Harder Hit
The Shawshank Redemption
by Stephen King, adapted by Owen O’Neil and Dave Johns
Bill Kenwright Ltd at Richmond Theatre until 6th June
Review by Eleanor Marsh
There is a fashion for adapting successful movies into stage plays and musicals. The West End is flooded with such shows and without doubt some of these adaptations work better than others. It feels at times that there are no new ideas and so it was with some trepidation that I waited for the curtain to go up on The Shawshank Redemption.
The stage adaptation of the movie (itself an adaptation of Stephen King’s novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption) was first produced in 2009, before the current infatuation with such things and is all the better for it. There is no pretence that this is anything other than a theatrical piece from the moment the curtain literally goes up on Gary McCann’s set. King’s story lends itself well to the medium and this production is both stylised and grounded in harsh reality.
Read more…Through a Mirror Darkly
Black Comedy
by Peter Shaffer
Orange Tree Productions at the Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond until 11th July
Review by Eleanor Lewis
The description ‘drawing room farce’ is outdated in 2026, it being quite some time since women did any withdrawing to specific rooms leaving the men to do whatever they did after dinner. Black Comedy, however, has such an air of vintage charm that you couldn’t really describe it any other way.
Known for his more famous work Equus, a dark, psychological drama exploring the nature of obsession and trauma (to hugely oversimplify it), Peter Shaffer’s range of talent was clearly not limited to serious drama. Black Comedy is both something of a surprise, and an impressively skilled piece of comedy farce which is very entertaining
Read more…Sunshine Brought to Heatwave
Eric and Ern
by Ian Ashpitel and Jonty Stephens after Eddie Braben
Martin Clarkson and The Production Garden at BEAM, Hertford until 29th May, then on tour until 20th December
Review by Steven Roberts
Should you go to see Eric and Ern expecting to find out about the off stage lives of Morecombe and Wise, loves and events, then this is not the show for you.
What we are treated to is an evening of nostalgia and celebration of the lives of arguably two of the greatest comedy partnerships this country has ever known. And what a celebration it is, played out by Jonty Stephens (Eric) and Ian Ashpitel (Ern) with great affection and joy.
Even before the performance begins, the presence on stage of the famous red curtain, the sofa and coffee table, the double bed and the window, to be replaced by a grand piano for the second half, set the scene perfectly. This performance was to be all about the Morecambe and Wise TV shows of the late 1960s, 1970s and early 1980s, mostly written by Eddie Braben, that many of us, of a certain age, grew up and fell in love with.
Read more…No Country For Old Ministers
I’m Sorry, Prime Minister
byJonathan Lynn
Barn Theatre Productions at Richmond Theatre, until 30th May, then on tour until 1st August
Review by Andrew Lawston
As London swelters in record-breaking May temperatures, it is something of a relief to enter the wintry world of I’m Sorry, Prime Minister, not to mention the air-conditioned auditorium of Richmond Theatre.
Classic sitcoms have proved to be a rich vein for theatre in recent years, with stage versions of The Good Life, Only Fools and Horses, and Fawlty Towers all finding a ready and enthusiastic audience. By comparison, Yes, Minister and Yes, Prime Minister feel like a much more obvious candidate for stage adaptation. The original television version was particularly studio-bound, with lengthy character scenes and a small central cast.
Read more…Gunning for Fame
The Harder They Come
by Perry Henzell and Trevor Rhone, adaptated by Suzan-Lori Parksby
Washington Square Films, Joshua Blum and Bruce Miller at Theatre Royal Stratford East, Newham until 4th July
Review by Ravenna Vale
Returning to the Theatre Royal Stratford East, The Harder They Come is not merely a musical revival, it is a cultural eruption. A blazing, bass-thumping, soul-shaking explosion of music, rebellion and joy that transforms the theatre into the streets of 1970s Kingston, Jamica. Directed with staggering confidence by Matthew Xia, this production feels less like watching a show and more like being swept into a living, breathing revolution. By the curtain call, the audience was no longer sitting politely in red velvet seats: they were on their feet, dancing, cheering, singing, spilling out into Stratford still swaying to the rhythm, reluctant to let the night end.
