Royal Shakespeare Theatre Stratford-Upon-Avon – until 8 October 2022

Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh

5*****

And so, the tension builds, like the steady gallop of his soon to be fallen horse…

Gregory Doran’s production of Richard III is as slick, disarming and gripping as the main protagonist himself. From the moment you enter The Royal Shakespeare Theatre, in all its majestic glory, you are transported back to England, the late 1500’s. Faced with a dark red walled stage, empty but for a single, ominous, imposing column at the back, we await the start of the second longest of Shakespeare’s plays with bated breath.

This production of Richard III is relentlessly savage and scintillating. Senses are assaulted by movement, music, murder and the macabre. The stagecraft is sublime, utilising colour, smoke, shadow, and silhouette, these combine to bring this woeful tale of jealousy, manipulation and deceit to life, and then death.

Arthur Hughes as Richard, commands the stage with ease, embodying every aspect of Richard from a nuanced narcissistic Duke, feeding into those who surround him with their hunger and desire to elevate their means and thus his own, to stomping sociopathic sovereign, willing to do whatever it takes to rise in rank and become king. Machiavellian in every sense, believing “The ends justify the means, Richard will not stop until he is King. A king whose paranoia consumes and overwhelms his ambition, and these ultimately lead to his undoing.

What sets this production of Richard III aside from the others, is its clever use of comedy. There are moments where we were laughing out loud and caught off guard by the humour occurring before some truly horrific events. I wasn’t expecting to be seeing such a playful, mischievous and at times endearing and likeable rogue in Richard. In the beginning it confused me. I have seen productions where they have delved into Richard grappling with the shame and abuse of ‘disability’. However, this Richard, as comedic as he seems, is skilled in his scheming, courageous in his cruel coup, not dramatically hunched and limping, he is truly portrayed as a titanic villain, and we witness this through his superbly performed soliloquies. This Richard embraces his perceived limitations and uses this to his advantage, triumphing over all those who stand in his way, until his demise. It struck me how modern and apt this production was, capturing the zeitgeist of the times, reminding us of the dangers of totalitarianism and of our duty to challenge it.

The highlight for me was Richard’s horse at the Battle of Bosworth. After being tormented the night before the battle by the ghosts of those he had fell, the horse is made up of the physical embodiments of their ghosts. Visually stunning, you are mesmerised by the choreography. Trancelike, galloping, you see exactly what and who he sacrificed to become King and at that pivotal moment, he is ready to sacrifice it all for a horse. Fear and desperation cling to him as do those he has slain as they carry his lifeless body from the stage. Powerful, this gripping climax stays with you long after curtain down.

Minnie Gale as Queen Margaret and Kirsty Bushell as Queen Elizabeth both gave incredible performances, bringing shades of light and dark to their torment and grief. The cast as a whole, came together to give a stellar performance and received a well-deserved standing ovation, but Arthur Hughes stole the show. His Richard is revolutionary in so many ways, opening doors for diversity, and bringing never before seen facets to Richard. Hughes’ Richard is a masterpiece, he struts not frets upon a stage, in a role you can visibly see and feel he relishes. Refreshing and respectful to the original text, Richard III is a triumph, leaving not a hint of discontent, this production is truly glorious.

The Leeds Playhouse

Reviewed by Dawn Smallwood

4****

To celebrate 60 years of Jamaican independence, Out of Many Festival’s Road to Trojan, presented by Jamaica Society Leeds, is putting on a series of events in Leeds between May 2022 and February 2023. The purpose of the festival is to promote and celebrate the Caribbean Island’s roots, culture, and arts.

Leeds Playhouse is the host to Road to Trojan which takes place on the actual 60th anniversary of the country’s independence, 6th August. This concert style event features Jamaica’s proud and rich music history starting from its ancestral roots to reggae which began its popularisation from the 1960s by the infamous label Trojan Records.

