Hackney Empire, London Well-spun jokes and great audience rapport elevate the comedian's show above standard fall-guy fare, though slick management inhibits its spark How good can standup be…
Political art helps us debate and confront the challenges in our lives. It is also a record we must return to again and again 'A play should be an act of moral imagination," said the late B…
Park theatre, London A doctor, a therapist and the Kennedy brothers are among the characters in this cocktail of facts and fiction Marilyn Monroe died on 4 August 1962 from a "probable suici…
Savoy theatre, London Plastics and fellow students give high-grade performances but the songs and production don't get quite enough As It's 20 years since Tina Fey's sharp-tongued tale of Pl…
After Jodie Comer's star turn on Broadway, Forrest is taking on Miller's electrifying one-person show. They talk about outdated consent laws and navigating the industry as a non-binary actor…
Soho theatre, London She's a convivial host, but 70 minutes of shops chat, family home videos and the odd song about our comic's love life may leave you eyeing the exit Many is the standup …
Pitlochry Festival theatreA shapeless staging and knockabout jokes detract from the emotional heft of this tale of thwarted love You might be excited to know that this adaptation of the Jane…
They came to power promising 'a golden age for the arts'. Now, 12 disastrous culture secretaries later, they leave it in tatters. What a stunning missed opportunity to capitalise on an asset…
Our series on transformative theatrical discoveries continues with Lin-Manuel Miranda's musical, as remembered by the man who played Aaron Burr on its London premiere in 2017 My agent said: …
This two-part homage to dance greats Robert Cohan and Kenneth MacMillan captures the intimacy of live performance Here is a two-part documentary that pays homage to dance greats Robert Cohan…
A searching circus piece about refugees in limbo, acrobats confronting middle age and supreme silliness from a Tokyo troupe are among the international offerings Vibrancy, musicality and ath…
Anna Maxwell Martin excels as a good MP, while James Corden's ex-soldier shows he can be dark as well as funny A drama featuring a face-off between an MP and a constituent outraged by the fa…
Swan theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonStephen Kunken's Republican ringmaster narrates this account of the negotiation of the first international treaty on tackling climate change Key sections of …
Ustinov Studio, Bath This exquisitely formed dancework inspired by Greek myth explores desire and dysfunction The tiny Ustinov Studio at Bath's Theatre Royal has, under the direction of Debo…
A welcome glimpse of what is playing beyond Britain, this year's programme includes a deeply moving drama of migrant jeopardy and an intriguing Three Sisters The Venice Biennale is always as…
Actor will star in The Fear of 13, based on the true story of Nick Yarris, who was wrongly convicted of murder " as the Donmar Warehouse announces four new productions starring Celia Imrie, …
Comedians are increasingly leaning on audience interaction to sell their shows " and changing the nature of the shows themselves Crowd work. For some, it's the fun bit when standups cruise …
The good comedian mocks the powerful. And is there anything or anyone more powerful than God? I don't think so What subjects, if any, should be off limits for comedians? For Jimmy Carr, Ric…
The reopened Folger Shakespeare Library aims to bring a wider audience to the world's biggest collection of the Bard's printed works When Owen Dodson cast Earle Hyman as Hamlet in a producti…
Not every great work of art is an instant hit " just look at Stephen Sondheim's Tony-winning Merrily We Roll Along The triumph of Stephen Sondheim's Merrily We Roll Along in last weekend's T…
Hackney Empire, LondonThe east Londoner's show majors in blunt putdowns of anything the ebullient standup finds to be up-itself or overrated "I'm doing alright for myself, gang!" That's quit…
The Old Bailey, LondonItalian artist Bersani is 98cm tall and has the brittle bone condition osteogenesis imperfecta " every one of her movements is considered, deliberate and carefully slow…
Bush theatre, LondonAfter her father's death, Peace unexpectedly discovers the existence of a half-brother in Nigeria. Who is he? And why did her father never mention him? On the surface, Fa…
A two-year celebration of the centenary of James Joyce's Ulysses culminates in a women-led, cross-border, multidisciplinary festival dedicated to the novel's main female character On a green…
Shakespeare's Globe; Barbican, London The possibility of pleasure is everywhere in Sean Holmes's summer crowd-pleaser, while Adrian Dunbar tackles his first musical role in Cole Porter's tak…