The Constant Wife by Laura Wade is an adaption of W. Somerset Maugham’s text, first written in 1926. This RSC production, directed by Tamara Harvey, is currently on tour and I was invited to review it at Oxford Playhouse. The first thing I noticed when entering the theatre was the eye-catching set. Designed by Anna Fleischle, this was visually beautiful and instantly transported us to the 1920s. At the start of the play, we hear Constance’s sister and mother discussing wheth

Stephen Sondheim’s Company  may initially seem a strange choice for a student company to tackle, coming from a time before any of the cast had been thought of, let alone born. But Fennec Fox Productions have taken this piece and made it their own, showing how timeless some themes can actually be. The musical focuses on Bobby, turning 35 and single, as he celebrates his birthday among his friends, who are all either married or engaged. Back when Company was written, there wou

Dear England  is a fictionalised account of Gareth Southgate’s time managing the England football team. Based on research and interviews, the narrative is embellished by characters created by the author (James Graham). Directed by Rupert Goold, this National Theatre production is currently on tour and I was invited to review it at the New Theatre in Oxford. For complete clarity, I am not a football fan, but have watched enough England matches to have a sense of who some of th

Nowhere  is a biographical play written and performed by Khalid Abdalla (The Kite Runner, The Crown)  directed by Omar Elerian and produced by Fuel Theatre.  I was invited to review the show at Oxford Playhouse. Described as a ‘surprising journey into his own history, set against a cartography of seismic world events’, I was unsure what to expect and as it began, I remained so for a while. After an introduction about how the current location was a safe space to share, unlike

The Olive Boy  was written and performed by Ollie Maddigan, and is based on his experience of losing his mother and the events that followed as he grieved. Directed by Scott Le Crass, it is currently showing at Southwark Playhouse Borough. I attended the final preview. Before the show started it was noticeably busy for a smaller space (The Little) and I particularly enjoyed the choice of music that was playing; lively and energetic, the songs set the pace for the majority of

Having seen a few OXOPS productions in the past, I was excited to visit the New Theatre in Oxford to see their production of The Sound of Music . In the almost sold-out performance I attended, the atmosphere of anticipation before the show started was palpable. I should, for full clarity, say that this particular show is not one I know as well as previous musicals I have seen OXOPS present. However, I did go with someone who is a huge fan of the film, so our discussions in th

Wilde Without the Boy  is a one man show featuring Gerard Logan as Oscar Wilde. The first act was a dramatisation (by Gareth Armstrong) of De Profundis, which is drawn from Wilde’s letter to his former lover Lord Alfred Douglas ‘Bosie’ during his imprisonment. The second part consisted of a reading of The Ballad of Reading Gaol . On arrival at the Burton Taylor Studio, it became apparent that the performance was sold out, which is always a promising sign when a show is making

My first ever visit to The Hen & Chickens Theatre , was to see Late, A Cowboy Song,  written by Sarah Ruhl and produced by T. Regina Theatre Co.   The synopsis of the show said: Mary, always late and always married, meets Red, a lady cowboy strumming songs outside Pittsburgh city limits. With Red, Mary tastes a freedom she’s never had, and begins a search for the recipe. Meanwhile, her husband, Crick, buys abstract paintings with borrowed money.   This instantly gave the imp

Daniel’s Husband is a play written by Michael McKeever and directed by Alan Souza. I was both surprised and delighted to be invited to the Press Night at Marylebone Theatre. As you take your seat you are greeted by the view of a stylish apartment, boldly decorated in blue and green (my favourite colours, so maybe I’m a biased when I say I loved the colour scheme).  I particularly liked the sloped roof which instantly gave the impression of a stylish – likely outrageously exp

Photo by Lucy Hayes I was invited to review The Magic of Christmas  at Brick Lane Music Hall, and I was keen to see it, partly because of its festive nature but also because I had never been to this venue before and I was interested to see what it was like. Brick Lane Music Hall today is located – not on Brick Lane, as it was in its original form – but in Silvertown, in what is also known as St Mark’s Church. This building is such a good choice; when you walk through the door