Read more…Sans Everything?
Care
by Alexander Zeldin
Young Vic and A Zeldin Company co-production at The Young Vic Theatre, Waterloo until 11th July
Review by Eleanor Marsh
It is Dementia Action Week. Tube journeys and social media timelines are awash with images of forget-me-nots and stories of vibrant people whose sense of self has been lost due to this cruel disease. We are reminded that those of us fortunate to live into old age are also highly likely to fall prey to a similar fate. How appropriate then for the Young Vic to be producing Alexander Zeldin’s unflinching analysis of this most uncomfortable of topics.
Read more…It’s Hard to Conceive
The Harmony Test
by Richard Molloy
Putney Theatre Company at the Antony Bridges Studio, Putney Arts Centre until 16th May
Review by Harry Zimmerman
The Harmony Test weaves together two distinct storylines, with large dollops of comedy and serious sorrowful angst in equal measure, as we follow the fortunes of two couples at very different stages of their relationship.
We firstly meet teacher Zoe and terminally unemployed actor, Kash, who are trying for a baby. Zoe takes a pragmatic, clear eyed and common-sense approach to the task with almost military precision. She has a distinct fertility plan, incorporating vitamin supplements, a strict diet, planned conception timetabling broken down into optimum times and dates and even the judicious intimate application of a bag of frozen peas to maximise the prospects of success.
Kash is more laid back, preferring to let nature take its course, although his almost puppy dog desire to be helpful and proactive extends not only to the icing of certain body parts at appropriate times, but also spending money he doesn’t have on an extremely dubious “aid” to conception from a fellow actor he bumped into in Holland and Barrett, providing one of the comedic highlights of the show.
Read more…A Musical Fable of Broadway
Guys and Dolls
by Frank Loesser, book by Jo Swerling and Abe Burrows
TOPS Musical Company at the Hampton Hill Theatre, until 16th May
Review by Polly Davies
It is hard to beat the classics, especially in this sparkling, fresh production of Frank Loesser’s romantic comedy Guys and Dolls from TOPS at the Hampton Hill Theatre. Maybe the otherwise excellent musicians could turn down the volume a little, but everything else about this show was first class. I was trying to work out why this production, which faithfully followed the familiar script, felt so fresh and modern. Then I read the programme note, which explained how director Charlie Booker had changed the gender balance in the gangster gangs; notably introducing Harriet Law ‘s Mary Murphy as the more than equal partner to Christian Scales’ Harry the Horse; and a star performance from Jenny Simpson-Wood as the truly scary Big Jule.
Read more…Reel-to-Real
Krapp’s Last Tape
by Samuel Beckett
Godot’s To-do List
by Leo Simpe-Asante
The English Stage Company at The Royal Court Theatre, Chelsea until 30th May
Review by Patrick Shorrock
It’s quite a shock to realise that the plays of someone as implacably avant garde as Samuel Beckett are old enough to have been subject to the censorship of the Lord Chamberlain. It’s worth remembering that the Lord Chamberlain, an official of the monarch, used to have power to demand cuts in any publicly performed play until 1968.
For all that Krapp’s Last Tape had its premiere in 1958, it has not lost its modernist edge. Nevertheless, it does give away its age, from time to time, not least in its use of spools of reel-to-reel tape rather than cassettes, let alone something entirely digital. Whilst the Lord Chamberlain expressed concern about the sexual language in the 1950’s, the only trigger warning deemed necessary today is about sudden loud noise.
Read more…Seeing Red
Labour of Love
by James Graham
The Questors Theatre at the Judi Dench Playhouse, Ealing until 9th May
Review by Polly Davies
What better timing is there for a political play than the week before the local elections. Except the Questors production of James Graham’s Labour of Love is not political. Well not political in the sense of Sky News or Newsnight. The razor- sharp witty script is far more about the essential nuts and bolts of politics rather than the personality dramas regularly rehashed on TV and phone screens. This is a very funny play.
Read more…
Mark Aspen 