This incredibly gritty, hard hitting, emotional yet beautiful musical is the perfect watch in Southampton this week!
Starring Alex James Hatton and Katie Tonkinson as the eponymous ‘Bonnie and Clyde’ alongside Sam Ferriday and Catherine Tyldesley as Clyde’s brother and sister in law ‘Buck and Blanche’ this foursome are the perfect casting for our main characters. Following a small snippet of the life and eventual death of Bonnie and Clyde, we are transported back to the 1900’s and follow their story-from their first meet, to their final breaths. It’s not often that I go into a musical knowing only one or two songs and barely any of the story line, but I was playing this soundtrack on repeat as soon as I left the theatre. The vocals, delivery, harmonies and integrity of every song was perfect – leaving me in tears during the second act!
Tonkinson excelled during ‘Dyin’ ain’t so bad’, with Hattons stand out song being ‘When I ride’, however together during the reprise of ‘Dyin’ ain’t so bad’ as they duetted was the epitome of perfection. This is just the most incredible casting from Jim Arnold. Tyldesley and Ferriday also had unbelievable vocals and commanded the stage at every turn. Tyldesley was the perfect casting for Blanche-with an extremely dramatic character arc written brilliantly by Ivan Menchall and perfectly accompanied with Frank Wildhorn and Don Black’s lyrics and music.
Every ounce of this performance was perfect-from the bottom of the stage right up to the rafters. The ensemble were amazing and perfectly complimented every scene with stunning harmony blends and dancing. Jaz Ellington deserves a special mention for his stunning performance as the ‘Preacher’- he was superb.
This is a triumph – with chemistry, sultry tones, jaw dropping performances and a smidge of death, destruction and chaos, why don’t you raise a little hell this week and get a glimpse of Bonnie and Clyde? They are on the run, so you must be quick to catch them, before they catch you!
The full cast and creative team working alongside the previously announced Robert Sheehan as Withnail, Adonis Siddique as Marwood and Malcolm Sinclair as Uncle Monty in Birmingham Rep’s brand new adaptation of Bruce Robinson’s 1987 British tragi-comedy film, Withnail and I were announced today (Wednesday 3 April).
Directed by the double Olivier Award-winning Artistic Director of Birmingham Rep, Sean Foley and designed by Alice Power, it will have its premiere at Birmingham Repertory Theatre, with performances from 3 May until 25 May 2024.
The cast joining Robert, Adonis and Malcolm are: Adam Young (Danny), Israel J Fredericks (Presuming Ed), Morgan Philpott (Wanker/Jake the Poacher), Matt Devitt (Farmer/Colonel & Band), Adam Sopp (Geezer/Policeman, Band & Musical Director), Sooz Kempner (Miss Blenehassitt/Policewoman & Band).\
The creative team joining the writer, director and designer, Bruce Robinson, Sean Foley and Alice Power are: Jessica Hung Han Yun (Lighting Design), Ben & Max Ringham (Sound & Composition), Akhila Krishnan (Video Design), Candida Caldicott (Music Supervision), Ginny Schiller (Casting Director), Alison de Burgh (Fight Director), Sara Joyce (Associate Director), Simon Marlow (Production Manager), Jennifer Taillefer (Production Environmental Manager), Kay Wilton (Costume Supervisor), Robin Morgan (Props Supervisor) and Andriea Nelson (Wigs Supervisor).
Robert Sheehan made his acting debut in Aisling Walsh’s acclaimed feature Song For A Raggy Boy. Since then, his screen credits include: Season of the Witch, Cherrybomb, Killing Bono, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, The Road Within, The Song of Sway Lake, Anita B, The Messenger, Moonwalkers, Jet Trash, Geostorm, Bad Samaritan, Three Summers, Mute, Mortal Engines, the BAFTA winning Red Riding trilogy for Channel 43, the multi-IFTA winning Love/Hate, the BAFTA winning Misfits for E4 (for which he was BAFTA nominated), The Borrowers, Fortitude, Genius: Picasso, The Last Bus, The Umbrella Academy and the upcoming film Red Sonja. His theatre work includes The Playboy of the Western World directed by John Crowley for the Old Vic, Richard III in The Wars of the Roses directed by Trevor Nunn for the Rose Theatre and Endgame directed by Danya Taymor for the Gate Theatre Dublin.
Withnail and I first day regearsal taken on 2nd April at the WAC arts London
Adonis Siddique’s theatre credits include: The Crown Jewels in the West End, Saleem in East Is East (a Birmingham Rep co-production with the National Theatre); Dorian Gray in The Picture Of Dorian Gray at the Pleasance Theatre in London, Crowther in The History Boys, Jav in Mismatched, a Sky Comedy/Birmingham Rep production, Quasim in Very Special Guest Star atSoho Theatre and Kyle in Dad at SouthwarkPlayhouse. Adonis was a creative collaborator and actor in Shunt’s Party Skills For The End Of The World at The Manchester International Festival. His film & television credits include: Newark Newark, Tin Star, Tyrant, Beyond Reasonable Doubt for CNN and the feature film Me Myself and D.
Malcolm Sinclair is currently appearing at the National Theatre in Dear Octopus with Lindsay Duncan. His other many theatre credits include The Inquiry at Chichester Festival Theatre, My Fair Lady in the West End, The Light in the Piazza internationally and at the Royal Festival Hall, An Enemy of the People at Nottingham Playhouse, This House at Chichester Festival Theatre and at the Garrick Theatre, The Doctor’s Dilemma, The Habit of Art, The Power of Yes and House/Garden, History Boys and Racing Demonfor the National Theatre, Ivanov at the Donmar Warehouse and Richard III, Uncle Vanya and The Comedy of Errors for the Royal Shakespeare Company. His many TV credits include Andor in A Star Wars Story for Disney +, Midsomer Murders, VirtuosoSilk, HenryV, The Hollow Crown, Foyle’s War, Hustle, Judge John Deed, A Touch of Frost and the US mini-series, Scarlett. His many films include: Drowning; The Man Who Knew Infinity, Survivor, A Belfast story, The Young Victoria, Casino Royale, V for Vendetta, Keep The Aspidistra Flying, Young Poisoner’s Handbook, God On The Rocks, Now That It’s Morning and Success Is The Best Revenge.
Written and adapted for the stage by Bruce Robinson himself, the writer and director of the original film, the show will bring to life some of the most iconic comic characters ever created. The film, based on Robinson’s own unpublished novel, was produced by Handmade Films and starred Richard E Grant, Paul McGann and Richard Griffiths.
