1,230 stories by "Arifa Akbar"
Coronet theatre, LondonThis gnomic production of Churchill's 1997 play, about a couple awaiting their daughter's return, is packed with confusions and curveballs
In Blue Heart, a pair of one…
Royal Shakespeare theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon Blanche McIntyre's Midas-touched production is set in the present day and finds delirious comedy in its class divisions
This lesser-staged Shak…
Jermyn Street theatre, London Adrian Lukis's self-penned one-man show revisits the character he played in Pride and Prejudice on TV in 1995, but doesn't discover much
Those who watc…
Charing Cross theatre, LondonThis fast and furious Korean show has high-voltage tunes, but suffers from schmaltz and a breathlessly hectic pace
Two women meet on a train, in a flashback to M…
Lyric Hammersmith, LondonAlice Childress's powerful story of a biracial couple is set in South Carolina in 1918, but burns with the heat of the civil rights era when it was written
'It's wro…
Orange Tree theatre, LondonTara Fitzgerald, Emma Fielding and Stephen Boxer deftly juggle roles in this marathon of marital malaise
This 1965 trilogy of late works by Noël Coward has all …
Theatre Royal Haymarket, LondonArthur Miller's story of family, masculinity and immigrant struggles could seem dated but a brilliant cast bring out uncomfortably modern resonances
This reviv…
One Cartridge Place, LondonHelena Bonham Carter narrates as a bare-footed audience explore exquisite rooms in this unsettling, grief-soaked journey into the night
The immersive adventure beg…
Chichester Festival theatreThe performances are strong and the music is beautiful, but they cannot rescue this convoluted adaptation of Jamila Gavin's award-winning children's novel
This ada…
A marathon achievement for its feat of memory, this performance feels like avant-garde cabaret at times
Has the solo star-vehicle as epic monologue theatre reached its peak with Eddie Izzard…
Jazz hands and big ballads are out and 'writing about real emotions' is in, as a new wave of musicals exploring body issues, bullying and queer identity hits the capital's biggest stages. Wh…
Royal Court, London
Emma D'Arcy, Ben Whishaw and Kayla Meikle narrate and act out Nelson's dark meditations from their own film-making booths in Katie Mitchell's intriguing experiment
Maggie…
Duke of York's theatre, LondonThe Spider-Man star and his spikily charismatic Juliet, giving a heroic performance after all the abuse she faced, are perfectly cast in Jamie Lloyd's turbo-sty…
Michelle Terry plays the king as a playfully antic sociopath in a lively production full of effective performances
Has there ever been a more contested Richard III? Michelle Terry's self-ca…
The case of a German ballet director who attacked a critic with faeces has loosely inspired a satire about the relationships between creators and critics
Among the spikier offerings at this …
Theatre Royal Stratford East, LondonThe second, strikingly physical part of Lanre Malaolu's trilogy that began with Samskara explores bereavement with lightness as well as anguish
It is hard…
The Other Place, Stratford-upon-AvonFour students in Iran are under pressure to pass their foreign language exams in Sanaz Toossi's gentle comedy that puts discussion above drama and ideas a…
Trafalgar theatre, LondonThe Olivier award-winner returns to her role as an actor in rehab in Duncan Macmillan's brutally powerful play
Duncan Macmillan's 2015 play about addiction is a tric…
Hampstead theatre, LondonStrong performances and jibing humour propel this exuberant but flawed revival of Stephen Adly Guirgis's 2014 play about racism in the New York police force
This rev…
Nottingham PlayhouseA teenager kills a trainee paramedic with a single strike on a night out in Nottingham in this deftly directed play based on a real story
Take note: this is not a play ab…
Southwark Playhouse Elephant, LondonA mix of songs, dance, glitter and camp, this ancient-modern mashup is derailed by bland debates and a convoluted script
An ancient Greek love story, this…
Coliseum, LondonHayao Miyazaki's masterpiece is brought to life with imaginative puppetry, wondrous music and moments of delicate poetry
Food and cooking feature prominently in the films of …
Royal Court, LondonFour south London girls tell stories during detention at a mosque in Sabrina Ali's play, which ends before we know much about them
Four British Somali girls are thrown tog…
Globe theatre, LondonThere's no whiff of stuffiness in a Sean Holmes' production characterised by warm summer euphoria, Elizabethan-era magic and entrancing music
The Globe so often comes un…
Donmar Warehouse, LondonNina Hoss stars in a kookily immersive production but the devastating hammer blow of the Russian tragicomedy is not lost in translation
It is initially hard to fathom…