Category Theatre Reviews

Adam Jackson Smith and Samantha Womack in THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN. Photo Credit: Manuel Harlan

Despite its slow start, THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN successfully transfers from page to stage thanks to a powerful and convincing performance from Samantha Womack

When British author Paula Hawkins released her debut novel THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN back in 2015 it took the world by storm, selling an estimated 20 million copies worldwide and resulting in a major film starring Emily Blunt...

GLENGARRY GLEN ROSS is an acute, revealing piece but Sam Yates’ touring production doesn’t quite close the deal as successfully as it should

It’s fair to say that the salesman has become almost an archetypal figure in America, embodying the American dream and taking a central role in works of art and literature such as in Arthur Miller’s DEATH OF A SALESMAN...

With its spellbinding transformations, wild waltzes and visually striking set, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s dark and haunting rendition of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST is wonderfully magical

The story of BEAUTY AND THE BEAST may be a tale as old as time but Birmingham Royal Ballet’s rendition of this classic fairy tale is certainly a lot darker than the enchanting tale we all remember.

Based on the French fairy tale of the same name, BEAUTY AND BEAST tells the story of a cruel Prince cursed to spend...

The cast of Opera North’s Katya Kabanova. Photo Credit: Jane Hobson

Performed entirely in English with subtitles on stage, Opera North’s Katya Kabanova offers a short and sweet introduction into the world of opera

Layering class, duty and passion, Opera North’s Katya Kabanova plunges audiences into her turbulent love life with an intense operatic performance.

Trapped in a small town, a loveless marriage and under the watchful eye of her overbearing mother in-law, Katya unmasks her repressive s...

The cast of RAGS at Hope Mill Theatre. Photo Credit: Nathan Chandler

With great performances, a poignant story and a stunning score, Hope Mill Theatre breathe new life into underrated musical RAGS

Just ahead of the highly anticipated opening of it’s Hope Aria Academy, Hope Mill Theatre presents it’s eleventh in house musical, RAGS.

This show has somewhat of a troubled past, first opening in 1986 and closing after just four performances. It has since been revised multiple times...

The Four Tops in MOTOWN THE MUSICAL. Photo Credit: Tristram Kenton

With its goldmine of hits, MOTOWN THE MUSICAL is a feel-good show about this iconic period in music and popular culture history

Mention the word Motown and you’re more likely to think of the US city of Detroit, not the UK city of Manchester. Yet this humble Northern city has more links to the iconic record label than you may think as MOTOWN THE MUSICAL aptly demonstrates.

Based on the autobiography by Berry Gordy Jr...

The cast of LES MISERABLES with ‘The Barricade’. Photo Credit: Matthew Murphy 

From the innovative new staging to its magnificent cast, every inch of this touring production of LES MISÉRABLES will take your breath away

It’s been almost a decade since Cameron Mackintosh’s acclaimed production of LES MISÉRABLES last toured the UK but if the press night at Manchester’s Palace Theatre is anything to go by, it was well worth the wait.

Boubil and Schonberg’s musical tale of redemption and r...

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...

With its zany characters, slapstick comedy and clever, catchy songs, BILLIONAIRE BOY has everything a young child might want from a musical

David Walliams’ impressive library of children’s books have fast become modern British classics, especially with the annual BBC Christmas special adaptations putting them on the map. GANGSTA GRANNY was the first to grace the stage last year, with the play touring the UK, but BILLIONAIRE BOY is the first to get the musical treatment...

The cast of ANNIE UK Tour. Photo: Paul Coltas

Nikolai Foster’s touring production of ANNIE certainly looks and sounds the part but the 40-year-old story is beginning to show its age

Forget the adults, it’s the kids who rule theatre at the moment. From Dennis Kelly and Tim Minchin’s MATILDA THE MUSICAL to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s SCHOOL OF ROCK, the array of young talent gracing the stage in 2019 is certainly impressive as Nikolai Foster’s touring revival of ANNIE clearly demonstrates.

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