Promoted as A Jamaica 60 Reggae Spectacular and is headed by a series of well-known Jamaican artists. The evening began with a digital performance from the National Dance Theare Company of Jamaica and others are followed including Out of Many Choir (with singers Brinsley Forde, Noel Mckoy, Paulette Morris, and vocalists Dem Three) as well as local acts Homes Harriot, Mento Dem, and Jazz Jamaica All Stars. The first part of the programme concludes with the band and singers playing and singing the ever-popular Bob Marley’s Lively Up Yourself.

The second part of the evening features well known artists such as Dennis Alcapone and Freddie McGregor -he latter singing well known Jamaican musical numbers and engaging with the audience.

The evening is set out to celebrate Jamaica’s exciting music scene from its history to the present times and there were opportunities for everyone to reflect and remember nostalgically and poignantly the challenges and triumphs many in the community faced in the past and face in the present. Such events and experiences no doubt shape the music Jamaica proudly has today. It is fitting way to celebrate the country’s independence and no doubt the country continues to grow and become well known on an international stage particularly in its sporting community. Road to Trojan is an excellent engaging evening of Reggae and celebrating Jamaica’s roots and cultures and well received by the audience

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Assembly Roxy, Venue until 28^th August 2022

 Reviewed by Rachel Farrier

4****

This show really is one of a kind, and therefore feels like the whole of the Edinburgh Fringe experience encapsulated in one show. French performer and baker Jean-Daniel Brousse has created an hour long, one man performance which includes: bread baked lived on stage, accordian playing, erotic dancing, videography (of France, his parents, and… things rising), an expletive-tastic audience sing-a-long, acrobatics, bag pipe playing, an Aquitaine folk tale, nudity, a graphic acting-out of his symptoms of gluten intolerance, an exploration of the tensions of leaving a family business when all you want is to become a performer, and finding you are gay in a small, conservative Christian village context – all accompanied by a brilliantly apt soundtrack, and rounded off with holy communion (if they wished it) for the entire audience.  

By turns it was completely hilarious, thoughtful, moving and.. surprising (some might say shocking – note the 14+ advisory) , as he moved effortlessly between all of the above. I found it to be a beautiful, warm hearted show and very much enjoyed the rollercoaster-ride nature of the performance. This is the epitome of an Edinburgh Fringe show and I highly recommend it. 

Bristol Hippodrome – until 20th August 2022

Reviewed by Lucy Hitchcock

3***

Jim Steinman and Meatloaf’s classics have been transformed into a stage show, and it is a treat for everyone.

We follow the lives of Strat (Glenn Adamson) and Raven (Martha Kirby) as they fight to be together. Strat is a lost boy, frozen in time living in hiding whilst Raven is a teen Vogue model. Adamson has the most difficult role in this show, as she sings the titular ‘Bat out of Hell’. He soars through with ease, and showcases his vocals and it was difficult to deter your attention from him. Martha Kirby as ‘Raven’ was also great. She was a perfect blend of innocent and rebellious, mixed with a hint of teenage cringe at the antics of her parents. This pairing was great and did seem very genuinely in love.

The other two stand out performers were ‘Falco’ and ‘Sloane’ (Rob Fowler and Franziska Schuster) as ‘Raven’s parents. This pairing had amazing chemistry, creating beautiful harmonies throughout every number. They were the comic relief of the show, being a perfectly funny but desperately in love couple.

The ensemble carried this show exquisitely. James Lowrie was the stand out for me, it was difficult to take my eyes off of his precise and meticulous dancing. Along with the rest of the ensemble, the choreography was sharp and in time. A big shout out to fight captain Jamie Jukes, for navigating the difficult fight scenes.

Technically, this is a stellar show. With camera work, flames, motorbikes and explosions, your senses will be enthralled, however at some points, it was a little overkill and didn’t necessarily add to the story. The plot was a tad confusing, but when mixed with the songs, it was quite easily forgivable. Together with Steve Sidwell (orchestrator) this is a feat of a show!

We were very lucky to be treated to the local Harley Davidson club conducting a drive by for the opening night, revving up the audience (literally!). The band and cast were exquisite and gave as close to a Meatloaf performance as you could get.

If you want a night of good music and fun, this is definitely the show for you.

