Lorraine Worsley-CarterLouisa May Alcott’s Little Women was the first ‘classic book’ gifted to me at a Christmas long ago. It was therefore, with slight trepidation that I entered Theatre One at HOME Manchester last evening. I was pleased when film-maker Greta Gerwig...
Martin ThomassonOne reviewer described this show as ‘brilliantly bonkers.’ I shall strive to be similarly generous, but I give you fair warning: I expect to fall some way short. To begin at the beginning… We are gathered to witness the birth of Diktat, a strongman...
In case you’re so pressure-cooker busy you don’t have time to read the rest of this review (cue scream-face emoji), I’ll come straight to the point: This Opera North production of Verdi’s “Falstaff” is simply splendid. Shakespeare’s Sir John...
Carmel ThomasonThe Drifters formed in 1953 and the band is still going strong, with another UK tour this year. How do they do it? Well, the Drifters’ Girl, whose story is told in this new musical, holds the key. The Drifters’ Girl refers to the late, Faye...
Some stories are so strange you couldn’t make them up, and others, like the seventeenth century tale of the crown jewels heist, become even more absurd with time. Simon Nye’s comedy revolves around the unlikely but true story of an attempt to steal...
Dave PorterTanika Gupta’s adaptation of Great Expectations is daringly bold, transposing the action from Dickens’ usual festering slums to Bengal at the turn of the century undergoing partition courtesy of Lord Curzon and the British Empire. Along the way...
There’s a definite buzz at Manchester’s Palace Theatre for the launch of the new Jesus Christ Superstar UK tour. The musical’s 50-year history gives the show its own superstar status, and this production, from London’s Regent Park Open Air Theatre...
“Are you a fan of Ben UFO?” a friendly young woman asks as we walk into New Century Hall. I confess I’m not and make it worse by adding, “I have heard of him.” This is true (I think) but makes me about as cool as my dad would have been if he’d told...
Georgina WellsManchester Academy was packed out with a noticeably diverse audience on Thursday night for Find Your Eyes, a piece produced by Factory International for MIF and centred on creative powerhouse Benji Reid. Reid defines himself as a ‘choreo-photolist,’...
In many ways Romeo and Juliet, bursting with the passion and energy of youth, feels like the perfect ballet for an innovative company like Sir Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures to stage. And if you think there are no new ideas to be mined from...