Friday, February 17, 2017
Real sex workers take the stage for a brilliantly devised showSex workers come in all shapes and sizes. Everyone knows that. But why do they do it? Why does anyone take the risk of being int…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:03PMThursday, February 16, 2017
Stage version of dystopian classic returns – lively but cartoonishThere are few modern literary fables that really resonate in the wider culture. And most that do are dystopias. Think of G…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 05:48PMFriday, February 3, 2017
Jamie Lloyd tackles Philip Ridley’s modern classic — with terrific resultsPlaywright Philip Ridley has one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary theatre. His imagination is lace…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:12PMThursday, February 2, 2017
New drama about literary ambition is neat, but not nearly disturbing enoughOdd bedfellows are an ideal subject for comedy, and for passion — because opposites attract, right? Well this is …
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:36PMWednesday, January 25, 2017
Hit rom-com show is LOL funny, but also a bit thinAs the only inhabitant of Planet Earth who wasn’t completely knocked senseless by La-La Land, it does occur to me that I might not be the …
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:04PMThursday, January 19, 2017
New play about the cultivated face of fascism is fascinating if flawedA day or so after Theresa May’s keynote speech about Brexit the words Europe and European carry an electric charge. Fo…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 07:12PMThursday, January 12, 2017
New play about casual work is thinly written and lacks dramaYou could call it the Corbynisation of new writing. In the past couple of years, a series of plays have plumbed the lower depths, …
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:04PMMonday, December 19, 2016
Revival of Shaw classic is a tour de force for Gemma ArtertonHow’s this for a Christmas-week story? Joan, a young peasant girl – played in this version by the charismatically attractive …
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 07:18PMMonday, December 12, 2016
Top director Ivo van Hove makes an uneven National Theatre debutTheatre conventions are a funny thing. Today, it’s actually quite difficult to see a modern classic dressed in the clothes a…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:24PMFriday, December 9, 2016
Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s television hit returns to the stage – and still rocksIt’s television, not theatre, that has real power. Real cultural force. Cultural muscle. Take the case of Ph…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 07:54PMThursday, November 24, 2016
New drama about generational tension and nuclear disaster is metaphor-heavy and lacks energyOver the past decade, one new theme in particular has emerged in contemporary British new writing:…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:54PMThursday, November 17, 2016
New drama about our desire for a simpler life is intriguing, but flawedThe beauty of the past is that it’s a foreign country, and you don’t need a visa to visit it. With the free movemen…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 03:12AMWednesday, November 9, 2016
Welcome return of boxing drama, which is thrilling if a bit hard to followWith the Bush Theatre’s main building undergoing renovations, this company’s shows are being staged in a selecti…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 04:24AMFriday, November 4, 2016
Joe DiPietro’s cult hit is enjoyable, but rather predictable in form and contentFollowing no less than three smash-hit, sell-out runs in London and at the Edinburgh Fringe, the King’s He…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:36PMHARROGATE, ROYAL COURT THEATRE Al Smith's play about love, perversion and memory is electrifyingAl Smith's play about love, perversion and memory is electrifying What’s incest got to …
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:36AMAMADEUS, NATIONAL THEATRE Revival of Peter Shaffer’s most famous play is a musical triumphRevival of Peter Shaffer’s most famous play is a musical triumph Populist playwright Peter Shaff…
SOURCE: The Arts Desk at 06:36AM 
