt unfairly, with our stereotypical image of a certain kind of Italian male. Leonato, the owner of Messina FC, is the spitting image of Sylvio Berlusconi which usefully reminds us of his Bunga Bunga parties, one of which seems to be taking place on stage. It’s a fine characterisation of a self-centredh millionaire by Peter Forbes.
We can see that the position of women in this world is mainly as trophy wives and girlfriends. Beatrice is not one of them. She is an ex-footballer turned commentator, and we don’t need reminding of very recent occasions when misogyny was displayed against female football commentators.
So setting the play in the world of football is a good concept, and it works well initially. Unfortunately it never quite hits the back of the net, because as the play progresses, the football becomes less and less in evidence, and less convincing as the plot darkens.
Much Ado About Nothing. Photo: Marc Brenner

When you first enter the auditorium, you see what appears to be a stadium stretching into the distance. Thus far a triumph for designer Jon Bausor. However, the thrust part of the stage is dominated by a communal bath. Unfortunately this doesn’t work as well as you might hope. It’s used to comic effect on a few occasions but otherwise tends to get in the way of the cast moving round the stage.

The women are objectified and verbally abused by the men, the paparazzi and in comments on social media which are flashed up on the auditorium walls. So, quite a lot of misogyny going on there- with manipulated photos and fake news offering trickery that Don John could be proud of.
The actors playing the footballers are all physically fit, so they look like they could be soccer heroes, and the women are all very glamorous and could be wags. They give decent performances, speaking the words well, as you would hope from the RSC, and creating a world of casual offensiveness and sexist banter that comes naturally out of Shakespeare’s prose. What’s missing is a certain nastiness that the text demands; it’s as if they are passing the ball rather shooting at the goal.
The Watch- here seen as security staff- who inadvertently discover the truth of Don John’s plot are sometimes cut from the play. A lot of people seem to find their antics unfunny, but here Antonio Magro makes an excellent Dogberry, speaking his malapropisms with a dignified , obsequious demeanour.
I do have one quibble. Let me ask you a question. What do you enjoy most about Shakespeare? 
 I suspect that no matter how interesting the interpretation is, and how well it’s acted, at the end of the day, we’re going because we love Shakespeare’s language. Because, while he may steal his plots from here, there and everywhere, when he interprets that story for us, he has such an understanding of human nature, that he creates complex, interesting characters who express themselves through the most wonderful poetic language which conveys to us all the emotions that they feel and makes us feel them too. 
 And who might you think would protect that language more than the Royal Shakespeare Company?
So, I felt let down that this production of Much Ado About Nothing messed with Shakespeare’s language. Okay, not in a huge way, but to actually change some of the words for modern references and expressions, for example, bringing the word “twerking’ or ‘vaping’ into the text. 
I just feel it was plain wrong. I know it may sound stuffy and reactionary, and some will say, you’ve got to bring Shakespeare up to date for a modern audience and so on. But there are plenty of ways of doing that through the interpretation. The words are our one actual connection with Shakespeare, and why you shouldn’t mess with them, RSC!
As the final whistle blew, I felt the fun wasn’t fun enough, and the serious stuff not serious enough.
Much Ado About Nothing can be seen at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon until 24 May 2025. Buy tickets direct.
Paul paid for his ticket
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Theatre reviews roundup: The Great Gatsby A New Musical

Spectacular but hollow musical

The Coliseum
The Great Gatsby A New Musical. Photo: Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman

The Great Gatsby musical had lukewarm reviews on Broadway. If the producers were wishing for a different result in the West End, they will have been disappointed by the number of two and even one star reviews. For many critics, Mark Bruni’s ‘hollow’ musical failed to do justice to the complexity and nuance of F Scott Fitzgerald’s great novel. However, some critics did like the spectacle and powerful emotion. The New York production generated good word-of-mouth. The producers may hope this will do the same but the Coliseum has a lot of seats to fill.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑

Laurie Yule for The Stage was sure ‘even those resistant to the unashamedly corny will likely be won over by the breathtaking look and strident performances in this feat of spectacle and seduction.’