‘Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Assembly Rooms Music Hall, Venue 20 – until 28th August 2022

Reviewed by Rachel Farrier

3***

Throughout this show, the troop of incredibly talented acrobats were walking the tightrope between providing a narrative, or at least establishing some central themes, whilst also demonstrating their love of daring aerobic feats performed to well-chosen musical numbers. I struggled to follow the narrative arc but I grasped that a group of contestants were battling it out for the approval and occasional gifts of an aloof judge. Their acts ranged from poorly performed Elvis numbers to rap battles. There was much humour to enjoy in this – in particular a hilarious moment where the performers were thrown into a frenzied state, after their bored looking matriarch finally decides to throw them a bone.  Well not a bone actually, a banana. They go so wild over that it is decided a dance battle must occur to decide who should keep it. 

There was also a prevalent theme of loss. The section in which the troop all recall who they miss the most in life –  listing mums and dads and cats and dogs- indulges in some fuzzy and nostalgic memories before cutting back to the regular jawa droppinh programming of double backflips and other acrobatics.

 As for the other draw of the show –  the stunts – all I can say was that I was surprised how well the good vibes of old do-wop numbers such as the gorgeous, “You and Me” by Penny and the Quartets went with the brief feeling of panic that catches you when a woman who can’t weigh more than 60 kg soaking wet is thrown 15 feet into the air by her brawny colleague. Then you remember a second later that this is what they do for a living, and clap and cheer in relief, with the rest of the crowd. 

Hackney Empire- 6th August 2022

Reviewed by Antonia Hebbert

5*****

Siegfried and Götterdämmerung are the third and fourth in Richard Wagner’s colossal Ring Cycle of four operas. Arcola Theatre has been working its way through them, starting with Das Rheingold in 2019, and Die Walküre last year. These are condensed and pared-down productions, with an orchestra of 18 rather than 100, and are much shorter than the originals. Adapted by Graham Vick and Jonathan Dove in the 1990s, they caused a sensation when they first appeared, and their flexibility is useful in the Covid era. But the main thing is that they provide a way to put on intense, thrilling productions of operas that are notoriously unwieldy and difficult to stage. The orchestra is Orpheus Sinfonia: it may be small but it packs a powerful punch, with a big, gorgeous brass sound and subtlety too. I am not expert enough to comment on music technicalities, but take it as read that for players and singers, this music is a titanic workout and hugely demanding.

The whole cycle tells the story of gold stolen from the Rhine maidens and turned into a magical ring, interwoven with the end of the old Norse gods and the destruction of Valhalla. In Siegfried, the eponymous hero has been brought up by the metalsmith Mime, who wants him to kill and be killed by the dragon Fafner, in order to get the dragon’s hoard of Rhinegold (and the Ring). Siegfried kills Fafner and also Mime, and boldly goes through a burning ring of fire to win Brünnhilde, daughter of the god Wotan (aka the Wanderer). She is one of the Valkyrie, the flying warrior deities who take fallen heroes to Valhalla, and has been imprisoned in fire because of events in a previous opera.

It is dizzyingly complicated, but one of the great things about these productions is that they tell their stories very clearly. Surtitles help, and the acting as well as the singing is absolutely wonderful. Neal Cooper is a big, bold Siegfried, looking like recruit for the US Marines; Colin Judson is Mime, creepily hopping about with a teddy bear and pretending he has been a good father figure. Elizabeth Karani is charming as the Woodbird who helps Siegfried; Lee Bissett is an enthralling Brünnhilde, and returns in the same part for Götterdämmerung. I think Brünnhilde will always seem more three-dimensional than bone-headed hero Siegfried, but their love is one of those opera things you find yourself accepting while being carried along by sublime music.

Staging these operas has always been a headache. Anything involving flying deities, giants and Rhine maidens could easily look ludicrous. Wagner himself resorted to building the Bayreuth opera house, to create a ‘mystic gulf’ of theatrical magic. This Ring production heads towards abstraction, wisely leaving it to the music, acting and spectator’s imagination to fill in the gaps. The set is a jumbled ziggurat of scaffolding platforms, suggestive of a scrapyard or the stuff behind a stage (or indeed the end of my garden, but that is another story). It works perfectly with subtle changes of lighting to suggest Mime’s cave or Fafner’s lair. Fafner is the excellent Simon Wilding (more of him later) slithering sinisterly, which is dragon enough for me. It is all stripped down, but takes you by surprise, as in the extraordinary scene between Wotan (Paul Carey Jones) and Erda (Mae Heydorn), who sings divinely in a sort of rippling cloud of ethereal stuff.

