All stories by Helen Hawkins on BroadwayStars

Monday, February 20, 2023

Duet for One, Orange Tree Theatre review - poignant two-hander gets an updated reprise by Helen Hawkins

Affecting revival of Tom Kempinski play about an ailing musician and her therapist This 1981 two-hander was opened out for a film in 1986, starring Julie Andrews no less, with all its offst…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:33AM
Wednesday, February 15, 2023

Winner's Curse, Park Theatre review - Clive Anderson takes to the boards by Helen Hawkins

The dark arts of diplomacy get a makeover as a comedy workshop Who better to write a piece about the game-playing of a peace-talks negotiation than a former peace-talk negotiator, Daniel Tau…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 01:23AM
Friday, February 3, 2023

2:22 A Ghost Story, Lyric Theatre review - Cheryl makes an impressive stage debut by Helen Hawkins

Danny Robins' clever play gains a creditable star turn in its fifth run The set of 2:22 A Ghost Story is open to the auditorium when we arrive and locates us at once in gentrification-land. …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 03:16AM
Monday, January 30, 2023

Othello, Lyric Hammersmith review - Frantic Assembly's high-energy take on the Moor by Helen Hawkins

Shakespeare's tragedy as a tight thriller, with its racist elements fully exposed Frantic Assembly’s Othello, originally co-developed with the Lyric in 2008, is back in its third iteration…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 09:16AM
Friday, January 27, 2023

Charlie & Stan, Wilton’s Music Hall, review - a beguiling fantasy about two silent comedy greats by Helen Hawkins

Told by an Idiot return with a celebration of silent-movie antics and daft gags Imagine what would have happened if the young Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel were cabin-mates on a transatlan…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:00AM
Saturday, January 14, 2023

The Art of Illusion, Hampstead Theatre review - a hit from Paris conjures up strange-but-true stories by Helen Hawkins

A cast with an infectious gift for fun give this French confection a touch of stage magic First came Yasmin Reza’s 1994 long-runner Art; now another French hit, The Art of Illusion, has ar…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:22AM
Saturday, December 10, 2022

Othello, National Theatre review - ambitious but emotionally underpowered by Helen Hawkins

Clint Dyer's new take makes Othello a victim of mob mentality Clint Dyer is the first black director of Othello at the National Theatre, a venue that once staged the piece with its actor fo…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:06AM
Thursday, December 8, 2022

Sarah, Coronet Theatre review - a one-man whirlwind by Helen Hawkins

Jonathan Slinger commands the stage in this dark, funny monologue The American author of The Sarah Book, on which the monologue Sarah is based, is called Scott McClanahan, as is his main cha…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:48AM
Friday, December 2, 2022

The Kola Nut Does Not Speak English, Bush Studio review - an engaging debut by Helen Hawkins

Tania Nwachukwu creates a warm hour of music and memories with hidden bite The Bush studio space is proving a fruitful launch pad, not just for new writing but for new performers. It previo…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 06:36AM
Tuesday, November 29, 2022

Arms and the Man, Orange Tree Theatre review - a rollicking take on Shaw's satirical classic by Helen Hawkins

Absurdly romantic notions about love and war have never been funnier For his final bow as artistic director of the Orange Tree, Paul Miller has decided to go out with a bang, amid much gigg…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 03:48AM
Friday, November 25, 2022

Dinner with Groucho, Arcola Theatre review - often opaque by Helen Hawkins

Frank McGuinness's new play about T S Eliot and Groucho Marx is a poetic puzzle The set at the Arcola for Frank McGuinness’s Dinner with Groucho naturally features a table with two place s…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:18AM
Wednesday, November 2, 2022

Elephant, Bush Studio review - stirring solo show from rising star Anoushka Lucas by Helen Hawkins

★★★★ ELEPHANT, BUSH STUDIO Stirring solo show from rising star Anoushka Lucas A beguiling debut play with both charm and an angry message It lasts only an interval-free 60 minutes, w…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 11:12AM
Saturday, October 22, 2022

Blues for an Alabama Sky, National Theatre review - superb cast and production for this period hit by Helen Hawkins

Pearl Cleage's play about thwarted dreams in Prohibition era Harlem gets a stellar production The cynical might think Pearl Cleage’s play had been expressly written to address the over-rid…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 06:07AM
Friday, October 21, 2022

The Solid Life of Sugar Water, Orange Tree Theatre review - two-hander gets a punchy refresh by Helen Hawkins

Jack Thorne's wickedly funny play offers plum roles to two riveting disabled actors This is not a play for the squeamish: here be blood and cum and unsavoury descriptions of genitalia, male …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:03AM
Monday, September 19, 2022

Bright Half Life, Kings Head Theatre review - ups and downs of a tender lesbian love affair by Helen Hawkins

Tanya Barfield reconstructs a simple plot as an absorbing puzzle A tender love story has arrived at the Kings Head theatre from the US, where its author, Tanya Barfield, is an award-winning…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:33AM
Saturday, September 17, 2022

Handbagged, Kiln Theatre review - triumphant revival of Moira Buffini's comedy by Helen Hawkins