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Nick Curtis of the Standard said it was ‘a sleek, ravishingly designed ocean liner of a show, with enough musical oomph and vocal power to distract you from the hollowness at its heart.’

LondonTheatre’s Marianka Swain liked the performances: ‘Jamie Muscato and Frances Mayli McCann…lend considerable heft to Gatsby and Daisy’s doomed recoupling, especially when belting out Jason Howland and Nathan Tysen’s colossal Disney-esque power ballads.’

Alun Hood for WhatsOnStage called it ‘the epitome of a slick, escapist West End night out. Shallow, loud and sumptuous.

2 stars ⭑⭑

For Claire Allfree at the Telegraph: ‘the overall effect is excessive in all the wrong places, amplified by Jason Howland’s hammer and tongs score that flattens out all possibility for nuance’.

The Times’ Clive Davis called it ‘big, brash, noisy and oddly one-dimensional’.

The Independent’s Alice Saville was dismissive: ‘what Kait Kerrigan’s weirdly larky book and Marc Bruni’s ludicrously lavish production lack is a basic level of respect for F Scott Fitzgerald’s elegy for the Roaring Twenties, or an understanding of what makes it more than an excellent theme for a hen do.’

1 star ⭑

The Guardian’s Arifa Akbar concluded ‘this production encapsulates the worst of peacockingly splashy entertainment – the kind whose soul has been suctioned out in the making.’

Critics’ Average Rating: 2.5⭑

Value rating 16 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price)

The Great Gatsby is at The Coliseum until 7 September 2025. Buy tickets from the theatre here.

If you’ve seen The Great Gatsby at The Coliseum, please add your review and rating below

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Theatre reviews roundup: The Brightening Air

Impressive writing, outstanding performances, but perhaps packing in too much

The Old Vic
The Brightening Air at The Old Vic. Photo:Manuel Harlan

Probably best known for his Dylan musical Girl From The North Country, Conor McPherson has written his first original play in 12 years, which he has also directed. The Brightening Air is, said Nick Curtis in The Standard, a ‘hilarious and achingly moving slice of dysfunctional rural Irish family life in the 1980s with broad seams of mysticism and superstition running through it’. All reviews agreed the writing is strong, with more than a nod to Chekhov. There are outstanding performances from Rosie Sheehy, Chris O’Dowd and Brian Gleeson as three siblings. Some found there was too much going on.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

4 stars ★★★★

Time Out’s Andrzej Lukowski called it ‘deft stuff, a slow-burn, bittersweet drama about a family finally disintegrating under forces that have been pulling at it for decades.’ Dave Fargnoli for The Stage said it ‘remains gripping thanks to McPherson’s typically sparkling dialogue, dripping with vibrant Irish idiom and loaded with humour and profundity.’ For him there was a standout performance: ‘Sensitively and convincingly portraying a character living with an autism spectrum disorder, Sheehy is a fascinating knot of tensions, often bluntly outspoken, other times stiff and uncomfortable in her own skin’.

The Standard’s Nick Curtis found it ‘audacious’. He picked two actors from a ‘splendid ensemble’: ‘O’Dowd returns to the stage for the first time in four years with a heroically detestable performance as the tauntingly feckless, faithless Dermot. And Rosie Sheehy adds to her unbroken run of transfixingly vivid roles as his sister Billie’. Dzifa Benson for the Telegraph called it ‘a play that is by turns, convulsively funny, bleak and puzzling but it’s Sheehy that my eyes kept seeking out’.

3 stars ★★★

Sarah  Crompton of WhatsOnStage observed, ‘McPherson’s writing is pin-sharp, a rare combination of the riotous and the elegiac…But he simply tries to cram too much in.’ Therefore, ‘It’s a frustrating play, always watchable, so nearly great, so nearly soaring, yet somehow held earthbound by the weight of its intent.’ For Alice Saville at The Independent, ‘The real magic here comes from the beautifully woven speeches McPherson gives his characters as they rebel against tedium, death, and the heavens.’

