All stories by Terri Paddock on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Press pass: Critics finally (officially) get their say on Cumberbatch Hamlet by Terri Paddock

As one critic stated upfront: the press night is a major anti-climax. Nevertheless, while the verdicts don’t make a blind bit of difference to the box office on a production that sold …

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 04:47AM
Wednesday, August 19, 2015

My theatre diary: Musicals, magic and monsters including Impossible, Splendour, Seven Brides and Heartbreak Hotel by Terri Paddock

Apart from my Edinburgh blitz, I like to take August a little slow on the theatregoing front. These few weeks offer a brief respite while many people are away on holiday or still up at the F…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 10:01AM
Tuesday, August 11, 2015

My Edinburgh Diary: From Love Birds to solo shows, politics, circus, stand-up and more by Terri Paddock

Food poisoning, the infamous “festival flu” or some other strain of (literally) gut-wrenching misery? Whatever it was, I became quite violently ill on the train journey home from…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 07:24AM
Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Dear reader: My epistolary musings about Dear Lupin by Terri Paddock

Dear reader Writing a blog in the form of the letter (as I did with my Conversation with Caitlin Moran series) about the stage adaptation of the 2012 book Dear Lupin allows me to both use …

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 01:10PM
Monday, August 3, 2015

Rock operas: How much does American Idiot owe to Tommy? by Terri Paddock

Birth-wise, more than three decades separate The Who’s Tommy and Green Day’s American Idiot, but location-wise, the distance is only three short train stops, from London’s Charing Cro…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 07:58AM
Monday, July 27, 2015

From Burt Bacharach to Tom Jones: A theatrically easy-listening explosion by Terri Paddock

I had ninety, non-stop magic moments at the Menier Chocolate Factory earlier this month at the opening of What’s It All About? Bacharach Reimagined. Sat on one of the (extremely comfy…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 05:00AM
Saturday, July 25, 2015

Is UK justice for sale to the highest bidders? (VIDEO) by Terri Paddock

If you have never been unlucky enough to find yourself in the middle of a legal dispute, I can almost guarantee you – or, at least, 99% of you – that you can’t afford it. Certainly not…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 02:39PM
Sunday, July 19, 2015

I’ve just been accepted into a club I’ve been looking for all my life by Terri Paddock

I had a life-changing moment on Thursday night. I showed up to an event where I didn’t know anyone and discovered it was exactly where I belonged. Relationships aside, I’ve had t…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 04:07PM
Wednesday, July 15, 2015

My theatre diary: To Kill a Mockingbird, Henry V, As Is, Orson’s Shadow & The Invisible by Terri Paddock

Since I got back from my month of remote working in Mallorca, I’ve been lucky enough to pack in lots of trips to the theatre, including this quintuplet of limited season plays that are all…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 11:41AM
Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Press pass: Everything you need to know about Stephen Merchant in The Mentalists by Terri Paddock

Comics were out in force and applauding warmly at last night’s opening of The Mentalists, in which fellow stand-up and The Office co-creator Stephen Merchant made his West End acting debut…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 06:01AM
Friday, July 10, 2015

FEATURED SHOW: The House of Mirrors and Hearts, Reviews are in by Terri Paddock

Have you seen the raft of four-star reviews for our current Featured Show? The House of Mirrors and Hearts, just opened on Tuesday at London's Arcola Theatre, is a haunting new chamber music…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 10:28AM
Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Photos and podcast: The making of new British musical The House of Mirrors and Hearts by Terri Paddock

The adage – usually attributed to Sondheim – that “musicals aren’t written, they’re rewritten” was central to the post-show discussion that I hosted …

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 06:23AM
Monday, July 6, 2015

39 top quotes from The Importance of Being Earnest: How many belong to Suchet’s Lady Bracknell? by Terri Paddock

Shakespeare aside, is there any playwright more quotable than Oscar Wilde? And, of all his plays, is there any more quoted than his 1895 comedy of manners, The Importance of Being Earnest? A…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 05:08AM
Friday, July 3, 2015

Press pass: Everything you need to know about Damon Albarn’s wonder.land by Terri Paddock

Is it all a Blur? That’s a pun you may hear frequently in relation to the musical theatre debut of the seminal 1990s band’s frontman, Damon Albarn, which opened in Manchester last night.…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 05:23AM
Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Why holidays are out and remote working is in by Terri Paddock

My Theatre Mates co-founder Terri Paddock moved her office to Mallorca for the past month - and got more done. Here she explains how you can do it too.

