All stories by Ben Dowell on BroadwayStars

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Frank McGuinness play to be staged on Somme battlefield by Ben Dowell

The Somme battlefield in France will host Frank McGuinness’ celebrated play Observe the Sons of Ulster Marching Towards the Somme on the

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 08:48AM
Monday, December 15, 2014

The Snow Dragon , St James Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

St James Theatre, London: Well done Tall Stories for providing another cracking seasonal treat for kids - and coping with adversity. Louise Mai Newberry, the female star of this three-hander…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:15AM
Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Behind the Beautiful Forevers , Olivier, National, London by Ben Dowell

Olivier, National, London: David Hare delivers an impressive dramatic reconstruction of Katherine Boo's painstakingly detailed account of life in a Mumbai slum where hordes of families …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:51AM
Monday, November 17, 2014

Stick Man , Leicester Square Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Leicester Square Theatre, London: Returning to the West End for a Christmas run, this charming rendition of the Axel Scheffler and Julia Donaldson (of Gruffalo fame) classic continues to enc…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 10:50AM
Wednesday, October 29, 2014

'Tis Pity She's a Whore , Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, London by Ben Dowell

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, London: The Sam Wanamaker Playhouse again comes into its own with John Ford's brooding, blood-washed tale of incest from the 1630s to open its second season. Re…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:40AM
Thursday, October 2, 2014

Seminar , Hampstead Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead Theatre, London: Writing about writing is a risky venture, but Theresa Rebeck's 2011 Broadway hit casts off any shackles of self-indulgence to build its own quiet power. Read …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:15AM
Thursday, June 19, 2014

Skylight , Wyndham's Theatre by Ben Dowell

Wyndham's Theatre: Bill Nighy's lolloping, rangy form first played Tom Sergeant in the cast change of Richard Eyre's original 1995 production of David Hare's play, taking over…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:41AM
Thursday, June 5, 2014

Clarence Darrow , Old Vic, London by Ben Dowell

Old Vic, London: Kevin Spacey, whose artistic directorship of the Old Vic comes to an end next year, clearly wants to end on a high. Before handing to Matthew Warchus next year, he is hoping…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:29AM
Friday, May 9, 2014

1984, Playhouse Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Playhouse Theatre, London: An Almeida transfer, this may not be the most tourist-friendly production for W1, but the power of Robert Icke and Duncan Macmillan's spellbinding reimagining…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:54AM
Thursday, April 24, 2014

The Silver Tassie, Lyttelton, National, London by Ben Dowell

Lyttelton, National, London: Sean O'Casey's dream-like, disjointed 1928 anti-war play was rejected by Yeats' Abbey Theatre and has rarely been performed since, and on tonight&…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:19AM
Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Relative Values, Harold Pinter Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Harold Pinter Theatre, London: Fresh from its success in Bath, Trevor Nunn's lavish and tourist-friendly production of Coward's crowd-pleaser ought to find a successful second leas…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:42AM
Friday, February 7, 2014

The Stage editor steps down after 20 years by Ben Dowell

Brian Attwood, who has been at the actors' newspaper since 1986, to pursue work on the issue of special needs in adulthoodThe curtain is falling on a 20-year era at actor's bible The Stage n…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:24AM
Friday, January 24, 2014

King Lear, Olivier Theatre, National, London by Ben Dowell

Olivier Theatre, National, London: King Lear is not, let's be honest, a small play and director Sam Mendes uses the full majesty of the Olivier's grand stage to give us an appropri…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:40AM
Thursday, January 23, 2014

Rapture, Blister, Burn, Hampstead Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead Theatre, London: Gwen and Don are a small town couple whose on-the-rocks marriage is further tested when his ex - Emilia Fox's single and sassy cultural studies academic Cathe…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:38AM
Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Wind in the Willows, Duchess Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Duchess Theatre, London: It's hard to imagine a more genial and appropriate guide to the much-loved bucolic adventures of Ratty, Mole, Badger and of course Mr Toad than Tony Robinson. …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:01AM

