Ealing’s Finest
The Lavender Hill Mob
by T.E.B. Clarke adapted for the stage by Phil Porter
Tulchin Bartner and Weird Sisters Productions at Richmond Theatre until 19th November, then on tour until 18th February
Review by Andrew Lawston
Adapted from one of the most celebrated British films of all time, The Lavender Hill Mob has large shoes to fill. And so, as self-confessed non-entity Henry Holland begins explaining to a visitor to his club in Rio, how he pulled off a record-breaking bullion robbery, Phil Porter’s witty and faithful script pulls the masterstroke of having the club’s patrons enact the story (which they have all heard dozens of times from Henry, we learn), rather than relying on a flashback structure which is more cinematic than theatrical.
Miles Jupp leads the cast as Henry Holland, jovial and avuncular, retelling his greatest triumph on New Year’s Eve 1949. Jupp wisely does not attempt to imitate Sir Alec Guinness, but holds the audience’s attention throughout the performance, which moves along at a brisk lick thanks to the taut direction of Jeremy Sams, and a tight performance from a talented and energetic ensemble cast.
Read more…Blood Count
Dracula
by Bram Stoker adapted by Liz Lochhead
YAT at Hampton Hill Theatre until 12th November
Review by David Stephens
Thanks to the Hammer House of Horror, those of us above a certain age will always tend to recall the blood-shot eyes and dripping fangs of Christopher Lee whenever the name ‘Dracula’ is mentioned. Such was the impact of these early, classic horror films on their audiences that the more subtle, original stories upon which they were based are often neglected. Directors of many stage adaptations are often so fearful of disappointing their audiences by not including the now clichéd scenes made so famous by these movies, that they fall foul of having to include them, very often to the detriment of the story itself.
Read more…Triple Time
Ek/Forsythe/Quagebeur
Triple Bill by William Forsythe, Stina Quagebeur and Mats Ek
English National Ballet at Sadler’s Wells Theatre until 12th November
Review by Suzanne Frost
Much change is in the air at English National Ballet. Artistic Director Tamara Rojo, visionary leader and one of the most outspoken voices for the arts during Covid, is leaving the company after a decade. On stage, there are also a few familiar faces and their associate star power missing. But this triple bill of new(ish) works celebrates the power and quality of the ensemble.
Read more…Turbocharged Dickens
Great Expectations
by Charles Dickens, adapted by Neil Bartlett
Putney Theatre Company at the Putney Arts Theatre until 12th November
Review by Eleanor Lewis
In London in early November, while the sun streams through the trees, warming everything and everyone as if it’s someway into March, it’s unnerving to see dozens of productions of A Christmas Carol springing up everywhere, reminding everyone that it is in fact not long until Christmas despite the alarming weather. Amidst this sea of spring-like, festive Dickens it’s also comforting to see a production of Great Expectations for the sake of variety, aside from anything else.
Read more…Goon, But Not Forgotten
Spike
by Ian Hislop and Nick Newman
Karl Sydow, Trademark Films, PW Productions and Anthology at Richmond Theatre until 12th November then tour continues until 26th November
Review by Louis Mazzini
To describe the whirligig imagination of the genius that was Terence Alan Milligan is no easy task, and to distil it into two hours would seem all but impossible. Overcoming the challenges, Ian Hislop and Nick Newman have conjured up a hugely entertaining and at times suitably surreal play with music. Taking its title from Milligan’s self-elected nickname, Spike is centred on his masterwork, The Goons, the BBC radio comedy series which ran for around 10 years and for which Milligan was (virtually) the sole writer, producing over 200 scripts with titles like The Dreaded Batter-Pudding Hurler (of Bexhill-on-Sea), The House of Teeth and The Great Tuscan Salami Scandal. As well as Milligan’s battles with mental health and with the BBC for more money and proper recognition from ‘Auntie’– the latter feels a little overdone here – Spike includes glimpses of Milligan’s war years and his first marriage, both of which have the potential for rather deeper exploration.
Read more…Trial and Errant
This Is Your Trial
by David Allison
BCP at the OSO Arts Centre until 5th November
Review by Denis Valentine
The classic Monty Python phrase of ‘and now for something completely different’ definitely applies to David Allison’s idea and show here. Upon entering the ‘courtroom’ audience members are given sheets to fill in to accuse each other of ‘crimes’ whilst also giving details and evidence on the case.
Once these sheets are handed in to the ushers, they are quickly vetted in the back before the night’s players enter and proceedings get underway.
As with a lot of Improv shows, what then unfolds is reliant on a game audience that it is willing to immersive themselves (but not to the point of drawing too much away, as to overawe and be prohibit) in what the actors have in store.
As the show relies on the cases that its audience members have chosen to submit, each performance will be very different and requires not only good performers but also a good crowd. The loose and fun tone of the night is set well by the ‘Prosecutor’ Steve Bannell who enters with a bottle of beer in hand, to remind everyone that they are all there for a bit of enjoyment and that things are designed to be fun.
Read more…1501-1911-2021 By Any Other Name
& Juliet
by Max Martin, book by David West Read
Shaftesbury Theatre, West End until 24th March
Review by Claire Alexander
Claire Alexander visits The 1911 and takes a peek backstage at the new-look Shaftesbury Theatre before seeing a multi-award-winning musical
The Shaftesbury Theatre, on Princes Circus in London’s West End has transformed itself into a venue fit for 21st Century theatre and beyond, whilst faithfully maintaining its heritage and its listed status. Within stepping distance of Tottenham Court Road station and the finally streamlined Elizabeth Line, I could get there in just over half an hour from my West Ealing home. It is worth a visit.
