878 stories by "Ian Foster"
And it's a play that manages to hit two of my bugbear phrases in theatre writing, in that it is both 'darkly comic' and 'extremely timely'. But though reviewers and publicists may desperatel…
The way in which one character rationalises his decision to join the National Front has chilling new currency in this post-Brexit world and the supercilious smile that another character occa…
I'm glad I returned as I found myself enjoying the play a lot more second time round. Taking it for what it is, which is a Rattigan curiosity rather than a revelatory (re)discovery, this lig…
It's a strong combination - there's endless dark humour in the snippets of life as a medical professional, climbing the ranks from inexperienced house officer to registrar in the field of ob…
Sad to say, what I'm saying is that I was not a fan of The Addams Family at all. After a cracking opening number which promises oh so much, Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice's book grinds to …
Even with the best of intentions, it can be a little too easy to forget that there's more to LGBT+ than just the G. Representations of gay men are increasingly common in our theatres but pic…
Wertenbaker's play is set on the Winter Hill of the near future, as opposed to the not-so-near past, where a chunk of the land has been sold to developers who are constructing a luxury skysc…
Written by Christopher Hampton in 1970, The Philanthropist was conceived as a response to Molière's The Misanthrope, it's the lead character's unflappable amiability that causes havoc aroun…
In the many aspects of Angels in America that there are to enjoy and appreciate, the richness of Tony Kushner's writing was not one that I was particularly expecting. But at several points t…
Well Daniel Evans looks set to be continuing one of Chichester Festival Theatre's longstanding traditions, of producing musical theatre that tempts the cognoscenti over to West Sussex in dro…
Despite being blown away by True West, something about Sam Shepard makes me a little wary. I liked rather than loved Fool For Love and ultimately steered clear of the recent Buried Child and…
Over in Canary Wharf, The Space Theatre might not necessarily be one that is on the radar of many London theatregoers but the announcement of their summer season ought to tempt the theatrica…
Uneasy lies the head that waits for the crown. Mike Barlett's King Charles III was a deserved award-winning success when it took the Almeida by storm in 2014, transferring into the West End …
After a successful run in Edinburgh last summer and ahead of a tour in Germany this coming summer, new British musical Paper Hearts arrives in Highgate at the always charming Upstairs at the…
Birds of Paradise is a show that had an ignominiously brief off-Broadway run in 1987 and might well have faded into obscurity were it not for its lyricist and co-book-writer Winnie Holzman g…
Pete 'n' Keely is a rather gentle show and Matthew Gould's production here possesses a warmly nostalgic glow that is well essayed by performers David Bardsley and Katie Kerr.
It's no less radical a reinterpretation - the two lovers are reconceived as gay footballers here - but where Andy Bewley's production really succeeds is in capturing the exultant highs of he…
A group of world class actors and directors will look at how theatre has charted the LGBT+ experience through a series of rehearsed readings and post-show discussions in the Lyttelton Theatr…
Next month, the annual Tony Awards celebrate Broadway's best of the best. Notable nominations include Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812 and Groundhog Day, both up for several award…
I have to admit that I wasn't much enamoured by the prospect of a Bob Dylan musical but when I stopped to think about it, I don't know why I was worried because I've long been of the opinion…
After decades of conflict, both politically in terms of Ulster as a nation and personally for sisters Sandra and Teeni Richardson who haven't spoken in a good few years, the notion of truth …
Guess who's coming to dinner, Toronto-style. The table has been set at Debora and Michael's oh-so-tasteful upper class home but the atmosphere is thick with tension as their guests are Curti…
The play's the thing though and here, Butterworth has constructed a Northern Irish epic. Set at harvest-time in 1981, deep in County Armagh, the Carney clan are gathering for a humdinger of …
The Cardinal emerges as a revenge tragedy and Audibert's clear-sighted direction ensures that the intricacies of the plotting is lucid and consistently compelling.
It has been impossible to ignore the reception of Ivo van Hove's Obsession, the slight sense of glee (from some) at being able to dole out a critical drubbing to the feted director. And so I…
