REVIEW: Aspects of Love at the Lyric Theatre

Whilst theatre takes on many guises nothing can match the unbridled splendour of a West End production. The bright lights of Shaftsbury Avenue now play host to a revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Aspects of Love. With such a formidable creative line-up there was no doubt this musical would deliver the goods. The multi-award-winning Don Black contributes lyrics as does Charles Hart, who collaborated with Lord Webber on the wildly successful Phantom of the Opera. The show first aired in 1989 and hit Broadway the following year. It has enjoyed periodic revivals and national tours since then, but this sumptuous new production raises the musical to new heights.

The story concentrates on love, life and romantic dramas we call affairs of the heart. Alex Dillingham (Jamie Bogyo) meets and instantly falls in love with the beautiful and charismatic actress Rose Vibert (Laura Pitt-Pulford). However Rose becomes smitten with Alex’s uncle George (Michael Ball), who has an occasional mistress Giuletta (Danielle De Niese) in tow. Rose and George later have a daughter Jenny (Anna Unwin), who falls in love with her older cousin Alex. The lives of the five principal characters are traced over a seventeen-year period. Relationships ebb and flow as they weave a tangled emotional web.

REVIEW: Cruise at the Apollo Theatre

AIDs and HIV were labelled ‘the gay disease’ and in our modern world we’ve now encountered monkeypox, another virus only being reported in members of the LGBTQ+ community. The attitude towards both these viruses, both in the 80s and the current day, are being mirrored. In a time where HIV rates are higher in heterosexual identifying people, we are still facing prejudice and are being targeted as a community. 

Cruise is based on a true story of Michael Spencer’s “last night on earth”. Told alongside the story of a young gay man working for Switchboard, crafted with intelligence, comedy, a rollercoaster of emotions and unique design elements, this play is an absolute hit. 

REVIEW: Magic Goes Wrong at the Apollo Theatre

As if by magic, the West End is back and better than ever! 

Having previously seen both The Play That Goes Wrong and The Comedy About a Bank Robbery, I was familiar with the work of Mischief Theatre. However, I was extremely intrigued to see how they would integrate and combine the use of magic with comedy. It’s safe to say that curiosity rapidly turned into spellbound laughter and awe, as these professional powerhouses blew the roof off the Apollo Theatre. 

Whenever I return to see a Mischief Theatre production, it feels like I am returning to visit an old, trusted friend. There’s something about their shows that feels oddly familiar and inviting until the hilarity and carnage unfolds before your eyes, and you are left gasping for breath from laughter, and you are left clueless as to what surprise or trick they will put out of their (wizards) hat next! They truly are pioneers of comedy and are constantly ahead of the game with their ideas, comic relief, and wit. 

Credit must be given to casting directors Lucy Jenkins CDG & Sooki Mcshane CDG for this show, displaying a truly diverse cast that celebrates the full breadth of our industry. Being a member of the LGBTQIA+ community myself that is still exploring their gender identity, I particularly appreciated and resonated with the addition of optional pronouns within the programmes, and the inclusion of a non-binary character, played by a non-binary identifying person. (Mel, played by the wonderfully talented Scott Hunter).

COMING HOME: Hiba Elchikhe, currently in Everybody’s Talking About Jamie at the Apollo Theatre

Pocket Size Theatre and Liza Heinrichs (Captured by Liz) have teamed up again and created our new series 'Coming Home'. In this new piece, we look at the reopening of Theatres in London and around the country and celebrate our industry coming back. We got together some performers who will be some of the first to return to theatres and created this piece to bring some positivity to the theatre industry which has been through one of the toughest years in our lifetime. Whilst it is important to acknowledge the hardships we've all gone through, it's important we pull together as a community and celebrate our beloved industry finally coming back! 

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie has been running in the West End since November 2017, a new British musical it has taken audiences by storm and has had a hugely successful run over the past few years. The show has recently announced that it will be temporally closing from the 26th of September at the Apollo Theatre, where Mischiefs Theatres’ Magic Goes Wrong will take its place. However, Everybody’s Talking About Jamie will be making a return in 2022! 

Hiba Elchikhe is currently playing Pritti Pasha in the West End production of Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and has recently announced that she will be playing Alice in Dick Whittington this Christmas at the New Wimbledon Theatre. She will also be appearing in ‘Well-Behaved Women’ at Cadogan Hall on the 3rd September. Her other credits include the title role in Brooklyn the Musical at the Greenwich Theatre, Fiver at the Southwark Playhouse, Antony & Cleopatra at the National Theatre, Princess Jasmine in Disney’s Aladdin in Australia, Ghost the Musical in Asia and The Sound of Music for ITV.