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar declared, ‘An incredibly strong cast is gathered: O’Dowd is a delight as the family’s self-regarding eldest brother and Sheehy, as always, is a standout force. She plays a largely comic character but infuses Billie with great emotion. The idea of love and its yearning is shown with delicacy.’ She was smitten by the design: ‘Rae Smith’s set is beautiful, full of diaphanous, overlying images of trees, water, misty mountains, sky, conjuring a vivid sense of place but also carrying a certain otherworldly magic. Sometimes this production lifts off, as if it is about to enter into the sublime, but is strangely dragged down by too many elements jostling to take flight.’

Anya Ryan of LondonTheatre decided, ‘It doesn’t quite make the impact McPherson might have hoped for then, but the play is still brimming with more fantasy and good fun than most. And for the true brilliance of each actor, this is a play worth a few hours of your time.’ Dominic Maxwell in The Times was ‘not sure it quite adds up, but it’s far more interesting than plenty of plays that do.’

Critics’ Average Rating: 3.3⭑

Value rating 44 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price)

The Brightening Air is at The Old Vic Theatre  until 14 June 2025. Buy tickets from the theatre here.

If you’ve seen The Brightening Air is at The Old Vic Theatre, please add your review and rating below

 

 

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Theatre reviews roundup: Ghosts

Updated version of Ibsen’s Ghosts thrills

Lyric Hammersmith
Patricia Allison, Victoria Smurfit and Callum Scott Howells in Ghosts. Photo: Helen Murray

Ibsen’s Ghosts has been given an update by writer Gary Owen and director Rachel O’Riordan. It seems the themes of adultery, abuse, incest and more that shocked audiences over 140 years ago still have the power to cause discomfort today, especially with this version’s increased emphasis on incest. Almost as shocking was the introduction of humour into the gloomy world of the Norwegian dramatist. Most of the critics liked the play and gave high praise to the cast, led by Victoria Smurfit.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

5 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑⭑

Jonathan Marshall at LondonTheatre1 was treated to ‘A powerful lesson in dramatic tension and suspense, this taut and pleasingly challenging incarnation of Ghosts leaves a lingering impression’. He said, ‘The evening, however, truly belongs to Victoria Smurfit. The actress presents us with so many layers … It makes for a compelling performance and serves as a masterclass in its portrayal of a complex and contradictory character’.

Cindy Marcolia at BroadwayWorld picked out the director: ‘Rachel O’Riordan’s production is a masterclass in distilling tension and concentrating it without frills or games. It’s an emotionally challenging experience, pure theatre … This production has it all, every element falls into place to create a harmoniously harrowing piece of theatre. It’s the play to see now.‘ Mark Lawson for The Guardian declared, ‘this Ghosts, retaining the toxic power of the original, will grip whether you know the play or don’t.’
All That Dazzles‘ Daz Gale admitted, ‘I found myself literally at the edge of my seat during some of the more harrowing conversations, not only moved by the emotion of the dialogue but in complete awe of the ingenious skill of the writing.’ He loved the acting too: ‘The other aspect in Ghosts that elevates it to a God-tier level is that of its phenomenal cast.’ He concluded, ‘When every element of a production works together as beautifully as this, true theatre magic is made, and Ghosts is as good as it gets.’

4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑

Describing it as ‘horribly funny’, The Standard‘s Nick Curtis said it ‘is quite astonishing, not least in its use of humour to defray the fatalism and ponderous foreshadowing of the original.’ He praised the cast: ‘Smurfit is magnetic … she’s not afraid to appear hard and unlikeable. Scott-Howells is an edgy and fascinating actor, always pushing the envelope of what is permissible’.

WhatsOnStage‘s Sarah Crompton praised the director and writer for ‘transforming a haunted and haunting story of familial sin and grief into a wild roller-coaster ride of revelation and realisation. It’s funny, shocking, truthful and ultimately supremely moving … O’Riordan’s taut direction never lets the tension, or the sense of wounded humanity slacken. I suspect Ibsen would have been proud.’

Ella Duggan for The Independent called it ‘a striking tale of reputation, self-preservation and the cost of parental sacrifice, delivered with biting wit and tour de force performances.’

Dave Fargnoli at The Stage noted a ‘queasy sense of gnawing discomfort permeates this piece. Here, themes of generational trauma and the experiences of abuse survivors come to the fore. Owen’s revised, contemporary-language dialogue feels on-the-nose at times. Yet there is an appealing thread of pitch-black humour running through the text.’

