Theatre and performance in Greater Manchester & other places.
Review of The Gap at Hope Mill Theatre. From teenage bedroom to a communal lounge in sheltered housing, Jim Cartwright’s The Gap follows two friends across half a century of ups and downs. It’s quite a coup for Hope Mill Theatre - not just bagging the premiere of a new Cartwright play, but also securing [...]
Welcome to my best of Manchester theatre list for 2023! As in previous years, I have focused on productions that either premiered in Greater Manchester or could only be seen here. Which means I’ve not included any shows that were passing through on tour or that were revivals from elsewhere. It may seem an odd [...]
Review of Brief Encounter at Royal Exchange, Manchester. The sound of passing trains may rattle around the auditorium, but a relaxing glow emanates from Milford Junction’s refreshment room. Overhead, designer Rose Revitt’s elegant metal arches and solid station clock set the scene nicely for the Royal Exchange’s new production for Brief Encounter. Polished wooden flooring [...]
Review of Around the World in 80 Days at Bolton Octagon. Continuous squiggly lines adorn Bolton Octagon’s walls and floors, drawing the eye ever deeper into the building. All routes lead to the auditorium where the irregular twists and curves continue - splashing across the walls, forming dangling neon clouds overhead and weaving across the [...]
Review of Romeo and Juliet at Royal Exchange, Manchester. Jettisoning fair Verona in favour of somewhere “just beyond Cheetham Hill”, director Nicholai La Barrie relocates Romeo and Juliet, while also bringing Shakespeare’s tale of “star-crossed lovers” bang up to date. High street fashions, Mancunian accents, and youthful swagger offer some reassuringly familiar reference points for [...]
Review of Free Your Mind at Aviva Studios, Manchester. When Neo chooses the red pill in The Matrix, and Cypher cryptically advises, “buckle your seat belt Dorothy, because Kansas is going bye-bye”, I’m not sure Neo expected to eventually end up in Manchester. Yet that is exactly where he pops up - as part of [...]
Review of Pornography at 53two, Manchester. Heading to 53two, Deansgate is busy with people - out for a drink, glued to their phones, rushing for a train. And that’s where Red Brick’s production begins – with characters striding purposefully across the stage, passing by those around them, but never acknowledging their existence. The anonymity of [...]
Review of A View From The Bridge at Bolton Octagon. All the key ingredients of Eddie Carbonne’s downfall are already on full display as Holly Race Roughan’s production of Arthur Miller’s classic play begins to take shape – it’s a tragedy foretold. The two young Italian men, whose arrival will rip a household apart, sit [...]
Review of Great Expectations at Royal Exchange, Manchester. Rather than the mist and fog of the Kent marshes, Tanika Gupta’s adaptation of Great Expectations is cloaked in swirling clouds of incense. On stage, the Goddess Lakshmi nestles in a reed bed, and the Wheel of Dharma radiates out from beneath the layers of Rosa Maggiora’s [...]
Review of Lizzie at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester. Lizzie Borden’s home is no ordinary place. There is no fairy twirling inside the music box that can be glimpsed in the show’s opening moments – just an axe slowly revolving. Tensions abound, with family members living in separate parts of the home, a lock on every [...]
Circles & Stalls 