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 01:07PM
Thursday, June 25, 2015

Press pass: Reviews, interviews and first night pics from Bend It Like Beckham by Terri Paddock

The reviews are in, and there’s no doubt about it – the West End musical makeover of Bend It Like Beckham has scored big with the critics. Perhaps the show’s impeccable timing – as t…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 05:29AM
Monday, June 22, 2015

Don’t forget: Memory play The Father affects us all by Terri Paddock

It’s the last chance this week to catch the French playwright Florian Zeller’s mind-bending play The Father, in which the father of the title (played with heart-rending bluster a…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 05:57AM
Thursday, June 18, 2015

The Mates welcome criticism, especially of ourselves by Terri Paddock

Terri Paddock today responded to Megan Vaughan's recent article in The Stage on MyTheatreMates's "damaging business practices" - and here she explains why, however fallacious, she welcomes M…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 06:25AM

How to handle criticism (unless you’re an actor) by Terri Paddock

Most actors don’t read their reviews – or, at least, most actors say they don’t read their reviews. And when it comes to stage acting, I can see their point. Critics review a single pe…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 06:13AM

Terri Paddock: Offended? No, but I’d like to set the record straight by Terri Paddock

A few weeks ago, blogger Megan Vaughan wrote a piece for The Stage entitled ‘The long tail of theatre criticism‘. I was

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:00AM
Monday, June 15, 2015

Do you believe in magic in the West End? by Terri Paddock

There are few things that excite me more at a party than when I meet someone who says they can do card tricks. I will move heaven and earth to find a playing deck and then trail that person …

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 09:06AM
Tuesday, June 9, 2015

14 surprising facts about JM Barrie’s Peter Pan by Terri Paddock

In my other blog today, I wrote about the “fact” that JM Barrie wrote Peter Pan as a metaphor for World War One. This was a little bit of a fib (explained fully here), but I thought I�…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 08:37AM

Did you know JM Barrie wrote Peter Pan as a metaphor for WWI? by Terri Paddock

Peter Pan is currently enjoying a critically acclaimed but maddeningly short run at the Open Air Theatre. (I understand the logistical reasons behind back-to-back productions in Regent’s P…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 08:36AM
Monday, June 8, 2015

FEATURED SHOW: Dogs of War at the Old Red Lion, Reviews are in! by Terri Paddock

Have you seen the raft of four-star reviews for our Featured Show? The world premiere of Dogs of War, which is now running at London’s Old Red Lion Theatre, has also been nominated fo…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 10:43AM
Sunday, June 7, 2015

What are the challenges populating Bedford Falls onstage? by Terri Paddock

During my visit to the rehearsal rooms of It’s a Wonderful Life on radio, which launches a new UK tour this week, I also got to chat to three of the incredibly hard-working, six-strong e…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 07:28AM

It’s a Wonderful Life – coming to a stage near you – isn’t just for Christmas by Terri Paddock

Frank Capra’s 1946 classic It’s a Wonderful Life, starring James Stewart as everyman George Bailey, is probably my favourite film of all time. It’s certainly the one I’ve seen more t…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 05:30AM
Monday, June 1, 2015

Please please please, Camilla Long: Stop going to theatre by Terri Paddock

In my #PressPass round-up today of The Elephant Man, one recent clipping that I did not include is the one that got me, and others, so riled up about yesterday on Twitter. It’s Sunda…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 09:14AM

Press pass: Reviews and everything else you need to know about Bradley Cooper in The Elephant Man by Terri Paddock

After nearly a week of staggered press performances, and one starry gala evening, the reviews are now out for the West End transfer for The Elephant Man, which is now running for a limited 1…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 07:28AM
Tuesday, May 26, 2015

1976 and 5 other things Bugsy Malone and Carrie have in common by Terri Paddock

I’ve seen two musicals recently that I’d recommend: Bugsy Malone at the Lyric Hammersmith and Carrie at Southwark Playhouse. Bugsy Malone is set in Prohibition-era New York City …

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 05:00AM
Monday, May 25, 2015

How do you connect with theatre? 7 basic plots, 3 key connections by Terri Paddock

In my theatregoing, I like to make connections. Are you the same? There are, of course, the physical connections on the night – between performers and audience, between the other theatrego…

SOURCE: Terri Paddock at 11:29AM
Thursday, May 21, 2015

Judging Sondheim Society Student standouts and new songs … from my seat in the stalls by Terri Paddock

On Sunday, I attended my first Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year Awards (or, the SSSSPOTYs, ‘for short’!). The competition is now in its ninth year R…

SOURCE: mytheatremates.com at 12:39PM