Blog Archives

The cast of Matthew Bourne’s ROMEO AND JULIET. Photo Credit: Johan Persson

Effectively playing with light and shadow, Matthew Bourne’s ROMEO AND JULIET is a passionate and contemporary re-imagining of Shakespeare’s classic love story

Sir Matthew Bourne’s ROMEO AND JULIET is an interesting reimagining of the bard’s iconic love story. Set in an institute, the staging portrays somewhat of an asylum with its Victorian tiled white walls and bright lights...

Simeon Truby, Linford Jonhson, Robert Wade & Matt Rixon in MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. © Nobby Clark

Northern Broadsides’ MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING is a parade of good humour, joy, deceit and forgiveness wrapped up in a Britain facing war

This Northern Broadsides production is Conrad Nelson’s last directorial role for the company, and he has done well to bring out the comedy and the tragedy of Shakespeare’s play, by interspersing 1940s world war songs and dances with the complex language of Shakespe...

Rowdy and raucous, THE FULL MONTY is the ultimate crowd pleaser and a hilarious adaption of the hit 1997 film

First performed in 2013, the stage production of THE FULL MONTY is an adapted version of the 1997 film about a group of unemployed men who decide to become strippers for a night to raise money. The film was a major success upon release, becoming the highest earning film in the UK until it was outsold by TITANIC.

David Pugh & Dafydd Rogers’s presentation of the Sheffield Theatres produc...

The cast of TITANIC THE MUSICAL. Photo by Scott Rylander

Five-time Tony award-winning TITANIC THE MUSICAL heads to Salford’s The Lowry as part of its first ever UK & Ireland tour

With Adele throwing a Titanic-themed 30th birthday this week, Maury Yeston’s musical about the ill-fated maiden voyage of RMS Titanic makes a timely appearance at Salford’s The Lowry this week. But does TITANIC THE MUSICAL sink or sail? 

Based on the real stories of passengers aboard the ill-fated ship, TITANIC THE MU...

When you visit the theatre to see a show you have booked it can still be a bit daunting. Perhaps you’ve seen the play performed by a different troupe. What if it doesn’t live up to that performance? What if it’s no good and you’ve paid a lot of money for your ticket? And that’s a show you know your going to watch. You know roughly what the performance is going to be about.

Now attend the theatre and not have a clue about what you will see…but this time you haven’t paid for the ticket...

Nichola McAuliffe and Jeffrey Holland in WAITING FOR GOD. Photo: Geraint Lewis

WAITING FOR GOD gracefully transitions from screen to stage

Ending its UK tour at Salford’s The Lowry, WAITING FOR GOD brings comedy and poignancy to an audience that lives knowing that old age is the path ahead. But how you tackle it is up to you. Your only as old as you feel and if that’s still 23, then a joy ride to Bournemouth in your Niece’s Porsche is just what the doctor orders.

Originally seen on our TV screen...

Faith Omole (Viola) in RET Twelfth Night. Photo Credit: Jonathan Keenan

TWELFTH NIGHT is one of the best Shakespeare adaptations seen at the Royal Exchange in a long time

Funny, beautifully staged and well performed, Jo Davies’ adaption of Shakespeare’s TWELFTH NIGHT is a must-see piece at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre this spring.

Written by William Shakespeare in 1601/02 as a twelfth night’s entertainment for the close of the Christmas season, this 400 year old play is a comedy dis...

Tim Delap (Rochester) and Nadia Clifford (Jane Eyre) in JANE EYRE. Photo: Brinkhoff/Mögenburg

Beautifully acted and thought-provoking, JANE EYRE opens its UK tour at The Lowry

2017 marks the 170th anniversary of the first publication of Charlotte Brontë’s classic novel JANE EYRE and it in a fitting tribute, the highly acclaimed co-production between the National Theatre and Bristol Old Vic opens its UK tour at Salford’s The Lowry. 

Originally presented as a two part performance at the Brist...

David Grieg’s reinterpretation of THE SUPPLIANT WOMEN fails to live up to the power and passion of Aeschylus’ 2500 year old play

Based on Aeschylus’ 2500 year old play and made new by David Grieg, THE SUPPLIANT WOMEN is a short choral movement in three acts. It tells the tale of 50 women who arrive in Argos, the land of their ancestral Gods, seeking refuge from forced marriage with their Egyptian cousins and the perils of their exile. 

To open proceedings, the cast hark back to the days of...

BAT OUT OF HELL THE MUSICAL is a revved up and racy Romeo and Juliet story that appeals to not just Meat Loaf fans but musical and theatre lovers alike

Jim Steinman’s rock and roll theatrical fantasy BAT OUT OF HELL THE MUSICAL – the inspiration for one of the most iconic albums in history – has burst onto the stage of Manchester Opera House and will hit the London Coliseum later in 2017.

Set in an apocalyptic future where the young mutate and will be forever young, is a father struggling to k...