Sean Foley said: “Hilarious, tragic, and wild, Withnail and I, is a comedy like no other, and I’m thrilled to be working with the legendary Bruce Robinson to bring it to life on stage… In fact, where better for the extraordinarily funny tale of two unemployed actors who go on holiday, ‘by mistake’? Rightly regarded as one of the finest British film’s ever made, our world premiere stage version brings to life the classic dialogue, the insane situations, and above all the boozy, irresistibly hilarious relationship of one of the most famous slacker duo’s ever created…”
Withnail and I first day regearsal taken on 2nd April at the WAC arts London
September 1969… the swinging ’60’s, rock ’n’ roll, counter culture bohemianism… and two young unemployed actors – the flamboyant, boozy Withnail, and the shy, contemplative Marwood – live in utter squalor in a flat in Camden Town, praying for a job… Their only visitor is their drug dealer, Danny; their only expeditions are to the local pubs; and their only friends each other…
Needing a break from the atrocious state of their acting careers, they hit upon the idea of a nice holiday – and Marwood proposes a trip to a cottage in the Lake District, owned by Withnail’s wealthy Uncle Monty. Monty lives in Chelsea, and after a few drinks together, agrees to lend them the key to the cottage – for a price…
Regarded as one of the finest British film’s ever made, this world premiere stage version brings to life the classic dialogue, the insane situations, and above all the boozy, irresistibly hilarious relationship of one of the most famous slacker duo’s ever created…
‘We want the finest wines available to humanity, we want them here and we want them now!’
Withnail & I is produced for the stage by Birmingham Repertory Theatre alongside Handmade Films and George Waud for Groove International.
Birmingham Rep would like to thank Jaguar Classics for partnering to create the car in the production, Andrea Galer (the original costume designer of the film) for Withnail’s coat and Grenson for his boots.
Photographs of the company on the first day of rehearsals by Ellie Kurttz
[Clockwise from top left: Ayesha Antoine, Tiffany Gray, Martins Imhangbe, Daniel Lapaine, Sebastian Orozco, Judith Roddy and Danny Sapani]
The full cast has been announced for the UK premiere of Between Riverside and Crazy by Stephen Adly Guirgis directed by Michael Longhurst at Hampstead Theatre from 3 May to 15 June.
Joining the previously announced Danny Sapani as Walter ‘Pops’ Washington in Adly Guirgis’ award-winning and Broadway hit is: Ayesha Antoine (Out West, Lyric Hammersmith); Tiffany Gray who is making her professional theatre debut; Martins Imhangbe (Bridgerton; Death of a Salesman, Young Vic); Daniel Lapaine (Retrograde, Kiln Theatre); Sebastian Orozco (Clyde’s, Donmar) and Judith Roddy (Derry Girls; Translations, National Theatre).
‘Son, that girl, she’s a nice girl, but she don’t study accounting. Her lips move when she read the horoscope – that ain’t the mark of a future accountant!’
Since his wife died, ex-cop Walter ‘Pops’ Washington has filled his palatial rent-controlled apartment in one of Manhattan’s most desirable areas with an oddball extended family of petty criminals. So now he’s besieged by the landlords, who want him out, the NYPD, who want him to settle his lawsuit against them, and the ladies from the local church, who want to save his soul… But Pops, calm at the eye of the storm, is going to do precisely what Pops wants to do…
Stephen Adly Guirgis’ fast-moving Rabelaisian tragicomedy was a Broadway hit and won multiple awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. His other plays include Jesus Hopped the A-Train, The Last Days of Judas Iscariot and The Motherf**ker with the Hat.
Michael Longhurst returns to Hampstead following his triumphant productions of Caroline or Change, Gloria and The Blackest Black. His other productions include Next to Normal, The Band’s Visit and Constellations (all Donmar).
The creative team also includes designer Max Jones, lighting designer Anna Watson and Richard Hammarton as Sound Designer and Composer. The casting director is Lotte Hines.
Between Riverside and Crazy plays the Main Stage at Hampstead Theatre from 3 May to 15 June.
The Menier Chocolate Factory today announces a major revival of Jerry Herman’s JERRY’S GIRLS. Directed by Hannah Chissick, with choreography by Matt Cole, musical supervision and arrangements by Sarah Travis, and an all-female band, this new production opens on 22 May, with previews from the 18th, and plays a strictly limited season until 29 June. Cast and further creative team to be announced.
JERRY’S GIRLS celebrates the life and legacy of legendary award-winning Broadway composer Jerry Herman.
Featuring an all-female cast, and songs from such timeless musicals as Mame, Hello Dolly!, Milk and Honey, Mack and Mabel, and La Cage Aux Folles, JERRY’S GIRLS comes to the Menier Chocolate Factory for 6 weeks only.
JERRY’S GIRLS was created by Herman and collaborator Larry Alford in 1981, and opened Off-Broadway to critical acclaim, and resulted in a hit National Tour and a Tony-nominated run on Broadway, directed and choreographed by Wayne Cilento.
Jerry Herman’s list of awards and honours is seemingly endless – it includes multiple Tony, Grammy, Olivier and Drama Desk Awards, the Johnny Mercer Award, the Richard Rodgers Award, the Oscar Hammerstein Award, and an entry into the Theatre Hall of Fame.
Hannah Chissick returns to the Menier to direct – she previously directed Pack of Lies for the company. Her most recent work includes Eugenius (Turbine Theatre – Best Director, The Offies), Treason the Musical (West End and Alexandra Palace Theatre), The Boy Who Sailed the Ocean in an Armchair (NYMT), Mother Courage and Her Children and the UK professional première of the musical Side Show (Southwark Playhouse), Down the Dock Road (Liverpool Royal Court), for the NYMT – Brass (Hackney Empire) and Sunday in the ParkWith George (The Other Palace), Rags, Amour (Royal Academy of Music), Marry Me a Little (St James Studio) and Teechers (John Godber Theatre Company). She was Assistant Director to Matthew Warchus on the play Art in London and New York and was Associate Director on his acclaimed production of Boeing Boeing, directing casts in London, on Broadway and in Melbourne. In 2003, she became the youngest women to become an Artistic Director in the UK, when Harrogate Theatre appointed her at the age of 25. Other credits include the critically-acclaimed revival of Side by Side by Sondheim (The Venue, London), Abigail’s Party (Northcott Theatre Exeter), a tour of Grumpy Old Women Live, the world première of Horrid Henry – Live (tour and West End), and the world premiere of Pushing Up Poppies (Theatre503).
