Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Derby theatreThe late author’s tale about a teenager who road-trips around Ireland under a false persona proves a great vehicle for Rebecca RyanSiobhan Dowd, who died of cancer in 2007 age…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:39AMWednesday, February 25, 2015
Octagon, BoltonThe mill-town drama that scandalised audiences with its daringly resolute heroine is meticulously revived a century on Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:34AMTuesday, February 24, 2015
Royal Exchange, ManchesterAnna Jordan’s prize-winning play about two teenagers living alone in a filthy flat is difficult to watch yet easy to love Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:34AMSunday, February 22, 2015
The repartee is irresistible in Laura Wade’s glimpse into the secret world of the Oxbridge dinner society Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:16PMThursday, February 19, 2015
West Yorkshire Playhouse, LeedsThe highly stylised treatment and evocative music add extra dimensions to this study of family sorrow – although little is revealed about the titular charact…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:15AMMonday, February 16, 2015
Liverpool Playhouse Gemma Bodinetz’s astute production, starring Leanne Best and Con O’Neill, asks what happens when we confuse education with erudition Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:33AMThursday, February 12, 2015
Theatr Clwyd, MoldThe outgoing artistic director of Theatr Clywd bows out with a tragedy powered by an overwhelming momentumTerry Hands’s tenure as artistic director of Theatr Clwyd has la…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:04AMThursday, February 5, 2015
Manchester arenaFrom an invasion of angry dwarves to a musical mashup of Gary Glitter and Rolf Harris, Peter Kay and co are as off-colour as everPhoenix Nights fans have been waiting si…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:25AMWednesday, February 4, 2015
Oldham Coliseum theatreWith its surfeit of special effects, this Woman in Black follow-up offers a pale reflection of its predecessor’s simple horror Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:32AMTuesday, February 3, 2015
Unity theatre, LiverpoolLiverpool group Tmesis deconstruct romance using movie skits and science, and though this show skirts sentimentality, it’s entirely without cynicism Continue readin…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:40AMThursday, January 22, 2015
Octagon, BoltonThe honour of an entire community is besmirched in David Thacker’s take on Arthur Miller’s multi-angled masterpiece Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:19AMTuesday, January 13, 2015
Home arts centre, ManchesterFrom Justin Moorhouse’s mini family saga set in a bacon factory to an absurdist allegory about immigration, a diverse lineup keeps it short and sweetNow into it…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:18AMWednesday, January 7, 2015
Royal Exchange, ManchesterThe visible army of puppeteers giving fiercely expressive life to a carnivorous potted superstar almost upstage the actors in Derek Bond’s production Continue rea…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:33AMTuesday, January 6, 2015
New Vic theatre, Newcastle-under-LymeTheresa Heskins’s production makes ingenious use of outsize props and puppets to create a palpable sense of danger Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:59AMMonday, January 5, 2015
West Yorkshire Playhouse, LeedsThis seasonal offering for younger audiences roots Roald Dahl’s dark, fantastical tale firmly in the far-out 60s Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:44AMMonday, December 22, 2014
Crucible, SheffieldClaire Burns is a delightfully pragmatic princess in Mike Kenny’s smart update on the Disneyfication of the tween generation Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05AMWith panto season in full swing, three theatre baddies – including Nigel Havers, currently playing King Rat in Dick Whittington – open up about ‘the biggest ego-trip there is’“Ever…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:00AMThursday, December 18, 2014
Sea Breeze sent shivers down the spine in Morecambe, National Theatre Wales took us to Dylan Thomas’s village inspiration and Liverpool hosted a giant walkaboutThe industrious audio-visual…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:00AMWednesday, December 17, 2014
Northern Stage, NewcastleA seven-year-old plans to trap Santa with crisps, glue and chilli powder in Anthony Neilson’s weird seasonal offering Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:43AMTuesday, December 16, 2014
York Theatre RoyalIrrepressible panto dame Berwick Kaler is dunked, hoisted, soaked and squished in the rarely seen pantomime classic Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:03AMWednesday, December 10, 2014
Playhouse, LiverpoolResurrecting the spirit of the French farcer in 1970s Liverpool isn’t a bad idea, but Stephen Sharkey doesn’t give his cast much to work with Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:53AMTuesday, December 9, 2014
Crucible, SheffieldSublime performances and Cole Porter’s timeless songs add to the giddy sense of euphoria in Daniel Evans’s terrific production Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:30AMMonday, December 8, 2014
Curve, LeicesterAided by an excellent cast, the outgoing Curve director steers clear of camp to present an irresistibly melodic musical in its unadulterated form Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:35AMFriday, December 5, 2014
West Yorkshire PlayhouseTaking all the best bits of the Bing Crosby film, this festive-themed jukebox musical is a big-hearted celebration of the genius of Irving BerlinBing Crosby’s dolef…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AMWednesday, December 3, 2014
Live theatre, NewcastleThe choreography looks genuinely dangerous in Ron Hutchinson’s play about a woman’s quest for excitementTango has been described as the vertical expression of hori…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:37AMTuesday, November 18, 2014
Clwyd Theatre Cymru, MoldStephen MacDonald’s first world war piece dramatises Siegfried Sassoon’s creative impact on Wilfred Owen Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:53AMWednesday, November 12, 2014
Complex scientific theories are made accessible in the characters sharp exchanges, but its all a bit too cerebral Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:37AMTuesday, November 11, 2014
The Moor, SheffieldThe retail experience is given a creepy immersive theatre makeover, complete with rats and disembodied heads Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:09AMThursday, November 6, 2014
Crucible, SheffieldInjustices nursed by a Yorkshire pit community since the 1984-85 strike lurk beneath one womans homecoming in this powerful and evocative play Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:25AMWednesday, October 29, 2014
Lloyd Newsons latest production uses movement and the spoken word to stage one mans harrowing yet extraordinary life Continue reading...
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:55PMMonday, October 27, 2014
The Royle Family star was jailed after the national construction workers strike of 1972. As a satirical show about the Shrewsbury 24 arrives in Shropshire, he looks back on the controversial…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:00AM 
