All stories by Mark Lawson on BroadwayStars

Thursday, August 3, 2023

Macbeth review – Max Bennett’s jokey king is clearly unfit to govern by Mark Lawson

Shakespeare’s Globe, LondonGender swapped roles shed new light on dark days in a production – complete with gruesome bodybags and references to fake news – that feels aptly aligned to …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:19AM
Wednesday, August 2, 2023

The Lord of the Rings: A Musical Tale review – the greatest show on Middle-earth by Mark Lawson

Watermill theatre, BerkshireA formidable cast journey through folk via Bollywood to pop – not to mention mountain treks and orc attacks – in a compressed revival of the 2007 musical As d…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:04AM
Thursday, July 20, 2023

Grenfell: In the Words of Survivors review – a masterpiece of forensic fury by Mark Lawson

Dorfman theatre, LondonPiling up devastating detail, this play with a remarkable cast shockingly lays bare the abject failures behind this disaster During dramas about a national catastrophe…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:19PM
Wednesday, May 10, 2023

The Suspicions of Mr Whicher review – true crime classic turned into tense drama by Mark Lawson

Watermill theatre, NewburyKate Summerscale’s Victorian potboiler is deftly condensed in a production that brings out the misogyny and class snobbery of the era The risk of a successful cr…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:18AM
Thursday, May 4, 2023

Cymbeline review – Shakespeare’s knotty romance is a fabulous farewell for Doran by Mark Lawson

Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonDeparting artistic director Greg Doran reinvigorates this tale of a royal family in crisis with clarity and intelligence The president of the Ro…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:54AM
Thursday, April 6, 2023

Visitors review – searing study of ageing family frictions by Mark Lawson

Watermill theatre, NewburyBarney Norris’s revival radiates the pain of older parents trapped on deteriorating paths, while their son and end-of-life au pair struggle to find their own Youn…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:24AM
Wednesday, March 29, 2023

Julius Caesar review – timeless account of the flimsiness of power by Mark Lawson

Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonAtri Banerjee’s RSC production stresses the remarkable universality of the play’s examination of leaders and the led Early in the Trump admi…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:42AM
Thursday, February 23, 2023

An anonymous, pro-Brexit play about Dominic Cummings? Classic Dom! | Mark Lawson by Mark Lawson

Partially based on verbatim texts from Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser, a new play which lists no dramatist veers from Ted talk to pantomime At this play about Dominic Cummings, the n…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:07AM
Friday, February 3, 2023

The Tempest review – Alex Kingston is a magnificent Prospero by Mark Lawson

Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonClimate catastrophe and power struggles dominate Elizabeth Freestone’s RSC interpretation of Shakespeare’s play If there were prizes for inv…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:52AM
Friday, November 25, 2022

Arms and the Man review – Shaw’s women show their steel by Mark Lawson

Orange Tree theatre, LondonThis 1894 farce set during the Serbo-Bulgarian war is impeccably played in a production showing the playwright’s radical vision still resonates When Channel 4 be…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:24AM
Wednesday, November 9, 2022

A Christmas Carol review – Adrian Edmondson stars in a biting tale for our times by Mark Lawson

Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonDavid Edgar’s sharp script feels close to home in this exuberant, illusion-filled version of Dickens’ seasonal but socially conscious story …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:03AM
Sunday, September 18, 2022

Stumped review – at the crease with Beckett and Pinter by Mark Lawson

Original Theatre OnlineShomit Dutta’s play imagines the two cricket-obsessed Nobel prize winners as waiting batsmen in an enjoyable spin on Waiting for Godot and The Dumb Waiter Samuel Bec…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:43AM
Thursday, September 15, 2022

The Clothes They Stood Up In review – Alan Bennett tale dressed to impress by Mark Lawson

Nottingham PlayhouseAdrian Scarborough stars in his own adaptation of Bennett’s story, featuring convincing new dialogue and staged with visual panache Between the stage and TV plays and j…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:07AM
Friday, September 2, 2022

The Narcissist review – a darkly honest dissection of post-Trump politics by Mark Lawson

Minerva, ChichesterA spin doctor’s life spirals into chaos after he’s hired by an ambitious senator in Christopher Shinn’s grimly comic drama After working on Hillary Clinton’s faile…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:55AM
Friday, August 12, 2022

Two Ukrainian Plays review – masterful framing of a nation’s tragedy by Mark Lawson

Finborough theatre, LondonA ghostly tale and a potent monologue form a double bill that uses the 2014 conflict to remark movingly on current events Because theatres schedule so far ahead, th…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:54AM
Sunday, July 3, 2022

Peter Brook: the great seeker of British theatre by Mark Lawson

The esteemed British director inspired each new generation of theatre creatives to be more daring and experimental Peter Brook, influential theatre visionary, dies aged 97 The two key Britis…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:48AM
Sunday, June 19, 2022