Rachel Halliburton at The Sunday Times said, ‘Merle Hensel’s haunting design, in which mist drifts in front of a glass backdrop, stokes the sense of building horror.’ Her final comment? Hauntingly powerful.’

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Time Out‘s Andrzej Lukowski felt it didn’t do justice to Ibsen: ‘although it’s a solid production with an excellent cast, it feels like Owen has ripped out some of its character in an effort to logically set it in the present.’

Not as thrilled as some if her colleagues, Holly O’Mahony at LondonTheatre explained using a sporting analogy: ‘Like a game of darts, its arrows skirt the impactful bullseye, hitting the surrounding rings marked ‘high comedy’ and ‘melodrama’.’

Clare Allfree for the Telegraph was not convinced: ‘O’Riordan can’t always smooth the play’s uneasy lurches between high-wire comedy, melodrama  and appalling naturalism’.

2 stars ⭑⭑ The Times’ Clive Davis was a lone voice of dissent. For him, the ‘sudden shifts in tone, sometimes lurching from awkward comedy to Grand Guignol in a few sentences, undermine Rachel O’Riordan’s production.’ Neither did he like ‘set designer Merle Hensel’s cavernous modernist dwelling … it’s an example of actors playing second fiddle to the visuals’.

Critics’ Average Rating 4.0⭑

Ghosts can be seen at the Lyric Hammersmith until 10 May 2025. Click here to buy tickets direct from the theatre

If you’ve seen Ghosts at the Lyric Hammersmith, please post your review and rating here

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Theatre reviews roundup: Midnight Cowboy

The worst reviews of the year greet this ‘misconceived’ musical

Southwark Playhouse Elephant
Max Bowden and Paul Jacob French in Midnight Cowboy. Photo: Pamela Raith

The worst reviews of the year so far greeted this musical version of the Oscar-winning movie Midnight Cowboy. It’s to find any praise for Francis ‘Eg’ White‘s score, Bryony Lavery‘s book, or Nick Winston‘s direction of this story of two misfits in the dark world of 1980s New York.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Paul Vale for The Stage summed up, ‘Lavery and White’s treatment brings very little that’s new to the table. Winston’s production is stylishly presented, with capable performances, but dramatically it tends to mirror the source works, rather than open them out and explore their themes.’ The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar gave one of the kinder reviews: ‘The pace of the production is choppy and it feels too long overall but it presents an unvarnished portrait of an urban underclass that still resonates.’ Nevertheless she tore into the music: ‘A few songs fly, such as Don’t Give Up on Me Now and Blue Is the Colour, but most feel wordy and generic.’

2 star ⭑⭑

Julia Rank for WhatsOnStage was critical for the score: ‘The music and lyrics by three-time Ivor Novello Award-winning pop songwriter Francis ‘Eg’ White (in his musical theatre debut) demonstrate a lack of theatrical understanding as the undistinguished, heavily synthesised soft-rock numbers lack any kind of trajectory and struggle to develop plot, character or atmosphere’ and Bryony Lavery’s book ‘which moves from scene to scene with little momentum and the characters remain caricatures.’

Franco Milazzo at BroadwayWorld listed the musical’s faults: ‘Chunky and clunky dialogue is smoothed out with the occasional zinger but it feels eternally rough around the edges…The score from Francis “Eg” White fares only slightly better…it is Nick Winston’s direction, though, that takes the biscuit and the tin it came in. The first half has stop-start pacing that distracts from any sense of forward motion and the sex scene between Joe and Cass is possibly the least erotic thing seen on a London stage for quite some time.’

Lindsay Johns writing for the Telegraph called it ‘disquieting, distasteful and at times even disgusting.’ (This last in reference to a sex scene.) She said the original songs: ‘feel banal, and occasionally descend into painful, atonal caterwauling.’ She concluded with another string of negative adjectives: ‘Notwithstanding a couple of strong performances, this curate’s egg of a production feels uneven, unsatisfying and wholly gratutitous.’

