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Newcastle Theatre Royal – until 9 September

5*****

I was lucky enough to have a ticket for the first night of Young Frankenstein in Newcastle.  As its not had it official press night I’ll try not to spoil anything but this preview should hopefully whet your appetite.

The legend that is Mel Brookes was in the Toon for the first night and made a speech at the end of the show.  And we were introduced to the production by Director, Susan Stroman.

If you’ve seen the film or if you’ve been lucky enough to see the musical previously then you know its hilarious, but if this is your first visit – then you are in for a treat.

Hadley Fraser (Frederick Frankenstein), Inga (Summer Strallen), Frau Blücher (Lesley Joseph) and Ross Noble (Igor) lead the wonderful cast supported by Dianne Pilkington (Elizabeth), Inspector Kemp (Patrick Clancy) and Shuler Hensley (The Monster) and the incredibly talented ensemble (Imogen Brooke, Nathan Elwick, Andrew Gordon-Watkins, Sammy Kelly, Perry O’Dea, Pichard Pitt, Harriet Samuel-Gray, Gemma Scholes, Josh Wilmott, Bethan Downing, Kelly Ewins-Prouse, Emily Squibb, Matthew Whennell- Clark, Aron Wild)

The show is side-splittingly funny with spoken, physical and visual jokes.  And it must be seen to be believed when the Monster sings and dances his way through “Puttin’ on the Ritz”.

Everything about this show is fabulous from Beowulf Boritt’s magnificent set, William Ivey Long’s costumes and Andrew Hilton’s musical direction.  Mel Brookes music and lyrics are clever, witty and, in some places, downright rude – which actually adds to the humour.

I can only say go and see this show, because you’ll regret if you don’t.  In Newcastle until 9 September and moving into the Garrick Theatre, London from 28 September

Mayflower Theatre, Southampton – until 26 August 2017.  Reviewed by Karen Millington Burnet

3***

What a lovely, balmy, late autumn evening to be out and about, but definitely an opening night of two halves. The Man of the Match was always going to be the charmingly demure Elizabeth Carter’s Laura who, amongst a cast still warming up for much of the early numbers, shone from the first with her nicely observed portrayal of the hesitant 15 year old finding her feet in the uncertain world of 1950s adolescent relationships.  I was very uncertain about Alistair Higgins’ Bobby; in part we were put off by a pre-show announcement that it wasn’t to be him at all, but I was told by the lighting technicians after the show that it was! Well, whoever it was, the character of Bobby grew and eventually I came to the conclusion the player must be quite a talented performer with a naturally cheeky character; I’d like to think that in real life he has a streak of impishness in him and he’s probably quite a “cool” guy.  By the end I warmed to him; he certainly warmed to the part – and I rather liked him, even though his portrayal was understated in a performance which asked for more.  

My 17 year old niece who accompanied me fell for David Luke’s Ray and I have to admit that by the end I must agree…a really talented performer. The cast were lifted by the seasoned, steady hand on the tiller of Jimmy Johnston playing Phil and by Mike Lloyd’s wonderful stable of comic fellows who underpinned the performance.  I was blown away by the range of musical talents amongst the whole company but just wished there was slightly more of the high octane energy the script demanded, especially between the musical numbers – body language counts for so much in a performance like this; characters can’t just walk around the stage.  Nevertheless, it was very evident the musical score touched the sweet spot with this Southampton audience who needed little encouragement to get their feet; well done to Elizabeth Carter for making the first contact.

Huge strawberries to all the musicians – I loved the guitars and the brass, wood wind, keyboards and drums made for a great sound.  Yet again – a perennial complaint of mine at the Mayflower – I think the sound technicians need to up their game. Some of the less strong voices get lost amongst the instruments and while the sound system was not pushed to the limits as it has been in other performances, it is still not as crystal clear as I would expect for this venue…come on Mayflower, you can do better!

For the remainder of the Tech crew, good effort all round: top marks. And the same goes for the choreography and costumes: slick changes and crisp moves around a good stage set gave me confidence the show can only get better as the run progresses. Not a great opening night, but not at all bad and with huge promise for the forthcoming week – a huge thank you

Leeds Grand Theatre – until 26 August 2017

4****

Adapted from the 1998 film The Wedding Singer written by Tim Herlihy and starring Herlihy’s college mate Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, Matthew Sklar (Music) and Chad Beguelin (Lyrics) with a book by Herlihy and Beguelin have concocted a musical that is high on comedy and outrageously catchy.

