Category Theatre

Theatre Review: BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS – The Lowry, Salford

Dianne Pikington (Miss Eglantine Price) Bedknobs & Broomsticks. Photo Credit: Johan Persson

Dianne Pikington in BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS. Photo Credit: Johan Persson

From set and costume design to choreography and stage trickery, BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS leaves you seriously questioning the existence of magic.

4 out of 5 stars

Another Disney film to become a stage production, BEDKNOBS AND BROOMSTICKS, flies into Salford’s The Lowry this week, but who needs movie magic when you’ve got the magic of theatre?

The brand-new musical takes audiences on a journey of wonder through magical lands, past perilous...

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Theatre Review: AS YOU LIKE IT – The Lowry, Salford

Despite its heavy dialogue, Northern Broadsides deliver an interesting interpretation of Shakespeare’s AS YOU LIKE IT with gender subversion at its heart.

3 out of 5 stars

2022 sees 30 years since the formation of the Northern Broadsides theatre company and their first foray in Shakespeare. To celebrate, they have chosen, in collaboration with the New Vic Theatre Company, a new staging of a very old play – AS YOU LIKE IT – taking the idea contained of cross dressing and crossing gender and expanding it.

The pl...

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Theatre Review: FOOTLOOSE – Opera House, Manchester

The cast of FOOTLOOSE UK Tour 2022. Photo Credit: Mark Senior

The cast of FOOTLOOSE UK Tour 2022. Photo Credit: Mark Senior

Colourful, high-energy and driven by a strong cast performance, FOOTLOOSE successfully transports the audience back to the 1980s.

4 out of 5 stars

80s fever is back in Manchester, as smash-hit musical FOOTLOOSE comes to town. The colourful, high-energy show has the audience dancing in the aisles to hits such as HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO, LET’S HEAR IT FOR THE BOY and, of course, FOOTLOOSE.

Based on the 1987 cult film starring Kevin Bacon, FOOTLOOSE fo...

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Theatre Review: FATAL ATTRACTION – Opera House, Manchester

Oliver Farnworth and Kym Marsh in FATAL ATTRACTION. Photograph: Tristram Kenton

Despite its strong cast performance, FATAL ATTRACTION doesn’t quite match the suspense, thrill, or energy of the original film.

3 out of 5 stars

It is 35 years since FATAL ATTRACTION first graced UK cinema screens. The erotic psychological thriller created somewhat of a controversy at the time of its release but became a huge box office success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1987 worldwide...

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Theatre Review: PRIVATE LIVES – The Lowry, Salford

Patricia Hodge (Amanda) and Nigel Havers (Elyot) in Private Lives

Patricia Hodge and Nigel Havers in PRIVATE LIVES. Photo: Tristram Kenton 

Glamorous, witty, and fast-paced, Nigel Havers’ new production of Noel Coward’s PRIVATE LIVES is as bubbling as a glass of champagne.

4 out of 5 stars

In the 90 years since Noel Coward wrote PRIVATE LIVES, society has changed, yet the basics of love, marriage and human nature still ring true, as demonstrated in this new production by Nigel Havers’ new theatre company.

Havers and Patricia Hodge square up as the warring ex-couple Ely...

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Theatre Review: Blood Brothers – Palace Theatre, Manchester

Niki Evans (Mrs Johnstone) & the cast of Blood Brothers- Blood Brothers UK 2022 Tour- Photo by Jack Merriman

Niki Evans & the cast of BLOOD BROTHERS UK 2022 Tour. Photo: Jack Merriman

Despite showing its age in parts, Willy Russell’s BLOOD BROTHERS is still capable of capturing the hearts of a modern audience.

4 out of 5 stars

Few musicals have received such acclaim as Willy Russell’s BLOOD BROTHERS. The multi-award-winning production ran for more than 27 years in London’s West End, surpassing over 10,000 performances to become the third longest-running musical production in West End history...

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Theatre Review: BLUEBELLE – The Lowry, Salford

The cast of BLUEBELLE

The cast of BLUEBELLE UK Tour. Photo Credit: Chris Nash

Intimate, contemporary and haunting at times, BLUEBELLE is an imaginative piece of visual storytelling that draws you in with all your senses.

4 out of 5 stars

BLUEBELLE is a folklore-inspired production from leading visual theatre company, Theatre Re. The non-verbal production was developed in collaboration with deaf and Visual Vernacular artists to create a powerful, visual story accessible to d/Deaf audiences without the need for BSL interpretation.

The...

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Theatre Review: THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES – The Lowry, Salford

Jake Ferretti & Niall Ransome in The Hound of the Baskervilles.

Jake Ferretti & Niall Ransome in THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES. Photo: Pamela Raith

Fun, fast-paced and farcical, THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES is a three-handed masterclass in the art of comedic storytelling

4 out of 5 stars

It is 120 years since THE HOUND OF THE BASKERVILLES first seeped into the public consciousness like the fog on Dartmoor. The original serialisation in The Strand magazine is arguably one of the most famous detective stories of all time...

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Theatre Review: THE PLAY WHAT I WROTE – The Lowry, Salford

Thom Tuck and Dennis Herdman in The Play What I Wrote.

Thom Tuck and Dennis Herdman in THE PLAY WHAT I WROTE. Photo: Manuel Harlan

Fast-paced, nostalgic and packed full of laughs, THE PLAY THAT I WROTE is a loving celebration of good old-fashioned comedy.

4 out of 5 stars

When THE PLAY WHAT I WROTE first hit the stage 20 years ago, it became a hit on both sides of the Atlantic. Paying homage to the legendary comedy duo Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise, the play was nominated for four Olivier Awards, winning Best Comedy and Best Supporting Actor for Toby Jones...

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Jay Osmond Talks THE OSMONDS: A NEW MUSICAL

Vicky Edwards talks to Jay Osmond about his life, career and the world premiere of THE OSMONDS: A NEW MUSICAL

They say you should never meet your heroes, but seriously? I mean, asking a 70s kid to interview an ACTUAL Osmond? The guy who sang Crazy Horses? WILD horses wouldn’t have stopped me.

Any fears about heroes having feet of clay prove unfounded. Jay Osmond is lovely...

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