1 star ⭑

The Standard‘s Nick Curtis accused the musical of ‘ coarsely, slapping largely indifferent songs over the action seemingly at random.’ He found that ‘one smashes repeatedly up against the incongruity of score and subject matter, as Joe descends to turning gay tricks in movie theatres and fleapit hotels, Ratso gradually collapses, and Winston treats it all as a gaudy, carnivalesque entertainment.’ Gary Naylor at The ArtsDesk called it ‘misconceived’.

Critics’ Average Rating 1.86★

Midnight Cowboy can be seen at the Southwark Playhouse Elephant until 17 May 2025. Click here for tickets direct from the theatre. 

If you have seen Midnight Cowboy at Southwark Playhouse Elephant, please give your review and rating below

 

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Theatre reviews roundup: Shanghai Dolls

Critics disappointed by tale of women in communist China

Kiln Theatre
Gabby Wong and Millicent Wong in Shanghai Dolls. Photo: Marc Brenner

Amy Ng‘s new play, directed by Katie Posner, tells the story of two Chinese women, one of whom became the wife of Chairman Mao, the other a leading theatre director. The critics found it underpowered and confusing. The reviews expressed disappointment rather than venom but were still some of the worst reviews of the year.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

Julia Rank at LondonTheatre felt ‘If it doesn’t fully come to life, it does provide a window into a terrifying period of history where friendships counted for very little in the pursuit of power.’ For WhatsOnStage‘s Sarah Crompton, ‘It feels too rushed, reducing the scenes between the two women to melodramatic statements of intent and great gobbets of plot.’ The Standard‘s Nick Curtis was forgiving: ‘though it’s not a great piece of drama it tells a great story briskly and efficiently.’

Loretta Monaco at LondonTheatre1 damned with faint praise: ‘While Shanghai Dolls is worth seeing, and it nudges us to learn more about Jiang Qing, Sun Weishi, and their influence on today’s modern China, the answer may be in a restructured version, if not, its enormous power will remain unleashed.’

2 stars ⭑⭑

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar found it confusing: ‘It is not always immediately clear what has happened, how it has affected them or who they have become.’ She found that ‘In the early scenes especially, they seem like mouthpieces for their political positions and this hampers emotion or intimacy from building.’ Clive Davis in The Times called it ‘didactic and oddly confusing’. Helen Hawkins at TheArtsDesk noted, ‘it’s a dense subject requiring much more granular scrutiny if we are to understand these characters, let alone engage with them.’

Ella Duggan for The Independent was disappointed: ‘The source material here is undeniably compelling – a cautionary tale of resentment and repression. But this production falters in its execution, opting for a melodramatic, borderline cheesy tone that undercuts its own message.’ Over at BroadwayWorld, Franco Milazzo found it ‘hard work to grasp the nuances of the bigger picture as we move along.’

The Stage‘s Sam Marlowe was damning: ‘this is clumsy, flimsy work that not only doesn’t deliver as drama, but fails to come anywhere close to doing justice to history.’

Critics’ Average Rating 2.4★

Shanghai Dolls can be seen at the Kiln Theatre until 10 May 2025. Click here for tickets direct from the theatre. 

If you have seen Shanghai Dolls at The Kiln, please give your review and rating below

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Theatre Reviews Roundup: Manhunt

A hunt around the head of a murderous man

Royal Court
Manhunt. Photo: Trsitram Kenton

Robert Icke is lauded for his interpretations of classics (the most recent being his glorious Oedipus) but Manhunt is his first original play. In trying to get inside the head of the notorious killer Raoul Moat who went on the run in 2010, Icke, who also directed, mixes factual events and made-up scenes and conversations. Some critics liked this approach, while others felt it ‘couldn’t make its mind up’. All praised the performance of Samuel Edward-Cook in the lead role and Hildegard Bechtler’s ‘gun metal’ set design. The critics reached out to an unusual number of other works in their efforts to convey the flavour of the play and its subject: Jerusalem, Taxi Driver, Heart of Darkness, Moby Dick, Clockwork Orange, and the recent Adolescence and Punch.

