REVIEW: Curtains at the Wyndham's Theatre

Although a well known Broadway show, Curtains hasn’t had much attention in the UK. Whilst its been a favourite of drama schools and the occasional small scale production around the country we haven’t seen a fully mounted production of it, until now. Its been making its way round the country and is making a Christmas pit stop at the Wyndham’s Theatre in the centre of London's West End. 

The show is set in a theatre in Boston where a new musical production of Robin Hood is in previews with hopes to go to Broadway. The show stars a huge film star who turns out to be dreadful and is shortly killed off. The theatre is sectioned off and no one is allowed to leave the building as there is a suspected murderer amongst them. As the show tries to find rehearse its new star theres a couple more killings, a love story and a couple of show rewrites by the detective, we eventually find out who committed the crime.  

REVIEW: The Life I Lead at Wyndham’s Theatre

Mary Poppins was the first cinema film I ever saw. I realise now what a high bar this set for everything else that followed! And although Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke are known for so much else besides and as stars in their own right, David Tomlinson basically isMr Banks. So finding out something of the man behind that character was at least part of the attraction of The Life I Lead.

And what an extraordinary life. A pilot who survived two plane crashes, who had a tragic first marriage, whose own father lead a double life - and much more. Any one of these major features would be enough to give any of us pause to reflect if not to shut ourselves away from life. But Tomlinson hung on to the good things in his life and nurtured their memory so they in turn nurtured him.