King Lear review – Kathryn Hunter’s frail, fond old ruler almost unbearably affecting by Mark Lawson

Shakespeare’s Globe, LondonBack in the role she first played in 1997, Hunter uses her extraordinary transformative powers to show us the king as a geriatric child at the head of a disinteg…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:18AM
Sunday, May 22, 2022

Murder on the Orient Express review – a first-class ride all the way by Mark Lawson

Chichester Festival theatreHenry Goodman gives us every inch of Hercule Poirot’s dandiness and comedy in this exemplary adaptation of Christie’s ingenious murder mystery, but also gets e…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:37PM
Wednesday, May 4, 2022

Stephen Sondheim’s Old Friends review – a glorious all-star memorial service by Mark Lawson

Sondheim theatre/Prince Edward theatre, LondonJudi Dench, Rob Brydon, Imelda Staunton and Bernadette Peters joined the cast for this superb tribute to a genius Stephen Sondheim was so vast a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:12PM
Thursday, April 21, 2022

Henry VI: Rebellion / Wars of the Roses review – thrilling games of thrones by Mark Lawson

Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonWith their portrait of a wobbling monarchy and egotistical leadership, these rare stagings are particularly topical The three plays about King H…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:42AM
Wednesday, April 20, 2022

The Taxidermist’s Daughter review – Kate Mosse’s gothic mystery stuffed with visual thrills by Mark Lawson

Chichester Festival theatreMosse’s adaptation of her blood-soaked novel delivers on chills but could do with more substance amid the sound and fury Gothic chillers are rare in modern theat…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:42AM
Tuesday, April 12, 2022

Our Man in Havana review – Graham Greene classic becomes a clever musical by Mark Lawson

Watermill theatre, NewburyThe actor-musicians deserve an award for multitasking here, switching between roles and instruments in a production exploring lying and dual identities Though equiv…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:24AM
Wednesday, April 6, 2022

Anyone Can Whistle review – Sondheim flop gets a blazing revival by Mark Lawson

Southwark Playhouse, LondonThis elusive curiosity – whose original production in 1964 closed on Broadway after nine performances – finds brilliant new contexts for its absurdist story So…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:42AM
Friday, March 25, 2022

The Wellspring review – a father and son’s musical ode to memory by Mark Lawson

Royal & Derngate, NorthamptonDavid Owen Norris and his son Barney reflect on the slipperiness of history in a show that elegantly defies categorisation Ticketing websites divide shows fo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:54PM
Thursday, March 24, 2022

Straight Line Crazy review – Ralph Fiennes enthrals as the man who shaped New York by Mark Lawson

Bridge theatre, LondonFiennes heads an electrifying cast in David Hare’s dynamic portrait of Robert Moses, an aggressive yet visionary urban planner who refused to back down Robert Moses, …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:33AM
Thursday, March 17, 2022

Peter Bowles: a commanding talent who was so much more than a sitcom star by Mark Lawson

The classy actor could play both establishment and villainous characters with aplomb. He was naturally charming and hugely admired by great men of theatre like Harold Pinter Peter Bowles die…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:54PM
Thursday, March 3, 2022

When We Dead Awaken review – Ibsen’s final play explores an artist’s farewell by Mark Lawson

Coronet theatre, LondonThis drama about a sculptor looking back on his life is powerfully staged by the Norwegian Ibsen Company In the last year of the 19th century, when Henrik Ibsen began …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:06PM
Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Patrick Stewart: ‘I asked to play Ophelia in McKellen’s Hamlet – but the timings didn’t work out’ by Mark Lawson

As he beams aboard another Star Trek adventure, the 81-year-old actor talks about playing Picard as an intergalactic Prospero, hitting the bottle during Macbeth – and reaching page 310 of …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:03AM
Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Hamlet review – Freddie Fox’s alcoholic prince goes to church by Mark Lawson

Holy Trinity Church, GuildfordFox is emotionally wrenching in Tom Littler’s inventive and streamlined production, which explores the play’s integral Christianity Shakespeare gives a vari…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:48AM
Thursday, January 27, 2022

Barry Cryer was cheeky, kind and a canny engineer of comedy | Mark Lawson by Mark Lawson

A generous-hearted jokesmith, Cryer created laughs for generations of comics, was a consummate performer and had a lifelong commitment to wit ‘An honorary uncle to countless comics’: Jac…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:36PM
Wednesday, January 26, 2022

The Palace of Varieties review – the Beast of Bolsover snarls at Thatcher and spars with Boris Johnson by Mark Lawson

Derby theatreUsing music hall and Broadway songs to tell the story of former MP Dennis Skinner’s colourful Commons battles makes surprising sense Writers often say that content dictates fo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:12AM

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