Review of Flash Festival: Little Bird Theatre Company - The Paper Bag Princess at Northampton Shoe Museum

It was back to the basement of the Northampton Shoe Museum for my third Flash and another storytelling performance, with added bubbles and paper bags. This was a slightly tougher deal to review as it is predominantly a childrens show and in the absence of any children at the performance I saw, it was difficult to tell how it would play out to them. Therefore for the duration of the show, us responsible adults (and quite a lot of students) regressed to our childhood and happily had paper butterflies on string wafting round our ears and shredded paper as a blizzard of snow.

Our performer was Tara Lawrence, who is quite frankly the most perfect person to present a children's show. Softly spoken and playful in style, the choice to do such a show is now rather obvious in the extreme. We all happily were transported into the wonderful world of paper bags, dragons (called Kevin) and Prince Ronald, and our lead character Lizzie's trek to rescue him.

The tale based on a book by Robert Munsch is as all children's tales should be uncomplicated, just full of wonder and fun. Therefore with a relatively slight tale, Tara has the chance to fill the performance with a delightfully playing (and overplaying) performance. So we have moments like climbing stairs turned into classic comic scenes which move from Steptoe & Son to Eye Of The Tiger in a swift magical moment.

The props are also of the perfect childrens performance, so we have delightful cut out houses, water pistols, bubble blowing frogs and the vital paper bag dress. It is all perfect and captured the style perfectly.

Much like a playroom, when we leave the venue, it is a decimated mess, with paper and cuttings strewn everywhere. We leave with a grin on our face and a moment of childhood in our hearts and that is no bad thing.

The Flash Festival 2015 runs between 18th-23rd May, 2015 at four venues across the town. Details can be found at http://ftfevents.wix.com/flashtheatre2015, while tickets can be booked via the Royal & Derngate. Details at: http://www.royalandderngate.co.uk/whatson/2015-2016/Other/FlashFestival15

Review of A Christmas Carol - A Ghost Story at Birmingham Rep

Charles Dickens's novella A Christmas Carol is a perennial favourite and over the years has been adapted countless times for television, film and here, with this adaptation by Mark Gatiss, subtitled A Ghost Story , a further stage version. Originally performed at the Nottingham Playhouse in 2022 before moving to London at the Alexandra Palace, and the same venues repeated the following year, its past success serves well for a further revival. Therefore for 2024, The Birmingham Rep has taken to staging their own production, with a mostly new cast including Matthew Cottle and Rufus Hound leading an excellent cast. Cottle as Ebenezer Scrooge is excellent, often exhibiting a much more sprightly Scrooge that we would remember, and also, much funnier at times. Despite Gatiss remaining remarkably faithful to the original, the show, directed with excellent pace by Adam Penford mines more comedy than you might expect. Cottle's Scrooge remains without question evil, but in his delivery

Review of Here You Come Again at Milton Keynes Theatre

Four years down the round from a global pandemic the time has come finally for a comedy musical of the trying times and much like Kevin's experience in the show, who better to get you through it than... Dolly Parton. Arriving at Milton Keynes Theatre this week as part of a UK tour before landing in the West End, Here You Come Again is billed very much as a feel-good musical, so, do you feel good after watching it? The quick and easy answer is yes, however, much of the time during this incredibly quirky musical, you do wonder why and indeed what you are watching. Here You Come Again sees Kevin, back trapped in his parents home isolating himself from them, the world and his failing relationship with Jeremy during the 2020 pandemic. He seeks solace, trapped in his attic, in memories of his constant love of Dolly Parton, and then at his most down moment, she comes alive and guides him as only Dolly and her back catalogue of songs can. Originally written by Bruce Vilanch, Gabriel Barr

Review of Frankenstein at Royal & Derngate (Royal), Northampton

Over 200 years since its first publication it is remarkable to think that what is, in essence, a scientific novel such as Frankenstein is still so relevant in content today. However, as science evolves endlessly, and now with AI becoming so dominant and controversial, the difference between right and wrong, good and evil in science, and what is too inhuman is as current as ever. Tilted Wig's production, now at the end of its UK tour at Royal & Derngate and written and directed by Sean Aydon takes the original story and sets it about halfway between the first publication and modern day, around the time leading up to the Second World War. Aydon's adaptation works really well in placing the story within this degenerating world, a place where true horror is around the corner, and veiled ideas of their (Germany's) interest in Frankenstein's work are gently developed. However, while Aydon clearly had this idea in his head and his pen when scripting this version, the polit

A Small Mind At The Theatre

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