Tag Archives: theatre review

Porridge, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool.

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).

Porridge, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(555 words, estimated 2:13 mins reading time)

The Canterbury Tales, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

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.

The Canterbury Tales, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(383 words, estimated 1:32 mins reading time)

The Hobbit, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool.

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.

The Hobbit, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(434 words, estimated 1:44 mins reading time)

Council Depot Blues, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. July 21st 2010.

Cast: Jake Abraham, Roy Brandon, Paul Broughton, Lindzi Germain, Howard Gray, Phil Hearne, Shaun Mason, Andrew Schofield.

It seems Davy Kirby can do no wrong when it comes to observing the characters and situations that make Liverpool such a unique city, with Brick up the Mersey Tunnels and Lost Soul having received critical and commercial acclaim over the last couple of years, the time was right to let Council Depot Blues have another turn at the Royal Court Theatre.

Council Depot Blues, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(376 words, estimated 1:30 mins reading time)

Our Day Out, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre.

Cast: Kieran Cunningham, Pauline Daniels, Stephen Fletcher, Mark Moraghan, Georgina White, Sophie Fraser, Chris Mason, Abby Mavers, Jack Rigby. Mia Molloy.

We have all been on one, no matter of our age. The school day out is one of those times that if pushed we will remember detail for detail, whether it was a day trip to the local seaside to let off steam or an exercise in futility where the teachers tried to show that they could be down with the kids and be their friends for one day.

Our Day Out, Theatre Review. Royal Court Theatre. full post

(432 words, estimated 1:44 mins reading time)

The Game, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

Cast: John Branwell, Liz Carney, Jo Gerard, Catherine Kinsella, Ror North, Wendi Peters, Phil Rowson, Barrie Rutter, Matt Sutton, Jos Vantyler.

Harold Brighouse’s name might ring more bells with drama and literature lovers as the writer of the classic play Hobson’s Choice, however thanks to a dramatic find in a Canadian University, Barrie Rutter and his team of players that make up Northern Broadsides have breathed life into the play The Game.

Northern Broadsides have continued to thrill Liverpool audiences over the last few years, with productions such as The Man with Two Gaffers and their own take on Romeo and Juliet, it seems as though the company can do no wrong in wrong in local eyes.

The Game, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(385 words, estimated 1:32 mins reading time)

Calendar Girls, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. September 28th 2010.

Cast: Denise Black, Elaine C. Smith, Julia Hills, Rachel Lumberg, Anna Charlston, Jennifer Ellison, Susan Bovell, Joe McGann, Bruno McGregor, Bruno Langley, Mikyla Dodd.

Surely there is no better way to get some of the leading ladies of British theatre and television on one stage that by bringing the celebrated Calendar Girls to the Liverpool Empire.

Based on a real life story, Calendar Girls tells the tale of a group of Women’s Institute members attempt to create a piece of work that will raise much needed funds for a hospital sofa, the same hospital in which one of the member’s husbands had been treated for Leukaemia.

Calendar Girls, Theatre Review. Empire Theatre, Liverpool. full post

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

No Wise Men, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. December 9th 2010.

Cast: Helen Carter, Annabelle Dowler, Javier Marzan, John Nicholson, Clare Thomson, Milo Twomey.

Take a pinch of Frank Capra’s It’s A Wonderful Life, mix it up with lashings of Hans Christian Anderson’s tale of The Little Match Girl and add the very best of humour from theatre company Peepolykus you end up with a compelling, sometimes heartstring pulling and totally absorbing production of No Wise Men.

No Wise Men, Theatre Review. Playhouse Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(328 words, estimated 1:19 mins reading time)

The Friendship Experiment, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. January 15th 2011.

Cast:  Matt Rutter, Tim Lynskey.

It takes two brave men to create the genuinely superb insanity that is portrayed on stage in the form of The Friendship Experiment. From the moment Matt Rutter and Tim Lynskey bound on stage, the audience is in for over an hour of mayhem which will lead them down several rabbit holes and coming out the other side asking “what the hell just happened”.

The Friendship Experiment, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(297 words, estimated 1:11 mins reading time)

Beachy Head, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool.

Originally published by L.S. Media. February 16th 2011.

Cast: Sarah Belcher, Dan Ford, Katie Lightfoot, Matt Tate, Neal Craig.

There is only one way to describe Analogue’s production of Beachy Head and that is shockingly powerful, a play that will have audiences leaving the theatre having their perceptions changed about the way we look at the way someone takes their own life.

The Unity Theatre once more played perfect host to a troupe of actors and a story that is swept under the carpet and not discussed openly in any home. The intimacy of the stage reflecting perfectly how the main character of Stephen Mitchell, played with stunning grace by Dan Ford, and his story, as told initially by the other actors on the stage.

Beachy Head, Theatre Review. Unity Theatre, Liverpool. full post

(389 words, estimated 1:33 mins reading time)