ajhlovestheatre

THE CHOIR OF MAN Created by Nic Doodson and Andrew Kay Directed by Nic Doodson Arts Theatre https://www.choirofmanwestend.com/ They’re back, those big burly men who sing like angels while dispensing free beer….yes, The Choir of Man has returned to town and it’s just the tonic that we need in these grim times. The term “crowd […]

THE BAND’S VISIT Music and Lyrics by David Yazbek Book by Itamar Moses Based on the screenplay by Elran Kolrin Directed by Michael Longhurst Donmar Warehouse – until 3 December 2022 https://booking.donmarwarehouse.com/events/5801ANBQVBLJQKVGKMVQVKJKLJQMKBTVN?_ga=2.51218858.288472771.1665651419-1175656577.1665651419 Extraordinary what a difference venue size can make. When I saw this highly unconventional Best Musical Tony winner in a 1000+ seat Broadway […]

ONLY AN OCTAVE APART Justin Vivian Bond and Anthony Roth Costanzo Co-created and directed by Zack Winokur Wilton’s Music Hall – until 22 October https://www.wiltons.org.uk/whatson/753-only-an-octave-apart That old adage about madness and genius being closely aligned has seldom been better demonstrated, at least in the theatre, than by this beauteous bitchslap of a show, already an […]

EUREKA DAY by Jonathan Spector Directed by Katy Rudd The Old Vic – until 31 October 2022 https://www.oldvictheatre.com/stage/event/eureka-day The scene that closes act one of Eureka Day is probably the funniest couple of minutes on any current London stage. Throughout it, the actors, playing school board members in a meeting live-streamed to dozens of concerned […]

BRIGHT HALF LIFE by Tanya Barfield Directed by Steven Kunis King’s Head Theatre – until 1 October 2022 https://kingsheadtheatre.com/whats-on/bright-half-life Watching Tanya Barfield’s bittersweet two hander, receiving it’s UK premiere here following an off-Broadway run and a couple of American regional productions, it reminded me that last year’s critically lauded West End revival of Nick Payne’s […]

I, JOAN by Charlie Josephine Directed by Ilinca Radulian Shakespeare’s Globe – until 22 October 2022 https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/joan-2022/#book As professional debuts go, Isobel Thom’s central role in Charlie Josephine’s rambunctious, surprising distillation of the fabled life of the Maid of Orléans for Shakespeare’s Globe, takes some beating. Thom gives a beguiling, persuasive performance that humanises Joan […]

THE P WORD by Waleed Akhtar Directed by Anthony Simpson-Pike Bush Theatre – until 29 October 2022 https://www.bushtheatre.co.uk/event/the-p-word-2022/ Here’s something you don’t get to experience too often: a gritty piece of contemporary writing that gives theatrical voice to people largely unrepresented on stage, and does so with compassion and comedy; a new play that is […]

DISTINGUISHED VILLA by Kate O’Brien Directed by Hugh Fraser Finborough Theatre – until 1 October 2022 https://finboroughtheatre.co.uk/production/distinguished-villa/ The Finborough has a rich and noble history of rediscovering lost dramatic gems, alongside their programme of new work (this year’s Bacon and Pennyroyal remain two of my favourite new plays since theatres re-opened post-pandemic), and Kate O’Brien’s […]

This being the first full summer post-shutdown when theatre on both sides of the Atlantic is back to something approaching normality, it’s interesting to look, from a UK perspective, at a couple of the New York musicals that we can hope to be hitting the London stage before too long. A small caveat to begin […]

INTO THE WOODS Music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim Book by James Lapine Directed by Terry Gilliam and Leah Hausman Theatre Royal Bath – until 10 September 2022 https://www.theatreroyal.org.uk/event/into-the-woods/ Following the death last year of inarguably the greatest musical theatre artist of his generation, Stephen Sondheim, Into The Woods seems to be cropping up with […]