Matt Cole returns to the Menier, where he previously worked on Fiddler on the Roof (and its transfer to the Playhouse; Olivier Award nomination for Best Choreography). His recent credits include Police Cops (Edinburgh Fringe Festival), Roman Holiday (Bath Theatre Royal), Newsies (Director and Choreographer – Olivier Award and WhatsOnStage Award for Best Choreography), Identical (Nottingham Playhouse), Fisherman’s Friends, The Night Pirates (UK tours), Taboo (in concert at the Palladium Theatre London), Berlin Berlin (Germany), Lovesick (Theatre J Washington DC), Parade, The Beautiful Game (NYMT), Oklahoma! (Chichester Festival Theatre), Amour (Charing Cross Theatre), Flashdance, Footloose, Little Shop of Horrors (UK and international tours), The Sweet Smell of Success (Royal Academy of Music), and The Producers (China and Asian Tour).
Sarah Travis won a Tony and Drama Desk Award for her Orchestrations on The Watermill Theatre Production of Sweeney Todd – directed by John Doyle, which transferred to Trafalgar Studios and the Eugene O’Neill Theatre, Broadway. Her theatre credits include Grease (Dominion Theatre, Curve and UK tour), 101 Dalmatians (Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre), The Late Toy Show (Dublin), The Magician’s Elephant (Orchestrator – RSC), Talent (Sheffield Theatres), West Side Story (Curve – Music Supervisor only), Curtains, Sister Act, Fiddler on the Roof, Chess (UK tours), Miss Littlewood (RSC), Sweet Charity, A Little Night Music (The Watermill Theatre), An Officer And A Gentleman (UK Tour – Music Supervisor only), Legally Blonde (Curve), The Hired Man (NYMT), The A to Z of Mrs P (Southwark Playhouse), Jungle Book (Glasgow Citizens Theatre), Dear World (Charing Cross Theatre), Copacabana, Spend Spend Spend (Winner 2009 Regional Theatre Award for Best Musical), and Sunset Boulevard (Comedy Theatre). As a composer her work for theatre and radio includes Extraordinary Women, The Lost Toy’s Big Adventure, The Secret Garden, The Marriage of Figaro, A Star Danced, The Last Fattybottypuss in The World, Tales My Lover Told Me and A Womb with a View.
JERRY’S GIRLS is presented by arrangement with Concord Theatricals Ltd.
Yvonne Arnaud Theatre – until Saturday 6 April 2024
Reviewed by Heather Chalkley
3***
You would not believe this play was written in 1777 by a playwright hell bent on giving people somewhere to escape to, from the puritanical world they were living in at the time. Little did R.B. Sheridan know that he had penned a play that transcends the ages. I am pleased to say it is still making people laugh whilst having a good jibe at the foppery of the upper classes.
Fast paced, you need to keep your wits about you to catch all the dialogue. It takes a moment to tune in to the style and tenor of the piece. With 14 characters played by 8 actors you might think this could get confusing. All characters are worth a mention, playing equal parts in this tumultuous, hilarious journey of love and fortune.
Guy Dennys’ Rowley is distinctly different from his Snake, both in moral standing and deportment. Ayesha Griffiths is unrecognisable as the young and innocent Maria in her other role as the wiley dealer Weasel. Tony Timberlake has the added task of pretending to be two other people whilst playing the upright citizen Sir Oliver and then switching to his role as Crabtree, an unconscionable scandal monger. Aided by the slight costume change, the result is hilarious. The poise and assertion Emily-Jane McNeill offers as the queen of scandal is completely different from her relaxed, Jack the lad dealer Careless. Lydea Perkins is hardly recognisable as the vivacious Lady Teazle, when she switches to the final scandal monger member Mrs Candour. The caricatures played balance out perfectly the sincere and ‘good’ people of the piece. The central characters carry you through the story, taking you on their individual journeys, including the roller coaster ride taken by Sir Peter Teazle (Joseph Marcel). Marcel (Sir Peter) delivers this complicated dialogue with great feeling and reality, making the audience laugh even more. The clever characters of the two brothers, Joseph and Charles Surface (Alex Phelps and Garmon Rhys) give you a first class lesson in ‘not judging a book by its cover’, unveiling their true characters to great hilarity in the last scene.
With a stripped back set, the props are accentuated, playing their part in the tomfoolery, needing perfect timing by the cast to bring the laughs. They do not disappoint. Costumery is used to great effect, bringing the characters alive and making each character distinctly different.
R,B. Sheridan would be proud to know his most popular comedy from the 18th Century is still bringing laughs in the 21st! A perfect play to escape into out of a mad, mad world.
In celebration of its 80th anniversary, RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA! returns to its original West End home, Theatre Royal Drury Lane, in concert on Monday 19 August and Tuesday 20 August. RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA!in Concert stars Emmy, Critics Choice & Olivier Award-nominated actor Phil Dunster (Ted Lasso)as Curly alongside West End star Zizi Strallen (Mary Poppins)as Laurey.
The production is directed and choreographed by Olivier Award-winner Bill Deamer, and features Robert Russell Bennett’s full original 28-piece orchestrations performed by the London Musical Theatre Orchestra, conducted by Ben Glassberg.
Further casting and creatives are to be announced.
Tickets go on sale at 10am on 19 April. Pre-sale sign up is available now at www.oklahomaconcert.co.uk
British actor, director, writer, and producer Phil Dunster has quickly emerged as one of Hollywood’s most globally sought-after creatives. He received an Olivier nomination for his work in Pink Mist (Bristol Old Vic) and on-screen has gained significant recognition for his Emmy and Critics Choice-nominated performance as Jamie Tartt in the SAG, Golden Globe, Critics Choice, Peabody, and Emmy Award-winning Apple TV+ phenomenon Ted Lasso. Phil’s other credits include The Entertainer (Garrick Theatre), Amazon Prime’s The Devil’s Hour, HBO’s Catherine the Great and Kenneth Branagh’s film The Murder on the Orient Express. He is currently in production for season two of Apple TV’s thriller Surface.
Zizi Strallen most recently played the leading role of Marie Antoinette in Cake: The Marie Antoinette PLAYlist (Lyric Theatre) and in 2020, was nominated for an Olivier Award for ‘Best Actress in a Musical’ for her work as Mary Poppins in Mary Poppins (Prince Edward Theatre). Zizi has worked extensively in theatre, starring in Sunset Boulevard (Royal Albert Hall), Cats (UK Tour/London Palladium), Rock of Ages (Shaftesbury Theatre), Strictly Ballroom (Piccadilly Theatre) and many more. Her TV and film credits also include Disney’s Cinderella, ITV’s Victoria & Albert and BBC’s The Prince and the Pauper.
RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA! opened on Broadway in 1943 and later transferred to the Theatre Royal Drury Lane for its West End premiere in 1947. OKLAHOMA! was Rodgers & Hammerstein’s first collaboration, and features some of their most loved songs, including ‘Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’’, ‘The Surrey with the Fringe on Top’ and the titular title song ‘Oklahoma!’.
RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA! in Concert is produced by JAS Theatricals, Fourth Wall Live and the London Musical Theatre Orchestra, the team behind the WhatsOnStage Award-winning concert of Love Never Dies.
LISTINGS INFORMATION
RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN’S OKLAHOMA! in Concert
Dates: 19 – 20 August 2024
Theatre Royal Drury Lane Catherine Street London WC2B 5JF
Performances: 7.30pm on Monday 19 August, 2.30pm & 7:30pm on Tuesday 20 August.
Future Spotlight Productions today announces a special one-off performance of Dudes Sing the Divas! at The Other Palace. Performed by Ben Barrow, Jordan Donnelly and Robert Donnelly, the performance tears up the stage in the Studio on 4 June.
FUTURE SPOTLIGHT PRODUCTIONS IS PROUD TO PRESENT
DUDES SING THE DIVAS!
Are you ready for something ICONIC?
Join us for a night of pure diva magic and guaranteed entertainment and laughter where “Dudes Sing” will be singing the most iconic songs by the greatest Divas with their powerhouse vocals featuring spellbinding arrangements by Ben Barrow.
Meet Ben Barrow, Jordan Donnelly and Robert Donnelly in this perfect blend of epic performances and comedy. This trio of tenors all met whilst in the show The Choir Of Man and since then have been wowing audiences with Dudes Sing.
Don’t miss their rave-reviewed show making its London debut – filled with thrilling twist and turns that will leave you wanting more.
Grab your tickets now and be prepared to be blown away by Dudes Sing. (ticket link being created by venue)
Ben Barrow is originally from Cumbria rand trained in Actor-Musicianship at Guildford School of Acting. His credits as performer include The Maestro/Music Captain in The Choir of Man (Norwegian Cruise Lines), Footloose (UK and international tour), This One’s For You (Carter West Creative), Support Act in Ramin Karimloo: From Now On (UK tour), and From Here: A New British Musical (Chiswick Playhouse). As a Musical Director, his work includes Footloose (Assistant Musial Director – UK and international Tour), Beauty and the Beast (Corn Exchange, Newbury), The Importance of Being Earnest (Mercury Theatre Colchester), Ordinary Days (The Theatre Cafe), and From Here: A New British Musical (Musical Supervisor/Composer/Lyricist – Chiswick Playhouse).
Jordan Donnelly is originally from County Armagh in Northern Ireland and trained at Trinity Laban conservatoire of music and dance. His credits include Magical Merlin (West End), The Best of Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons (UK your), and The Choir Of Man (Australian Production and Norwegian Cruise Lines).
Robert Donnelly is originally from Dublin, Ireland. He graduated from The Guildford School of Acting in 2022. Since graduating, his credits include The Witches of Eastwick (Sondheim Theatre), and The Choir of Man since 2022 originally joining as swing, before taking over as The Poet.
The 2024 Edinburgh Fringe programme at the Pleasance brings a range of phenomenal work from the UK and overseas with international sensations, award-winning artists, home-grown Scottish talent, emerging newcomers and much more. The Pleasance Theatre Trust mark their 40th festival this summer and this programme of comedy, theatre, cabaret, magic, family shows and talks illustrates the reason people rush back to their venues year after year.
Comedy
Pleasance’s comedy programme is always top notch and some amazing names are headlining this year. 2018 Edinburgh Comedy Award winner and creator of Starstruck, Rose Matafeo returns to the Fringe with On and On and On. The bad girl of comedy, Sophie Duker, brings her delusional new show BUT DADDY I LOVE HER to Edinburgh. Internationally-acclaimed virtuoso ventriloquist, BAFTA nominee and British Comedy Award winner Nina Conti presents Whose Face Is It Anyway?, exploring and celebrating families and how f*cked they all are. Sheeps are back with hysterical new show Sheeps: The Giggle Bunch (That’s Our Name For You). One of the best stand-ups of his generation, Ivo Graham proves he’s not just Taskmaster’s yardstick for failure in Grand Designs. Jordan Brookes recently had a near death experience – Fontanelle is loosely inspired by that
Fresh from their residency at London’s iconic Comedy Store, Fringe favourites Paul Merton and Suki Webster, two of the UK’s leading improvisers, present their new show Paul Merton & Suki Webster’s Improv Show to the fringe. Ahir Shah brings his 2023 Sky Edinburgh Comedy Award winning show ENDS back for 12 shows only, all about family, immigration, marriage, history, politics and beans. One of Variety’s 10 Comics to Watch 2019, Patti Harrisonreturns to Edinburgh following sell-out runs in 2022-23 with My Huge Tits Huge Because They Are Infected NOT FAKE. After two critically-acclaimed, sell-out runs, Edinburgh Comedy Award Best Show 2023 nominee Ania Magliano returns with Forgive Me, Father. Following multiple sell-out tours and barnstorming appearances at JFL Montreal and Melbourne ICF, the Live At The Apollo star Celya AB is back with Of All People to tackle the big three: beauty, money and the void.
Joining the Pleasance family from overseas are an incredible array of Edinburgh newcomers. Melanie Bracewell (Taskmaster NZ) debuts at the Fringe with her signature style of goofy, punchline-heavy comedy that has earned her sell-out shows all around the world. Indian stand-up sensation Kanan Gill makes his Fringe debut with WHAT IS THIS?. After a stalking incident forced Anna Akana into retirement for six years, she’s back – and armed with a restraining order and a plethora of new stories to tell in It Gets Darker. Demi AdejuyigbeIs Going To Do One (1) Backflip is a very special comedy show featuring original comedic songs, presentations, bits, and one (1) single backflip. After selling out shows across America, Rachel Kaly brings Hospital Hour to the Fringe to perfectly explain why she is so mentally ill. Pussy-poppin’ Mel & Sam are yanking you by ya ponytails through a chaotic hour of musical sketch and all-original songs in Pony.
Already well-known on the comedy circuit, some amazing comedians are now coming to the Pleasance this summer for the first time. Meet Charlie George: an ex-Jehovah’s Witness escape artist and walking survival guide whose debut hour is a laugh-till-you-snort journey in Burning Down the House. The hotly anticipated show Farm Fatale is from agricultural icon Katie Norris – likely to cause delight or distress to anyone who becomes involved with her or her livestock. Sold out, cult shows in the North East, acclaimed short films, their own web series, now Metroland debut at the Edinburgh Fringe, bringing an all new sketch show that promises laughter, profanity and a generous use of the term ‘entertainment’.