Coriolanus, Donmar Warehouse, London by Ben Dowell

Donmar Warehouse, London: This is a taut, tense, intimate Coriolanus. Like the man himself, director Josie Rourke does not stand on ceremony, presenting a pared-down bloody, brutal and ruthl…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 05:59AM
Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Drawing the Line, Hampstead Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead Theatre, London: As Indian independence loomed in 1947, Britain's Labour prime minister Clement Attlee sent over a judge called Cyril Radcliffe (who had never been to India an…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:09AM
Monday, December 9, 2013

Father Christmas, Lyric Hammersmith Studio, London by Ben Dowell

Lyric Hammersmith Studio, London: Returning to the Lyric Studio, Pins and Needles' beautifully judged production brings Raymond Briggs' classic storybook about a grumpy but kindly …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 08:03AM
Thursday, November 14, 2013

Mojo, Harold Pinter Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Harold Pinter Theatre, London: Marketed with super cool black and white photos of Brylcreemed 1950s rock'n'roll Soho, Mojo comes from the pen of Jez Butterworth, garlanded author o…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:02AM
Friday, October 25, 2013

Raving, Hampstead Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead Theatre, London: Billed as a modern take on parenting there's an old fashioned feel to this debut play by established actor Simon Paisley Day. But that's not necessarily …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:30AM
Friday, October 4, 2013

Ghosts, Almeida Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Almeida Theatre, London: Taut, tight, emotionally draining, this is a memorable Ghosts, the 1881 tragedy of marital suppression Ibsen says he had to write after Nora's triumphant emanci…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:48AM
Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Scenes from a Marriage, St James Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

St James Theatre, London: Delayed by a week because of illness to the male lead, director Trevor Nunn wasn't going to let this obvious passion project, a distilled stage version of Ingm…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:40AM
Friday, September 13, 2013

Hysteria, Hampstead, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead, London: It's fitting that this impressive Theatre Royal, Bath production of Terry Johnson's play now comes to this part of north west London. Read the full review

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:53AM
Thursday, September 5, 2013

Edward II, Olivier, National Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Olivier, National Theatre, London: Christopher Marlowe's story of one of medieval England's most disastrous and profligate monarchs brought down by his obsession with his male favo…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:33AM
Monday, July 8, 2013

We're Going on a Bear Hunt, Lyric Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Lyric Theatre, London: Loved as it is, Michael Rosen's story of a Dad and his kids and their sheepdog going on a bear hunt through squelchy squerchy mud and much else besides isn't…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 08:05AM
Thursday, July 4, 2013

Private Lives, Gielgud Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Gielgud Theatre, London: Noel Coward's 1930 comedy sweeps into the West End on a wave of love for Jonathan Kent's fresh and zesty Chichester revival from last autumn- and you can s…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:51AM
Thursday, June 20, 2013

The Night Alive, Donmar Warehouse, London by Ben Dowell

Donmar Warehouse, London: Following the Donmar's highly praised revival of Conor McPherson's 1997 play The Weir, the writer brings his own directorial skills to his latest work, a …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:44AM
Friday, June 7, 2013

Interviews: A woman of many talents by Ben Dowell

Actor, comedian, novelist, playwright, journalist and singer; the multi-talented Meera Syal talks to Ben Dowell

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 02:24PM
Thursday, May 30, 2013

Race, Hampstead, London by Ben Dowell

Hampstead, London: Bagging the UK premiere of a new David Mamet play represents a coup for Edward Hall's Hampstead Theatre even if liberal-minded theatregoers will always be divided by …

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 06:27AM
Thursday, May 23, 2013

To Kill a Mockingbird, Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London by Ben Dowell

Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, London: From the outset of this lively and intelligent production, Harper Lee's world bursts into life on the bare stage when the cast draw in chalk an o…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 07:53AM
Friday, May 17, 2013

Interviews: Hot Cross bunny by Ben Dowell

Chariots of Fire star Ben Cross, now playing the mysterious Rabbit in HBO’s TV series Banshee, talks to Ben Dowell about his habit of playing bad guys and how his work has led to a life ou…

SOURCE: The Stage Registration at 10:42AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards