Category: Current Productions

Posted on

Reviews Roundup: The Secret Garden

Open Air Theatre, Regent’s Park, London

A young female actor sits on swing surrounded by balloons and hanging paper decorations in a scne from The Secret Garden at the Open Air Theatre in Regent's Park London
The Secret Garden at The Open Air Theatre. Photo: Alex Brenner

Frances Hodgson Burnett’s much loved but dated story about a child who moves from India to Yorkshire has been adapted by into a play relevant for today, and given a highly praised open air production by Anna Himali Howard.

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

Fiona Mountford in the i (5★) loved it: ‘Holly Robinson and Anna Himali Howard, who also directs, have hit the jackpot here, maintaining all Hodgson Burnett’s key themes of a lonely and disagreeable orphan coming to life and finding friendship in nature, but cleverly amplifying the Indian side of Mary Lennox’s story.’

Anya Ryan in The Stage (5★) was entranced : ‘Marvellous, wise and expertly updated, it is sublime.’ She explained, ‘the victory of this adaptation is as much down to the ensemble work as the writing. The narration is shared between the cast members, who take it in turns to lead us through Mary’s story.’

Rachel Halliburton reviewing for The Times (4★) said, ‘Hannah Khalique-Brown… quickly makes her mark as an impressively petulant Mary… the cast around her acts like a chorus, wryly commenting on her spiky progress into a strange new world.’ She praised every aspect of the show including’Leslie Travers’s spellbinding design — full of hidden doors and ravishing paper garland plants — is the icing on the cake, fusing elegantly with the trees and birdlife of Regent’s Park. It’s a treat’

Arifa Akbar at The Guardian (4★) called it ‘it is an inspired transposition of a story that deals with dark themes around family and belonging’. Her colleague Susannah Clapp at The Observer (4★) said, ‘It is a lovely thing that adapters Holly Robinson and Anna Himali Howard have done with The Secret Garden.’

Anna James for WhatsOnStage (4★) noted, ‘Hannah Khalique-Brown as Mary stands out, giving a particularly moving and detailed performance’. Caroline McGinn writing for Time Out (4★) referred to ‘the creative ebullience of a charming and lovely production’.

Kat Mokrynski for Broadway World (4★) found ‘a beautiful adaptation of the classic novel that truly elevates its source material, bringing it to new heights of growth and love’. Nick Ferris reviewing for the Telegraph (4) agreed: ‘the production ultimately does a fine job at retaining the charm of the novel while making it appropriate for now.’

Patrick Marmion in the Daily Mail (4★) described how the ‘smoky Indian flute, twang of sitar and rumble of tabla drums, alongside cleverly improvised incarnations of crows, robins and squirrels, bring fresh enchantment to a classic tale.’

Julia Rank for LondonTheatre (3 ★) likedthe way ‘This new adaptation…keeps the Edwardian setting while implementing some intelligent revisionism’ but said it needed ‘a bit more pruning’.

Critics’ average rating 4.1★

Value rating 69 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

The Secret Garden can be seen at the Open Air Theatre until 20 July 2024. Buy tickets direct from the theatre.

If you’ve seen  The Secret Garden at the Open Air Theatre, please add your review and rating below

Posted on

Reviews Roundup: Mean Girls The Musical

Savoy Theatre

Mean Girls at the Savoy Theatre. Photo: Brinkhoff Moegenburg

Mean Girls, in the words of WhatsOnStage’s Sarah Crompton, is ‘a cautionary musical tale of high school rivalries, corruption and betrayal wrapped in a very pretty pink bow‘. Tina Fey’s stage musical version of her movie script was a Broadway hit; six years later, it has arrived in the West End. Was it worth the wait? The critics generally liked Tina Fey’s book (script) but there was disagreement on the quality of the songs.

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

Fiona Mountford in the i (4★) was a fan: ‘Jeff Richmond (composer) and Nell Benjamin (lyrics) supply a highly tuneful score that is a riot of peppy, poppy songs; unusually for a new musical, I came away humming several of the numbers.’ She said, ‘Director/choreographer Casey Nicholaw…certainly knows how to concoct a slick production’.

Adam Bloodworth at CityAM (4★) was equally enthusiastic: ‘it feels freshly powerful for a new generation rather than treading in the footsteps of the original. That’s mainly thanks to Nell Benjamin’s pumping musical score that neatly translates the sassy characters’ stories onto the stage, and Casey Nicholaw’s direction and choreography, which is gripping and pacey…it feels freshly powerful for a new generation rather than treading in the footsteps of the original.’

Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage (4★) discovered ‘a book as corrosive as acid but much funnier’. She had a reservation: ‘The problem is that the songs, with music by Fey’s husband Jeff Richmond and lyrics by Nell Benjamin, are syrupy where the script is sharp…they crucially extend the show…to a slightly sagging two and a half hours.’ She concluded, ‘All the skill involved makes it hard not to succumb. This is a genuinely enjoyable show with its heart in the right place’.

