I will call Phil Nichol tomorrow at noon. I was meant to call Phil Nichol today at noon, but I got stuck in a meeting about which shade of green is the best (subjective, no?) and we have to reschedule. Which is fine - he tells me, when we do...
When the weather reaches over 30 degrees, all plays should have to incorporate an air conditioning unit into their set by law. Fortunately, HIR has come prepared, and sitting in the auditorium of the Bush Theatre is a sweet, blessed relief after the persistent heat wave raging outside. In the...
Reviewing theatre in the summer is a fool’s game. Unless you’re in Edinburgh, or anywhere outside with your head in a bucket of Pimms, you’re an idiot. The notable exception this year is These Trees Are Made of Blood, a cabaret set in Argentina currently showing at the Arcola Theatre;...
Stories about grief always feel unbearably pertinent to those who have lost. And those who have lost often feel an unbearable urge to document their grief. Those who are left behind can find themselves in a catch 22 of sadness. My own story is for another time, but as I...
If the era of the grand dame is over, Liza Pulman has not got the memo. She has a lovely voice, a genuine smile, and the kind of sparkly eyes men of a certain age go totally dippy for. Throw in two dramatic gowns, a neck full of diamonds and...
Anarchy! Chaos! Confusion, sex, and booze. Dancing, singing, shouting, swearing, drinking. Subterfuge! Brawls! Danger, and iambic pentameter. I'm either talking about the original Globe Theatre or Shit-faced Shakespeare, and the two are arguably interchangeable; I doubt you'll see a more historically accurate rendition of Elizabethan theatre without a time machine....
I am familiar with Kings Cross in the era circa 2011 to present. It’s the station I use to visit my parents, and I actually like them so I've been there a lot. I used to swim at the Kings Cross Pond Club too, and I made an appreciative "oooh!"...
“Go fuck yourself” Sven Ratzke says, kindly. Ratzke has cleverly managed to be both Dutch and German, and therefore merrily walks the line of being very easy to chat to whilst taking absolutely no nonsense from anyone at any time. Ratzke has been touring the world as the creator and...
The one thing I was not expecting from a play about a woman and a child imprisoned in a shed was that it would actually be a musical. For anyone with their head in a bucket, the play Room is the same room as the film Room, which was the...