A Small Mind At The Theatre

First performed in 1945, J. B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls is a remarkable play, a morality play of the highest order, a study of character, an examination of the soul within us all. Unsurprisingly, this is always in production due to its strong characters, perfect for any actor to devour and digest. Therefore, with little surprise, it is back at Milton Keynes Theatre again, with many a GCSE student in the audience, as it remains on the curriculum. So, with so much potential, this couldn't go wrong as a production. Could it? An Inspector Calls tells the story of a Birling family dinner rudely interrupted by a forthright inspector, Goole. He arrives with news of the death, by suicide, of a 24-year-old girl and challenges each one present on how they may have come to influence the girl's decision. From an acting point of view, director Stephen Daldry's production is excellent, with a strong cast bringing the Birling family, plus one, to the stage. The leader of the h...

Written by Shelagh Delaney in 1958 at just nineteen, A Taste of Honey was a ground-breaking depiction of modern society, falling very much into the "kitchen-sink" genre, fast developing with writers within the world of British theatre during the fifties. Dealing with a multitude of themes including class, race, age of sexual consent, gender, sexual orientation and illegitimacy, it has rightfully become a legend of theatre. However, almost seventy years later, does this play still resonate with audiences and have a place in modern theatres? The play, set in 1950s Salford, tells of teenager Jo and her mother Helen moving from one rough lodge to another as either rent becomes due or Helen needs to escape another failing relationship. With Jo approaching school leaving age, Helen sees the time is right to abandon her to the world and move on with her own life. When watching A Taste of Honey , you can imagine the controversy surrounding its original release. The content is provoc...

The Peter James franchise featuring the detective Roy Grace has become quite the juggernaut of success since his first appearance in 2005 in James's novel Dead Simple . With 21 published books, a popular TV series starring John Simm, now in its fifth series, and this, Picture You Dead , the seventh stage play adaptation, now running at Milton Keynes Theatre, there appears to be no stopping him. The plot of Picture You Dead begins with a down-on-their-luck couple, Harry and Freya Kipling, discovering a potential 200-year-old masterpiece at a car boot sale. The discovery leads them into the path of both a reformed forger, Dave Hegarty, an unscrupulous collector, Oliver De Souza and his assistant Roberta Kilgore and of course, detectives Roy Grace and Bella Moy in pursuit of a cold case which may link them all? Having seen two previous adaptations, I wanted to see if they had gotten beyond the slightly simplistic and television-style of telling the story, now that they were reaching ...

Everyone knows the famous story of Treasure Island , either in detail or in the basic knowledge of Long John Silver, Captain Flint, the parrot, and young Jack Hawkins, as well as his treasure map. However, physical and riotous theatre group Le Navet Bete's adaptation of that same story, docked at Royal & Derngate now, spins a slightly more bizarre version. Le Navet Bete (which translates as The Daft Turnip) is not a French group but was formed in 2008 in Plymouth when the members met while studying. Now based in Exeter, they have made a name for themselves with their shows, which combine clowning, physical slapstick, pantomime, and general buffoonery. Treasure Island was my first encounter with the group, and based on this, I can't wait to see more. Four actors perform in this show: Al Dunn, Matt Freeman, Nick Bunt, and Simon Sebastian Burbage. All play different characters from the story, although Bunt stays as Hawkins throughout much of the show. As expected, they are al...