It’s a mad, mad world – and sometimes feels increasingly so as we head towards the festive season – but none more so than in Wonderland, the magical underworld kingdom created by Lewis Caroll more than 150 years ago. Caroll’s classic tale has been...
The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra: The Sound of Gaming was an ambitious and innovative classical musical event catering for three separate audiences simultaneously. The first, of which I was a part, was the in person audience in the BBC Philharmonic...
Mozart’s The Magic Flute is enduringly popular because it is the perfect mix of fantasy and fabulousness in an accessible opera that entertains and enchants regular opera-goers and those new to opera alike. Indeed, this Opera North autumn season at...
There was no shortage of Elf devotees in Manchester this week for an early slice of Christmas fun. We could tell by the amount of elf hats, Christmas sparkles and Elf merch adorning the crowds outside the Palace, that this show has a serious...
When it first premiered in the 1990s, Stones in his Pockets caused a stir. A winner of two Olivier awards for best new comedy and best new actor, the play by Marie Jones has played consistently in the West End as well as endearing audiences abroad...
This play could not come at a more apposite moment. Next week not only marks Anti-Slavery Day but the subject of this production – abduction and enslavement in Sudan – comes at a time when the sub-Saharan country has been plunged into yet another...
Grease is back in Manchester for a welcome return with this energetic touring production featuring a youthful cast. This current version is a blend of one of the greatest movie musicals of the last half century and the original 1971 stage show it...
Two of Us, the title taken from the opening song on The Beatles’ final album, looks at the friendship behind what is still probably the greatest song writing partnership of all time – John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The story has been adapted for...
Thatcher’s fabulous fantasy return to Soho sees the Iron Lady get a disco makeover. Sound bizarre? Well, it’s even more of a spectacle than you might imagine. This cabaret-style extravaganza, brought to life by the formidable duo of Jon...
I do not know and am not qualified to say if Huang Ruo’s newly commissioned piece, “City of Floating Sounds,” is a great work of music. What I do know and can say, with gratitude and certainty, is that the event the ‘composer and conceptual artist’...
Dave Porter
Paul Thomason
Carmel Thomason
Nic Dowling
Liz Ratcliffe
Martin Thomasson