Mrs Thatcher and Elizabeth II slug it out again in this 2013 classic It’s only nine years since Moira Buffini’s Handbagged had its premiere at Kilburn’s Tricycle theatre (renamed the …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 09:19AM
Wednesday, September 14, 2022

The Clinic, Almeida Theatre review - race and the status quo by Helen Hawkins

Dipo Baruwa-Etti pits a fiery outsider activist against the British-Nigerian middle-class As Dipa Baruwa-Etti’s latest play, The Clinic, reminds us, the Tory party has a strong showing of…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 04:25AM
Saturday, August 6, 2022

South Pacific, Sadler's Wells review - strong singing in Daniel Evans's fast-paced production by Helen Hawkins

After a hard-hitting 'Oklahoma!', the latest Rodgers & Hammerstein revival stays on the sunnier side How old is Emile de Becque? Perhaps because my first Emile was the 1958 film version�…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:42AM
Thursday, July 21, 2022

Much Ado About Nothing, National Theatre review - Shakespeare’s comedy goes Hollywood musical by Helen Hawkins

Simon Godwin delivers an unexpectedly conventional production, larky and fluffy After gender-flipping the National’s Malvolio, the director Simon Godwin might have been expected to be equa…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 11:12AM
Monday, July 4, 2022

Favour, Bush Theatre review - Ambreen Razia's punchy new tug-of-love drama by Helen Hawkins

A brilliant balance of raucous comedy and immense pathos Where should Leila live — Ilford or Kent? It doesn’t sound like an earth-shattering decision for a 15-year-old to make, but the s…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:03AM
Wednesday, June 15, 2022

The False Servant, Orange Tree Theatre review - Marivaux's cruel comedy gets a modern spin by Helen Hawkins

An entertaining but not quite convincing makeover for a tricky play There probably isn’t a more able translator of vintage drama than Martin Crimp, the playwright whose 2004 version of Pie…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:12AM
Monday, May 9, 2022

House of Ife, Bush Theatre review - an Ethiopian-British family struggle to decide where 'home' is by Helen Hawkins

Playwright Beru Tessema makes a striking stage debut We are in a room in a simply decorated house in northwest London, where an Ethiopian-British family is gathering for a funeral “tea”…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 04:33AM
Saturday, May 7, 2022

Oklahoma!, Young Vic review - a stunning, stripped-down version of the classic musical by Helen Hawkins

Rodgers and Hammerstein revival goes to the dark heart of the story No surreys, fringes or corny chap-slapping: the Rodgers and Hammerstein revival that has arrived at the Young Vic from New…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 01:18PM
Thursday, April 14, 2022

Wolf Cub, Hampstead Downstairs review - haunting solo play about the American nightmare by Helen Hawkins

Ché Walker directs his savage play, with a stellar turn from Clare Latham Ché Walker claims he wrote Wolf Cub, now in the Hampstead Downstairs studio space, in a two-day blitz prompted by…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 09:06AM
Saturday, March 26, 2022

Clybourne Park, Park Theatre review - excellent revival of Bruce Norris's award-winner by Helen Hawkins

The 2010 satire about race and the realities of real estate remains blistering Bruce Norris’s Clybourne Park arrived at London’s Royal Court like a blazing comet in 2010, a bold kind of …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:36AM
Friday, March 11, 2022

Our Generation, National Theatre review - Alecky Blythe captures the world of teenagers today by Helen Hawkins

An epic undertaking about British teenage life, beautifully performed Do you happily binge four hours of mind-candy TV in one sitting? Alecky Blythe’s latest verbatim play, Our Generation …

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 08:33PM
Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Never Not Once, Park Theatre review - disappointing UK debut for a feminist award-winner by Helen Hawkins

Carey Crim's play leaves the issues it raises sadly undramatic Carey Crim’s 2017 play arrives from the US at north London's Park Theatre trailing a feminist playwriting award for its disse…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:33AM
Wednesday, February 16, 2022

The Forest, Hampstead Theatre review - puzzling world premiere from Florian Zeller by Helen Hawkins

The author of 'The Father' plays unsatisfying games with the audience If Florian Zeller isn’t a Wordle fan, I’d be very surprised. As with the hit online game, the French playwright lik…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 01:18AM
Thursday, January 6, 2022

Folk, Hampstead Downstairs review - thoughtful play about folklorist Cecil Sharp by Helen Hawkins

Nell Leyshon's play-with-music asks questions of a legacy Cecil Sharp, heritage hero or imperialist appropriator? If you attended school in the first half of the 19th century, you would have…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 07:18AM
Monday, December 20, 2021

Spring Awakening, Almeida Theatre review - must-see revival for Tony-winning musical by Helen Hawkins

A triumphant musical about teenage angst When Berliners sat down to watch Franz Wedekind’s debut play Fruhlings Erwachen – Spring Awakening – in 1906, they had little inkling of the k…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 01:06PM
Saturday, December 18, 2021

Habeas Corpus, Menier Chocolate Factory review - grappling with Alan Bennett's anti-farce by Helen Hawkins

Has director Patrick Marber boobed this time? In his 1973 play Habeas Corpus, now revived at the Menier Chocolate Factory under the direction of Patrick Marber, Alan Bennett had his way with…

SOURCE: theartsdesk.com at 05:03AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 17, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic
TBA: Ragtime