UK / WEST END THEATER REVIEWS

LOVETRAIN2020 by Emanuel Gat started promisingly: atmospheric lighting, shafts of layered space and glimpses of new romantic courtiers bedecked in asymmetrical, louche garbs....

Ballet Black return to the Royal Opera House, Linbury Theatre with their double bill Pioneers. Then Or Now takes the poetry of American Feminist, Adrienne Rich and uses it as a foundation to discuss the current period of political and social change....

Directed by Luke Hereford, Leila Navabi: Composition is a musical comedy show in which Navabi talks and sings about the theme of identity and how it has played a role in her life, regardless of how much they try to avoid it. She is doing what she said she never wanted to do, all because of BBC Radio...

After seeing the Voloz Collective’s incredible production of The Man Who Thought He Knew Too Much at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival this past August, I was looking forward to seeing their second show, The Life Sporadic of Jess Wildgoose, which was playing at Pleasance London as a part of their “B...

With a machine affixed to her head, the scarcely-clad Tara Boom looks out across the audience before throwing popcorn cartons and - after having the contraption connected up to the mains - a flurry of actual popcorn. Welcome to the crazy world of La Clique....

It’s that time of year - and Liverpool’s Royal Court are back with their latest festive production, The Scouse Dick Whittington....

A solo show that knows what it’s doing, it’s no wonder Feeling Afraid went down so well at the Edinburgh Fringe. Dos Santos’ script takes us in and out of a stand-up set as The Comedian (Samuel Barnett) walks us through his dating mishaps, family relationships, career woes, and thoughts about...

The West End premiere of RADIO GAGA, The Ultimate Celebration of Queen, took place at the wondrous Adelphi Theatre on Tuesday 14 November 2023 for one night only. This show is the start of a tour that runs across the United Kingdom, over the next year from London to Edinburgh....

Christmas has taken over the Soho Theatre with Matt Rogers: Have You Heard of Christmas?. Walking into the theatre, you are greeted by a shining Christmas tree and a piano decorated with a garland. The show, a musical comedy, is the chance for Rogers, accompanied by pianist Eric Gersen, to sing song...

Drag Queens vs Vampires is a funny and fierce drag show that will have you clapping your hands along with Kate Butch and Crudi Dench, rooting for them in their fight to win Eurovision....

It seems unfathomable that a dance company has been based in London for 15 years and I've never seen their work before. However, such is the case with the Van Huynh Company who presented Re:birth (2022) at The Place on November 14. ...

“Everything in this show has been created with AI” - Well, that might not be exactly true. There is a lot of AI, but Darren Walsh: 3rd Rock From the Pun utilises Artificial Intelligence, but the majority of the jokes are created by Walsh himself. The “plot” of 3rd Rock From the Pun is that i...

The concept of owning a house. Hitler on a cocaine comedown. A masturbating walrus. These might sound like random topics, but they all have one thing in common - they each play a part in Paddy Young: Hungry, Horny, Scared....

As soon as you enter the theatre, you know that you’re in for something bizarre. Dead centre stage is a giant pair of legs, the limbs taking up most of the space on stage. Written and performed by Louis Rembges, the show takes us into the world of Host, a former social media influencer who has kid...

Since its five-track EP was released in 2020, much hype has surrounded new musical British Treason. Spawning concert versions at Cadogan Hall and the Theatre Royal Drury Lane starring West End heavyweights including Hadley Fraser, Rosalie Craig, Carrie Hope Fletcher and Bradley Jaden, Treason’s fi...

Nineteen Gardens is one of those layered pieces. Some will see a callous attempt at arbitrary retaliation, others will find an extremely detailed representation of English society. An excellent chance for discussion....

Paula Paz's unique staging of Lorca's brief but compelling play finds plenty in its text and invites the audience to find even more....

burbThe Royal Court was the first stage for Lucy Wade’s biting satire Posh, which focused on the lack of consequences of the poor and entitled behaviour of certain members of the upper classes. That was back in 2010 and it can be argued that amount of material to work with on the subject is even g...

300 years have passed since Jephtha, Handel’s Greek tragedy-infused oratorio, was heard at Covent Garden. Now a lustrous new production helmed by artistic director Oliver Mears begs the question: is it a lost classic? Or one to consign to the history books?...

There are plenty of Shakespeare books on the market already, it’s true – but there aren’t many out there quite like this one. Originally intended to be a series of conversations between Judi Dench and her friend & colleague Brendan O’Hea for the Globe’s archives, it became apparent that th...

A play about a play that never emerges, gives a platform that reveals potential, but does not go far enough in exploring the talents on stage...

Nouveau Riche and Jessica Hagan reunite after Queens of Sheba for a new comedy that explores the absurd pressures thrust upon women by society. A bad breakup and her family’s constant comparisons to her happily wedded younger sister push Ama to look into having a baby on her own. It’s nothing sh...

Up and down show about the annual cheese-chase in Gloucestershire as a metaphor for seizing control of one's destiny...

Generational inheritance is the central question beating at the heart of Dan Sareen’s cosy domestic drama Passing....

Riddled with cliched dialogue and unfunny gags, much of the play is spent watching a dysfunctional family bicker through meandering conversations with little structure or purpose....