Set in 1985, The Wedding Singer tells the story of New Jersey wedding singer and rock star wannabe, Robbie Hart, who is the life of the party until his own fiancée Linda leaves him at the altar. Enter Julia, a winsome waitress who wins his affection; however Julia is about to be married to Wall Street shark Glen Gulia. Can Robbie stop the girl of his dreams being lost forever?

I must confess I have never seen the film so this was new territory for me and I loved it. Although this isn’t a juke-box musical, the songs are reminiscent of the period, I was expecting to hear the sounds of the 80’s but this is whole new score with specially written songs which were all lovely bouncy jolly tunes with lyrics that really get in your head and have you singing for days after.  It was lovely to hear new songs and not reliant on a back catalogue of old ones.  

The relatively young ensemble show off their talent when they all get their individual time to shine with solo’s and dancing and whilst I loath to pick on individuals when everyone is fabulous, bandmates Ashley Emerson’s blokey Sammy and Samuel Holmes’ George are wonderful and Mark Pearce is a definite star especially in the male misery song “Single”. This offers a standout moment as all the boys drown their sorrows in a bar, giving Director Nick Winston’s choreography a chance to shine through.

Charismatic West End star Jon Robyns steals the show as the wedding singer of the title. Onstage for seventeen of the show’s musical numbers, he sings and dances with an easy grace and is instantly likeable as wannabe rocker Robbie Hart, with a nice line in comedy.  Helping to mend his jilted heart is waitress Julia, played by Casey Compton, who has a personality as big as her voice. There’s an obvious rapport between them, essential for the success of the show, and they can certainly belt out a song.  Glen Gulia played by Ray Quinn more than holds his own, almost stealing the show with his big second-act hymn of praise to the American dollar, “All About the Green”.

Stephanie Clift is  Holly, Julia’s cousin who is just a girl wanting to have fun. Dressed in the tiny and bright fashions of the 80’s, she is full of fun and personality, with a massive voice which carries her solo’s well.  Described by Grandma Rosie as a ‘skanky whore’, Tara Verloop’s Linda, who dumps Robbie on their wedding day, is hilarious as she puts on a routine worthy of a high class lap-dancer in “Let Me Come Home”.  Veteran Ruth Madoc is Robbie’s Grandma Rosie, who, despite her comparatively small role, certainly makes the most of it and gains one of the loudest applause of the evening with her acrobatic skills, who knew she could dance so well!

There were a few technical difficulties on the night, which I am sure will be remedied by now, but it didn’t overly spoil the enjoyment of the show.  On a positive note the energy and enthusiasm of the performers can not be faulted.  All the elements are there: with a cast as strong as this one, it makes for a cracking show with exuberant energy in this feel-good, romantic movie, live on stage…It’s destined for the West End

CRAZY FOR YOU AT LEEDS GRAND THEATRE

Crazy For You, the Gershwin brothers high-energy, high-kicking and gloriously glamorous feel-good musical, is set to run at Leeds Grand Theatre from Tuesday 29^th August 2017 for one week only.
Starring Olivier Award-nominees Tom Chambers (Top Hat, Strictly Come Dancing, Casualty) and Charlotte Wakefield (Sophie in ‘Mamma Mia!’, Truly Scrumptious in ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’), and Love Island presenter Caroline Flack (Strictly Come Dancing, The X Factor), Crazy For You is a celebration of the great Broadway musicals and features many memorable tracks, including ‘I Got Rhythm’, ‘They Can’t Take That Away From Me’, ‘Nice Work If You Can Get It’ and ‘Embraceable You’.
A tale of mistaken identities, plot twists, heartbreak and happiness, the national tour has been produced by the Watermill Theatre and directed by Artistic Director, Paul Hart.

Crazy For You is at Leeds Grand Theatre from Tuesday 29^th August to Saturday 2^nd September 2017

 

Tickets are priced from £24.50 (restricted viewing) to £46.50

(prices include a £3 booking fee. Postage charge £1 where applicable)

 

Book online at leedsgrandtheatre.com or call Box Office on 0844 848 2700

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Sweet Venues – until 28 August.  Reviewed by Jessica Brady

5*****

The Happy Idiot presents a new LOOSELY based version of the controversial novel by D.H Lawrence ‘Lady Chatterley’s Lover’ with hilarious results. As a new company they couldn’t have picked a better story to reinvent and put such a unique spin on!