[Links to full reviews are included but a number are behind paywalls and therefore may not be accessible]

4 stars ⭑⭑⭑⭑

Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage admired it but had reservations: ‘Manhunt is sophisticated in structure and thought, and its treatment of its damaged protagonist is never less than interesting … But in its attempts to be fair to both Moat’s tortured psychology and the suffering of his victims it doesn’t quite land as cogently and powerfully as you might hope.’ She complimented the design: ‘On Hildegard Bechtler’s set, stainless steel beaten panels reflect Azusa Ono’s subtle light, imprisoning Moat in his thoughts; when he goes on the run through his beloved Northumberland countryside, they resemble a thundery sky. ‘

Dave Fargnoli for The Stage felt, ‘Without ever attempting to excuse or explain Moat’s dreadful actions, this challenging, shattering and strikingly humane play from celebrated writer-director Robert Icke (uses) Moat’s grim story to frame potent questions about toxic masculinity.’ He praised the lead: ‘Samuel Edward-Cook is mesmerising as Moat, unflinchingly exploring the killer’s horrible, yet disturbingly recognisable, motivations. He frequently reveals flashes of sensitivity or vulnerability, then shamefacedly hides them.’

Time Out‘s Andrzej Lukowski noted that, once Moat arrives in the countryside, ‘the play really clicks, warping from something quite literal into something borderline metaphysical, a sort of psychographic journey into the hinterlands of toxic masculinity rather than an attempt to literally explain what happened.’ He ended, ‘Manhunt may spell things out a bit much, but it’s also emotionally vivid and compellingly other, blessed with great performances and an unnerving grandeur as Moat’s cracked, Kurtz-like odyssey takes him towards his own heart of darkness.’

3 stars ⭑⭑⭑

The Standard’s Nick Curtis wrote, ‘It’s a tense and unnerving 100 minutes, driven by a frankly terrifying performance from a pumped-up, bullet-headed Samuel Edward-Cook as Moat.’ He was unhappy with the many conversations and events that ‘never happened’:  ‘Icke is one of the most gifted theatre artists working today … but for all its intensity, Manhunt feels like it’s hedging its bets. Or worse, can’t make its mind up.’

Alice Saville in The Independent found ‘it lacks Icke’s usual ability to winnow complex source material into one coherent message.’ She ended: ‘Manhunt is completely engrossing to watch, like watching a tiger prowl up and down in its cage – Hildegard Bechtler’s set design creates a metal prison for this trapped man. But like a mismanaged zoo, it’s ultimately not as compassionate as it makes itself out to be.’

While describing it as ‘thought-provoking’, Olivia Rook at LondonTheatre  There’s no doubt Manhunt stretches the bounds of artistic licence, with one of the play’s most engaging moments being an imagined conversation between Moat and Gascoigne (who, in reality, was denied access at the scene). But in some ways the show’s fascinating, real history also seems to limit it, with the recreation of events often feeling expositional.

Finding it too long, The Times’ Clive Davis concluded, ‘Icke has so many good ideas – yet he needs a better editor, too.’ He didn’t always feel this way: ‘For the first hour of this hallucinatory drama, Icke creates an almost unbearably intense portrait of a drifter who is a combination of volcanic anger and paranoia.’

2 stars ⭑⭑

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar took a similar view to other critics but was more damning: ‘(T)his production is strangely plodding, a rather too expositional synthesis of events, despite the theatrical flourishes. It is neither revelatory nor emotional enough,’ declared Arifa Akbar in The Guardian. She concluded, ‘This story hangs in the air, unsure of – or opaque in – its intentions. Is this an anatomy of a breakdown? An investigation into the ways Moat was failed? Or a portrait of white, northern, working-class masculinity in extreme crisis? It seems like a bit of all, but not enough of one.’

Gary Naylor for BroadwayWorld found Icke’s ‘approach too close to Enid Blytonesque exposition salted with repetition’. He described it as ‘a production that resurrects a man only to bury him again 100 minutes later, having said far less than it might have. And, more pertinently, far less than it should have.’

Critics’ Average Rating 3.1★

Manhunt can be seen at the Royal Court Theatre until 3 May 2025. Click here for tickets. 

If you have seen Manhunt at Nottingham Playhouse or The Young Vic, please give your review and rating below

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