Tag Archives: Liverpool

Toast, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Giles Cooper, Katy Federman, Blair Plant, Samantha Hopkins, Stefan Edwards, Nicholas McBride, Alice Keedwell.

When we think of the autobiography, we tend to find ourselves in the realm of the adventurer, the sports personality, the political fixer, the musical star and the celebrity gossip; we are looking for a hero, for the individual to whom we might glean the clink of inspiration from in which our lives might not only improve, but in some we can bask in the glow of a reflected glory. However, the guide and influence does not always appear in such profound ways, sometimes it can be as simple as one who found their passion in another sphere, that the life they have led is just as pressured, they just found another way to rise to the top.

Toast, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(467 words, estimated 1:52 mins reading time)

Lost Boys, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Louis Carrington, Floriana Dezou, Faye Donnellan, Tom Isted, Neve Kelman, Alexandre King, Charlie Knowles, Alex Meredith, Eion McKenna, Kwame Owusu, Jenna Sian O’Hara, Sam Ress-Baylis, Daryl Rowlands.

No matter what type of community you grew up in, the large sprawling metropolis, the neatly bordered and hedge-trimmed village or the new town with no discernible history, you either embrace its place in your own story or you run away from it, perhaps through the weight of expectation or because you have seen through its soul and wish to be somewhere else that you can call home. However, the chances are that whatever the place you reside there is a growing feeling of unease, of mounting anxiety amongst the young, and their belief that that they no longer recognise their place in society, or how to fix the despair that comes with toxic masculinity.

Lost Boys, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(468 words, estimated 1:52 mins reading time)

Menlove Avenue Murder Mystery, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Paul Duckworth, Pauline Fleming, Gillian Hardie, Michael Peace, Olivia Sloyan, Liam Tobin.

The seductive reasoning of being an armchair detective are honed and always alert, we are spurred in our efforts by the clues and chain of suspicion, and once we have narrowed down the suspects due to our insight and belief, we feel as though we could easily give the likes of Poirot, Morse, Tennison and Vera Stanhope a run for their money and give our friends and neighbours a reason to breathe easy as they drift off to sleep at night.

Menlove Avenue Murder Mystery, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(404 words, estimated 1:37 mins reading time)

American Idiot, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 8.5/10

Cast: Tom Milner, Luke Friend, Sam Lavery, Alexandra Robinson, Christian Tyler Wood, Daniel Law, Glen Adamson, Jennifer Caldwell, Joshua Dowen, Laura Marie Benson, Lucas Rush, Raquel Jones, Rory McGuire, Ross William Wild, Samuel Pope, Shekinah McFarlane, Siobhan O’ Driscoll, Amy Anzel, David Brooks.

Band: Robert Wicks, Chris George, Nick Kent, Charlie Maguire.

American Idiot, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(590 words, estimated 2:22 mins reading time)

Manic Street Preachers, Gig Review. Anfield Stadium, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The Manic Street Preachers are no strangers to Liverpool, having the rare bestowment of love given to them by the city for the part they have played in music history but also in the way they have sided with the city in political respects, they have felt the damage to the city and its citizens’ reputations as surely had they plied their early days continually performing at the Lomax or gigging round the town on a daily basis. No strangers, just another opportunity in which to perform in a city they love, and to perform at the home of the European Champions as support to Bon Jovi must surely rank as one of the great moments of the band’s history.

Manic Street Preachers, Gig Review. Anfield Stadium, Liverpool. full post

(411 words, estimated 1:39 mins reading time)

Kill A Witch Or Die Trying, Theatre Review. Physical Fest 2019. Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

Cast: Laura Edwards, Shannon Walbrooke, Emilie Lahouel.

History recalls how the strength of women has been viewed by those with weak minds and suspect agendas, throughout time a woman’s sexuality, her power has been used against her to the point where the most base of accusations have held sway and in the minds of public opinion have condemned her to be branded many names, not least one that holds emotive historical value, that of a witch.

Kill A Witch Or Die Trying, Theatre Review. Physical Fest 2019. Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(394 words, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)

Lost Soul 2: Smigger’s Wrecked Head, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10

Cast: Jake Abraham, Gemma Brodrick, Lindzi Germain, Catherine Rice, Andrew Schofield, Bobby Schofield, Lenny Wood.

There is a clock that starts ticking in all of us at some point or another, it is inevitable, and it is folly to resist; of course, though it is fun to try. They say that women grow up quicker than men, the responsibility of the world hitting home with such force that the fun that once seemed wicked and alluring, is now but a distant memory, one still remembering the fondness of the late night fondle and chip supper, but now concerned with making sure the family that once played together, stays together.

Lost Soul 2: Smigger’s Wrecked Head, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(561 words, estimated 2:15 mins reading time)

Cooped, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * * *

Cast: Aitor Basauri, Stephen Kreiss, Petra Massey, Toby Park.

Twenty glorious years in the making, and still the riotous laughter keeps coming, for Brighton-based theatre company Spymonkey; there is no sitting delicately on laurels, resting in the plumped up leather chair beside the roaring fire and passion of the audience, even returning to one of the foursome’s early successes means being match fit, confining themselves to the bird house until the pen sparks life once more.

Cooped, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(411 words, estimated 1:39 mins reading time)

Andrew Hesford, Gig Review. The Casa, Liverpool.

You can know someone for years and never truly gain insight into what they are capable of proving to the world until the one moment where the stage lights hits the spot where they stand, and all of a sudden the shadows melt away, they retreat to furthest corners of the mind and all that remains is an artist’s soul, a bright light in which you cannot but send messages to your nearest and fondly remembered that you wish they were there to enjoy the reveal.

Andrew Hesford, Gig Review. The Casa, Liverpool. full post

(418 words, estimated 1:40 mins reading time)

John Chatterton, Gig Review. The Casa, Liverpool.

We play the hand we are dealt but for some there is always a way to seek a journey beyond the deck of possibilities, a chance not yet observed by many to keep performing at the table long after everyone else has cashed in their chips and hailed a taxi to their homes. For some the stimulation they continue to garner, to chase and embrace the fortune and the pot of creative bounty is enough to see the pair of deuces as a winning hand and the straight flush as a moment of beauty, of ignoring the glare and opening the mind to all the permutations possible.

John Chatterton, Gig Review. The Casa, Liverpool. full post

(419 words, estimated 1:41 mins reading time)