Stereophonic @ Duke of York's Theatre

Far be it from me to seek out hyper-realism on stage, but the extreme detail in Sterophonic — from the overlapping conversations, to detailed props, to a set that includes fully functional reels and tapes in the recording studio — creates a spellbinding world that pulls you in to the drama of this band.

Framed around a fictional band, the story rather closely aligns with the real life story of Fleetwood Mac, which is both its strength, and in my view, its downfall. The spine of the story structure is so clear, and fictionalising the conversations that may have happened over the course of recording this album was very compelling, creating tension through the work that spills out into the music they are co-creating. This same structure, however, is its drawback. The central character whose anger, narcissism, and misogyny create an abusive situation that while the work is good, is an unhealthy environment for all. The script has an opportunity to do what we haven’t been great at in reality, and hold the character to account. Unfortunately by sticking to reality, while he loses “the girl” and the band breaks up, he is still successful and faces no real consequences. In a way, the script explains and makes excuses for the abusive auteur who creates good art. Not a message we want to land in 2025….

This is unfortunate, as the performances were uniformly strong, the cast exceptional, the direction tight and intentional.

Eh up, me old flowers! @ White Bear Theatre

I went into this production knowing nothing of Charlie Williams — and came out, intrigued, engaged, and wanting to learn more. Framed around British comedian Charlie Williams interview ahead of receiving an MBE, the script dives through time using only two actors, strong physicality, and a bit of light projection. These simple elements are used to great effect.

The script had a solid story that wove in and out of time periods well, and in my view did a good job being an “issue play” without feeling contrived. It brought nuance and thoughtfulness to the story, and kept a solid pace. It uses humour and self-reference, as well as a broken fourth wall to achieve a real connection with the audience. There were no parts of the story that felt unnecessary. Note this is an extended version of the play that ran at Edinburgh Fringe 2022.

The two actors were equally exceptional. Tony Marshall plays Charlie Williams at an array of ages, physicalising the changes with a subtle and detailed set of choices. His emotional range is exceptional, and demonstrated through considered work here; he is both funny and sad. Nick Denning-Read plays so many characters I lost count; as the only other actor in the play he portrays literally every person who turns up in Williams’ story. From football stars to fellow comedians, school teachers to backup singers. His comic timing is brilliant, and his accent work is award worthy on its own (not to take away from the rest of his performance!)

The direction was even handed, with a clear musicality to the interpretation of the text. The space was used effectively, with clever placement, objects transforming, and spaces transitioning seamlessly. Not to mention the finely tuned pacing which gave the actors a clear score in which to bring forth their exceptional performances.

Fat Ham @ Royal Shakespeare Company

An adaptation of Hamlet focussed around a Black American family. An adaptation which doesn’t give the tragic ending we all expect. There is much to like about the premise of this production — and oodles about the script itself, which was layered beautifully with references and text from Shakespeare while also creating modern poetry reframing the same topics in today’s parlance.

The performances in this production - the UK Premiere — are largely exceptional, and the directorial choices overall strong. There were, however, some moments lacking clarity; for example when we as the audience were (or were not) complicit and the fourth wall broken was muddy. The change happened so frequently and almost irrationally that it was difficult to say it was intentional, although I hope it was….I perhaps just didn’t see it.

It was really, really good on the whole. There were some character choices that felt too surface relative to those which were really well grounded; in particular Ophelia and Hamlet, and switching Polonius to the intense mother figure. The design, the playfulness of the script, and the characters who largely went deeper than caricature were all exceptional. Yet something niggles, and I can’t quite put my finger on it. I almost need to see it again (or read it?) to identify what felt off.

Nonetheless, a smart and funny adaptation that subverted expectations and avoided tragedy-porn at every turn, well worth seeing.

Second Summer of Love @ Drayton Arms Theatre

Second Summer of Love reflects on what it is like to be a Gen X former raver, now serious responsible adult and parent, and what happened to those joy-filled and optimistic free spirits. Framed around a mom and her teenage daughter who is revising for a Social Studies exam about drug use, the majority of the show exists in a flashback to her experiences as a 16 year old, raving in fields in the South of England. The flashbacks are when the play is strongest, but it really highlights how the script struggles when the other two actors are on stage; which is no disrespect to them, but rather to the impact of the adaptation from solo show to three hander. While this was needed for the actor’s ability to continue performing, the integration of the other characters as separate bodies in space needs more attention to help the script work in this new form.

Despite a strong performance from the lead actor, the injection of the additional characters, along with multiple false endings undermined its overall impact, which is too bad — as in its strong moments, it really had a funny and self-referential spark.

