Photograph by Ian D. Hall
Originally published by L.S. Media. December 2nd 2009.
Even if you don’t know anything by the band it is well worth checking out the fantastic Eagles of Death Metal when they come back to Britain on their next tour, for as they constantly prove, they are among the best rock acts around today. They show right from the start of a gig that they are out to give a performance that will be remembered fondly by their fans and newcomers alike for a long time.
Originally published by L.S. Media. December 7th 2009.
It is not often a big band come to a city twice within a calendar year but the superb Electric Six have never really stood on tradition or been fans of sticking to the routine.
Electric Six are a band that you cannot ignore. You might love their genre blurring music, one minute electro pop, the next hard rock or you could find them irritating and beyond the pale but you cannot dismiss them. With a fun night in the offering the Detroit musicians opened the night with the storming Body Shot from the new studio album Kill but they never let the heat die down once during the night from that moment.
Originally published by L.S. Media. February 24th 2010.
Cast: Cleo Sylvestre, Fine Time Fontayne, Michelle Hardwick, Barbara Hockaday, heather Pheonix, Nina Kristofferson, Barrie Rutter, Andrew Pollard,
One of the most popular touring companies to come to Liverpool in recent years has to be the fantastic ensemble that makes up Northern Broadsides. Led by the indomitable Barrie Rutter, the troupe has thrilled local audiences with their versions of The Man with Two Gaffers and Romeo and Juliet to name but two.
Occasionally, a production comes along and shakes your preconceived ideas about staging and writing a play right down to the very foundations. One such play currently in Liverpool is Kneehigh Theatre’s re-working of the children’s classic Hansel and Gretel.
The stage was set for a magical night of theatre and the cast and support did not let the excited audience down. From the very young whose innocent laughter filled every part of the theatre to the parents and older patrons who were just as enthralled by the use of the set and the characterization of the family, (this time without the evil step mother figure).
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 23rd 2010.
Cast: Shaun Williamson, Daniel West, Nicholas Lumley, John Conroy, Peter Alexander, Richard Syms, Claire Andreadis, Andrew Scott Butler, Jon De Ville, Jolana Lee, Mark Pearce, Barrett Robertson, Alex Tanner, Matt Weyland, Ryan Winston.
Not that long ago, a sitcom took the country by storm, not for its high brow wit, not for snappy one-liners but for the place and its subject matter. There are not that many writers who could make a comedy gold out of the idea of sending a man to prison and the prospect of dealing with the establishment (both in the form of the Prison Officers and the man who actually ran the prison, in this case, the genial Harry Grout).
Originally published by L.S. Media. March 24th 2010.
Cast: Isia Bennison, Emily Butterfield, Matt Connor, Phil Corbitt, Laura Cox, Andy Cryer, Michael Hugo, Rosie Jenkins, Alan McMahon, David Newman, Rob Pickavance, Matthew Rixon, Richard Standing, Andrew Whitehead.
After the success of Medea earlier in the year, Northern Broadsides have come back once more to Liverpool with the intention of staging a difficult piece of work for the delight of the Playhouse audience. This time they tackled one of English literature’s defining moments, Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales.
photograph by Ian D. Hall.
Originally published by L.S. Media. April 21st 2010.
There are so many young talented bands currently doing the bars, clubs and smaller venues at the moment that you can easily get lost in the maze of angst ridden lyrics, fading, dashed dreams and get soaked in the sweat of hope and insecurity.
One such band that won’t have any of those problems is Brighton’s six piece, Sweet, Sweet Lies , whose very presence at Mojo’s dwarfed others who would have felt lost in the close confines of the narrow stage and proximity to the enthusiastic audience.
Originally published by L.S. Media. April 30th 2010.
Cast: Billy Clarke, Chris Corrigan, Marty Maguire, Andy Moore, Marc O’Shea, David Craig, Paul Boyd, Conleth White, Paul Burke, Elaine Barnes, Deidre Ashe.
Carefully mixing humour with the despair and hope, The Chronicles of Long Kesh is possibly one of the most important plays to have come to Liverpool.
Superbly written by Martin Lynch, the play deals with the dark days of the seventies and early eighties when the troubles in Ireland were hitting new lows and the relationships between neighbours were more than strained.
Steve Hogarth at the Cavern. Photograph by Ian D. Hall
Originally published by L.S. Media. May 17th 2010.
Steve Hogarth last entertained his loyal Liverpool fans nearly 18 months ago when he played at St Brides Church, a cold evening that was warmed up beautifully by Steve’s vocal talent and the joy and warmth that was felt by the audience.
Originally published by L.S. Media. June 9th 2010.
Cast: Peter Howe, Christopher Robbie, James Hedley, Seb Morgan, Danny Fox, Russell Clough, Antony Gabriel, William St. Clair, Craig Whittaker, Kirk Barker, Paul Chesterton, Christopher Llewellyn.
There are books and stories that are just too epic and grand in scale to try and transfer over to the theatre, The Hobbit isn’t one of them…just.