Despite describing it as ‘mere chaff’, the Telegraph’s (4★) reviewer called it ‘a rare combination of warmth, goofiness, snarky wit and perceptiveness.’ It came across to Susannah Clapp in The Observer (4★) as ‘a friendly, popular show‘.

Chris Wiegand for The Guardian (3★) felt ‘too many routines are efficient rather than euphoric. The pristine school surroundings and several bland songs result in a sometimes flat production’. He conceded, ‘It’s often fun, and is well cast and impressively acted, but just needs an extra shot of dazzle and acidity.’

The Sunday Times’ Dominic Maxwell (3★) ‘found an oddly sluggish first half’ with songs that ‘run the gamut between the passable and the adequate’. Fortunately, ‘Jokes still land, the acting is terrific and the songs have more emotion to play with as the story clicks into gear in the second half.’ His colleague at The Times, Clive Davis (3★), said, ‘it’s engaging enough, although Fey’s one-liners linger longer in the memory than most of the bubblegum songs’. 

Nick Curtis in the Standard (3★) thought it was a ‘breezy, arch but boneless musical adaptation’ with ‘poppy, mostly forgettable songs’. He found, ‘You find yourself wishing for each number to end so we can get back to Fey’s insouciant wit.’

Anya Ryan for The Stage (3★) was disappointed that ‘Nothing feels surprising.’ However, ‘Jeff Richmond and Nell Benjamin’s poppy songs feature plenty of bangers’ and ‘Fey has certainly put her finger on something: she knows girls can be savage, sly and criminally mean’. She is sad that ‘It’s just a shame then that the constant re-churning of this story is starting to feel soulless’.

Tim Bano in The Independent (2★) wasn’t mean exactly,but he was sarcastic: ‘If the movie didn’t exist, this would be fine. I mean, the score by Fey’s husband Jeff Richmond would still be a bit anodyne, every song filler-y, most of them unmemorable, the direction by Casey Nicholaw functional, his choreography fruitlessly maximal, the digital set a bit empty and unimaginative.’

Critics’ average rating 3.3★

Value rating 37 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

Mean Girls The Musical can be seen at the Savoy Theatre until 6 April2025. Buy tickets direct

If you’ve seen Mean Girls at the Savoy Theatre, please add your review and rating below

Posted on

Reviews Roundup: The Constituent

The Old Vic

James Corden returns to the West End stage to star alongside acting superstar Anna Maxwell Martin in a relatively small play by Joe Penhall about a confrontation between an angry constituent and his basically decent MP. The Old Vic’s artistic director Matthew Warchus directs, putting the audience, traverse style, on two sides of a narrow stage for this look at the state of Britain and its politics. The critics praised the two leads but there were mixed feelings about the play: two really liked it and one handed out two stars.

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

The Guardian’s Arifa Akbar (4★) was a cheerleader: ‘Played straight through at 90 minutes and resolutely focused on local politics, it becomes universal by being so specific.’ She pointed out, ‘Each of these characters is a victim of the system, hanging on, just’. She thought, ‘Maxwell Martin is subtly brilliant’

Aliya Al-Hassan for Broadway World (4★) also approved wholeheartedly. ‘Penhall’s script is not a polemic and brings out the humanity in the characters’. She liked both the main actors, saying, ‘The pair have excellent chemistry and their shifting relationship is very believable.’

For Sarah Hemming in the Financial Times (4★) ‘Corden and Maxwell Martin are excellent’ and ‘Penhall’s play makes the case for more care and empathy. He reminds us of the other meaning of constituent — “to be part of a whole”.

Marianka Swain for LondonTheatre (4★) said, ‘The ideas occasionally supersede the people, but the strong cast, and a good amount of humour in Penhall’s script, keep us gripped.’

Natasha Tripney for the Standard (3★) thought ‘the surprisingly thin play squanders both its timely subject matter and the talents of the cast.’ She assured us, ‘Corden does a strong job, capturing the character’s intensity and increasing desperation’.

Sam Marlowe in The Stage (3★) thought it was a ‘crisp production’ and that ‘Penhall’s dialogue is packed with zap and zing’ She said ‘the performances are pretty much faultless’, however she found ‘the play is at once too narrow and too broad’.

Dominic Cavendish in the Telegraph (3★) thought ‘Penhall’s script…nicely handles the blend of comedy and darkening aggro.’ For him, James Corden was ‘all fixed intensity and hunched affability, then moves across 90 minutes to reveal a more bellicose side to the blustering persona, before showing us a sobbing emblem of broken Britain, alienated from the system’.

Susannah Clapp in The Observer (3★) found ‘The dialogue is heavy with explanation and the action slowed by overload’. She said James Corden showed ‘what a versatile actor he is.’ Time Out’s Andrzej Lukowski (3★) praised James Corden as ‘an actor of range and substance’ and thought ‘Maxwell Martin is terrific’, but he damned the play with faint praise as ‘decent’.

