Author: The Reviews Hub - Yorkshire & North East

Harrogate International Festivals’ Sunday series runs from January to April on an approximately monthly basis in the spacious ballroom of the Old Swan Hotel. This second concert in the series featured two major talents in trumpeter Matilda Lloyd and the Goldmund Quartet. Pretty obviously works for trumpet and string quartet are thin on the ground, so the programme consisted largely of transcriptions (the trumpet taking the violin, piano or vocal part) and extracts from larger works. This might have been seen as a disadvantage, but Lloyd’s virtuosity and the flexibility of the string quartet soon allayed any fears. Furthermore the…

Writer: Catherine Dyson  Director: John R Wilkinson The Last Picture at York Theatre Royal is built around a genuinely clever concept: viewing vast human trauma third hand through the eyes of Sam, an emotional support dog, brought in to support a class of Year 9 students. Sam’s perspective offers a softened lens on difficult material, giving the audience a way in that feels compassionate rather than confrontational. It’s an idea that immediately signals the production’s intent – to care for its audience while asking them to imagine and reflect – and for the most part, it succeeds. At the centre…

Writers/Directors: Pete Brooks and Andrew Quick The experimental theatre company, imitating the dog, has built an impressive reputation on the basis of versions of classic stories that re-cast them as video/aural/semi-cinematic extravaganzas that rely on (usually) four performers filming and constantly rearranging props and miniature environments as well as acting. Their taste leans towards the horror genre such as Dracula and Frankenstein: even their foray into Shakespeare was that bloodiest of plays, Macbeth. Although they draw on a vast army of video operators and so forth, imitating the dog is essentially three people: co-directors Pete Brooks, Andrew Quick and, in charge of video,…

Writers: Leila Boukarim and Asaf Luzon Adapter and Director: Elias Matar Gracefully and elegantly sweeping her arms to create an all-seeing bird swooping across the sky, Sarah Agha’s stories unfold to remember the beauty and joy of Gaza before it was plunged into the horrifying, tragic chaos that we have come to know so vividly. This verbatim piece has been crafted from the stories of the children of Gaza, collected in 2023 and 2024 and turned into a book the size of a tale by Beatrix Potter and yet the stories by these young people are so far from what…

Following its world premiere at Nottingham Playhouse in 2024 and a sell-out run at the Young Vic, as well as successful runs in the West End and on Broadway, Punch returns to the UK. James Graham’s play, a true story of hope, humanity and the possibility of change, will return to Nottingham Playhouse before touring to Leeds Playhouse and Theatre Royal Plymouth. Jacob Dunne, a teenager from The Meadows, Nottingham, spends his Saturday nights seeking thrills with his friends. One fateful evening in Old Market Square, an impulsive punch leads to fatal consequences. After serving prison time, Jacob finds himself lost and…

Writer: Oladipo Agboluaje  Director: Mojisola Kareem  Crown of Blood is based on Shakespeare’s Macbeth but instead of the Scottish moors read 19th-century Yorubaland.  Yorubaland is the historical and cultural region of the Yoruba people, spanning roughly 142,114 square kilometres across southwestern Nigeria, Benin and Togo. It is home to over 55 million people with the majority in Nigeria. The Yoruba have a very rich cultural, historical and political heritage that informs every fibre of this production. As the audience take their seats they are confronted with an impressive set, a central throne flanked by eight carved wooden columns running the full length of the stage. A faint, persistent drumbeat can be heard and drums are to…

Based on the characters by Colin Dexter Writer: Alma Cullen Director: Anthony Banks When a murder happens in front of you who better to solve it than the iconic Detective Inspector Morse. There’s a murder to be solved this week at the Theatre Royal Newcastle and Morse (Tom Chambers) just happens to be a member of the audience. Inspector Morse: House of Ghosts is the play especially written for the stage by Alma Cullen. The original TV series was written by Colin Dexter. He created the iconic characters Morse, who was so well portrayed by the late John Thaw, and…

Writer: John Cleese Director: Caroline Jay Ranger John Cleese and Connie Booth created the original series of Fawlty Towers between 1975 and 1979, inspired by an actual hotel keeper Cleese had encountered when staying with the Monty Python team on location. The monstrous, frantic misanthrope, Basil, and his dragon of a wife, Sybil, together with Manuel, the hapless, put-upon Spanish waiter, became beloved characters as the backbone of a hugely successful, universally acclaimed programme. Unlike many situation comedies, Fawlty Towers was careful not to outstay its welcome, with only two short series, comprising a total of twelve episodes. Its devotees…