★★★

“a thoughtful, inventive solo show filled with nostalgia, humour, and ambition”

I’ll Be Back invites the audience into an intimate space shaped by projection, where the past and future of the 1990s collide. Written and performed by Justine Malone, the show reimagines The Terminator through a personal lens, placing Sarah Connor not in Los Angeles but in Dudley in 1997. Early references to video games and Super Mario immediately locate the piece within a specific cultural moment, blending childhood play with sci-fi mythology

Malone guides us through fractured timelines, slipping between a teenage Sarah watching VHS tapes with her brother and a future self trapped inside the sterile world of Cyberdyne Systems. The narrative jumps freely across time and reality, blending pop culture references with autobiographical textures. Along the way, Sarah is accompanied by Clippy – yes, the infamous Microsoft Word assistant – recast as her unlikely best friend and guide in a mission to save humanity before Judgement Day. As the quest unfolds, the story opens up space for rediscovery, resurfacing people and memories thought to be long lost.

Malone’s writing is imaginative and ambitious, and her performance demonstrates considerable versatility as a solo performer. She rapidly switches between characters including her brother, her boss, and a lab technician, with transformations that are fast-paced and physically demanding. However, the speed and density of these shifts sometimes work against the material. Moments of dialogue and comedy can lack specificity, meaning certain emotional beats and punchlines pass by before they have time to fully land.

Direction by Ezra Dobson, Emma Webb, and Alex Coke brings a wide array of theatrical ideas to the piece. The physical language of the show is bold and challenging, with some quietly beautiful visual moments – particularly a transformation sequence that stands out for its clarity and control. At times, though, the way these ideas are pieced together feels uneven, with transitions that don’t always fully resolve.

Sound and technical design are among the show’s strongest elements. A mix of 90s rock and electronic music saturates the space with nostalgia, sure to resonate with millennial and 90s audiences. The technical execution – handled by Nina Morgan – is precise and playful, with slick transitions between music, lighting, voiceovers, and cues that add texture and rhythm to the narrative.

The show begins with high energy and confidence, but sustaining that momentum proves challenging. With constant time shifts and multi-rolling, the performance can feel tightly controlled, almost cinematic in its polish. The piece would benefit from more looseness, more space between characters and moments – allowing jokes to breathe and emotional shifts to unfold more naturally.

I’ll Be Back is a thoughtful, inventive solo show filled with nostalgia, humour, and ambition. With greater restraint and trust in stillness – particularly in navigating the demands of multi-rolling – the show has the potential to land with even greater impact.

BILLY: TWIRLING THROUGH TIME

Pleasance Theatre

★★★½

“rich in warmth, generosity and laughter”

The stage is intimate, collapsing the divide between backstage and performance space. A wardrobe room overflows with clothes, wigs, shoes and Babycham, instantly transporting us to the 1980s through its colourful, nostalgic design. This is a space that invites us behind the curtain, where transformation is constant and visible.

Each night, a different guest artist opens the performance of Billy: Twirling Through Time. On opening night, Simone French introduces us to Tom Marshman and Ryan O’Shea, the creators and performers of the show. What follows is a warm, inventive exploration of dance, queer friendship and memory, reimagining Billy Elliot through a deeply personal lens.

Marshman and O’Shea guide us through how the idea for the show emerged from their shared love of performance and their relationship to the film. A key realisation grounds the work emotionally: Marshman is now the same age Billy Elliot would be today. This temporal overlap becomes the heart of the piece, allowing the past and present to dance alongside one another.

The show blends reimagined scenes from the film with song, lip-sync, dance, and playful theatrical invention. A boxing ring and a ballet class appear through imaginative staging, often involving the audience. There are constant costume changes, multi-rolling, and joyful, hilariously executed duet dances. Marshman primarily embodies Billy, while O’Shea takes on Mrs Wilkinson, alongside managing much of the onstage technical work. Both performers slip fluidly between roles, weaving in their own autobiographical stories.

Scenes from their personal lives are interlaced throughout, drawing on childhood dreams, relationships with queerness, motherhood, and their enduring friendship. These parallels between their lived experiences and the narrative of Billy Elliot are heartfelt and moving. Beneath the humour lies a thoughtful reflection on childhood ambition, the bonds formed through dance and art, and the intimacy of queer friendship.

The show is rich in warmth, generosity and laughter. Marshman and O’Shea’s connection is its emotional anchor, shining through even in moments of chaos. At times, the ambitious number of scene and costume changes creates a sense of improvisation that could benefit from further polish. However, this rawness also lends the performance a certain charm, reinforcing its handmade, personal quality.

The pacing occasionally slows due to extended narration between scenes, seemingly to accommodate technical and lighting changes. While this sometimes disrupts the flow, the storytelling would benefit from allowing more moments to unfold through movement and performance rather than explanation. Some technical transitions are slightly distracting, but they never overshadow the heart of the work.

Billy: Twirling Through Time offers many moments of genuine beauty, particularly when the storytelling is carried by movement, music and the visible trust between its performers. The joy lies as much in the precision as in the mess – wigs fall askew, quick changes misfire, and theatrical illusions wobble just enough to remind us we are witnessing something live, human and generous. Billy continues to twirl through time, still alive in the dreams of the 11-year-old who dared to dance. Sharing that dream with the audience feels like the show’s greatest achievement.

Tag Archives: NASIA NTALLA

I’LL BE BACK

★★★

The Glitch

I’LL BE BACK

The Glitch

★★★

“a thoughtful, inventive solo show filled with nostalgia, humour, and ambition”

I’LL BE BACK

The Glitch

Reviewed on 15th January 2026

by Nasia Ntalla

Photography by Simon Vail

I’LL BE BACK

I’LL BE BACK

I’LL BE BACK

BILLY: TWIRLING THROUGH TIME

★★★½

Pleasance Theatre

BILLY: TWIRLING THROUGH TIME

Pleasance Theatre

★★★½

“rich in warmth, generosity and laughter”