Amy Annette, host of hit podcast What Women* Want, has a lot to say about growing up in the noughties and being a woman and now she shares it with us in Thick Skin. Zoe Brownstone has been performing stand up since before dating apps existed but still doesn’t know how love works yet she’s certain she’s unlocked several mysteries of the heart in A Bit of Yours. Don’t miss a dry debut stand-up hour Free Mason from Amy Mason about coming out, parenting, and starting all over again. Award-winning comedian Rich Spalding brings his hotly anticipated show, about working for a living and dying sometime after. Fresh from therapy, Isobel Rogers and her guitar are here to pose modern life’s less frequently asked questions in HOW TO BE CONTENT. Join viral sensation Lou Taylor in her unmissable stand-up hour taking us back to the nostalgic ‘90s in Jeans and a Nice Top. Expect visual aids, balloons and a heartwarming insight into the relationship between mother and her autistic son with Josephine Lacey in Autism Mama.
Debut hour of stand-up and characters from Derek Mitchell (Ted Lasso), Double Dutch is about the journey from being an outsider to a sort-of insider and making sense of all the cultural nonsense and confusion in between. Dan WyeAm I Sam Smith? explores the absurd reality of being publicly doppelgäng-banged until you no longer exist – from Dan Wye one of the country’s most prominent comedy/cabaret performers. Eddy Hare (BBC New Comedy Awards Nominee) serves up his debut hour with This One’s On Me.BANGTAIL is an epic journey of a man in search of his manhood; saddle up for unbridled cowboy clown chaos. A sticky, spooky horror comedy about gender reveal parties, demons from hell, and a Gay Witch Sex Cult comes from Andrew Doherty.
You’ll know them from social media and now they’re on our stages. Online comedy sensation Henry Rowley makes his highly anticipated Edinburgh debut with fast paced stand up and character comedy in Just Literally. A baby and a Fringe debut – that’s one mother of a year but Freya Mallard’s having it all and she’s determined to debut with The Bounce Back! Carpet-fitter turned comedian Jack Skipper delivers Skint, a show about how he went from a tradesman with no qualifications, to a full-time comedian (with no qualifications).
The Pleasance Comedy Reserve is the place to see exciting new talent: this year we’re celebrating 20 years of the Reserve and are welcoming eight previous recipients of the Fund to present their debut shows. As seen on BBC, ITV2, Comedy Central and Channel 4, Abi Clarke has taken the internet by storm; now it’s time to see what she does best in (Role) Model. In Quinceañera,Katie Green (Pleasance Comedy Reserve 2022) tells the story of her coming of age celebration being later than expected. Fresh, exciting, and overall just happy to be here, Dee Allum is the greatest transgender comedian her small village has ever produced. Pleasance Comedy Reserve Alumni and heart-throb of low-energy comedy, Danny Clives makes his debut with Danny Explains It All. In Swimming In A Submarine, Jin Hao walks you through the seascape of his mind, filled with nightmares of being a spider, dreams of joining the yakuza, and breezy memories of serving in the military, with the boys. The First 3 Minutes of 17 Shows is a silly, goofy, heartfelt show from co-host of Help Hole podcast Abby Wambaugh. In Vladislav, Baby Don’t Hurt Me, the multi award-winning stand up Vlad Ilich explores his obsessions with chess and how it led him to leave North Macedonia for the bright lights of the UK comedy scene. With the Best Will in the World is the exciting debut from rising star Will Robbins exploring masculinity, disability and cretins.
We all love to see our Fringe favourites returning with new material and old classics! After years away from stand-up (due to the global pandemic and a lack of interest in being out late), Alice Snedden the co-writer and co-director of BBC and HBO’s Starstruck returns with Highly Credible! Character comedian Emma Sidi is back at the Edinburgh Fringe as Sue Gray. Fuelled entirely by delusion, tequila and the girls group chat, The Bisexual’s Lament is Lou Wall’s musical journey from the pits of personal hell to comic stardom. Take a swan-dive into a physical comedy fantasia of kings and clowns and one absolutely hideous duck in Luke Rollason, Luke Rollason Let Down Your Hair.Friendly Stranger is a solo sketch show packed with lovable characters, charisma and inspired spontaneity, from the internationally award-nominated star Steen Raskopoulos. After running out of life-story, the four-time Edinburgh Comedy Award nominee is after a new comedic muse; Kieran Hodgson returns to the Fringe with a work in progress.
As seen on BBC’s Live at the Apollo, American transplant Spring Day explores the nature of cults and the role that they play in our everyday lives in Exvangelical. Fresh from a world tour, South Africa’s hottest stand-up Schalk Bezuidenhout returns to the Edinburgh Fringe with new show, Crowd Pleaser, guaranteed to have you laugh and laugh and laugh. Last year, John Tothill (Chortle Awards’ Best Newcomer nominee 2024) was visited by a series of terrible plagues and he’s desperate to tell you all about it in Thank God This Lasts Forever.Horses is the first-ever comedy show at the Edinburgh Festival performed entirely by a horse – made by award-winning Elf Lyons, performed by Treacle. A year after inexplicably winning Dave’s Funniest Joke of the Fringe, Lorna Rose Treen brings Skin Pigeon back to the Fringe. Following his sell-out international tour, Neil Delamere presents his hilarious tall tales, razor sharp observations and quick-witted improvisation in Neil by Mouth. F*ck Off and Leave Me Alone is the debut stand-up hour from writer, actor and comic Juliet Cowan
BAFTA and Olivier-award expectee Graham Dickson (Austentatious, All My Friends Hate Me) presents his eagerly anticipated, deeply personal and revelatory one-man show, No One Deserves This More Than You. Following a sold-out Off-Broadway debut, Caitlin Cook‘s hit bathroom graffiti musical transforms stall scribbles into the lyrics of her original songs in The Writing on the Stall. Having already saved pretty much everything else, Garry Starr is now taking it upon himself to save our flightless, feathered friends from extinction by performing every Penguin Classic novel ever written in Classic Penguins. For years Horatio Gould has made fun of modern self-help gurus but he’s starting to realise he’s not as different from them as he might think. The Greatest Performance of My Life is a heartfelt journey through the joys, sorrows, and hilarity of life from Justin Moorhouse. Join magician, comedian and charlatan Pete Heat on a surreal journey into your own brain in Bogus
Some shows present us with fast paced line-ups, some are late at night and some are only with us for short runs so watch out! Star of Taskmaster, Ghosts, and Stath Lets Flats, Kiell Smith-Bynoe brings his unmissable improvised comedy show, Kool Story Bro, back to the Fringe for one week only! Join comedians, basic huns and horror stans Hannah Byczkowski (Winner of The Traitors) and Suzie Preece (Finalist, Leicester Square New Comedian of the Year), as they bring you the world’s creepiest stories in Ghost Huns Live.