The show follows the newly married Lady Chatterley or Connie as she’s more affectionately known [played by Amy Millns] and war wounded Lord Chatterley [played by Lawrence Russell] as they struggle to adjust to their new lives together since his return from the war. Connie seeks solace and comfort from the lower class grounds man, Mellors [played by Wesley Griffith] while a maid, Mrs Bolton [played by Rebecca McClay] is employed to care for her husband. True to the original, Mellors and Connie strike up an intense relationship that awakens her they fall in love.

The show does follow the general premise of the novel but with all the boring bits missed out and revamped to give you the highlights of the highly sexualised nature of the original text which works so well. Russell has cleverly written a script that mocks all the controversy of the novel and pushes it to the extremes which makes for some wonderful moments of physical comedy and brilliantly sarcastic gags. It is literally a laugh a minute show with all 4 performers striking that perfect balance of taking their roles seriously and completely ridiculing them and the antics that they all get up to. It has so much charm that you can’t help but go along with the story despite it being such an over the top version.

Though limited with space in their venue, that doesn’t stop this crew bringing the complete package of what a fringe show needs, their set was basic but their attention to detail with period costume and props definitely sets the scene and helps you as an audience member to get on board with a nod to original novel (excluding a couple of shocking twists regarding fishnets and balloons which I won’t spoil for you!).

The cast are all excellent in their roles as they manage to get you on side with the outrageous nature of what they are presenting and have no qualms in stripping off, making what some performers find quite uncomfortable effortless and thrive off the sheer raucousness. They all have strong chemistry and do not shy away from the sex or innuendoes but rather embrace them and flaunt it!

Not: Lady Chatterley’s Lover is an hour of perfect fringe fun and will quite simply leave you wiping the tears of laughter from your face. For a small room Happy Idiot really pack a punch and I challenge any audience not to enjoy this! It’s filthy, crude and sexy in the best possible way and I can only hope that it gets to be developed further as it deserves to go far! Go catch this shockingly brilliant show at Sweet Venues and get ready to have your sides split!

Thebes Land returns to Arcola Theatre as
part of CASA Festival 2017
Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, Dalston, London E8 3DL
Wednesday 6th September – Saturday 7th October 2017

Sergio Blanco’s smash-hit, critically-acclaimed Thebes Land – winner of Best Production at the 2016 Off West End awards – returns to Arcola Theatre for 5 weeks only as part of the 2017 CASA Festival.

In this exhilarating multiple-reality drama, a playwright struggles to stage the incredible story of Martin Santos, a young man serving a life sentence for killing his father with a fork. As their interviews progress and opening night approaches, both of their worlds begin to unravel with shocking consequences. Will the truth be found, and can it be told?

Trevor White (Long Day’s Journey Into Night, West End; Enron, Royal Court) and Alex Austin (Fury, Soho Theatre; Yen, Royal Court) reprise their celebrated performances in Daniel Goldman’s ingenious production, performed inside a giant steel cage, which doubles up as a basketball court and a rehearsal room.

Mixing fact and fiction, meta-theatre and reality, Thebes Land re-imagines the story of Oedipus to tell an unexpected story of redemption. With references that range from The Brothers Karamazov and Freud to Zidane and Whitney Houston, the play is a puzzle box that is deeply moving, visceral, intellectual and sublimely funny, all at the same time.

The UK premiere of Thebes Land took place at Arcola Theatre in November 2016. It won the OffWest End Award for Best Production and was also nominated for Best New Play, Best Production, Best Director and Best Set Designer. The original production of the show, directed by Sergio Blanco himself, opened in 2013 and has since enjoyed eight sell-out seasons in Montevideo’s Teatro Solis and toured to Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Chile, and Spain. New productions are currently being produced in Spain, France, Mexico, Argentina, Chile, the US, Germany and Japan.

Daniel Goldman comments, It’s incredibly exciting to be bringing Thebes Land back to Arcola for another run. I can’t wait to share this amazing Latin American play with new audiences, while for those who have seen it before, there should be some new surprises for them too.