Alun Hood for WhatsOnStage (3★) thought the play was ‘enjoyable, tartly funny and almost reaches the tension level of a thriller’ but he had a reservation: ‘it smacks of a very fine writer wanting to dash off something relevant and timely, without really offering anything genuinely illuminating or new‘. He observed, ‘Corden isn’t a subtle actor, painting with broad, blunt colours, and possessed of a monotonous line delivery…but his unique combination of manic energy, bluster and simmering aggression work well for the character.’

It didn’t get CityAM ‘s (2) Adam Bloodworth’s vote.  He was contemptuous of its male star: ‘Corden is on auto-pilot’. He is hardly less complimentary about the play: ‘Joe Penhall’s script is full of jokes that don’t land and the set up is clunky and hard to believe.’ As for the production, ‘it’s over stylised to the point that it kills the drama’.

For The Times’ Clive Davis (2), the play was ‘tepid’, lines were ‘leaden’, Corden ‘can’t bring enough depth’, and Maxwell Martin ‘strikes a monotonously querulous note’.

Critics’ Average Rating 3.2

Value rating 42 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

The Constituent can be seen at the Old Vic until 10 August 2024. Buy tickets direct from The Old Vic

If you’ve seen The Constituent at the Old Vic Theatre,please add your review and rating below

 

Posted on

Boys From The Blackstuff – review

James Graham brings Yosser Hughes to the stage

★★★★

An bloodied male actor stands with his arms open in a scene from the stage prodcution of Boys From The Blackstuff at the Garrick Theatre Kondon
Barry Sloane in Boys From The Blackstuff. Photo: Alistair Muir

I wonder whether, in the normal way of things, James Graham, author of Dear England,  or any other contemporary dramatist, would write a stage play about some men in 1980s Liverpool who have lost their jobs and commit benefit fraud? Possibly not, but then, this is Boys From The Blackstuff, a TV legend from the early 80s. So, how does it translate onto the stage? And was it worth the effort?

I wonder if you have even seen the TV series by Alan Bleasdale? And if you have, how much do you remember of it? (You can catch up with it on BBC iPlayer.) If you’re a fan, you may enjoy this version as an exercise in nostalgia. However, because you might not know the incomparable five-part TV series by Alan Bleasdale, I’m not going to  compare this two hours and a bit play with it. Instead, I’ll consider whether it stands up as a theatrical drama in its own right.

The first act is very bitty. There’s far too much in the way of introductions and scene setting. We meet the five ‘boys’ but they appear in a series of fragmentary scenes. We don’t really get to know them.  Certainly not well enough to care about their fate, which is inevitably to be caught by the benefit fraud sniffers.

What kept my interest during the first act was the production itself- the varying pace of Kate Wasserberg‘s direction, encompassing rousing ensemble singing, fast-moving crowd scenes, and moments of still sadness; the rusty industrial set by Amy Jane Cook; the video by Jamie Jenkin of black and white images of 1980s Liverpool  projected at the back of the stage, so often returning to the swirling waters of the Mersey, which was the source of Liverpool’s glory years as a port.

But the docks are already in decline, our heroes are not dockers but roadworkers, or rather they were. We find out how they brought some of their problems on themselves, and there are many reasons, including greed and selfishness, why they don’t appear to deserve our sympathy. The emotional engagement only picks up when a tragedy occurs. The scene when someone falls from high up is performed in slow motion and immediately segues into a rainy funeral. It’s a wonderfully theatrical moment.

‘I am a human being’

The second act is altogether more involving as drama. The narrative brings the main characters into focus. Chrissie, played to perfection by Nathan McMullen, is the ‘nice’ guy who tries to be their leader and faces a conflict between principles and practical need. Philip Whitchurch as George, their mentor, brings passion and compassion to the part of an old, dying man. Aron Julius is the restless Loggo, and Mark Womack plays the dignified Dixie, dragged down by his situation.  And then, of course, there is Yosser. Even if you’ve only vaguely heard of  Boys From The Blackstuff, you will probably be aware of Yosser Hughes and his catchphrases ‘Gissa job’ and ‘I can do that’. In the first act, he is comic relief. In the second, we get to see the depth of his mental illness. It is a monumental performance by Barry Sloane that conveys every inch of Yosser’s anger and pain. These are all men for whom life has not turned out as expected and who are struggling to find their self respect in a world that has rejected and persecuted them. ‘I am a human being,’ cries an anguished Yosser.