In Götterdämmerung, some carpets, lamps and chairs transform the set into a bourgeois home. This is the base of Gunther and Hagen, brothers of the Gibichung clan, whose head is Alberich (Mime’s brother), the one who stole the gold in the first opera. The production team must have had fun with this: Simon Thorpe is fussy and silly as Gunther, while Simon Wilding (formerly Fafner) is fabulously evil and brooding as Hagen. With encouragement from Freddie Tong’s malign Alberich, they scheme to make Siegfried forget Brünnhilde and couple up with their sister Gutrune, while Guthrun takes Brünnhilde for himself. Yes, even crueller than Love Island, and heartrendingly done.

Before that happens Brünnhilde has a visit from her sister Valkyrie Waltraute (gorgeous mezzo Angharad Lyddon) asking her to put things right by returning the Ring to the Rhine maidens; later Siegfried also turns down this chance, and we get a brief, lovely taste of Rhine maidens chorusing from Mae Heydorn (again), Lizzie Holmes and Bethan Langford. Siegfried this time is Mark Le Brocq, who does a good job of looking like someone under a spell and suddenly, too late, wakes up from it. Of course everything goes wrong, or rather destiny works out as it must – Seigfried dies, Brünnhilde joins him on his funeral pyre, the Rhine rises up and Valhalla is destroyed.

We don’t see all this, and serious Wagner fans may be disappointed about the stuff that is left out of this mighty final opera of the Ring Cycle. If you can cope with that though, it is riveting, edge-of-the-seat stuff, that you really don’t want to end. The director is Julia Burbach; Bettina John is the designer; and Peter Selwyn conducts this marathon.

Siegfried and Götterdämmerung are part of Arcola’s summer-long Grimeborn Festival, which champions adventurous, accessible and affordable opera. There are plenty more to come this year: see https://www.arcolatheatre.com/grimeborn/

New Victoria Theatre, Woking

Reviewed by Becky Doyle

5*****

Such a lovely, feel good show for all the family to see and enjoy. The whole cast had something to offer, each bringing energy, charisma, and talent. There were a number of children that deserve a mention but would be too difficult to single out just a couple and so rather I will just say that there are some stars in the making with powerful voices and fantastic dancing skills already shining through!

Linzi Hateley (The Narrator), a constant in the show was fantastic with a strong voice, passion and although at times I felt rather childish in areas, I appreciate the audience and it went down well. Jac Yarrow (Joseph) had such a gorgeous voice with his rendition of ‘Close Every Door’ absorbing the whole audience.

Quite unusually, there was a star of the show for me that probably differs for all other shows I have seen and that is that of John Rigby, the Musical Director – his energy throughout was second to none and I found myself watching him on numerous occasions during the performance. He had the audience up on their feet and it was a special moment to look back from my seat and see the whole audience on their feet dancing and singing along.

I would recommend this show to anyone who is looking for a feel good, easy going couple of hours with the family that you can get involved in sing and dance the night away.

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Pleasance Courtyard (Two) Venue 33 – until 29^th August

 Reviewed by Rachel Farrier

4****

Rinkoo Barpaga has created a fascinating and unsettling show in ‘Made in India/Britain‘. An honest and clear-eyed exploration of his own experiences and reactions to navigating life as a deaf person of Indian heritage in modern Britain, it did that rare and precious thing of opening my eyes to a world of which I know very little. He performs the entire show in British Sign Language, with the script also voiced by another performer on the edge of the stage. The physicality of the performance is engaging from the start and Barpaga takes us on his life journey from his upbringing in a hearing family Birmingham to an adulthood where he has moved around and travelled for work, with success and heartbreaking suffering along the way. 