What a sharp, satisfying watch this is – a play that runs rings around its audience; riddles us like the Sphinx did Oedipus. Scene by scene, it slips out of reach. Fiction slides into fiction, rehearsals corkscrew into ‘reality,’ and come the end, nothing’s solid. Blanco does for documentary art what Dennis Kelly’s Taking Care of Baby did for verbatim work. It holes it below the waterline…

Goldman’s production is engrossing and slippery (★★★★ Matt Trueman, What’s on Stage).

Thebes Land is part of CASA Latin American Theatre Festival which is celebrating its tenth anniversary year, joining forces with two of London’s leading off-West End theatres Southwark Playhouse and Arcola Theatre to offer London audiences eight weeks of brilliant Latin American theatre and culture. The festival runs until Sunday 29th October 2017. The full programme can be viewed at http://casafestival.org.uk/

MOVING FORWARD, LOOKING BACK.

Darlington Hippodrome has launched a new exhibition celebrating the history and architecture of the Edwardian theatre at the Crown Street Art Gallery in Crown Street Library, Darlington.

Moving Forward, Looking Back: A History of the Hippodrome, is a new exhibition celebrating the architecture of Darlington Hippodrome. The exhibition is open now and runs to 7 September in the Crown Street Art Gallery , Crown Street Library, Darlington. The exhibition explores the architecture of the Hippodrome, its external and internal features, its succession of managers and directors and the impact they – and their times – had upon the building. You will also be able to take a sneak peek at behind the scenes images of the restoration.

As part of the exhibition the Hippodrome will be hosting two one hour talks in the library with guest speakers on Friday 1 September at 11 am, and with Sean McNicholas, Operations Manager from Willmott Dixon on Wednesday 6 September at 6:30pm, who will share their own experiences in restoring the theatre and embracing its Edwardian heritage.

The talks are free but tickets are required. To book your place on either talk please contact the box office on 01325 405405.

For further details contact the Box Office on 01325 405405 or visit www.darlingtonhippodrome.co.uk

ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS
Arcola Theatre, 24 Ashwin Street, London E8 3DL
Tuesday 10th October – Saturday 4th November 2017

I know you want what everyone else wants. A family. A home. But you’ll never
have it. Cos of what’s inside you.

Following an acclaimed UK tour in spring 2017, Jane Upton’s ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS will be making its London premiere at the Arcola this October. Deeply moving and darkly funny, this award winning new play tells the story of the girls that slip through the cracks.

Joanne and Lisa were like sisters. Then Lisa got away. Now she’s back, but the ghosts from their past still haunt her. While Amy just wants to belong. In a world where nobody wants you, what would you do to survive?

With the threat of sexual exploitation lurking in the shadows, we see three forgotten girls spending one last night together by the railway line. ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS examines their desperation to recover what they’ve lost – friendship, family, safety.

This brilliant, thought-provoking play follows these three teenage girls, the sort of teenagers that society often demonises or overlooks. Inspired by real life stories, and developed with the support of Safe and Sound, who campaign against child sexual exploitation, this play captures the voices of these powerless, underprivileged girls with compassion, humour and authenticity.

ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS stars Esther-Grace Button (Sleeping Beauty, Cast; Troupers, Mikron Theatre; The Crucible, Regent’s Park Open Air), Sarah Hoare (Jerusalem, Royal Court; Chewing Gum, Channel 4; Powder Room, DJ Films) and Tessie Orange-Turner (Sket, Park Theatre; No Border, Theatre503; Blister, Gate Theatre).

Writer Jane Upton comments, When I started researching the Rochdale child sex ring back in 2014, I was overwhelmed by the responsibility that came with creating a play from this sort of material. I almost gave up. But as the characters grew, and similar stories started to break, I knew I wanted to share our play as widely as possible. We’ve toured it nationally and now it’s great to be taking it to a London audience and specifically the Arcola, which has such a fantastic reach. The play is dark, of course, but it’s about three teenage girls so there’s laughter and piss-taking and all the things that come with growing up and negotiating your place. And hopefully it’s a timely reminder that so many children across the UK are living this horror every day.

ALL THE LITTLE LIGHTS is a Fifth Word and Nottingham Playhouse co-production. It was joint winner of the 2016 George Devine Award for Most Promising Playwright and was nominated for Best New Play at the Writers’ Guild Awards 2017.