I was invited to review Leading Voices LDN’s Fresh Off The Score Winter Edition at the Union Theatre, and told it was going to be a concert of seasonal songs from new and emerging British and UK-based theatre writers, many of which had been written especially for the evening. It was a pleasure to attend this sold-out event. The members of the choir burst onto the stage in a flash of red and black, and their opening song – Where the Wind Blows  (from Bear Left  by Ollie Mills)

I was invited to review Doughnut Drive , a new comedy-thriller play by Finella Waddilove, and it appealed greatly as I enjoy thrillers in book form more than any other genre. The play began with a stage void of any set or props apart from a table with a glass of water on it.  This was a clever way to focus the mind as without any other distractions, it instantly became a reference point and made you wonder why this was present.  Bex (Sarah Parkins) then delivered a speech as

Cast of Dick Whittington. Photo by Craig Fuller. I was invited to review Dick Whittington at the Oxford Playhouse and initially was not sure about going to a pantomime. However, I went along and I can only say it has validated my aim to be open minded this year about the types of show I see. First thing first, I must mention the programme (my publishing experience means I do notice these things!).  The paper is a really high quality but on top of the details of all the people

A week after my first visit to Etcetera Theatre, I returned to see Hands On , a new play by Valia Katsi, directed by Nasia Papadopoulou and produced by Amy Shields. Anastasia Thiras during the pre-show Walking through the door, we were individually greeted by a character (Anastasia Thiras) who handed each person a small gift and she then spoke to a few people in the audience. At this point it became clear she was some kind of psychic medium, and this was such an engaging star

I was invited to review The Window Project  at The Etcetera Theatre.  This was my first visit to this venue, and it was lovely to see a full house. Created by Nikos Lekakis and Amalia Paschalidi who also performed the show, The Window Project began with them on stage, seemingly unsure what they (or we) were meant to be watching.  After the comment “I think we are the show” the characters decided to create something between themselves. Production photograph by John Kolikis Wit

A View from the Bridge  by Arthur Miller is currently playing at Oxford Playhouse, and I went along to review the show on the first night. Directed by Rosie Morgan-Males and produced by Labyrinth Productions, the synopsis of the show is as follows: This award-winning play follows Eddie Carbone, a Brooklyn longshoreman whose world unravels when his wife’s Italian cousins arrive illegally. As his niece Catherine falls for the charming Rodolpho, Eddie’s protectiveness turns poss

I was invited to review Verbal Diary  way back at the start of May, when this hobby of mine was in its infancy.  The show sounded interesting and quirky to me, so I was glad to have been invited. When I walked into the theatre space, the first thing I noticed was a huge book on stage. During the show, the pages of this enormous diary (created by John Bulley, Ash Whiting and Dave Taylor) were turned, revealing new set backgrounds to suit the narrative. What a brilliant piece o

The Laramie Project  is a piece of contemporary verbatim theatre that was originated by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project after the brutal murder of a 21 year old gay man, Matthew Shepard, in October 1998. From transcripts from more than 200 interviews with the people who live in Laramie, this dramatic recreation of events was created.  Knowing the events that were going to unfold in front of you were based in reality had an impact before the play eve

Screaming, Crying, Throwing Up, Begging to be Loved (Yikes)  was written and performed by Alex Osborne and co-directed by Blake Stratso and Madisyn Mugavero. The play begins with our narrator entering her bedroom, after leaving an unseen character in her living room while she sorts out the mess she's left the room in earlier. Previously discarded clothes were picked up and thrown behind a curtain in haste. This instantly brought back memories of Sarah and Karl in Love Actuall

Ryan Craig’s adaption of Emma  by Jane Austen is a Theatre Royal Bath production with fitting timing as part of a celebration of Jane Austen’s 250 th  anniversary. I was invited to review the show at Oxford Playhouse. I have a vague memory of seeing a film version of Emma quite a few years ago but I am by no means an expert on the story as I have not read the book.  Seeing an adaption probably suited me more than some as I was not comparing the play to the book. I did recall