Brooklyn’s finest improv supergroup Ladies Who Ranch (Kelly Cooper, Caitlin Dullea, Maya Sharma, Caroline Yost, and Sophie Zucker) present an hour of comedy that will blow your mind and open your heart. In this unmissable Fringe institution, 12 top comedy and variety acts perform ridiculously short sets in Chortle Fast Fringe, one furiously fast-paced showcase with a different lineup every day. And don’t miss the Chortle Student Comedy Award Final to see one rising stand-up star crowned Britain’s funniest student.
Theatre
This year’s theatre programme is mind-blowing with new musicals, historical retellings, takes on classics, Fringe favourites, storytelling, magic and so much more. An apocalyptic rom-com from the razor-sharp pen of playwright provocateur and Fringe First Winner David Finnigan, watch four hilarious actors ‘go down’ on their microphones, mangos and melons in 44 Sex Acts In One Week, a slippery and subversive take on a classic radio play. The five-star, multi sell-out Fringe phenomenon Sh!t-faced Shakespeare® is back with its hilarious combination of an entirely serious adaptation of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothingand an absolutely sh!t-faced actor!
Fresh from the runway of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, Join comedian, crash mat and winner of Season 5 Ginger Johnson as she swaps her stilettos for safety goggles and takes a death-defying leap from the runway to the real world in Ginger Johnson Blows Off! Fan Favourite comedy crossdresser Kate Butch’s jukebox musical brings us stand-up comedy, live vocals and lipsync extravaganzas in Wuthering Shites. Award winning Drag King Bi-Curious George presents Queer Planet; a raucous romp through the animal kingdom which aims to shatter the heteronormative binaries through which we view the natural world.
The stage is an important and pressing place for true stories and autobiography. Performed at the U.S. Capitol Center,Sell Me: I Am From North Korea is a powerful and gripping solo piece inspired by the true stories of incredibly courageous North Korean women defectors. The Shroud Makeris a compelling black comedy inspired by a real-life character, weaving a harrowing story of courage, love, escape and disappointment with comic fantasy and true stories to create a vivid portrait of life in Palestine before recent events. Based on the true story of Lani’s upbringing as a young carer, The Room Upstairs features immersive audio, original compositions and one frustrated daughter.
Autobiography continues with Chatterbox, from Lubna Kerr, a humorous and touching one-woman show looking at the impact of the labels we are given as children and how they persist into adulthood. Twenty years, sixteen postcodes, one city; in 16 Postcodes, Jessica Regan (BBC, Channel 4, The Guilty Feminist) shares lessons lived and learned from a life in no particular order as the audience help her move North, South, East and West. Sisyphean Quick Fix is a heartfelt, true-to-life comedy drama about love, family and the complex realities of addiction. Multi-award-winning writer-performer Katie Arnstein (Sexy Lamp, Sticky Door) is back with The Long Run, a joyful, captivating comedy about love, cancer and running for a really long time.
The world today doesn’t leave artists short of inspiration. Multi award winners Ugly Bucket (Untapped 2022) present Stuffed – a roaring rally cry, a blazing inferno of physicality, clown, original music, and transformative personal testimony about Food Banks. Fringe First winner Joe SellmanLeava and Dylan Howells embark on a quest to uncover how the economy wins elections and why the force that dominates our lives is so bloody complicated in their bold new show It’s The Economy, Stupid!
It’s time for amazing drag and queer joy! Last year saw some incredible new musicals launched at the Fringe and this year is no exception! Tit Swingers is a new Queer Punk Gig Musical about Anne Bonney and Mary Read – polyamorous queer pirates that got the title of Hellcats of the Seven Seas for their various vicious and notorious crimes! Featuring puppetry, shadow play, unforgettable music, and surreal meta-humour, Kafka’s Metamorphosis: The Musical! With Puppets! has delighted swarms of audiences from New York to Montréal and now skitters into Scotland for its Fringe debut. Inspired by real events, The Emu War musical tells the story of how ex-military men worked the farmlands of Australia after WW1 – get your tail feathers ready for some birds, bums, and guns! Together for over 25 years, The Jive Aces are renowned worldwide for their high-energy live show; having played for Her Majesty the Queen and become the first band to reach the finals of Britain’s Got Talent, they continuously showcase why they are the UK’s No.1 Jive & Swing band!
Many shows blur the boundaries between genres incorporating music into their theatrical mastery. Boy In Da Korma is a comedy solo show – featuring live music, hip-hop and Irish trad – about one kid’s desperate attempt to belong as much as he wants to stand out.
Shakespeare and Mary Shelley get their ‘next’ moment at the Fringe. Fringe Legend Pip Utton is Shakespeare in At Home With Will Shakespeare, a moving and comic romp through Will’s life, including some of his greatest hits, performed by the man himself. Join Hamlet’s legendary jester Yorick as he reconnects with his lost love of performance in Hamstrung, an interactive ghost story. One man, one monster, one glorious dream to singlehandedly tell the most famous horror story of all time, and absolutely no budget whatsoever; Frankenstein (On A Budget) is the comedy musical hammer horror homage that you didn’t know you needed.
You’ll recognise some of the names gracing the Pleasance’s stages this year. Join Jake Roche as he squeezes out every last drop of celeb juice, dishing the dirt and spilling the tea on the world of fame in Neporrhoids. Rita Lynn: Life Coach is a deliciously dark drama and a cautionary tale from one who knows – a one-woman show written by and starring Louise Marwood (Emmerdale). Bebe Cave’sThe Screen Test is a dark comedy about delusion, desperation and dreams. OOF! sees legendary double act Fiasco Job Job, Arthur Smith and Phil Nice, reunite for one final time to celebrate their 40th anniversary in a hilarious sit-down drama about age, showbiz and the cartography of friendship. The Fringe’s favourite poet Luke Wright returns with stacks of brilliant, big-hearted poems that get to grips with mulchy middle-age in Joy!