Terrifically realistic and darkly funny… truly extraordinary and moving theatre. (Nottingham Post)

Full Cast for YOUNG MARX

 

Nancy Carroll (Jenny von Westphalen), Laura Elphinstone (Nym), Eben Figueiredo (Schramm), Nicholas Burns (Willich), Tony Jayawardena (Gert “Doc” Schmidt), Miltos Yerolemou (Barthélemy), Duncan Wisbey(Fleece/Darwin), Scott Karim (Grabiner/ Singe), Alana Ramsey (Mrs Mullett), Sophie Russell (Librarian),Fode Simbo (Peter), William Troughton (Constable Crimp) and Joseph Wilkins (Sergeant Savage) join the previously announced Rory Kinnear (Marx) and Oliver Chris (Engels) in the world premiere of Young Marx, a new comedy by Richard Bean and Clive Coleman, directed by Nicholas Hytner.

Reuniting the creative team behind the smash hit One Man, Two Guvnors, Young Marx, the opening production at The Bridge, runs from 18 October (opening night Thursday 26 October) until 31 December 2017.  Designs are by Mark Thompson with music by Grant Olding, lighting by Mark Henderson and sound by Paul Arditti.

1850, and Europe’s most feared terrorist is hiding in Dean Street, Soho. Broke, restless and horny, the thirty-two-year-old revolutionary is a frothing combination of intellectual brilliance, invective, satiric wit, and child-like emotional illiteracy.  Creditors, spies, rival revolutionary factions and prospective seducers of his beautiful wife all circle like vultures. His writing blocked, his marriage dying, his friend Engels in despair at his wasted genius, his only hope is a job on the railway. But there’s still no one in the capital who can show you a better night on the piss than Karl Heinrich Marx.

 

Young Marx will be broadcast on National Theatre Live on 7 December 2017.

London Theatre Company’s new Bridge Theatre is situated on the river by Tower Bridge and City Hall. Tickets are priced from £15 to £65 with a limited number of premium seats available.   A special allocation of £15 seats will be held for Young Bridge, a free scheme for those under 26.  The Bridge auditorium is a collaboration between Haworth Tompkins, LTC and Tait Stage Technologies – winner of two Queen’s Awards for Export. It is made of precision-engineered steel with oak finishes in a modular construction – a first of its kind – which also incorporates the air conditioning, house lights, power and data.

Listings Information

Address:                                  The Bridge Theatre, One Tower Bridge, London SE1 2SD

Box Office:                              0843 208 1846 or [email protected]

Access:                                    0333 320 0051 or [email protected]

Website:                                  www.bridgetheatre.co.uk

Twitter:                                    @_bridgetheatre

Instagram:                                _bridgetheatre

Facebook:                                facebook.com/bridgetheatrelondon

Mayflower Theatre, Southampton – until 19 August 2017.  Reviewed by Jo Gordon & Harry Gordon 

4****

Stomp has been banging out the beats, delighting audiences globally now for 26 years. Five STOMP companies perform across the world keeping hardware stores in business having used up 20,000 drumsticks, 40,000 brooms, 60,000 boxes of matches, 30,000 bins and 35,000 litres of black paint!

Harry (a sensory seeker who thinks loud noise could only be improved by making it louder!) and I love to tap our pens, drum a table, bang a pot and generally annoy the rest of the family with our constant noise, so we knew this was going to hit the spot for us. The set resembles something from a scrapyard. The show starts nice and quiet with a lone man and a broom making gentle sweeping noises, more and more cast members join him and the fun begins! A multitude of rhythms are beaten out on an array of everyday junkyard finds like metal sinks, ribbed pipes, shopping trolleys (the supermarket will no longer be a dull visit for us), basket balls, plastic oil drums, buckets ….. the list is endless!

There is a very clever moment where the lights are down and we are given a quieter musical moment using flip top petrol lighters, following the flames along and back again. Despite there being no dialect there is still plenty of comedy suitable for all ages and plenty of audience participation.  As the show nears the end the theatre fills with a crescendo of noise beaten out on dustbins, dustbin lids and oil drums with energetic cast members flinging themselves around like Olympian gymnasts!  It was at this point I had to hold Harry’s wheelchair down as he flung himself side to side with the beat, using his legs as drums and enjoying the fact you could feel the noise resonate through your body …. sensory seeking most defiantly accomplished!

A great show for all the family, a bunch of noise turned into something amazing.