London Theatre Reviews

'Alex Edelman: Just For Us' review — a whipsmart blend of personal and political comedy

You might not think that Koko the Gorilla, who died in 2018, would take an interest in the death four years earlier of that fellow Californian, Robin Williams. That tidbit of information comes from the fast-talking Alex Edelman, the sensationally funny and also moving monologist whose well-travelled and wonderful show Just for Us is about an even stranger convergence: the participation of Edelman, an Orthodox Jew, at a meeting of white supremacists in the New York City borough of Queens. (That’s...

'Cirque du Soleil - Kurios' review — the power of humanity comes alive in the Victorian steampunk spectacular

As the clock strikes 11:11 on the Kurios set, a Seeker closes their eyes. Immediately, they’re thrust into a make-believe world with never-ending possibilities. In this cabinet of curiosities, acts defy human boundaries and ask what we can achieve when we let our futures guide us. For Cirque du Soleil’s Kurios, the future is now, and after the pandemic, it’s brighter than ever. The contemporary producer celebrate their 25th anniversary in London with the European premiere of Kurios, a...

'Watch on the Rhine' review — Lillian Hellman's quietly explosive play haunts the mind

What price inaction? That eternal question hovers poignantly over the terrific revival of Lillian Hellman’s rarely seen Watch on the Rhine, which gets 2023 London playgoing off to a truly dynamic start. This airing of Hellman’s quietly explosive 1940 play marks a sterling Donmar debut for the director Ellen McDougall, previously the artistic director of the Gate. And its capacious, uniformly expert cast conjoins veterans like Patricia Hodge, in grand form as a grandstanding American matriarch,...

'ABBA Voyage' review — a multi-dimensional pop concert for the ages

No concert was anticipated quite like ABBA Voyage. The possibility to see the iconic Swedish band on stage once more, not only together again, but appearing as their younger selves, boggled everyone’s minds. But can these ABBA-tars (a colloquial way to describe the quartet’s holograms) entertain audiences as much as seeing the real deal in the flesh? To put simply, yes. ABBA Voyage is a concert for the ages. Over five weeks, 1,000 animators immortalised Agnetha Fältskog, Anni-Frid Lyngstad,...

'Hakawatis' review — a storytelling sisterhood reshape Scheherazade's 1001 Nights

“Hakawati” means storyteller in Arabic, and stories are the reason for being of Hakawatis: Women of the Arabian Nights, playwright Hannah Khalil’s reimagining of the way in which Scheherazade sourced her stories for 1001 Nights. A co-production between Shakespeare’s Globe, where it is playing in repertory in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, and Tamasha, the director Pooja Ghai’s production catches something of the zeitgeist. In its insistence on the necessity of women to foreground their experience,...

'One Woman Show' review — Liz Kingsman is a comedy superstar

“It’s December, so we need to decide which woman will be successful in theatre this year,” proclaims the unnamed woman on stage. With a knowing look to her audience on its press night, this woman knows what she wants. Fame. Success. Good reviews. Can this woman write her success story? If we’re talking about Liz Kingsman finding success with One Woman Show, then definitely. The comedy darling took over Soho Theatre and the Edinburgh Fringe with her raucous dismantling of millennial storytelling....

'Mother Goose' review — Ian McKellen leads a megawatt pantomime for the ages

Not every theatre actor would continue working into his 80s but here’s Ian McKellen, who turns 84 in May, returning yet again to the stage at a time in life when many of his colleagues might prefer simply to rest. Not for the screen’s Gandalf and Magneto a further foray into the Shakespeare repertoire (Hamlet, Lear, his Bard-heavy solo show) that has kept him busy of late. This time round, “Serena” – as the show campily and affectionately renames its internationally renowned star – is donning a...

'Jack and the Beanstalk' review — an all-star pantomime justifies the beans

There are giants in the sky! And there are performing giants galore in Jack and the Beanstalk, the latest installment in a Palladium pantomime tradition that celebrates the best of old-school British humour with enough razzle dazzle to light up the West End. Once again, director Michael Harrison sprinkles pantomime magic in the home of variety entertainment. A thinly-veiled story — in this case, Jack sells his cow for five magic beans and ends up with a beanstalk in his backyard, only for the...

'As You Like It' – this ravishing, musical Shakespeare production is full of verdant delights

Has there ever been a more tempting time to run away to the Forest of Arden? Particularly when it’s an As You Like It as utterly beguiling as Josie Rourke’s, the first production made specially for bijou new London theatre @sohoplace, with its gorgeous musical setting of Shakespeare’s songs – played live on a baby grand piano by composer Michael Bruce – its mix of elaborate period costumes and enviable knitwear, and leaves falling like chic confetti from a ceiling where tree branches are nestled...

'Dolly Parton's Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol' review — a country-infused seasonal delight warms the soul

How can you possibly reconceive still further A Christmas Carol, the Dickens title that seems on the verge of taking over London theatre at the moment? One unexpected answer is to hand it over to Dolly Parton, the singer-songwriter country music goddess last represented on the West End nearly 4 years ago with her stage musical, 9 to 5. But whereas that screen-to-stage transcription was a comparatively synthetic affair, Dolly Parton’s Smoky Mountain Christmas Carol is an unexpected delight. And...