Tag Archives: Marc Brenner

MARIE AND ROSETTA

★★★★★

UK Tour

MARIE AND ROSETTA

Rose Theatre

★★★★★

“soul-stirring, celebratory and foot-tappingly uplifting”

It is sometimes extraordinary how a figure can fade into the back pages of history. Sister Rosetta Tharpe was a huge star in the 1930s and 40s, who struck a chord with a white electric guitar slung around her neck, that helped change the face of modern popular music. Yet somehow the gospel superstar ended up forgotten within her lifetime. George Brant’s impressive yet intimate portrayal will surely redress that injustice. Avoiding the epic, Brant focuses on a particular part of her life – her partnership with Gospel and R&B singer Marie Knight – and celebrates the legacy in a glorious play with music. It is a remarkable achievement in that, by pinpointing a moment in time, he still manages to give a concise and precise insight into the culture, history and background that shaped the characters. And then, of course, there is the music!

Set in a funeral parlour, a coffin laid out beneath a large wooden crucifix upstage, we are in Mississippi in 1946. “There’s rules” explains ‘Sister’ Rosetta (Beverley Knight) as she prepares her protégé and singing partner Marie Knight (Ntombizodwa Ndlovu) for their tour of the segregated Southern States (the unusual setting was the only venue that allowed the pair to rehearse). It starts out as a kind of audition for Marie, but her vocal style rapidly wins over the already established Rosetta. What ensues is the rehearsal which this show encompasses. The musical numbers slot beautifully and organically into the dialogue, sometimes stopping and starting again. The show is a conversation, a confession; a heart-to-heart that slickly builds up in momentum and passion. Like a musical ‘soul stew’ – a device coined by the late bandleader King Curtis in which a song will introduce one instrument at a time over a cycle of twelve bars until the full force bubbles into waves of musical bliss. Writer George Brant has followed a similar recipe, introducing rich details and pinches of backstory at crucial points into the dialogue. Knight and Ndlovu give faultless performances with their easy onstage rapport. When they launch into song, however, the production soars – whether the whole band accompanies, or if it is just the bluesy riffs of Liam Godwin’s piano or musical director Shirley Tetteh on guitar.

Rosetta Tharpe was renowned for her guitar playing. Decades ahead of her time she became known as the ‘Godmother of Rock and Roll’ whose influence touched countless stars including Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Little Richard. Marie was a formidable piano player as well as a singer. Neither Knight nor Ndlovu play the instruments, but director Monique Touko gets around this with clever stage craft. Ndlovu doesn’t mime but uses her whole body to evoke the inbuilt rhythm and soul of a pianist, while Knight opens a guitar case to let the notes fly out into the air. Through the staging, we get a full sense of the real-life character’s influence as she changed the face of music back in the forties, leading gospel into the world of rhythm and blues and soul. Shunned by the straitlaced church for performing in nightclubs, she persuades the ingénue Marie to follow suit. Her mission was to “put a bit of club into the church, and some church into the club” as she swung between chapel in the morning and New York’s Cotton Club at night.

The writing avoids preaching. The natural dialogue touches on personal tragedy and adversity but is steeped in humour too. Rosetta’s chipping away at Marie’s saintly exterior offers moments of biting comedy as she shapes the latter’s high church voice into the smoky jazz vibe needed for their subversive success. The song list is plucked from Rosetta’s impressive repertoire, and the combination of Knight’s and Ndlovu’s voices is gold dust that rises to the rafters. ‘This Train’, the rocking ‘Rock Me’, ‘Sit Down’, ‘I Want a Tall Skinny Papa’, ‘Strange Things are Happening Everyday’ are highlights among highlights, the glory of which is shared by the two singers. There is no competition (as in the reality), but it is a union borne of generosity and joy – and this love of the music is all too clear in the harmonies.

The poignancy of the setting (designer Lily Arnold’s shrine like funeral parlour) is emphasised in the twilight moments of the show. We slip forward in time in an ingeniously surreal twist in the narrative that derails our cosy expectations and plunges us into a moving epilogue, the emotion matched by haunting a Capella vocals. “Marie and Rosetta” is soul-stirring, celebratory and foot-tappingly uplifting. When asked about her music and its influence, Rosetta Tharpe is reported to have replied “Oh, these kids and rock and roll – this is just sped up rhythm and blues. I’ve been doing that forever”. I’m sure this show will enjoy the same longevity.



