UK Regional Theater Reviews: Best Shows & Critic Recommendations Page 52

BWW Reviews: CARTHAGE, Finborough Theatre, January 30 2014
by Adrian Bradley - February 01, 2014

Is someone born bad, or does society make them that way - Who's to blame? That's the big question underpinning CARTHAGE, which had its world premiere at the Finborough Theatre last night....

BWW Reviews: WEST SIDE STORY, Bristol Hippodrome, January 29 2014
by Kathryn Pintus - January 31, 2014

I will probably be thrown into the darkest depths of Musical Theatre Purgatory for saying this, but…West Side Story has never been a favourite of mine. However, bear with me. I vaguely remember watching the film in my early years of secondary school, and wasn't particularly enamoured by it, so it w...

BWW Reviews: PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT, Wolverhampton Grand, January 27 2014
by Jenny Antill - January 28, 2014

Having seen Priscilla Queen of the Desert in the West End a few years ago, I was very interested to see how the production had been adapted to tour. A technical tour de force; there have been mishaps aplenty along the way due to the bus automation issues and flying (or not-flying) divas in visiting ...

BWW Reviews: THE LIFE AND LOVES OF A NOBODY, Crucible Studio, Sheffield, January 22 2014
by Ruth Deller - January 24, 2014

Third Angel's latest production is a thoughtful presentation on what it means to have an 'ordinary' life, slightly marred by a clumsy ending....

BWW Reviews: THE GAY NAKED PLAY, Above the Stag, January 21 2014
by Adrian Bradley - January 22, 2014

Following the success of its annual panto, David Bell's Off-broadway farce THE GAY NAKED PLAY (also known as THE PLAY ABOUT THE NAKED GUY) continues the first season in Above The Stag's new Vauxhall home....

BWW Reviews: SHANG-A-LANG, King's Head Theatre, January 24 2014
by Gary Naylor - January 25, 2014

Just before she hit it big (Dancin' Queen big) with Mamma Mia! (the Rocky Horror Show de nos jours), Catherine Johnson wrote Shang-a-Lang (revived at the King's Head Theatre until 15 February). So is it the 'Ring-Ring' that foreshadows 'Waterloo'? Well, maybe....

BWW Reviews: THE WORLD GOES ROUND - THE SONGS OF KANDER AND EBB, Union Theatre, January 17 2014
by Gary Naylor - January 18, 2014

There are - and you're going to have to believe me on this one - people who don't like musical theatre. They cite the preposterous plots, the sentimental manipulation, the overwhelming spectacle - and the ineluctable fact that people insist on bursting into song....

BWW Reviews: BLINK, Crucible Studio, Sheffield, January 14 2014
by Ruth Deller - January 16, 2014

Phil Porter's one-act, two-handed play Blink earned a number of warm reviews in its 2012 runs in Soho and Edinburgh, and is now on tour throughout the UK in March. The play tells the unconventional story of Jonah (Thomas Pickles) and Sophie (Lizzy Watts) whose lives have a number of significant para...

BWW Reviews: OTHELLO, Riverside Studios, January 16 2014
by Gary Naylor - January 18, 2014

Though not among Shakespeare's more gory tragedies (competition is pretty fierce after all), Othello is surely his most brutal, a slow motion car crash, in which love and trust go up against cynicism and venality - and lose....

BWW Reviews: DON QUIJOTE, Camden People's Theatre, January 7 2014
by Gary Naylor - January 16, 2014

It is (natch) quixotic to stage a version of the mighty chronicle of the unhinged Spanish knight in a North London basement, but what's life (especially theatre) for if not such dreams?...

BWW Reviews: SEVEN BRIDES FOR SEVEN BROTHERS, Bristol Hippodrome, January 14 2014
by Kathryn Pintus - January 15, 2014

If the January blues are getting you down, I can suggest no better cure than to do-si-do on down to the Bristol Hippodrome this week for a thigh-slapping evening of musical mayhem with Seven Brides for Seven Brothers. A show packed full of raucous dance numbers, rugged sets (and men!) and downright ...

BWW Reviews: LOST BOY, Finborough Theatre, January 2 2014
by Gary Naylor - January 03, 2014

Gary Naylor sees a salute to lost innocence, one hundred years on....

BWW Reviews: PRIDE AND PREJUDICE: THE PANTO, The Cockpit Theatre, December 16 2013
by Alice Chappell - December 27, 2013

So it turns out that the remedy to the hideous tradition of pantomime is Jane Austen. While Austen's characteristically subtle repartee was replaced with camp, raucous humour, there was a sense of ironic wit throughout - and some universally understood 'in' jokes for any lit geek to revel in....

BWW Reviews: CORIOLANUS, The Donmar Warehouse, December 18 2013
by Alice Chappell - December 27, 2013

One of Shakespeare's lesser performed plays, Coriolanus has exploded into one of the most hyped-up events the Donmar Warehouse has seen this year. Director Josie Rourke's production is visceral and modern from the off, cleverly making what could be an abstract political plotline something to get ang...

BWW Reviews: OLIVER! Crucible, Sheffield, December 16 2013
by Ruth Deller - December 17, 2013

The Christmas musical is fast becoming one of the highlights of Sheffield Theatres' programme. Last year's My Fair Lady was a sell-out crowd-pleaser that earned a range of plaudits. So how does Sheffield Crucible's production of Oliver! compare?...

BWW Reviews: PETER PAN GOES WRONG, Pleasance Theatre, December 13 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 14, 2013

Gary Naylor sees another madcap laugh-a-minute disaster....

BWW Reviews: CINDERELLA, Bristol Hippodrome, December 10 2013
by Kathryn Pintus - December 14, 2013

Fun, festive frolics abound in the Bristol Hippodrome's production of Cinderella! A sparkly curtain sets the tone for the upbeat evening ahead, which is full of colour, sparkle and flair (and some blindingly pink tights!)....

BWW Reviews: ALADDIN, New Wimbledon Theatre, December 9 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 11, 2013

Gary Naylor sees a traditional Wimbledon panto blockbuster....

BWW Reviews: CHICAGO, Curve Theatre Leicester, December 4 2013
by Jenny Antill - December 05, 2013

Last night marked five years to the day since Her Majesty The Queen opened the Curve Theatre in Leicester. To celebrate this, the wonderful team at the theatre put on a showbiz evening to remember....

BWW Reviews: BUTTONS ANOTHER CINDERELLA STORY, Rosemary Branch Theatre, December 10 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 11, 2013

Gary Naylor sees another Christmas Show triumph from the Charles Court Opera Company....

BWW Reviews: DIE FLEDERMAUS, King's Head Theatre, December 11 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 12, 2013

Gary Naylor sees another opera done Opera-Up-Close style....

BWW Reviews: SEASON'S GREETINGS, Union Theatre, December 5 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 06, 2013

Gary Naylor enjoys a revival of an Ayckbourn Christmas play rather more than he did the first time he saw it....

BWW Reviews: THE SNOW GORILLA, Rose Theatre, December 2 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 03, 2013

Gary Naylor sees a show long on entertainment if a little short on plot...

BWW Reviews: PUSS IN BOOTS, Greenwich Theatre, December 1 2013
by Gary Naylor - December 02, 2013

Gary Naylor sees another traditional panto at one of London's great panto theatres....

BWW Reviews: THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, Chickenshed Theatre, November 29 2013
by Gary Naylor - November 30, 2013

Chickenshed prepare to celebrate 40 years with a revival of an old favourite....