Stanley Donwood & Thom Yorke - This Is What You Get @ Ashmolean Museum

I really adore collaborations across mediums, so the opportunity for a glimpse into how Stanley Donwood and Thom Yorke have collaborated across the Radiohead albums was exciting.

While I enjoy Radiohead, I can’t claim to be the world’s superfan; the exhibition likely was more exciting for those who were, however what I really enjoyed about it was the playfulness of the work, the way the two artists pushed and responded to one another despite working in different mediums. It was fascinating to see the process laid bare, the relationship to creation exposed.

My only critique from a curatorial standpoint is that the music didn’t play a larger role. There was opportunity to bring sound into the space to help enhance the experience of the work and highlight the collaboration. Nonetheless, worth seeing.

Jean-Michel Othoniel - Les Phantomes D'Amour

Jean-Michel Othoniel was invited to create an installation that spanned not a single gallery or even a single building, but the entire city of Avignon to correspond with the Avignon Festival 2025. I had the pleasure of seeing the work across Collection Lambert, the Palais des Papes, and the Pont, along with around the city.

Each piece held its own significance and imagery, however despite similar repeating patterns, each reflected something new depending on where it was exhibited. The depth of the resin bricks for example, held one image in a bare gallery, but took on entirely new meaning in the main area of the Palais.

Similarly, his almost impressionist flowers looked stark and flower-like individually in a gallery, wheareas seeing them in a large assortment on the walls of a large, high-ceilinged room in the Palais they took on an almost celebratory feel, like fireworks.

The ability to weave religious imagery in contemporary objects imbued with contemporary meaning was quite notable, along with the careful curation. Each piece almost felt as if it was created for this space alone, yet was part of a wider dialogue with the walls of the city itself.

Alice in Wonderland @ Marylebone Theatre

This new adaptation of Alice in Wonderland packs a mountain of brilliance into a one-hour package full of delightful moments. The production is cohesive and unified; combining the princples of panto, puppetry, and physical theatre, the result is a slick and seamless visual feast which has jokes and fun moments for all ages, mixing the original Lewis Carroll text with contemporary references (and the odd groaner…it wouldn’t be a panto-style performance without it).

Particular stand outs were the use of physical theatre techniques to create the magic moments in the story; whether it is Alice falling down the well, her growing and shrinking, or the cartoonish relationship between characters, each beat of movement is filled with intention and consideration to create specific and thoughtful images.

This is accompanied by some fun and at times silly puppetry — my favourite of which was the unique way that the sea of tears was created.

Finally, the panto elements, staged so that the characters are “on the level” of the young audience speaking directly to them, the villainous Queen of Hearts simultaneously a panto Dame, Donald Trump, and Latrice Royale from Drag Race US, and silly pop song references — each of which contribute to the silly, fun, referential nature of the production.

This is children’s theatre done to perfection.

Alone, Together @ Camden Fringe

This new devised work contains a lot of bright ideas, however they get lost in the constraints of the structure. It begins intriguingly as a movement piece, with the performers alone in crowds, some nice physical work supporting this. The build on this is to show them all in their workplaces, facing similar limitations to the engagement of their students (they are all teachers, and we learn at the same school). Still intriguing….but this is where the structure becomes more of a constraint than a benefit. The actos pair off into couples, for each of whom we see snippets of their relationship tied to pop songs; each relationship meditates on the challenge in connecting to and truly knowing another person.

The choice to explore this through increasingly lengthy scenes is okay, but nothing new or groundbreaking — and indeed after a couple cycles feels repetitive, and undermines the argument the company are seeking to make with this devised piece. The relationships are mediated through phones, with individual attention trapped in them, however these movement sections interspersing the text feel more like superfluous and complicated scene changes than intentional moments.

It is all too bad, as the piece is earnest, and indeed showcases the acting of the young performers well — they are all interesting and thoughtful performers. However, as a work on its own, it is lacking.

La Lettre - Milo Rau @ Avignon Festival

If you had told me that the first play I saw at Avignon Festival would be interactive, or in French, or a critical view of bourgeois productions of The Seagull and Jeanne D’Arc….I would have believed you. If you had also told me that production would be in a recreation centre in a tiny village 30 mins by bus up the hill from Avignon, where there are no busses back after 8pm….that I may not have believed. Much less that this would be where I would see a fresh new Milo Rau production.

Each year, the festival commissions an artist to create a work that has specific restrictions; it must be performable in French or German, have no more than 2 actors, and must be able to be performed anywhere, and with minimal set. These productions tour following the festival each year.

