3,495 stories from The Arts Desk
★★★★ THE B*EASTS, BUSH THEATRE Monica Dolan is almost flawless in monologue about women's bodiesHectic monologue from smoking, drinking, fast-talking psychotherapist …
Hectic monologue from smoking, drinking, fast-talking psychotherapist about women's bodiesLila had breast implants at the age of eight. Karen, her mother, is required to take psychother…
★★★★ ANGRY, SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE Six monologues about extreme emotions offer trips to outer space and dystopiaSix monologues about extreme emotions offer trips to oute…
Six monologues about extreme emotions offer trips to outer space and dystopiaMonologues are very much the flavour of the start of this theatrical year. At the Royal Court, we have Carey Mull…
★★★★★ GIRLS & BOYS, ROYAL COURT Carey Mulligan is stunningly brilliantDennis Kelly's remarkable new monologue is a terrific experienceThis is Carey Mul…
Dennis Kelly's remarkable new monologue is a terrific experienceThis is Carey Mulligan week. She appears, improbably enough, as a hard-nosed cop in David Hare's BBC thriller Collateral, as w…
'THESE STAR-CROSSED LOVERS ARE SO YOUNG' Bryony Lavery on adapting 'Brighton Rock'How to turn Graham Greene's novel into a play: the playwright Bryony Lavery explainsI never have the id…
How to turn Graham Greene's novel into a play: the playwright Bryony Lavery explainsI never have the idea of adapting anything at all myself. The suggestions always come from directors …
★★★★★ THE YORK REALIST, DONMAR WAREHOUSE Pitch-perfect Peter Gill revival surpasses its originalPitch-perfect Peter Gill revival surpasses its original Pet…
Pitch-perfect Peter Gill revival surpasses its original Peter Gill has been a quiet if invaluable mainstay of the Donmar over time. But the Welsh playwright-director has rarely been better s…
THE BEST MUSICALS IN LONDON From His Bobness to Jamie, we recommend the top showsWe recommend the top shows in musical theatreAladdin, Prince Edward Theatre ★★★ Disney's…
'WHY WE UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER': Peter Gill on 'The York Realist'The playwright-director reflects on his 2001 play, revived at the Donmar and Sheffield CrucibleFingers on buzzers… Question:…
The playwright-director reflects on his 1999 play, revived at the Donmar and Sheffield CrucibleFingers on buzzers… Question: What's the connection between Days of Wine and Roses, Small Cha…
★★★★ ALL OR NOTHING: THE MOD MUSICAL, ARTS THEATRE Tribute to the brief but brilliant career of the Small FacesTribute to the short but brilliant career of the Small …
Tribute to the short but brilliant career of the Small FacesIf the Small Faces weren't quite The Beatles or the Stones, they were one of the classic British bands of their era, and their rec…
★★ THE DIVIDE, OLD VIC Alan Ayckbourn's overblown dystopiaEpic, very long satire on religion and sexual segregation prefers comedy to tragedyPlaywright Alan Ayckbourn basically c…
Epic, very long satire on religion and sexual segregation prefers comedy to tragedyPlaywright Alan Ayckbourn basically comes in two flavours: suburban comedies of embarrassment and sci-fi fa…
New misery fest about rural life is symbolic, but lacks drama and resonanceFirst the goats, and now the sheep " has this venue become an urban farm? Rural life, which was once so central to …
New misery fest about rural life is symbolic, but lacks drama and resonanceFirst the goats, and now the sheep " has this venue become an urban farm? Rural life, which was once so central to …
★★★★ LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT, WYNDHAM'S THEATRE A fine staging of O'Neill's family tragedy crowned by an indelible performance from Lesley ManvilleA fine stagin…
A fine staging of O'Neill's family tragedy crowned by an indelible performanceEugene O'Neill's 1945 play Long Day's Journey Into Night is famously a portrayal of the hellish damage…
★★★★ COLLECTIVE RAGE, SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE Absurd romp through love, lust, and friendship is a knock-outAbsurd romp through love, lust, and friendship is a knock-out"P…
Absurd romp through love, lust, and friendship is a knock-out"Pussy is pussy" and "bitches are bitches" but Jen Silverman's Collective Rage at Southwark Playhouse smashes tautology with rogu…
100 YEARS ON... LISTED: SUFFRAGETTES PORTRAYED How have the pioneering days of women's emancipation fared in works of art?From theartsdesk archive: How have the pioneering days of women'…
PAINES PLOUGH ROUNDABOUT, ORANGE TREE THEATRE Too brief to really rockThree-piece repertory is well staged, but the short-play formula doesn't really workHype is a dangerous thing. It often …