Some shows just can’t keep away and return after their huge Fringe successes. Ben Target: LORENZO won a highly coveted Fringe First in 2023: a life-affirming story about death, conveyed through the popular media of storytelling, servitude to the audience and live carpentry. Following a sold out, award-winning run at the Fringe last year, the People’s Princess is back as Diana: The Untold and Untrue Story returns to our stages with drag, multimedia, audience interaction, puppetry and queer joy. Combining epic storytelling, razor-sharp impressions and a dose of theatrical magic, Joe Sellman-Leava’s Fanboy returns offering a nostalgic, love-hate letter to pop culture. The entire 144 episodes of cult 90s TV show, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, as told through the eyes of Spike, the one character who knows it inside out; Buffy Revamped returns for one week only. After a 5* sell-out run in 2023, Burning Down the Horse is back – an immersive comedy epic that drops you into the heart of the most iconic wooden animal in history, the Trojan Horse.
It’s time to be scared! Box Tale Soup will present an astonishing adaptation of Gulliver’s Travels with ingenious puppetry, stirring shanties and sharp satire. From the same company Casting the Runes takes you to the edge of your seat, on a journey to the darkest corners of the night, where Edward Dunning life becomes a waking nightmare. In Buckets Of Blood– Fairy Tales Not For Kids, storyteller Eden retells a collection of some of the darker tales from the Grimms while letting you know what popular fairy tales have left out.
Boundary breaking technology, mesmerising magic and amazing puppetry are all part of this year’s programme. Join this extraordinary journey to discover the beats and rhythms of a busy, beautiful woodland world told from the perspective of an acorn in Breathe with its stunning puppetry and groundbreaking live camera work. Andrew Frost is one of the best card magicians in the world and in Cards on the Table he recounts how he stumbled upon the world of magic in a second-hand bookshop. While magician Tom Brace has opened his very own theme park and you’re invited to the grand opening; The Ride 4D is a world first ride experience using 3D technology combined with magic!
Love and relationships are often not far from our minds. Juniper & Jules is an award-winning play about two women redefining romance, an honest reflection on modern dating under the double bind of sexism and homophobia. A sharp satire on contemporary masculinity and male entitlement, Did You Mean To Fall Like That is a tender, nuanced story of fertility issues, the trauma of miscarriage, divorce and male mental health. Exploring queer friendship, platonic love, and nuclear anxiety, Seconds to Midnight asks what happens in a world with no consequences. Me For You is a play about love and saving the human race, in the face of overwhelming evidence that we’re a despicable race of selfish parasites.
We’re in Scotland and it’s time for some quintessentially Scottish stories. Returning after seven sellout Fringe seasons is acclaimed immersive adaptation of Irvine Welsh’s classic novel, Trainspotting Live where the audience become part of the action! A play exploring religious and cultural identity, Singin’ I’m No A Billy, is a phenomenon in Scotland where it has sold out countless nationwide tours; what happens when on the day of the Old Firm Match, you lock up a Celtic and Rangers fan in a cell together?! For the first time, there will be gender alternating casts across the festival with He’s A Tim, playing on selected days.
And that’s far from all in this utterly amazing programme. A smash-hit satire by multi award winning comedy writers for Netflix and BBC Television, Love’s a Beach looks at six months after your five minutes of fame! After the success of Ringer, Out To Lunch and Goons, Hughie Shepherd-Cross returns to the Fringe with Gang Bang, a surreal and madcap parody of 20th century gangster films rammed with pastiches. Never Get to Heaven in an Empty Shell is a tragically semiautobiographical tragicomedy – will an unlikely encounter with a ghost at Angel Station persuade Claud to start living again? A show about the pain and beauty of growing older, Look After Your Knees is a visual and physical collage performed by a clown. Squidge is a one-woman show by award-winning screenwriter and actress Tiggy Bayley about those left behind by our education system and finding love in a world determined to hate. Sorry (I Broke Your Arms And Legs) is a riotous debut PowerPoint presentation combining the thrills of World Book Day with the hilarity of the Maths Olympiad. Toy Stories, or How Not To Make a Living as an Artist is a hilarious (true) storytelling performance, featuring childhood toys, Art Education, Pig-Framers, Boris, Monks, Nazis and Scalextric enthusiasts.
Finally, like the Royal Variety Show of the Fringe, Mervyn Stutter’s Pick of the Fringe celebrates its 31st year bringing audiences live extracts from seven top shows in a packed 90-minute lunchtime extravaganza.
Childrens Shows
Shows for all the family are so important to the Pleasance who host their renowned KidZone in the Courtyard every year. Come along and take part: Captain Zak’s Space Pirate Problems and he needs your help – this interactive adventure is perfect for all lively small people and their grownups as they work together to solve puzzles and sing songs. Join your host, comedian Benny Shakes, as two teams battle it out to come up trumps in Blue Badge Bunch where disadvantage is an advantage!
Talks
Award-winning LBC radio presenter and For the Many podcast host Iain Dale is back at the Fringe with All Talk, his acclaimed, incisive insight on current affairs back with in-depth interviews featuring audience questions. Guests include: former First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond; Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar; TV presenter and journalist Ben Shephard; football pundit and presenter Chris Kamara MBE; political activist and business leader Gina Miller, who successfully challenged the UK government’s prorogation of the Westminster Parliament in 2019; First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party, Humza Yousaf MSP; Jess Phillips, the MP for Birmingham Yardley and former Shadow Minister for Domestic Violence and Safeguarding in Keir Starmer’s Labour frontbench team; former Prime Minister Liz Truss; Rachel Reeves MP, the Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer; former Scottish Conservative leader, Baroness Davidson; British political scientist Sir John Curtice; broadcaster and journalist Michael Crick; journalist Brian Taylor and; Wes Streeting MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. There will also be a hustings-style debate in a pre-election special featuring four Scottish MPs – Andrew Bowie MP, Stephen Flynn MP, Christine Jardine MP and Ian Murray MP.
With more shows to be announced over the coming months there will be comedy, theatre, circus, magic, dance, kids’ shows and much more, alongside support for some of the most innovative newcomers through artist development strand Pleasance Futures. There’s nowhere quite like the Pleasance at Fringe!
Aylesbury Waterside Theatre – until Sunday 31 March 2024
Reviewed by Sue Portman
4****
The doorbell rings just as Sophie and her mummy are sitting down to tea. Who could it possibly be? What they certainly don’t expect to see at the door is a big, stripy tiger!
Direct from the West End, the Olivier Award nominated smash hit show, The Tiger Who Came to Tea returns on tour.
Join the tea-guzzling tiger in this delightful family show; packed with oodles of magic, sing-a-long songs and clumsy chaos. Don’t miss this stunning stage adaptation of the classic tale of teatime mayhem … expect to be surprised!
This was a short show of some 55 minutes, played by three actors. It is only on for two days with several afternoon and evening performances.