Milo Rau’s La Lettre was this year’s offering. Starting from the premise of an actor receiving a letter from a relative, and subsequently diving into themes of imagination, dreams, expectations, and the struggle of an artistic life, the two performers were captivating throughout. Indeed, while the play explored huge themes, nothing really happened. In the best way possible. Reckoning with these themes, in the shadow of these two huge plays and the expectations that come with them, the production was wildly simple in its execution. The audience were less auditors than full fledged participants — not least through literally giving printed text and props to some members, including one who acted like a ringside model at a boxing match, carrying titles across the stage in a delightfully self referential titling that Brecht would have been proud of.

We were always aware it was a play. That plays are weird and strange. That sitting in the dark watching people pretend is odd. And yet while it was a critique of theatre, La Lettre was also a love letter to theatre itself. To imagination and playfulness, and not taking ourselves too seriously.

Mamuka @ Off Avignon Festival

Mamuka is a magical dance piece for children, performed by two dancers. The piece employs puppetry and papier mache headpieces to support the dancers in creating various movements of different woodland creatures, all centred around mythical fairies.

The choreography was captivating; the young people in the audience (as well as us older people) were drawn into the world created by the dancers and their headpieces, with their physical vocabulary adjusting to create multiple layers of this world.

What was truly enjoyable was that the movement vocabulary wasn’t simplified for children; it used complex imagery and technique based in modern dance, which elevated the performance.

Romeo & Juliet @ Shakespeare's Globe

I love when an interpretation brings new light to a text, so was excited to see Sean Holmes’ Romeo & Juliet at The Globe, set as a Western. The blustering, warring families are perfectly placed, and the American imagery this conjurs brings an interestingly modern layer (after all, America today is divided more than Verona ever was).

The cast are generally quite good (although I can’t say I loved the interpretation of Benvolio) — and the two young lovers bring an intelligent and thoughtful take on the characters. Indeed both brought a playful quality one can only have when there is a true and deep understanding of the text — so bravo to these young performers.

There were some fun inventive directorial decisions, in particular using the yard to great effect — however in the final act there were some unnecessarily awkward choices, bringing dead characters back on stage seemingly as ghosts? Indeed the otherwise clever interpretation was undermined by these unusual (and not textually founded) choices.

Nonetheless, the production is worth seeing.

Sing Street - Enda Walsh @Lyric Hammersmith

Note - I saw this in early previews.

The joy in this production is infectious, fuelled by the brilliant young cast, many of whom are making their professional debuts with this production. Built around the same story as the film, Enda Walsh’s adaptation really amps up the energy. There are a few new songs introduced, the best of which are those created for the older brother.

In previews, the production dazzled; the design choices were strong, using the minimalist set and loads of projection to create the space that could alternately be the house, the school, and transform into a concert space as the kids began to feel like rockstars. The pacing in previews was my only real quibble; there is a clear moment of transformation in the script when the band forms. The direction, shape, energy all change — however this shift wasn’t clear enough. It was as if they began too high-energy for that transition and the magic of the band to have its potential impact.

I’m very curious to see if (when?) this transfers and how it evolves.

Hercules @ Theatre Royal Drury Lane

I have been excited for this to be a musical since it was a film, well before any development of this production began. So unsurprisingly, this was an absolutely delightful evening; what really worked about the production was the centering of the muses in the story, giving them plenty to do (and honestly, making them the core of the story), and shaping the entire animation-styled world around them. While Hercules and Meg were okay, and Hades squeezes every inch of humour of of the writing, this show was about the muses — and we have no issues with that.

The new songs are alright, and add some needed texture to the production — however what really doesn’t work is the book. Which is honestly unfortunate, but if we’re being honest, who expects a solid book when going to a Disney musical? it isn’t what we’re there for. What we ARE there for is Casey Nicholaw and Tanisha Scott’s stunning choreography replete with contemporary pop-culture references appropriate to the characters. Give them the awards now.

I highly recommend this production for a gleeful, mindless night out. Don’t think so hard, just smile and enjoy.

Alice in Wonderland @ Royal Opera House

I first saw Wheeldon’s Alice in Wonderland in 2012, when it was relatively fresh, so was excited at the opportunity to see it again, both as the ballet aged, and as Wheeldon continues to tinker with it. I can’t claim to remember the 2012 production verbatim, however there were nuanced changes — or at minimum it felt fresh with a new, largely young cast. The night we saw it there were a considerable number of young performer taking major roles, including our Alice — whose youth and sparkle were apparent, this is a star in the making.

What i really appreciated, however, was that despite being over 10 years old, it did not seem to have aged in the way that many contemporary ballets do — it still felt as relevant and playful, as delightful and as challenging as it did 13 years ago. The true sign of a classic, getting better as it ages.

The Frogs @ Southwark Playhouse

Sondheim’s adaptation of Aristophanes’ comedy is an interesting one, injecting musical theatre and its many tropes into the ancient Greek comedy. Flush with a little self referential star-casting (Glee’s Kevin McHale) the jokes are updated, and the interpretation silly and fun. That said, it struggles to sparkle; the clunkiness of the material betrays the cleverness of the choreography and the earnest performances. You can see some of the ideas that will turn up (far more successfully) in later Sondheim works, however in The Frogs they are still being incubated.

Overall a fun night, but nothing that will stick with you over the years.

Operation Mincemeat @ The Fortune Theatre

Operation Mincemeat is absurdly funny. Starting from the premise of a very serious set of events — the allied effort to divert Nazi forces so they have a chance at landing in Sicily and turning the tides of WW2, some wildly clever satire, steeped with commentary on everything from classism to gender politics, the script is punch for punch an absolute joy.

It is well choreographed, well performed, and superbly directed. The willingness to shock the audience is high, and every moment earned (and enjoyed, both by performer and audience). I’ll not give away any spoilers, but just to say that gender swapping is used to underscore the satire expertly.

It is rare that I wholeheartedly recommend a musical. I fully recommend this one.

Matthew Bourne's The Midnight Bell @ Sadlers Wells Theatre

Full of Jazz era tales of love and connection across a lonely city, Matthew Bourne’s The Midnight Bell is a magnetic and captivating new work. Using Jazz standards lip synched by the dancers interlaced through the production to create narrative as well as commentary, the choreography moves through place and time with a heavy theatricality. The same spaces are used in an overlapping manner (reminiscent of the way Complicite use space) to great effect, creating a sense of togetherness in the loneliness the characters exude.

Beyond the choreography which was stunning, the use of the physical space, indeed transforming our perspective so that we see the same room from multiple angles, and the same activities which were hidden revealed. It is a truly stunning manipulation of perspective to create story of what is hidden, private, versus what is revealed.

Medea @ Coronet Theatre

I have read about Satoshi Miyagi’s work for some time now, so the opportunity to see his interpretation of Medea leapt at me. Framing the production in Meiji Japan, during Westernisation, was a powerful choice — but more importantly, positioning this story of a wronged woman seeking her revenge through only male voices, with the women becoming almost puppets, literal objects chosen and manipulated by the men, was brilliant.

The combination of movement, sound, music, and set was at times overwhelming and difficult to focus on, while at others utterly silent. The movement between these states incredibly intentional and specific. There was much to look at, and subtexts through physicality to help us see Miyagi’s commentary on the world it was representing layered and full of texture.

All of this together created some of the most stunning moments i have experienced in the theatre. In particular, the crux of the tragedy, when Medea is ready to kill her son, in pure, breakthtaking silence was suffocating in the most beautiful way. In short, Miyagi’s ability to play with the experience of time through sound and movement was absolutely masterful. See his work if you can.

Giant @ Harold Pinter Theatre

It is unusual to see an “issue play” that feels as though it properly explores all angles and points of view through its characters,. Giant is such a play, exploring the real historical moment when cherished children’s author Roald Dahl spoke out against Israeli aggression in Palestine, and received backlash. The script has a lot going on, and perhaps some elements of character and even setting I struggled to understand why they were chosen; the gardener for example, served little purpose other than to give the protagonist another older man to align himself with.

What was truly outstanding here was not the play, however, but John Lithgow’s performance. Nuanced and funny, while still being powerful and at times intimidating, Lithgow commanded the space. I have known his work primarily through tv sitcoms, so it was refreshing to get to see the depth of his skill live, and in a character who is so deeply challenging intellectually, with seemingly opposing viewpoints within himself. An absolutely extraordinary performance, sat within a decent play.

Similar to other such historical moment plays about big personalities, I do think that without Lithgow in the lead, the play would find itself rudderless.

Our Cosmic Dust @ Park Theatre

An adaptation of a Japanese story, Our Cosmic Dust is visually stunning. Making use of a massive dynamic projection screen over the back wall, and a reflective floor which at times creates infinite loops of visuals, the story takes you through the experience of a young boy and his mother, following the death of his father. The boy goes on an epic adventure, while the mother follows anxiously hoping for the best for her son.

The script is whimsical to match the design, and the 5 actors move through the space beautifully, supporting the puppet and magical world they create together. They leveraged many techniques common in physical theatre practice, clearly inspired by Complicité, to great effect.

All of that sounds lovely, and it is — but something struck a negative note with me when it came to the direction. While each of the characters were fully realised and unique, they also somehow felt tonally quite different, and not aligned in the mood and character of the play itself. It is definitely disappointing, as so many other elements were simply outstanding.