Writer: David Walliams Adaptor/Director: Neal Foster Recently nominated for Best Family Show, at the upcoming Olivier’s, Billionaire Boy, (David Walliams’ third children’s book adapted for the stage) is back on tour courtesy of Birmingham Stage Company and this week it’s at Manchester’s glorious Palace Theatre, ready to play to the masses. As the opening night house lights dim, the audience, made up of predominantly under 12’s, comes to a complete standstill as the story begins. Okay… there is still a cacophony of kids rustling sweet wrappers underscoring the on-stage action throughout, but we’ll let them off. They’re excited… it’s a school night…
Author: The Reviews Hub - North West
The Reviews Hub - North West
The North West team is under the editorship of John McRoberts. The Reviews Hub was set up in 2007. Our mission is to provide the most in-depth, nationwide arts coverage online.
Writer: Stef Smith Director: Bryony Shanahan Ibsen’s A Doll’s House is the story of Nora, dutiful wife and mother, who fights to establish her individuality in a male-dominated world. Whether he intended it or not (and by all accounts, he denied the intention), Ibsen wrote a powerful feminist play, in which he plays with notions of financial control and ownership, of marital duty, secrets and single-mindedness. Its lasting relevance makes it one of the most performed plays in the world… So, it’s difficult to really understand the motivation to create a contemporary adaptation. Stef Smith’s play casts three women as…
Book: Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice Music and lyrics: Andrew Lippa Director: Matthew White Creepy, kooky and most definitely spooky, The Addams Family has taken residence in the Liverpool Empire turning the stage into a mausoleum come torture chamber for the week. Inspired by the 1930s cartoon characters of Charles Addams, most audience members will remember this seriously spooky family from the 1960s American TV series, or the films from the 1990s. Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice’s writing makes some wonderful nods to these, however, in the twenty-first century, Wednesday Addams is now all grown up and ready for her…
Writer: Simon Stephens, Adaptor: Mark Haddon Director: Marianne Elliott Ten years after the award-winning premiere of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time at the National Theatre, playwright Simon Stephens’ adaptation of the best-selling novel by Mark Haddon has embarked on a new tour and remains a dazzling and unmissable piece of theatre. Prior knowledge of the novel is not required as the audience are immediately immersed in the world of Christopher Boone, a neurodiverse 15-year-old with an extraordinary gift for mathematics, a passion for Space and a preference for being alone. When Christopher finds his neighbours dog…
Music/Lyircs: Queen Book/Director: Ben Elton The award-winning musical by Ben Elton and Queen is back for its 20th year running. We Will Rock You is a jukebox musical of Queen’s most loved songs. The show is a tribute, not only to the band but to music and live performance. The show starts how it means to go on; loud – in fact, the sound system is proficient enough to emulate the electricity of a big arena performance. This show is certainly more than an average musical, it is an experience, with dry ice, scaffolding and strobe lighting. The costumes and…
Music: Ludwig Minkus arranged by Hans Vercauteren Choreography: Carlos Acosta after Marius Petipa and the novel by Miguel de Cervantes Birmingham Royal Ballet do not seem to be having much luck with their new production of Don Quixote. The original tour had to be postponed due to the COVID pandemic and the first two dates at The Lowry were called-off due to a combination of COVID and a significant number of injuries among the dancers. Even tonight the real world intrudes with the Royal Ballet Sinfonia getting an ovation before the ballet starts by playing the Ukrainian National Anthem. Lord knows…
Recipient of the 2019 Special Olivier Award, Sir Matthew Bourne and his New Adventures company have produced some of the most renowned and successful dance productions of the last three decades. Now, ten years since it was last performed; his production of the Nutcracker! takes the stage again, but be warned: it’s extremely high in sugar. Jam-packed with extra helpings of wit, lashings of pathos, and sprinklings of laugh-out-loud comedy moments, this magical adventure, makes a delectable recipe that’s guaranteed to please audience members of all ages. And it’s all down to the genius of Bourne’s ability to tell a story through dance…
Writer: Richard Cameron Director: Kate Wasserberg There’s a healthy tradition in British culture of telling surprising, heart-warming working-class tales against a backdrop of poverty. Think Billy Elliot, Brassed Off or The Full Monty. The stories may differ, but we’re well versed in the tropes: a smattering of setbacks leading to a feelgood finale. Richard Cameron’s The Glee Club might tread familiar ground, but it ultimately does something altogether different. The year is 1962. It’s the 60s, but not as modern audiences know or misremember them. Change is in the air, but it hasn’t yet blown into this south Yorkshire village…