The cast of Boys From The Blackstuff. Photo: Alistair Muir

But it’s not all anger and pain. There is considerable humour. In a scene that had me laughing out loud, Chrissie’s wife Angie, played by Lauren O’Neill (who is outstanding in multiple roles) pretends not be home, and crawls back and forth on her knees, talking through the front and back doors to callers as well as answering the telephone. Just as comically tragic is Yosser’s meeting with the priests from the Catholic and Protestant churches, at either end of the ironically named Hope Street. Both conversations are an indictment of established religion. Seeing a similarity between free will and free markets, he says, ‘So God’s a tory.’  And, when the friendly Father says ‘Call me Dan’, he speaks the much-anticipated line ‘I’m desperate, Dan’.

The rest of the cast are faultless, and take on a number of roles but I’ll make particular mention of Dominic Carter who plays theshady builder Molloy and Jamie Peacock as the hapless benefit fraud investigator.

An article in the excellent programme talks about the ‘current political parallels’ but they are not always easy to grasp. It’s not that the plight of many working class people under Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government wasn’t tragic. Traditional industries were decimated in her relentless battle against the unions, and the lives of the people employed in them destroyed. It’s just that it’s a long time ago. There is still the gap between rich and poor, maybe even getting greater, and benefit cheats are still demonised while corporation tax evaders are virtually ignored. I imagine the modern day equivalents of those Boys from the Blackstuff being employed in low wage and zero hours jobs fulfilling our orders in vast warehouses or delivering takeaways on bikes to our homes, as part of a non-unionised service economy.

Perhaps it’s in the treatment of people who need help not demonisation that the stories most resonate today. Sadly the play tries to cram too many stories into the time available.  As a result, we lose some of the sympathy that we might otherwise have felt for these lost boys, had we had the chance to get to know them better. Nevertheless, it is a powerful drama, extraordinarily well acted.

Boys From The Blackstuff opened at Liverpool’s Royal Court, before transferring to the National Theatre, and then the Garrick where it can be seen until 3 August 2024. Tickets are available from thegarricktheatre.co.uk/tickets

Paul was given a review ticket by the producers.

Click here for other critics’ verdicts on Boys From The Blackstuff (and you can add your own)

Follow Theatre Reviews With Paul Seven on Instagram, X, Threads, Mastodon and Facebook.

Click here to watch this review on the YouTube channel Theatre Reviews With Paul Seven

Posted on

Reviews Roundup: Kiss Me Kate with Adrian Dunbar

Barbican Centre

Stephanie J Block and Adrian Dunbar sit in dressing gowns in a theatre dressing room in a scene from Kiss Me Kate at the Barbican Theatre London
Stephanie J Block & Adrian Dunbar in Kiss Me Kate. Photo: Johan Persson

The Barbican must be hoping Kiss Me Kate follows in the footsteps of that other Cole Porter musical Anything Goes which was a huge critical and financial success for them a few years ago. The added attraction is the prospect of seeing Adrian Dunbar from Line Of Duty as the male lead. The critics were generally complimentary about Bartlett Sher‘s staging of the musical-within-a-musical that is inspired by Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew, and features songs such as I Hate Men and Brush Up Your Shakespeare. Their reaction to Mr Dunbar was on the whole lukewarm, but they had no reservations about the quality of his co-star, Broadway musical royalty Stephanie J Block.

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

The Guardian‘s David Jays (4★) said, ‘In Bartlett Sher’s plushly enjoyable staging, it delivers glorious music and falderol frivolity.’ Clive Davis in The Times (4★) called it ‘enormous fun’. Tim Bano for The Independent (4★) found it, ‘a supremely lovely, supremely silly way to spend a summer evening’. He praised Stephanie Block’s solos as ‘models in how to control your voice, invest emotionally in a song and knock the roof off.’ Gary Naylor for BroadwayWorld (4★) was sure ‘few will leave feeling short-changed, even at these prices’.

Adam Bloodworth at City AM (4★) declared: ‘Stuffed with old-fashioned jokes that should probably have this show cancelled, hilarious comic sketches and some stunning pieces of choreography, Kiss Me Kate is a showstopper of a summer musical’. Alex Wood at WhatsOnStage (4★) said it was ‘a scorchingly successful night out‘. Tom Wicker for Time Out (4★) was also won over: ‘This is a lush, wittily spectacular production’. He had particular praise for Stephanie Block: ‘Block commands the stage. She’s charismatic, versatile and makes every note – in every sense – sing.’ He thought the two leads ‘have delightful chemistry’.

Nick Curtis in the Standard (3★) disagreed and described it as ‘solid, serviceable, but unexciting, thanks partly to the lack of chemistry between the leads.’ The Stage‘s David Benedict (3★) was on the same wavelength about the lack of chemistry: ‘Bartlett Sher’s fitful, over-bright, strained staging most often misfires because of chemistry – or, rather, the lack of it.’

So, what about Adrian Dunbar?

Fiona Mountford at the i (4★) devoted much of her review to praising him: ‘Dunbar can both hold a tune and command the Barbican’s imposingly large stage.’ The  Times was happy enough with his performance, ‘He may not be the most potent of singers — at times he seems to be coaxing his voice over the hurdles — but he certainly doesn’t disgrace himself.‘ Time Out too was complimentary: ‘Dunbar has a decent voice and a lovely way with gentle comedy.’

A few reviewers had reservations. The Independent said, ‘He can hold a tune, but there’s a tight, buzzing bee quality to his voice’. The Guardian wasn’t convinced, ‘Dunbar has some dapper moves and a pointed way with a lyric. Vocally he is, shall we say, brave casting for a role often taken by operatic baritones’. The Standard noted, ‘He sings better than I had hoped but seems uncomfortable and off the pace throughout’.

Two more reviews were downright disapproving. The Stage said, ‘while Block acts with Adrian Dunbar…he merely acts at her…Dunbar gets away with comedy numbers, but his obvious unease around pitch and the extreme vocal range robs the songs and the show of emotion and potential glory.’ Broadway World liked him for ‘Television, films, straight plays… but not musicals’.

Average critics’ rating 3.8★
Value Rating 30 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

Kiss Me Kate can be seen at the Barbican until 14 September 2024. Buy tickets direct from The Barbican

If you’ve seen Kiss Me Kate at the Barbican, please add your review and rating below

 

Posted on

Theatre Reviews Roundup: Kathy And Stella Solve A Murder!

Ambassadors Theatre

Two female actors sit together chatting in front of a microphone in a scene from the musical comedy Kathy And Stella Solve A Murder
Bronté Barbé and Rebekah Hinds in Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder! Photo: Pamela Raith

Kathy And Stella Solve A Murder! is the latest British musical comedy to make the trip from the fringe to the West End. It follows in the footsteps of Six, Operation Mincemeat, Two Strangers and more. We seem to be in a Golden Age for the small homegrown musical, so much so they’ll soon have to form an orderly queue for a central; London venue.
In this musical by Jon Brittain and Matthew Floyd Jones, Kathy and Stella, who produce a weekly crime podcast, investigate an actual murder, but the show is as much about friendship as whodunnit. Unfortunately, the press night was cancelled after a flood and some major media have yet to offer an opinion. (Of course, the Guardian may simply be following its intermittent policy of not reviewing West End transfers.) It has been well received by nearly all those who have managed to see it. Bronté Barbé and Rebekah Hinds who play the eponymous investigators are praised, as are the rest of the cast. Opinion on the quality of the music is divided.

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

For Alice Cope at Broadway World (5) ‘this show is a delight. The murder mystery story is largely told through the catchy and well crafted musical numbers…Every line is intended to not only entertain but also effectively drive the plot forward and develop the characters.’ She noted, ‘Bronté Barbé and Rebekah Hinds…have terrific chemistry’.

Alex Wood at WhatsOnStage (4★) discovered ‘a juicy, but never burdensome, through-line about the ways in which gender, true crime and online communities can intersect.’ He declared, ‘The second half is about as pacy and as raucous as they come.’ He loved the ‘sublime central performances’ and concluded, ‘All in all, it amounts to a killer addition to the musical pantheon.’

Radio Times’ reviewer Olivia Garrett (4★) shared his enthusiasm: ‘The show pumps out macabre gags and earthy one-liners like there’s no tomorrow.’ ‘The songs are definitely catchy,’ she assured us. As for the stars, ‘Barbé is excellent as the intelligent but anxious Kathy…Hinds matches her in every way as the belligerent Stella.’ Here’s the big climax: ‘Overall, Kathy and Stella is fresh, funny and comes with many layers to slice into. Whether you’re a fan of musicals or not, it’s bloody good fun.’

Marianka Swain writing for London Theatre (4★) loved it: ‘The show is buoyantly funny, teeming with macabre gags and Victoria Wood-esque specific one-liners, the pop-infused songs are instantly catchy…and there are narrative twists a-plenty.’

Andrzej Lukowski at Time Out (4★) was almost as excited, saying it ‘ingeniously yokes the breathlessness of the true crime podcast genre to the big emotions of a musical.’ He praised the ‘whip-sharp book and lyrics’ and said it was ‘abundantly creative, funny and musically dextrous’. Holly O’Mahony writing for The Stage (4★) called it ‘a knowingly silly, slyly funny story’.

Dominic Maxwell in the Sunday Times (3★) enjoyed the ‘energetic and inventive’ show. However, ‘The songs by Matthew Floyd Jones are jaunty and deft, but rarely memorable and ‘The show has an opinion on the appeal of true crime and podcasts, but chooses not to delve deep on such issues.’

Only Nick Curtis of the Standard (2★) went away unimpressed, complaining that it ‘asks you to laugh along with its ridiculous storyline, feckless lead characters and bland, belted-out score.’ He found ‘the constant barrage of gurning and caterwauling is a major turn-off.’ And concluded, it ‘left me dead inside.’

This is what Clare Brennan had to say in The Guardian (4★) about the show’s earlier run in Manchester: ‘A cracking cast plays the positives with gusto, swiftly seguing set and mood changes, delivering power ballads and comic routines with physical and musical dexterity.’

Average critics’ rating 3.8★
Value Rating 47 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

Kathy and Stella Solve a Murder! is at the Ambassador’s Theatre until 14 September 2024.  Buy tickets direct from kathyandstella.com

If you’ve seen Kathy And Stella Solve A Murder!, please add your review and rating below

Posted on

Two Strangers (carry a cake across New York)

New British musical is an old-fashioned romcom

★★★

Two actors in evening dress high kick in a scene from Two Strangers carry a cake across New York at the Criterion Theatre in London
Sam Tutty and Dujonna Gift in Two Strangers. Photo: Tristram Kenton

If you’re a fan of romcoms, I think you’ll like this sweet- but not saccharine- musical comedy. Two Strangers (carry a cake aross New York), and this is not a spoiler, is set in New York, but it feels very British. A naive British man and a cynical female New Yorker meet because of a wedding. Think Hugh Grant and Andie MacDowell in Four Weddings And A Funeral. In fact, if anyone is planning a remake, Sam Tutty would be a shoe-in for Mr Grant, and Dujonna Gift would be a blooming sight better than the insipid Ms MacDowell.

It begins with a naive British man who only knows America through the movies meeting a cynical female New Yorker, because of a wedding. He is the son of the groom, she the sister of the bride. They are the ‘two strangers’. As for the cake, well, that is what Alfred Hitchcock and other filmmakers used to call a McGuffin, in other words a device, unimportant in itself, but vital to moving on the plot.
What Kit Buchan’s amusing script is really concerned with is their burgeoning relationship with each other and, perhaps even more importantly, the two characters discovering themselves. There are a few twists which, frankly, you might see coming from a long way off but the ending helps keep the show from being completely predictable.
Two Strangers has the comforting feel of the kind of musical that Cole Porter or the Gershwins were so good at, and the musical style also reminds one of that bygone era. But let’s not get carried away- while Kit Buchan provides some clever lyrics and Jim Barne‘s compositions range from smoochy to stirring, they are not the Gershwins. There isn’t a showstopper in sight. In fact, I didn’t come out humming even one bar of any of the songs.

Sam Tutty and Dujonna Gift are the top

Nevertheless, Two Strangers is an enjoyable musical comedy with an appealing mix of jollity and pathos. It would be easy for these two slightly clichéd characters to have grated but the two actors, who are actually both British, are very good. There seemed to be more affection than chemistry between them but both are charming, funny and have pleasant voices: his nice and easy, hers powerful. Sam Tutty, who has already made a name for himself in Evan Hansen, establishes a good rapport with the audience, thanks partly to his particular skill at using his facial expressions to comic effect. Dujonna Gift conveys strength that hides vulnerability.
Sam Tutty and Dujonna Gift in Two Strangers. Photo: Tristram Kenton

Tim Jackson directs and choreographs with a light comical touch.  Soutra Gilmour’s set may be low budget but it’s clever. Two piles of suitcases which set the scene for the opening meet-cute at the airport, also suggest the towers of New York. Specific elements of it adapt for the later scenes, becoming cupboards, tables, and so on.  A revolve mimics a luggage carousel but also keeps the show moving, literally, by bringing the characters together and pulling them apart.

Since its premiere in Ipswich nearly five years ago, and its re-launch at London’s Kiln Theatre, Two Strangers has come on leaps and bounds. It certainly deserves its run in the West End at The Criterion. For me, it didn’t quite reach the heights of great musical comedy but it is a good romcom that will leave you with a smile on your face.

Two Strangers (carry a cake across New York) can be seen at the Criterion Theatre until 31 August 2024. Tickets from twostrangersthemusical.com

Paul paid for his ticket.

Click here to find out what other reviewers said about Two Strangers, its average rating, and its Value Rating.
Posted on

Reviews Roundup: Dominic West in A View From The Bridge

Theatre Royal Haymarket

Dominic West in A View from the Bridge

The critics were agreed that Lindsay Posner’s production of Arthur Miller’s classic, originally presented in Bath, was traditional, old fashioned even, but disagreed on whether this was a good or bad thing. Few could resist comparing it with Ivo Van Hove’s legendary minimalist production. Dominic West was generally praised for his portrayal of Eddie Carbone.

Tim Bano in The Independent (4★) called it ‘resolutely un-radical and sometimes threatens to be uninteresting…But it really works.’ ‘The skill of (Posner’s) directing isn’t in the staging – far from it – but in putting all the focus on the emotional journey of Eddie Carbone as a nice guy discovering complicated feelings…he gives us something simple, and surprisingly rare: a really decent production of a really great play.’

Dominic Cavendish at The Telegraph (4★) said Posner ‘understands that taking a more old-fashioned approach and duly indicating the milieu in which Carbone moves isn’t a matter of being decorative. Peter McKintosh’s set, with its towering walls of horizontal slatted wood, creates a sense of claustrophobic, watchful communality’ and ‘(West) excels himself’. The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar (4★) was persuaded by the acting: ‘Directed by Lindsay Posner with a spare, untampered purity, the production leans into its past world. It wavers for a while but comes out winning, mostly due to the terrific ensemble of actors, led by Dominic West, who breathe new life into these characters.’

Sarah Hemming at the Financial Times (4★) also liked ‘Lindsay Posner’s beautifully judged, crystal-clear new production’, saying ‘Posner wisely trusts Miller and the cast to scope out the psychological depths of the characters.’ Olivia Rook for LondonTheatre (4★) observed, ‘West’s performance is multilayered: while his Eddie is a true patriarch, he is also amiable and capable of gentleness’.

For Anya Ryan at The Stage (3★), what was traditional for some was ‘a bog-standard domestic treatment’. She liked the way ‘West pours strain and contradiction into the part.’ Andrzej Lukowski in Time Out (3★) was unimpressed: ‘(West is) ‘fairly small, fairly trivial, not particularly special man’ which resulted in ‘(Posner) turning Miller’s great work into something decidedly humdrum.’

While describing the production as ‘stolid’, Susannah Clapp in The Observer (3★) thought, ‘Dominic West is a terrific Eddie, not least because…he makes you believe he has put a day in on the docks.’

Sarah Crompton at WhatsOnStage (3★) compared Posner’s production with Ivo Van Hove’s and found it ‘less insightful, but still packs a punch’. ‘It is a gripping story, well-told,’ she said. Dominic Maxwell in The Sunday Times (3★) was disappointed with the production, ‘If Lindsay Posner’s production were a Christmas dinner, it would be one with tasty trimmings but an overcooked bird‘ and with West ‘this Eddie tussles with others but not himself. There’s no internal battle.’

Average critics’ rating 3.5★
Value Rating 21 (Value rating is the Average Critic Rating divided by the typical ticket price.)

A View From The Bridge  runs at the Theatre Royal Haymarket until 3 August 2024. Buy tickets direct from Theatre Royal

If you’ve seen A View From The Bridge, please add your review and rating below

 

 

Posted on

Ben Whishaw in Bluets – Royal Court Theatre

Bluets is a dream of a show

Ben Whishaw in Bluets at the Royal Court. Photo: Camilla Greenwood

Bluets is not a theatre show, it’s an unusual hybrid of stage and screen. It certainly won’t appeal to everyone, particularly those who love pure theatre. On the plus side, it’s not like far too many recent gimmicky stage productions where video is used to provide close-ups or scenes of what’s happening off-stage. Normally I would avoid that sort of thing, but this is something special.

It’s the making of a film, live, with the actors reciting words from Maggie Nelson’s book Bluets, while carrying out actions that are projected on a large screen. I admit this sounds more like something you might see at Tate Modern, and without the presence of Ben Whishaw, maybe it wouldn’t have made it to the stage of the Jerwood Downstairs theatre at the Royal Court. Having said that, director Katie Mitchell does have a long and distinguished record of creating what she calls ‘live cinema’. But, if it does sound strange, or even off-putting to you, I can only say I found Bluets both fascinating and deeply moving.

Let’s start with the words. After all, it is based on a book of what could be called short prose-poems, in which Maggie Nelson describes and meditates on three recurring themes- the effect of and gradual recovery from the breakup of a relationship, a close friend’s reaction to becoming a quadriplegic, and her fascination with the colour blue, which is genuinely interesting.
Kayla Meikle in Bluets. Photo: Camilla Greenwood

The language- its rhythms and metaphors- is poetic and moving. It’s also quite funny in a self-deprecating way. For example, she is excited to come across a book called Deepest Blue (I think) in a bookshop, only to find it’s about depression. She hastily puts it back, only to tell us she bought it six months later – pause- ‘online’.

Ben Whishaw will have sold many of the tickets and he does deliver, with a sad voice and a twinkling eye, but so do the other two actors Emma D’Arcy and Kayla Meikle. The trio sit in a row, sharing the lines, so that the words are delivered almost staccato by their alternating voices. The effect is to make you concentrate and hear every word. I found that the varied voices and personas made the author and her highly personal subject matter seem more universal.
Emma D’Arcy in Bluets at the Royal Court Theatre. Photo: Camilla Greenwood

Then there is the videoing. Each actor has a table next to them, a camera in front of them, and a monitor behind them. The film, shown on a big screen above them, illustrates what is being said. The actors sometimes stand in front of the monitors, as if they are green screens, and this, thanks to superb lighting by Anthony Doran, converts onto the large screen as them seeming to walk down a street, drive a car, or dry their hair in a changing room. Often, the actors’ heads or hands are viewed in close-up as they rest on a pillow, or touch each other, or handle blue objects. It is an extraordinary experience to watch them talk and move, sometimes in synch, and then see this, combined with some pre-recorded moments, become a movie before one’s eyes.