The actors were Tia Bunce as Sophie, Ellie Shove as Mummy and Joseph Saunders as daddy/milkman/postman and the tiger.
As an adult – and not taking any children, (unless my husband counts!) I wanted to see this through the eyes of a child so I dug deep into my past life and watched the story unfold with Bunce, Shove and Saunders setting the scene through words and song. All three nurtured the audience into a state of expectation – as the kids wanted to see the tiger! Each time the door knocked and we expected the tiger to appear it was someone else, the father, a milkman or a postman. Would the next knock be the big cat?
The actors whipped the audience up into a state of expectation, using a big clock on the wall. Tick tock, tick tock, tick tock went that clock as they sang and moved in unison quite wonderfully around the stage in a mesmerising choreographed routine to depict the passage of time. There was breakfast and lunch, but we all wanted it to be tea-time as that’s when the tiger would arrive after all.
When this finally happened – and it was a sort of ‘he’s behind you’ moment, the kids went wild as this huge, beautiful, striped tiger with a massive noble head made an entrance and began his strange engagement with the mother and daughter, promptly eating them out of house and home, then disappearing never to be seen again.
He ate all their food and even drank their water supply. Greedy tiger! All this and he never spoke a word.
Throughout there was a sense of pantomime meets Playaway (remembering Brian Cant) as Bunce in particular established a warm rapport with the audience, and her colleagues assisted in getting the happy throng singing along at various stages. The kids love to growl – that’s for sure. Adults playing as and for kids is difficult and an art in itself and these three actors were clearly experts in their field, enjoying their work.
There was a sense of loss for kids when the tiger disappeared. I could hear it in their groans and silences in equal measure. They must have been wondering why the tiger arrived at this house and why did he have to leave. Where did he go? Why a tiger at all?
So, what does the tiger represent? Much has been written about this, ranging from loss to representation of unwanted guests not only at our house but in life draining us of all we have then moving on. For sure, the tiger was both cuddly and malevolent depending upon how you wished to interpret it, and the focus was on this fascinating feline throughout as it drew the kids into his world.
There was a good old singalong about yummy, scrummy sausages and chips before the final curtain and the kids joined in with gusto.
The manner in which these three excellent actors portrayed the story demonstrated some level of love and affection between the tiger and the family but you always felt that he wanted things his way or not at all. A sense of manipulation was clear (for an adult anyway) and this is certainly darker than the nice posters would portray. It was an excellent interpretation of the story, it really was.
In the end, the family had nothing to eat and they had to drive out to a café for their supper. So the tiger was happy, but at the expense of the hosts. Read into it what you will but this was all delivered in an intelligent way, with a simple but effective stage set and some really clever ‘magic effects’ especially when the tiger made plates full of food disappear, scoffing avidly as the mother and daughter (and audience!) watched on with incredulity.
But this is a show for kids right? Wrong! I mean, if you did not know what year you were born what age would you be? We all have something of the child inside us, which is why we visit the pantomime every Christmas. It is the child-like humour and imagination that can remove the dust of countless years from our souls for a couple of hours at least.
The excited children all came with their tiger tee shirts and tiger toys and left with a sense of bewilderment to some degree. Really they are the ones who should be writing this review, because only in their heads can they reveal what they think the story is all about. Judith Kerr wrote it in 1968 and it is as relevant now as it was then, whether you see it simply as a tiger who came to tea or a metaphor for something else.
I am for the first time going to take some words from Wikipedia about just how this play has in some quarters been interpreted.
Kerr invented the story after visiting a zoo with her three-year-old daughter. She said her husband Nigel Kneale was away making a film and “it felt a bit lonely and we wished somebody would come. We’d been to the zoo so it seemed reasonable for a tiger to come. We both thought they were incredibly beautiful.” She told the story many times before making it into a book which took a year to write and illustrate.
Former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen has drawn parallels between the book and the author’s life. Kerr spent her early years in Berlin just before the start of the Third Reich and her father was on a death list because of his opposition to the Nazis. Her family fled Germany and most of their property was seized in 1933 when she was nine years old. Rosen claims the tiger could be based on her memory of the past threat: something that could have disrupted her life as a young child and taken everything the family owned.
He said “Judith knows about dangerous people who come to your house and take people away. She was told as a young child that her father could be grabbed at any moment by either the Gestapo or the SS – he was in great danger. So I don’t know whether Judith did it consciously or not – I wouldn’t want to go there – but the point is he’s a jokey tiger, but he is a tiger.” Kerr, however, stated more than once that the tiger represents nothing more than a tiger, and had no relevance to her upbringing.
This performance is only on for two days bit I am sure it can be seen around the UK. If you get the opportunity go and see it (with or without children) because the actors, crew and the story itself deserve support.
Airlock’s boisterously funny version of the story of pirates Anne Boony and Mary Read takes you for a jolly rogering jaunt on the high seas that is as rib-tickling as it is swashbuckling.
Unimpressed with the limited prospects for an eighteenth-century woman, Anne (Ro Suppa) finds freedom disguised as a man onboard Calico Jack’s (Eleanor Colville) ship. Taking to the life of a pirate like a fish to water, Anne becomes Jack’s lover and is happy in her life of adventure, keeping one step ahead of the dastardly Pirate Hunter General. When a sea battle with rival pirates leads to Mary Read (Elizabeth Chu) climbing on board, Anne embraces pansexual piracy… until the third P from the title throws a spanner (cutlass?) in the works and hard choices must be made while trying to avoid the clutches of the PHG with the help of ship’s “parrot” Ivana Cracker (Robbie Taylor Hunt, who also directs) – who desperately and hilariously tries to insert himself as a main protagonist throughout the show.
It’s all slightly unhinged and has a brilliantly ramshackle atmosphere, best summed up by the epic sea battle between two cardboard ships complete with flying cannonball and giant dolphin wielding a pistol. Colville, Suppa and Hunt have created a queer extravaganza that embraces the filthy best of panto, bedroom farce (a wonderful shipboard version of the lovers being shoved behind doors skit) and cabaret.
The cast seem to be having a blast, and bounce of each other, and the audience, wonderfully. Robbie Taylor Hunt steals the scene as Ivana Cracker whenever he appears, Eleanor Colville is a fantastically louche Jack, Elizabeth Shu is a hoot as Mary, and Ro Suppa gleefully portrays the frustrations and passions of Anne in a winning performance celebrating Anne’s refusal to conform to expectations and sail her own course.
The musical numbers are fun and upbeat, and the birth of Anne’s baby has to be seen to be believed – completely bonkers! Pansexual Pregnant Piracy is an absolute blast – brilliant fun.
