REVIEW: The RSC's Macbeth at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre

Wils Wilsons’ most recent adaptation of Macbeth at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre was refreshing in its tradition.

Though a far cry from a pit and candles true to Shakespeare experience, compared to some of the brash attempts at refreshing the classics that the RSC and others have presented in the last few years, this production was purposeful and effective.

The scene is set with conviction as Alasdair Macrae’s brass score echoes around the auditorium and the witches (Amber Sylvia Edwards, Eilidh Loan, and Dylan Read) twist and contort their way around the stage. This was to be a sombre tragedy indeed.

REVIEW: The Sound of Music at the Chichester Festival Theatre

The 1959 hit musical Sound of Music has one of the best scores ever written with wonderful Richard Rodgers tunes that tug at the heartstrings, delightful moments of gentle humour from Oscar Hammerstein II and an authentic grim context that still resonates today with the daily news of invasions. It would be tough to fail in mounting a revival of this glorious musical but equally difficult to escape the memory of Julie Andrews's performance in the 1965 film. Chichester Festival’s wonderful revival directed by Adam Penford certainly manages to not only do the stage show full justice but also beautifully differentiate itself from the memorable film version and magically make the most of the theatre’s tricky thrust stage.

The design by Robert Jones focuses us on the monastic lifestyle that oppresses Maria's free spirit but also creates a sense of entrapment by the mountains around the Von Trapp home as the Nazi sympathisers and invaders start to circle with the huge grey-streaked cyclorama cliff face and walls framing all the action. The design cleverly and slickly allows more intimate settings to be created in the Abbesses office and grounds of the nunnery and the Von Trapp’s Hall, bedroom and veranda as well as evocatively creating the Salzburg Festival stage with the powerful presence of the occupying forces. It does mean we don’t see the wonderful mountain scenery so memorably showcased in the film for “The Sound of Music” or the final uplifting escape over the mountains to the reprise of “Climb every mountain” and the staging with Maria laying on the floor of a rising trap in the first and climbing through the auditorium for the latter are compromises that don’t quite have the same joyous sense of freedom as in the original.

REVIEW: Rock Follies at the Chichester Festival Theatre

Thames Television was at the height of its creative powers in the late Seventies and early Eighties and under the wonderful Verity Lambert (1935-2007) produced many iconic shows including The naked civil servant (1975), The Sweeney (1975-1978), Minder (1979-1994), Widows (1983-1985), Rumpole of the Bailey (1978-1992) and Edward and Mrs Simpson (1978), all classic TV dramas of the period. In 1976/1977 she produced a 12-episode (2 series) show called Rock Follies which made stars of Charlotte Cornwall, Rula Lenska and Julie Covington and its themes of an independently minded three-girl rock band called the Little Ladies in a world dominated by men was brilliantly executed and acted. The Chichester Theatre adaptation of this Landmark TV series by Chloe Moss for the Minerva after 45 years is brave and bold against the memories of the 3 BAFTA Awarding winning series and a number 1 soundtrack album. The adaption appears to lift the plot from the twelve episodes and stay true to its storyline, but the effect is a very bitty episodic rather long running time as they cram every song and plot point in from their formation, through their relationships, the tours and agents and artists they meet in the pursuit of fame. It does draw out clearly the tensions between the need and desire for fame and fortune and the motivation and intent to change the world with their messages. It is this theme that perhaps resonates the best today, but it is not strong enough to drive the narrative.

The production features before Act 1, a soundtrack from the pop music of the day and during the interval, Blurred Faces play covers of some other tracks from the period. For those of us old enough these instantly recognisable songs remind us of the energy and excitement of the music of that period. 2-4-6-8 Motorway (1977), Boys are back (1976), Children of the Revolution (1972), Blitzkrieg Bop (1976), Ballroom Blitz (1974) and White Riot (1977) were generation defining songs and 50 years on the Performers and the lyrics are still strong memories of the era. Sadly, not a single tune of Howard Schuman and Andy McKay’s songbook live up to these and are forgotten within minutes of hearing them. Indeed, even the Little Ladies defiant protest song Jubilee pales in comparison with the Sex Pistols Anarchy in the UK (1976) and God save the Queen (1977) of that period.

REVIEW: Spiral at the Jermyn Street Theatre

It's not often that cast and principal creatives appear on the same stage. But Spiral has that rare distinction with author Abigail Hood starring alongside director Kevin Tomlinson. This new production follows an initial run at the Park Theatre in 2018 and has now earned a revival at the Jermyn Street Theatre.

Spiral tells the story of two relationships; one wrecked by trauma and the other defined by controlling behaviour. Gill and Tom (Rebecca Crankshaw and Jasper Jacob) are a couple still coming to terms with the disappearance of their 14-year-old daughter. Tom seeks solace in the company of escort Leah (Abigail Hood). She soon becomes a surrogate daughter to Tom; but Leah's boyfriend Mark (Kevin Tomlinson) has other ideas. He sends Leah out as an escort but is strangely jealous of her getting too close to clients. Gill is frustrated by Tom's apparent fixation with Leah. He sees the relationship as nothing more than a coping mechanism and is able to communicate with Leah in ways he can’t with his wife. But Gill senses it will have implications for his job as a school teacher. Mark sees Leah as a meal ticket and controls her very existence. She is desperate to get away from him but seems to be trapped in a spiral.

REVIEW: Ride at the Southwark Playhouse Elephant

In a world filled with familiar shows that pedal out the same old story time and again, Ride shines as a beacon of originality, artfully weaving the little-known history of Annie Londonderry into the most extraordinary and exciting musical experience. Freya Catrin Smith and Jack Williams have skillfully crafted a captivating narrative that transcends time and place, touching on subtle feminist themes, the power of storytelling, and the complex relationship between reality and self-perception. But don’t worry; it’s done in a fun, fascinating, and fabulously fantastic way that makes the story even more compelling that it already is.

That story is that of Annie Londonderry who, on the back of a wager that may or may not have actually happened (she is the most unreliable of narrators, as we come to find out), carries out the astonishing feat of cycling solo around the world. And this was in 1894. And she’s a woman. And now she’s home and wants to tell her story (and get a job as a journalist in the process). That’s impressive, but it goes deeper than that. Ride shows Annie Londonderry as more than just a record-breaker on a bike – she’s a real person and she’s just as complicated as the rest of us.