The theatre’s owners were not idle while theatres were dark during Covid. As the only surviving independent theatre in London’s West End, the owners and the CEO, James Williams have had the freedom and the foresight, together of course with the imagination, to reimagine their theatre as much as an events space as well as a state of the art 21st C theatre that can stage the world’s biggest and most ambitious musicals.
Read more…Jibe and Joke
The Yeoman of the Guard
by Arthur Sullivan, libretto by W.S. Gilbert
English National Opera at the London Coliseum until 2nd December
Review by Lottie Walker
The Yeomen of the Guard is arguably Gilbert and Sullivan’s most dramatic work and almost certainly their most moving. The plot is a little less convoluted than much of their canon and the tale of impending execution, mistaken identity and strolling players (including a motley fool), all set within the walls of the Tower of London is reminiscent of Shakespeare. All of which places it firmly in the 17th century. It is difficult to imagine it staged in any other era. So the ENO’s curtain raising BBC newsreel was greeted with no little excitement and a great deal of hopeful anticipation. However, that excitement was short lived. Director Jo Davies has placed this period piece somewhere in the middle of the 20th century and it does not sit well there.
Read more…Camping Sights
The Importance of Being Earnest
by Oscar Wilde
Rose Original, English Touring Theatre and Leeds Playhouse at The Rose, Kingston until 12th November
Review by Gill Martin
Over the decades some of the greatest of theatrical greats have played the formidable Lady Bracknell in Oscar’s Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, his most popular satire: Edith Evans, Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Penelope Keith and David Suchet.
They have all delivered that memorable line ‘A handbag?’ with degrees of dismay, disbelief, outrage and horror when discovering the birth history of their daughter’s suitor. This production though is probably the first for a drag queen. Now Daniel Jacob takes on the role with the panache gained from international recognition as his drag queen alter ego Vinegar Strokes and appearances on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and Drag Karaoke Club.
Read more…Mistaken Identity
The Importance of Being Earnest
by Oscar Wilde
ETT, Leeds Playhouse and Rose Original at The Rose Theatre, Kingston until 12th November
Review by David Stephens
Oscar Wilde’s madcap farce, still a favourite of theatre-goers more than a century after its initial staging in 1895, can sometimes fall foul of appearing a little dated. However English Touring Theatre’s latest incarnation, currently at Kingston as it concludes its tour, breathes new life into this classic comedy. Before the play starts, one wonders where the ensuing action is about to take place: the set resembling a modern art gallery, complete with carefully placed pieces of African artwork. Indeed, it is soon revealed that this is the Mayfair home of Algernon Moncrieff, a black Victorian gentleman. Important to note at this stage that this is not colour-blind casting, but a window into the world of black people in Victorian society.
Does this interpretation jar with the Victorian themes of high society? Not in the slightest! But why? Because, as we learn from director Denzel Westley-Sanderson in his programme notes, successful people of colour often thrived in Victorian society. Flicking through the programme, we are shown a number of images of non-white people, wearing fine Victorian clothing procured from their personal wealth. As Westley-Sanderson explains, traditional black-history, so long neglected by the education system, often fails to tell the many success stories of the black community; many believing that, prior to the Windrush generation, black people simply didn’t exist in Great Britain other than in roles of domestic subservience. Through this production, played entirely by a non-White cast, we are shown that, not only did black people commonly exist in mainstream society but many thrived, becoming important employers and contributing greatly to society in return. It is this reclamation of the truth that has inspired Westley-Sanderson’s interpretation and his insight deserves great commendation.
Essentially a story of mistaken identity, the play revolves around the exploits of two friends, Algernon Moncrieff and John Worthing, who both assume the false identity of ‘Ernest’ in their bids to temporarily escape the demands of Victorian society and the accompanying monotony. Under their assumed identities, both find love. However, when all four find themselves at a country home at the same time, their cover stories begin to unravel with hilarious consequences and ensuing pandemonium.
This staging, complete with fly-in sets and revealing gauze-walls, was brilliantly executed by the English Touring Theatre and it would be no surprise to see this, their latest offering, adding to their many awards won in recent years. From the moment the play began, with all characters appearing on stage in a cleverly choreographed intro sequence, to the moment the proverbial curtain fell, displaying a life-sized group photograph, the performance was flawless and fast-paced and the cast’s energy and focus was a delight to behold.
Standing ovations are common in today’s theatres. Often cynically referred to as ‘obligatory’, audiences have become so used to giving them that they can sometimes lose both worth and impact. However, as the curtain fell on Tuesday evening, the resulting ovation was not only richly deserved but, fuelled by the energy that the hugely talented cast had so effectively transmitted to the appreciative audience throughout this exceptional performance, was highly instinctive and anything but obligatory. A cursory glance around the auditorium revealed every single person on their feet, many cheering with delight, all smiling from ear to ear and applauding enthusiastically. Applause that would certainly had continued for longer had the cast taken the extra curtain call that the audience were so eagerly encouraging. If you see nothing else this year, go and see this…. I’m seriously considering a second visit.
David Stephens, November 2022
Photography by Mark Senior
Mark Aspen 