27 stories by "James Fennemore"
Sometimes we read to escape ourselves. But, more often, we read ourselves into the novel and the novel into ourselves. We place its narrative alongside our own, and we measure the characters…
The Penelopiad is the tails-side of a coin with Odysseus's face on it. It's the domestic story behind the Homeric epic, following the life of Penelope, left on Ithaca with her son Telemachus…
It's been done several times on stage and on film before, but the story of Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb has been given the musical treatment here, with book, music and lyrics by Stephen D…
Verbatopolis is the germ of something excellent. For a school Fringe production, this is an inventive and engaging piece. The vast cast of 17 lead the audience through a series of scenarios,…
Calling this show 'The' Improv Musical is stretching it a bit. In a Fringe where there are other improvised musicals, this production from Music Theatre Warwick is a fun but pretty ordinary …
Haven't we heard this story enough times now? Lisa White's one-woman show, in which she performs material from an interview with an elderly relative, tells of a woman growing up in colonial …
The Closure of Craig Solly is Russell Kane's debut Fringe theatre performance, a monologue given by a convicted mobster, Craig Solly, from his prison cell. This is accomplished writing and a…
Feral exhibits extraordinary puppetry and multimedia techniques. It's skilful and very impressive, but lacks the human touch that would make it a really satisfying theatrical experience. Tor…
UCAS forms are actually pretty dull. Writing a personal statement, aged 18, is a rather strained and dismal experience, which seems like the most important thing at the time, but quickly rec…
Don't be fooled by the title " Spunk is a heartfelt and accomplished exploration of intimacy, confronting society's discomfort over disability and sex. James (Grant Robert Keelan) is wheelch…
Zombie Science: Worst Case Scenario is a science lesson disguised as a zombie apocalypse show. It's occasionally a little bit patronising, and some of its jokes fall a little flat, but this …
The Future for Beginners explores what it might be like to plan every moment of our existence. It's an idea that shows some early promise, but lacks the legs for a successful or particularly…
Watching a familiar play in a language entirely unknown to you is a peculiar experience. That's what David Walker and White Stag Theatre Company have created (for me, at least) in this econo…
I Promise You Sex and Violence aims to shock. But if the company thinks this show is making an urgent socio-political statement, it certainly doesn't come across. Instead the production is d…
Raymondo is a proper story. Like one you'd actually make up, with larger-than-life characters, in a weird and wicked world, battling it out for love and happiness. Annie Siddons's quirky sto…
Good Timin' is the story of Ian Mclaughlin's search for his estranged father. It's warm and tender, and an interesting reflection on what makes us who we are. Mclaughlin's tale begins at his…
Dreams of Peace and Freedom is a tribute to David Maxwell Fyfe, who was one of the Nuremberg prosecutors and an important advocate of the European Convention of Human Rights. Put together by…
Paper Birds' Broke brims with urgency. It proves that personal experiences of debt and financial insecurity tessellate to produce a politically-charged bigger picture. Paper Birds has insert…
Inheritance Blues is a perfect fit for the talented DugOut Theatre performers. The three-piece band, The Hot Air Ballues, tell the story of their first job, playing at a wake in Dorset pub. …
There's certainly potential in the idea of a fun, sharp stage parody of the James Bond franchise " but this isn't it. Gavin Robertson's one-man mime-led Bond spoof doesn't have any particula…
Palpably nervous, the company of Life on the One Wheel appeared unready and unhappy to deliver the first performance of their underdeveloped devised show. The content here is sparse. The pie…
When Simon Stephens's version of Jon Fosse's I Am the Wind opened in 2011, it was met with suspicion by most British critics. Predictably for Stephens, when it then toured Europe, the produc…
Nothing inspires faith in the capability of theatre to serve a whole generation. It feels urgent and necessary, and is about as good as young, emerging fringe theatre gets. Lulu Raczka's wri…
Writing recently for Exeunt, Catherine Love recalled an experience that epitomises the Edinburgh Fringe for her. It was hearing a play read in the Traverse bar, producing “some strange…
As Headlong’s new production of Orwell’s 1984 tours the UK, AYT talks to Robert Icke, co-writer and co-director of the piece 1984 is a book known for its concepts more than…
