A Small Mind At The Theatre

It is hard to believe but way back in 1970 when Jesus Christ Superstar first appeared it failed to get the backing it needed to be staged, therefore the show found its first release as a concept album. The following year though, following the album's success, composer Andrew Lloyd Webber and lyricist Tim Rice's rock opera launched upon the stage of the Mark Hellinger Theatre on Broadway. The journey of the revolutionary show had begun, but, is it still a revelation now, that is the question. The answer is a clear yes, this show following, loosely, the final days of Jesus Christ is as strong and striking in this version, hot from Regents Park Open Air Theatre, as the show may ever have been. Rather unusually for a review, I have to open by commenting on movement and the immense choreography that has been created by Drew McOnie. Rarely has a show, beyond that of a dance one of course, been so impactful in the essence of movement. Our cast arrives at the opening show in a rabble-...

This new musical The Drifters Girl first opened in Newcastle as recent at October 2021 and since then it has gained quite a success. Transferring to London and running for several months at the Garrick, it became a greater success thanks to the casting of Beverley Knight in the lead role of unforgiving Drifters manager Faye Treadwell. Its success there saw this UK and Ireland tour which now lands at Milton Keynes for one week. Knight has gone now, having moved on from the show before it left London, and in her place at Milton Keynes Theatre and on as first cover, was Loren Anderson, on for main lead Carly Mercedes Dyer. She is a controlling presence in the lead, and tries hard to make Treadwell likeable, because, in many ways, she isn't a nice person. Her drive for success, following her effective falling into the role after meeting then Drifters manager George Treadwell, feels exploitative at times of the coming and going members of The Drifters. However, mayb...

The musical Kinky Boots is perhaps the perfect show for the homegrown theatre group Northampton Musical Theatre Company to perform with the very core of the story bred within this very county. The tale of of Charlie Price and his encounter and unlikely partnership with a certain Lola is based on a true story of factory W. G. Brooks Ltd and the owner Steve Pateman. Back in 1999 his story of men and their wearing of shoes for women featured on a BBC documentary and this in turn inspired the 2005 film, Kinky Boots . Finally, in 2012, this musical adaptation of the story hit the stage, with a book by Harvey Fierstein and songs written by Cyndi Lauper. Longtime readers of my blog with good memories may remember that five years ago I reviewed the opening of the UK professional tour of Kinky Boots , also at the Royal & Derngate. While I enjoyed the show, I didn't give it the most favourable review. Five years on, and a second viewing, have I warmed to the charms of Charlie and Lola...

The true story of Calendar Girls , a group of middle-aged ladies getting their kit off for a Women's Institute charity calendar  became a global story and success back in 1999, and even more so when writer Tim Firth penned the 2003 film. It was inevitable that the success of the film would spur spin-offs, and in 2008 a stage play appeared, and then a few more years later, in 2015, Firth collaborated with Gary Barlow to produce this musical, first staged in Leeds. It became a success in the West End and in 2018 went on a UK tour. And now, we have a second tour travelling around the country with a slightly revised score and book. So, twenty years after the film, does the tale from Yorkshire still pull at the heartstrings? The answer is yes, the story of Annie and her husband John's battle with leukaemia that spurs her friend Chris to come up with the thought of the calendar is still an emotional rollercoaster. However, with this mix of upbeat and ge...

As we lead up to the Halloween season it is perhaps the perfect time for a creepy night at the theatre and this new touring play Murder in the Dark from Original Theatre written by Torben Betts, provides just that. Set in a creepy little barn-turned-cottage in the back of beyond, washed-out boy band singer Danny Sierra and his family find themselves at the mercy of the equally creepy Mrs Bateman following a car crash. After their arrival, secret after secret becomes revealed and family history is unpicked before things take an even weirder turn. Danny is played by familiar TV actor Tom Chambers and he gives a very solid, but at times over-the-top performance. In many shows, this would be a problem, however here it perfectly fits the story being told, as writer Betts splatters everything across the walls in this broad-stroke play. This is modern film horror brought to the stage where shocks come from often obvious places, yes we have a crazy barking dog for instance, and music stings p...

2:22 A Ghost Story has had a truly remarkable success over a very short period of time. Danny Robins' hit play was first staged in August 2021 at the Noel Coward Theatre and since that time the show continued to play in London, moving on to four other theatre venues in the city before this UK Tour, now landing at Milton Keynes began. 2:22 A Ghost Story has also during that time provided roles for a diversity of performers, including Jake Wood, Lily Allen, Laura Whitmore and Cheyl among some of the constantly changing casts. The tour though has another new cast of four with Joe Absolom as Ben, Charlene Boyd as Lauren, Nathanial Curtis as Sam, and Louisa Lytton as Jenny. So, with 2:22 A Ghost Story garnering all that success, this must surely be a belter of a play? Well, the quick answer is, not quite. Set during a housewarming with two friends, 2:22 A Ghost Story , relies greatly on fast-paced conversation and as a result, this requires a lot of overlapping of lines to make this ...