All stories by Clare Brennan on BroadwayStars

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Kill Johnny Glendenning review a body count to rival Jacobean tragedy by Clare Brennan

Royal Lyceum, EdinburghDC Jacksons comedy thriller is lively, deadly, wordy and seriously out of puff by its disappointing ending Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:04PM
Saturday, September 20, 2014

Home Sweet Home review life in a care home is far from sweet by Clare Brennan

Emma Adamss play, drawn from the experiences of older people, makes ageing look scary but fun Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:04PM
Saturday, September 13, 2014

Roundelay review both magnificent and a disappointment by Clare Brennan

Stephen Joseph, ScarboroughAlan Ayckbourns experimental playlets are moving and hilarious but their fragmentary nature often hobbles the drama Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, September 6, 2014

She Stoops to Conquer review lively and absurd by Clare Brennan

Viaduct, Halifax and touringThis production of Oliver Goldsmith's 1773 comedy is absurdly funny but they need to turn down the volume a touch Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, August 30, 2014

Front; Escaping War; Helen Lawrence review by Clare Brennan

Royal Lyceum; The Hub; King's theatreTwo takes on war employ different media and disciplines to connect with the past, while a noir tale of corruption scuppers itself with technical trickery…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:01PM

Pitcairn review vivid but untidy by Clare Brennan

Chichester festival theatreRichard Bean's new account of the Bounty's mutineers is vivid but untidy Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:01PM
Saturday, August 16, 2014

Thérèse Raquin review Pippa Nixon is a compelling presence by Clare Brennan

Theatre Royal, BathA fine cast rescues a melodramatic new adaptation of Thérèse Raquin Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:07PM

Bad Jews review a gripping inheritance drama by Clare Brennan

Ustinov Studio, BathAn emotional struggle between three cousins has more to it than meets the eye Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, July 26, 2014

The Boy Who Fell Into a Book review a knockout mix by Clare Brennan

Stephen Joseph theatre, ScarboroughAlan Ayckbourn's tale of fiction coming to life makes an inspiring leap from page to stage Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, July 19, 2014

Hansel and Gretel review the woods are alive in the Dukes' annual al fresco show by Clare Brennan

Williamson Park, LancasterHilltop, woodland and lake are the perfect setting for Zosia Ward's vivid retelling of multiple fairytalesHansel and Gretel may get top billing at the Dukes' annual…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, June 28, 2014

Dead Dog in a Suitcase (and Other Love Songs); Mametz review by Clare Brennan

Everyman, Liverpool; Great Llancayo Upper Wood, MonmouthshireAn updating of The Beggar's Opera and a retelling of a first world war battle are undone by dramatic formOne of the glories of th…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:04PM
Monday, June 23, 2014

Seeing the Lights review an emotionally engaging and witty drama by Clare Brennan

Theatre by the Lake, KeswickBrendan Murray's tale of family reunion makes dramatic capital from the premise that blood ties are often a mixed blessingA small kitchen and a cluttered sitting-…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:00AM
Saturday, June 14, 2014

The Valley of Astonishment review a treat for the senses by Clare Brennan

Warwick Arts Centre and touringA celebration of people who experience synesthesia has 'the qualities of a Beethoven late quartet'Sometimes there are conundrums (conundra?). I loved this new …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, May 24, 2014

Enjoy review Bennett revival lacks punch by Clare Brennan

West Yorkshire Playhouse, LeedsPanned on its release in 1980, this comedy of working-class northern life remains unconvincingAlan Bennett's play about a family in an about to be demolished b…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, May 17, 2014

Pressure review a multifaceted metaphor by Clare Brennan

Royal Lyceum, EdinburghDavid Haig's play about wartime meteorologists studying the weather for D-day is witty and affectingAn enormous chart dominates the makeshift weather centre (design by…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM

Our Country's Good review drama takes second place to energy by Clare Brennan

Tron, GlasgowTimberlake Wertenbaker's exploration of oppression is full of good intentions but short on craftThis year, Mayfesto examines colonialism through a mixture of performances readin…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, May 10, 2014

Water Babies review a musical adventure that struggles to stay afloat by Clare Brennan

