London Theatre Reviews

National Theatre's streaming 'Romeo & Juliet' is a stunning take on the Shakespeare classic

This is more like it. Nearly two months after a disconnected, largely emotion-free Romeo and Juliet starring Sam Tutty (of Dear Evan Hansen fame), along comes the real deal: a raw and urgent new take on this potentially most overfamiliar of plays that represents lateral thinking of the highest order. In so doing, the director Simon Godwin has offered up the most impassioned version of this play imaginable, its often unwieldy length here filleted to 90-minutes as hurtling and relentless as the...

RSC 'Dream' is an inventive, condensed take on the Bard

A brave venture that by necessity feels incomplete, Dream offers a take on A Midsummer Night's Dream that may surprise even those who think they've seen everything that can be done with Shakespeare's most-performed comedy. (The Frederick Ashton ballet, a classic of the English repertoire, whittles a multi-strand text down to an hour of dance.) Running barely 30 minutes, plus a post-show panel that I would consider crucial to the experience, the attempt here is to allow technology to push at the...

'The Picture of Dorian Gray' is now a 21st century fable for the digital age

Who doesn't want to be young and beautiful forever? Oscar Wilde's 1891 novel is famous for its indelible central idea, of an ageless and exquisite young man and the hideous, ageing portrait that betrays his depraved secret nature. It's a vision that will never lose its potency as long as we remain looks-obsessed, which is probably why there have been numerous stage adaptations. Yet the book itself is a slog: an overwrought, purple profusion of self-conscious aphorism and ornate philosophical...

Streaming 'Sherlock Holmes' whodunnit is an interactive, virtual success

Things aren't going too well in Britain's political higher political echelons: the Home Secretary, Foreign Secretary, and Lord Chamberlain have all been found hanged and unless decisive action is taken fast, the Prime Minister will be next to go - and on his birthday, no less. What to do? If you're Dr Watson, it's time to call in a Zoom room full of amateur sleuths, who are then tasked with deciding which of a handful of suspects may be the murderer. It's a race against time, but one that at...

'The Sorcerer's Apprentice' is a few ingredients short of spellbinding

"Magic, the means to impress the people around you" is continually sung by the title character in The Sorcerer's Apprentice, and it's easy to see why. Inspired by J. W. Goethe's fantastical 18th century poem, which subsequently influenced Dukas's orchestral piece, The Sorcerer's Apprentice sees Eva, a sorcerer's daughter, use her newly discovered powers to impress others and change the world.Due to have had its premiere at Southwark Playhouse earlier this year, the production is now taking place...

Adrian Lester mesmerizes in Almeida Theatre's streamed 'Hymn'

From live to livestream: that's the unexpected path charted over time by the new two-hander Hymn, which pairs the playwright Lolita Chakrabarti with her husband, actor Adrian Lester, nine years after their collaboration on Red Velvet took them to the West End and New York. Conceived specifically for the constraints of the pandemic, the original intention here was for a modestly conceived piece that could be performed before a socially distanced audience at this important Off West End venue....

‘The Color Purple’ holds a subdued power in Curve Leicester production

The Color Purple has been one of my lifelines in the last year. The inspiring message of discovering your own power to make it through hard times feels relatable and helpful during these seemingly endless days of lockdown. The experience of seeing the show, which features a rousing, gospel-infused score from Brenda Russell, Allee Willis, and Stephen Bray, in the theatre can feel akin to going to church. When I saw the original Broadway production on tour and the stripped down John Doyle-directed...

Janie Dee shines in streamed production of Terence Rattigan's 'All On Her Own'

Solo plays are everywhere these days and why not? Made to order for the constraints and restrictions of our time, the resurgence of the monologue has given rise to entertainments as varied as last year's reboot of Alan Bennett's Talking Heads, seen first on TV and then onstage at the Bridge Theatre, all the way to Clint Dyer and Roy Williams's Death of England: Delroy, in which a single performer, Michael Balogun, brought the National's largest stage to teeming, vibrant life. So it's not too...

A disconnected 'Romeo and Juliet' struggles to overcome isolation constraints

This gets an A for effort, I suppose. It can't be easy during the pandemic working on Shakespeare given the size and scope of his plays, both of which run counter to the demands of social distancing and other dictates of our infectious times. All credit, therefore, to Metcalfe Gordon Productions for even daring to mount a new Romeo and Juliet available for streaming in this climate: a project put together in two weeks that by necessity required the cast to film their parts individually so as to...

Beloved panto 'Dick Whittington' goes virtual with National Theatre at Home

The National Theatre regularly trawls the world repertoire but has only infrequently dipped a raucous toe into arguably this country's best-loved theatrical institution, the Christmas pantomime, or panto. I dimly recall a Cinderella at this address in 1983, when I had only just moved to the UK, and Christmas 2020 saw only the first panto since then - a busy, bustling, openhearted version of Dick Whittington that closed before opening night (so what else is new in these Covid-ridden days) but...