Cinema, which is usually immutable, becomes a live performance. The way it can change in small ways from night to night suggested to me the way our mental lives -feelings, memories, dreams- change with each circumstance and in each moment. The live video is a masterpiece in coordination, designed by Ellie Thompson and directed by Grant Gee.
The adaptation of Maggie Nelson’s book by Margaret Perry is a fine work in itself, and the soundtrack by Paul Clark, which mixes music, nature and street sounds, is as disturbing and reflective as the language.
Bluets is only 70 minutes long but it has the timeless quality of a dream or a memory.
This is the opening production of the first season by the Royal Court’s new artistic director David Byrne. After a lacklustre period under Vicky Featherstone, when I all but stopped going to the Royal Court, I am now looking forward to some exciting times ahead.
Bluets can be seen at the Royal Court until 29 June 2024
Paul was given a review ticket.
Posted on

Reviews Roundup: Punchdrunk’s Viola’s Room

One Cartridge Place, Woolwich

Punchdrunk’s Viola’s Room. Photo: Julian Abrams

After the scale and complexity of The Burnt City, Punchdrunk are back with a more intimate immersion piece in which the audience are led six at a time through a series of rooms listening to a story narrated by Helena Bonham-Carter, and there are no live actors. Co-directed by Felix Barrett and Hector Harkness, it tells of a search for a doomed teenage princess.

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

The Guardian‘s Arifa Akbar (5★) loved it: ‘it inspires so much puzzling wonder that you want to go straight back in to find other undisturbed paths in the search for Viola.’ She explained that it ‘hovers delicately between bedtime story, fairytale, children’s game and nightmare…The story does not follow rational logic but turns into a weird kind of liminal babble dealing in unnameable fear, and you feel it as you travel through ever darker, narrower spaces.’

Andrjez Lukowski at Time Out (4★) was impressed: By its climax I felt like a character in a horror film, not least because of the tremendous soundtrack relayed by Gareth Fry’s extraordinary sound design…It might be short, but in those 45 minutes you’ll live a haunted lifetime.’

For Dominic Cavendish in The Telegraph (4★), ‘it cast a simple, singular spell. Like Viola, I couldn’t quite bear to tear myself away; and in surrendering to feeling lost there lies an intoxicating sense of self-discovery.’ The Stage‘s Sam Marlowe (4★) said, ‘this is a beautifully wrought enchantment that skilfully blends the exquisite and the sinister.’

Anna James at WhatsOnStage (4★) praised ‘Impeccable design, labyrinths both literal and figurative, and a deep fascination with storytelling, intimacy and ritual maintain that ineffable Punchdrunk feel.’ The Observer‘s Susannah Clapp (4★) concluded: ‘Though often exquisite, sometimes apparently folkloric, Viola’s Room is sophisticated in its paradoxes. Its story is about compulsion and loss of control, yet this is the show in which Punchdrunk has most evidently controlled its own audience.’

Franco Milazzo reviewing for BroadwayWorld (3★) decided that, compared with The Burnt City, ‘Viola’s Room is overall a tighter work which offers a far more cohesive theatrical experience but, unlike many of the Punchdrunk productions before it, does not have enough wow factor to justify a second viewing.’

Nick Curtis in The Standard (3★) was underwhelmed. ‘Visually and atmospherically, it’s a work of rich detail, executed with elan…Unfortunately the story itself, by Booker-shortlisted novelist Daisy Johnson, is a thin, by-the-numbers assemblage of darkly symbolic fairytale tropes with a sensual modern topspin.’

The Times‘ Clive Davis (3★) was blunt in his response: ‘It’s pointless, I suppose, expecting much in the way of substance: Punchdrunk, you see, are masters of visual muzak. Viola’s Room resembles a fairground ghost train for hipsters, only there’s no train.’ Dominic Maxwell in The Sunday Times  summed up, ‘Fabulous trimmings, needs more meat.’

George Simpson for The Express (3★) said, ‘Punchdrunk certainly lean into the sensory aspects of this piece over the substance of the narrative…It’s not for everyone, but if this is your bag you’ll get lost in wonder for 45 minutes.’

Fiona Mountford in the i (2★) was disappointed, ‘So underwhelmed was I by the whole set-up that I increasingly found myself longing to be frightened: anything for an enlivening dash of excitement…It’s an experience so evanescent as to leave barely any trace in our memory.’

Critics’ Average Rating 3.4★

Viola’s Room can be seen at One Cartridge Place, Woolwich, until 15 September 2024. Buy tickets direct from punchdrunk.com

If you’ve seen Viola’s Room, please add your review and rating below

 

 

Proudly powered by WordPress
×