The discrimination and abuse that Barpaga has encountered both from the white and deaf communities are as shocking as they are depressing, and the confusion and anger with which he meets this is conveyed brilliantly. He describes the tension and confusion he feels when travelling to visit family in India and hearing about atrocities perpetrated by the British, because he is British. But also, surrounded by his Indian family, Indian. Despite these serious and important reflections on clearly painful experiences, there is plenty of humour in the show, and there are hopeful  moments where Bharpaga describes ‘finding his tribe’ (when he meets other deaf children and the wider deaf community) and times where he has found acceptance in unlikely places. 

I went along to this show with a hearing friend who also knows British Sign Language and she mentioned that the pacing was at times jarring as the speaking narrator was ahead of Bharpaga in the script. However, we both found this to be a compelling, entertaining and thought-provoking show and left with huge admiration for Bharpaga’s tenacity and courage, as well as the beautiful way in which he told a challenging story. 

Edinburgh Fringe Festival

Summerhall Anatomy Lecture Theatre Venue 26 – until 28 August 2022

 Reviewed by Rachel Farrier

5*****

Hayley McGhee has created an absolute gem of a solo show in Age is a Feeling. A day after seeing it, some of the lines (and feelings evoked) are still zinging around my mind (and heart). In other hands the concept of this show might feel cliched and presumptuous but McGhee’s mesmerising presence on stage and terrifyingly insightful script are beautiful, compelling and moving from start to finish. 

Starting at age 25 (when your adult life begins.) McGhee effectively goes on to describe a life, with all the possibilities, pain, joy and terror in between. The opening line (which I may be paraphrasing, apologies) ‘Nobody gets to know everything about your life, even you’, starts both McGhee and the audience on a quest. The audience gets to choose the course of the ‘life’ that is described by picking specific words that will direct which script McGhee follows. Apart from anything else, my companion and I marvelled at McGhee’s ability to hold all the options in her head, without breaking the fluency of the show at all.

The insights and observations are by turns hilarious and deeply moving, and on many occasions so on point that it felt like I had been hit in the chest. The knowing laughs and awed silences of my fellow audience members indicated that we were all having the same experience, as particular parts of the story resonated with our own lives. It is not often that I leave a show (especially a Fringe show..) knowing that it will stay with me for years to come, but I feel sure that this one will. Go and see this show is you possibly can. 

Theatre Royal, York -until 7^th August 2022

Reviewed by Katie Goldsbrough

3***

York Theatre Royal’s community production of The Coppergate Woman begins with the rise of ‘The Coppergate Woman’, played by Kate Hampson, she has been gone for many years and awakens in a glass case in the Jorvik centre. As the Coppergate Woman rises she discovers a world in need of help to help prevent Ragnarök and the end of the world. 

The remains of the Coppergate Woman were found between 1976 and 1981 and put on display due to her unusual burial. Writer, Maureen Lennon has used the story of The Coppergate Woman and intertwined it with Norse Mythology.

Through the story we are told Norse Myths which are linked with people in modern times and their troubles. We learn of Fenrir, a great wolf who was bound by the gods after it was thought he would bring an end to Odin. Fenrir’s story is linked with Fern, who has been struggling to leave her house due to having underlying health conditions during the Covid-19 pandemic. 

We then meet Sarah, a nurse who has recently lost her mother and has been working none stop due to a fear of breaking down if she gives herself a chance to mourn, her story is linked to Sigyn, the wife of Loki. Loki is imprisoned and Sigyn is forever fated to hold bowl above his head to prevent him being poisoned by the snake which hangs above him. 

The final link is Thor who is struggling to walk the path to hell due to fear, an emotion he has never felt before, this is linked to Toms story, Tom is struggling with fear of seeing his brother in hospital, he struggles to find his was inside to visit. 

Can these humans come together when Ragnarök arrives to defeat the gods and send them back to where they came and prevent the end of the world. 

The Coppergate Woman is well put together, with a choir involved throughout and music mixed with the story telling. It’s an interesting show with mythology cleverly entwined with modern times. The community come together well and it is clear how much effort and enjoyment have gone in to the production and the result is a good one.