BLUE MIST★★★★Stratford East
BLUE MIST Stratford East ★★★★ “bursts with life and complexity” Olivier nominated ‘Blue Mist’ makes its second UK tour stop after a sold out 2023 Royal Court premiere. It’s a timely, important piece that shifts the conversation around British South Asian Muslim experience, reclaiming and rehumanising the narrative. Already strong,
SHANAY HOLMES LIVE IN CONCERT★★★½Cadogan Hall
SHANAY HOLMES LIVE IN CONCERT Cadogan Hall ★★★½ “Truly a vocal performance to be proud of” The award winning Shanay Holmes celebrates her illustrious West End career with her first ever solo concert. Showcasing stunning vocals ahead of her debut album release later this year, it’s a fitting moment to
ALLEGRA★★½Harold Pinter Theatre
ALLEGRA Harold Pinter Theatre ★★½ “delivers bounce and brightness, and Dame Lipman sparkles” Olivier nominated Peter Quilter’s new comedy ‘Allegra’ closes its UK tour in the West End. Charming in spirit and championing the off beat, it’s a little too thin to make me shout “encore”. Allegra’s always been different
TWELFTH NIGHT★★St Paul’s Church Covent Garden
TWELFTH NIGHT St Paul’s Church Covent Garden ★★ “The physicality is wonderful, yet there is a creative laziness that obstructs the romanticism, and the magic” There are worse places to be, during this current heat wave, than sitting on a garden bench under the trees in the gardens of St
OUR MAN IN HAVANA★★★UK Tour
OUR MAN IN HAVANA Theatre Royal Windsor ★★★ “the intelligence of Francis’ script shines through” Graham Greene’s “Our Man In Havana”, published in 1958, is set in a time just before the Cuban Revolution that overthrew the dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. Greene had recently been deported from Cuba for having
LOVE YOU LONG TIME (ALREADY)★★★½Theatre503
LOVE YOU LONG TIME (ALREADY) Theatre503 ★★★½ “a fine production with tenderness and craft” A papier-mâché texture softens every object on the Theatre503 stage, dissolving edges as if seen through memory, slightly out of focus. Elsewhere, the set is coming apart: a wall hangs unmoored in mid-air, severed from whatever
−320°F★★★Sadler’s Wells Theatre
−320°F Sadler’s Wells Theatre ★★★ “a fast, funny, chaotic and dazzling theatrical machine” Hideki Noda’s −320°F at Sadler’s Wells begins before the performance officially begins. As the audience enters, the stage is already active: actors dig, search and move through what looks like an archaeological excavation site. A performer carries
ARCADIA★★★★★Duke of York’s Theatre
ARCADIA Duke of York’s Theatre ★★★★★ “fuses science and humanity with dazzling clarity” Following its critically acclaimed, Olivier-nominated Old Vic run, Sir Tom Stoppard’s ‘Arcadia’ makes a historic West End debut on the very day the Duke of York’s Theatre is renamed in his honour. Stoppard fuses science and art
OUR PUBLIC HOUSE★★★½Marylebone Theatre
OUR PUBLIC HOUSE Marylebone Theatre ★★★½ “a captivating story with a real-life conclusion” Our Public House, finishing its national tour this week at Marylebone Theatre, is very well worth catching as an unusual and highly engaging example of community inspired themes woven into a narrative drama by a professional writer
THE SIGNALMAN★★★Wilton’s Music Hall
THE SIGNALMAN Wilton’s Music Hall ★★★ “Alnwick is a charming entertainer, with a gift for spontaneous humour and sleight of hand” A lesser-known fact about Charles Dickens is that he was a talented magician and conjuror, performing at private parties and even giving public shows. Inspired by famous illusionists of
SPRINGWOOD★★★Hampstead Theatre
SPRINGWOOD Hampstead Theatre ★★★ “a sturdy bio-drama from a master in connecting the past to the present” It’s 1939, war is in the air and we are in Hyde Park. But not in London. Hyde Park is the family estate of the Roosevelts where their sprawling country home Springwood is.
MIDSUMMER MAGIC★★★Crazy Coqs
MIDSUMMER MAGIC Crazy Coqs ★★★ “a fully packed entertainment with two performers who have an abundance of talent” Cabaret duo Michaela Cabaret duo Michaela Betts and Colm Malloy drew an immediate laugh of appreciation from the audience with their opening number ‘It’s Going to be Another hot day’. They then went
CYRANO DE BERGERAC★★★★★Noël Coward Theatre
CYRANO DE BERGERAC Noël Coward Theatre ★★★★★ “Inevitably all eyes will be on Adrian Lester, who delivers a faultless and fearless performance” Edmond Rostand’s 1897 play, “Cyrano de Bergerac”, has had many stage adaptations – as well as film, television, radio, opera and musical – but none so layered and
MONARCHS ANONYMOUS★★★★The Other Palace
MONARCHS ANONYMOUS The Other Palace ★★★★ “the silliness of this play delights a willing house” Monarchs Anonymous started as a YouTube sketch about history’s crowned heads dragged into group therapy. It’s a family production that has since grown into a fully staged comedy at The Other Palace. The premise alone
WHY I STUCK A FLARE UP MY AR*E FOR ENGLAND★★★★Garrick Theatre
WHY I STUCK A FLARE UP MY AR*E FOR ENGLAND Garrick Theatre ★★★★ “an hour of pure theatre comedy gold” Just once in a while a piece of writing and a solo performance comes along that leaves you tingling as you leave the theatre. Jodie Comer’s Prima Facie was one.
NEXT GENERATION★★★★Sadler’s Wells East
NEXT GENERATION Sadler’s Wells East ★★★★ “The dancers show their beauty and abundance of talent throughout” One of the thrilling experiences in theatre and performance is to see the stars of tomorrow start to emerge. Not yet fully formed, but with many of the jigsaw pieces in place. Who, might
