Whether his plays were performed on a whaling ship, up a redwood tree or by a burlesque dancer, the pioneers had a particular fondness for the BardIn May 1831, the French political thinker A…
They looked the picture of innocence. But behind the scenes of The Wizard of Oz, the actors playing the munchkins were said to be indulging in drunken orgies. Now Irvine Welsh has turned the…
Curve, LeicesterLucie Jones brings a winning energy to the tale of a sorority girl who goes to Harvard, but 15 years haven't been kind to the show's skin-deep central messageLikable, but nev…
Arnold Wesker was not only a talented playwright but also a surprisingly versatile performer. When a student, I wrote to him to ask, rather cheekily, for money for our new women's theatre co…
Revivals from Arnold Wesker's heyday prove the enduring quality of his work, where autobiographical detail went hand in hand with experimental stagecraftCelebrated playwrights often seem to …
Lyttelton, LondonSuhayla El-Bushra brings Nikolai Erdman's 1928 social comedy into the modern day, but leaves its eccentricity and subversion behindThe National Theatre these days seems susp…
From the sound of his own crying to superlative superhero spoofs, the comedian and presenter reveals the things that make him laugh the mostI think that the brilliant Gary Delaney has loads …
Right Now | People, Places And Things | Kings Of War | Ma Rainey's Black Bottom | The Shepherd's Life A young couple, Ben and Alice, move into a new apartment. The neighbours pop over. Then …
BalletBoyz - Life | Scottish Ballet: Swan Lake | The Rebel Man Standard The always inventive, always entertaining male company explores the tension between life and death in a double bill, c…
With a sexually confused Putin and a Bond villain Blair, Corbyn the Musical has some pretty broad caricatures " but it's even-handed in its politics. And it's not the first musical to take o…
Udderbelly, LondonThe British ventriloquist and America's Got Talent winner is a virtuosic voice-thrower but his material isn't up to the same standardVentriloquist Paul Zerdin was a modestl…
Every Friday we apply critical attention to things that don't normally get it. This is an important function that might hold civilisation together. Or, more likely, not. Drop your suggestion…
The entrance hall to Brunel's 19th-century tunnel under the Thames has been turned into a unique auditorium, complete with the rumble of Tube trainsThe engineers Marc and his son Isambard Ki…
Plays such as Boy, Re:Home and Yen serve up downtrodden lives for wealthy audiences " and can verge on cultural tourism. But presented carefully, they're essential reminders of the brutal in…
A new production of Brideshead Revisited will signal the relaunch of one of the UK's oldest theatres, after the discovery of medieval remains forced its closureThe Theatre Royal in York, whi…
Manhattan Theatre ClubWith elements of a thriller and absurdist comedy, the play takes us into the experience of a man losing his grip " though some very English slang ranklesAndré (Frank L…
Print Room at the Coronet, London Two prisoners and a condemned man vie for dominion of their cell in a well-executed production leavened by fantasy sequencesThis is Jean Genet's first play,…
The Vaults, LondonThis lazy, unimaginative stage version of RL Stine's creepy children's stories relies on cheap effects and barely qualifies as theatre, let alone horrorThe title lies. This…
Sadler's Wells, LondonA programme of three ballets by three women choreographers is a campaigning first. The results are far from traditional " and far from consistentEnglish National Ballet…
From Alan Cumming performing a solo Macbeth, to shows in pubs, airports and cars, the National Theatre of Scotland has produced some of the UK's most daring work. As they turn 10, we pick 10…
The star of The Office has turned plenty of people off with his boorish public image, and even more with his non-PC standup. But his best-loved character still has much to offerSo Ricky Gerv…
Gielgud theatre, LondonHair is more than just a musical: it is a social and cultural phenomenon, a jubilant assertion of life and freedom and a cry of protest against politicians who, in the…
Luther star said he doesn't know if he has 'got the chops to sing', but would nevertheless like to explore stageActor Idris Elba has revealed a surprising project on his wish list: doing a m…
Our play about the radicalisation of young Muslims was pulled. But the National Theatre's is going ahead " with no censorship or police intervention. Why can't Muslims tell their own stories…
With celebrations in full cry for Samuel Beckett's centenary, Michael Hall offers beginners some ways in to what can seem obscure and bleak territoryAccording to one character in Endgame, "N…