MARIE AND ROSETTA

Rose Theatre

Reviewed on 9th May 2025

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Marc Brenner

 

 


 

 

 

 

Previously reviewed at this venue:

ANIMAL FARM | ★★★ | February 2025
NEVER LET ME GO | ★★★ | September 2024
SHOOTING HEDDA GABLER | ★★★★ | October 2023

 

 

MARIE AND ROSETTA

MARIE AND ROSETTA

MARIE AND ROSETTA

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

★★★½

Royal Shakespeare Theatre

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

Royal Shakespeare Theatre

★★★½

“a refreshingly funny and modern production”

Much Ado About Nothing is generally considered one of Shakespeare’s best comedies, because it combines elements of robust hilarity with more serious meditations on honour, shame and court politics. In this fun production at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre under the skilful direction of Michael Longhurst (former Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse and his RSC directing debut) we see the scandal and glamour of international football as a backdrop to this popular rom-com play, exploring the culture of lads, wags and misogyny.

Messina FC has just won the European Cup for the first time and as we enter the auditorium, Jon Bausor’s cleverly designed thrust stage and 3D football stadium immediately immerses us into the world of social media, sponsorship and branding. Team manager Don Pedro (Olivier Huband), along with his captain, Benedick (yes one of a few amusing changes to the original) and their new star player Claudio (Daniel Adeosun making his RSC debut) are invited to take some well-deserved R&R at a villa belonging to Leonato, (an excellent Peter Forbes) owner of their team and his wife Antonia (a feisty Tanya Franks).

Claudio immediately falls in love with their daughter Hero, and everything is set for the wedding of the year. Beatrice – a sports broadcaster – and Benedick both claim to despise the whole notion of love and marriage, but the others plot to make them fall in love. However, Don John, the manager’s brother has a more malicious plot in mind. He tricks Claudio into believing he saw Hero in a compromising situation on the night before their wedding…

For many, the football stadium is still seen as a male space, so misogyny is set up right from the start. The clever use of interactive social media and the ‘deep fake’ pictures of Hero (Eleanor Worthington-Cox, who has a cracking singing voice) would provoke a modern and relatable sense of anger at her betrayal. This was a fascinating and exciting idea and I was eager to see how it would pan out, but even though there were some clever adjustments to the text and some very funny scenes – especially Leonato’s video call – I felt slightly disappointed at the end of the first act. It felt like the dramatic content had been compromised by its own concept. It was hard to believe that Hero was really that innocent, which meant her cancel culture didn’t have as much emotional weight, especially as she and Claudio seemed to provide the main impetus for the plot out of the two romantic couples, whilst Benedick and Beatrice were the foil and dramatic sub plot. However, the play gathered momentum when Benedick (an exceptional Nick Blood) thoroughly amused us with his slapstick humour, whilst maintaining an endearing vulnerability as he was being tricked by his team mates into falling in love with Beatrice (Freema Agyeman).

It seemed like a play of two halves with the second act being far more relatable, zipping along in its contemporary setting like a well oiled machine. Beatrice’s emotional declaration of love for Benedick was quite heart stopping, before she countered the mood with her witty delivery. One of the highlights of this enjoyable production was the hilarious head of security Dogberry (Antonio Margo) whose comic timing and malapropisms were a masterclass in comedy.

This is a refreshingly funny and modern production of Much Ado About Nothing and worthy of being in the premier league.



MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

Royal Shakespeare Theatre

Reviewed on 22nd April 2025

by Sarah Milton

Photography by Marc Brenner

 

 


 

 

 

More ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ reviews:

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING | ★★★★ | THE RED LION | September 2024
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING | ★★★★ | WATERMILL THEATRE NEWBURY | April 2024
SH!T-FACED SHAKESPEARE®: MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING | ★★★★★ | LEICESTER SQUARE THEATRE | July 2023
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING | ★★★★ | DUKE OF YORK’S THEATRE | February 2023
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING | ★★★ | JACK STUDIO THEATRE | August 2022

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING