Category Theatre Reviews

Sarah Ingram and the cast of THE WITCHES.  Image Credit: Catherine Ashmore

Playful, inventive and deliciously disgusting, THE WITCHES brings Roald Dahl’s iconic book to life

Roald Dahl’s award-winning novel THE WITCHES is brought to life in a tremendous new stage production directed by Nikolai Foster.

Originally published in 1983, THE WITCHES tells the story of a young boy who is sent to live with his Grandmother after his parents are killed in a horrific car crash...

Bold, original and innovative, WHAT’S DONE, IS DONE is a thought-provoking piece of theatre by CAN Young Artists

Community Arts North West (CAN) presented their first production WHAT’S DONE, IS DONE at Manchester’s HOME venue yesterday as part of the World Stages Festival.

WHAT’S DONE, IS DONE tells the story of Trish, an outsider who is fed up of watching all her schoolmates having fun from her bedroom window...

Barry Rutter and Becky Hindley in Northern Broadsides’ THE MERRY WIVES. Image Credit: Nobby Clark ©

Lively, inventive and wickedly funny, Northern Broadsides’ production of THE MERRY WIVES is a full-on farce that’s sure to entertain

THE MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR may not have been one of Shakespeare’s favourite plays but it certainly appears to be one of Barry Rutter’s...

Warm, funny and moving, Our Gracie is a touching musical tribute to Rochdale’s finest export

37 years after her death, Dame Gracie Fields’ extraordinary life story is brought to life in a brand-new stage production written for Oldham Coliseum and New Vic Theatre.

The former mill girl from Rochdale rose to international fame in 1931 with Sally In Our Alley, the film which featured her signature tune for the next 40 years, Sally...

Joseph Caley as Romeo and Momoko Hirata as Juliet in BRB’s ROMEO & JULIET. Image Credit: Andrew Ross

Passionate, emotional and breathtaking, Birmingham Royal Ballet’s adaptation of ROMEO AND JULIET is simply spectacular

Birmingham Royal Ballet’s 2016 Shakespeare season looks amazing. The world-class ballet company is performing seven ballets at 10 venues across the UK as part of the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death...

Intense, gritty and powerful, Ann Marie Duff and Louise Brealey shine in HUSBANDS & SONS

Marianne Elliott makes a welcome return to the Royal Exchange with HUSBANDS & SONS, a major co-production with the National Theatre starring Anne-Marie Duff and Joe Armstrong.

Adapted for stage by the National Theatre’s Associate Director Ben Power, HUSBANDS & SONS interweaves three singular D H Lawrence plays (A COLLIER’S FRIDAY NIGHT, THE WIDOWING OF MRS HOLROYD and THE DAUGHTER IN LAW) into one standalon...

CHIP SHOP CHIPS is a funny and warm-hearted play which will leave you with a full belly and a smile on your face

Seven years after her collaboration with Box of Tricks on LETTING IN AIR (2009), acclaimed playwright Becky Prestwich makes a welcome return to the stage with her new play CHIP SHOP CHIPS.

Set during the grand reopening of Booth’s Fish & Chip Shop, CHIP SHOP CHIPS is a funny and nostalgic tale of family, love and the nation’s favourite food...

Genevieve Barr and Arthur Hughes star in THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER. Image: Patrick Baldwin

THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER is an intimate portrait of loss, hurt and recovery

Following its premiere at the 2015 Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Jack Thorne’s new play THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER heads to Royal Exchange this week as part of a national tour. 

Directed by Amit Sharma, THE SOLID LIFE OF SUGAR WATER tells the story of Phil and Alice, a young couple trying to understand their relationshi...

Raw, real and relentless, WIT is a beautiful play full of grace and redemption

Following his production of THINGS OF DRY HOURS back in 2007, Raz Shaw makes a welcome return to the Royal Exchange to direct WIT, the Pulitzer prize-winning play about a 50 year old professor dying of cancer.

Written by American playwright Margaret Edson, WIT tells the story of Vivian Bearing (Julie Hesmondhalgh) a renowned academic of metaphysical poetry being treated for stage IV metastatic ovarian cancer...

Fast-paced, slick and funny, Move Over Moriarty makes a welcome return to the stage

Following the success of Inspector Norse and Withering Looks, satirical comedy duo LipService return as Holmes and Watson in a reprisal of their cult classic Move Over Moriarty.

Written by Maggie Fox and Sue Ryding, Move Over Moriarty follows super sleuth Sherlock Holmes and his dim sidekick John Watson as they investigate the Garibaldi Biscuit Affair, a case as impenetrable as a London pea-souper...