Curve, LeicesterBuoyant performances if not Richard E Grant's hologram brighten a messy remake of a favourite Victorian classicYou wouldn't expect a 21st-century adaptation of a 19th-centu…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, April 26, 2014

Every Last Trick review Feydeau's farce gets a rough-and-ready makeover by Clare Brennan

Tamsin Oglesby reworks a classic farce into a loosely connected sequence of gagsGeorges Feydeau (1862-1921) has been described as "perhaps the most brilliantly adroit of all devisers of…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, April 5, 2014

Kes review a new dance-theatre adaptation starring Chester Hayes by Clare Brennan

Crucible, SheffieldBarry Hines's classic Barnsley story gets an impressive makeover as part of the Yorkshire festivalYorkshire festival 2014 celebrates the arrival of the Grand Départ…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, March 22, 2014

Pests review – real drama struggling to get out by Clare Brennan

Royal Exchange, ManchesterThe language is sizzling and the performances scorching, yet Vivienne Franzmann's tale of two trapped sisters has fatal flaws in the scriptJoanna Scotcher's forcefu…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:05PM
Saturday, March 8, 2014

Hairspray review – 'as light and bouncy as a bubble of gum' by Clare Brennan

This storming new production of John Waters' musical comedy has audiences at Leicester's Curve battling to stay stillIt's Baltimore, 1962. Penny Pingleton's mother (Sorelle Marsh – all ang…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, March 1, 2014

The Seagull review – Anya Reiss's frustrating take on Chekhov by Clare Brennan

Anya Reiss overlooks the wider context in her vivid reimagining of Chekhov at the LowryAnton Chekhov's plays are sometimes treated with an over-earnestness that turns them into museum pieces…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:06PM

The Believers review – 'Midsomer Murders as contemporary art' by Clare Brennan

Innovative design and a ponderous script are at odds in The Believers at Plymouth's Theatre RoyalIf looks were everything, what a great production this would be. Jon Bauser is a super-whiz a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, February 22, 2014

An August Bank Holiday Lark; Translations; A Taste of Honey – review by Clare Brennan

New Vic, Newcastle-under-Lyme; Crucible, Sheffield; Lyttelton, LondonDramatic irony proves deeply affecting as the domestic and the epic meet in the lives of Lancashire folk in August 1914An…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:07PM

Brassed Off – review by Clare Brennan

York Theatre Royal This gutsy production reminds us why, 30 years after the miners' strike, being poor in Britain is still the pits"Over the last 10 years this bloody government has systemat…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, February 8, 2014

My Judy Garland Life – review by Clare Brennan

Nottingham PlayhouseSally Ann-Triplett's heartstopping Judy overcomes any script shortcomings in this tale of fan and heroineWhen you read a book, you see through the eyes of the author. Whe…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, February 1, 2014

Rantin – review by Clare Brennan

Kilmardinny House Arts Centre, Bearsden, GlasgowThis bitty co-production exploring what it means to be Scottish is a missed opportunityRantin, we are told in the course of the performance, i…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM

Long Day's Journey Into Night – review by Clare Brennan

Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh; until SatPowerful performances enrich this reading of Eugene O'Neill's classic family dramaAt first this could almost be a TV commercial for something solid, secure …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, January 18, 2014

Wrong 'Un – review by Clare Brennan

Lowry Studio, Salford; and touringOne woman's journey from Lancashire mill lass to brick-throwing suffragette makes for a sharp and intelligent musical"Suddenly, something distantly historic…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:05PM
Saturday, December 28, 2013

Wendy and Peter Pan; Aladdin and the Twankeys; The Flame-Haired Dynamo – review by Clare Brennan

RSC, Stratford-upon-Avon; York Theatre Royal; Hull TruckPeter Pan has plenty of magic in spite of a dragging plot while Aladdin is better than ever at York Theatre RoyalJM Barrie's story of …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:04PM
Saturday, December 14, 2013

The Jungle Book; Raymond Briggs' Father Christmas – review by Clare Brennan

West Yorkshire Playhouse, LeedsNotions of identity and belonging make for a spellbinding adaptation of the Kipling classic, while Father Christmas keeps things endearingly simpleMowgli brand…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:06PM

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 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic