Author: The Reviews Hub - Yorkshire & North East

Writer: Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman Music: Bob Gaudio Lyrics: Bob Crewe Director: Des McAnuff Jersey Boys is a musical biography written by Rick Elice and Marshall Brickman. It tells the story of the rise to fame of the legendary group, the Four Seasons. Frankie Valli was their lead singer and Bob Gaudio their principal songwriter. They created a new sound and a wealth of unforgettable songs like Walk like a Man, Sherry, Big Girls Don’t Cry, Bye Bye Baby, Rag Doll – the list is endless. The original young men in the group were all from the state of…

Composer: Richard Strauss Director: Rodula Gaitanou Conductor: Antony Hermus Opera North’s wonderful Winter season came to a triumphant end with a remarkable production of a remarkable opera. Many of the audience (your reviewer included), having never seen Ariadne auf Naxos, found the programme synopsis somewhat confusing but, as so often with opera, it all came out a great deal clearer on stage. As conceived by librettist Hugo von Hofmannstahl, “the richest man in Vienna” has commissioned an entertainment for his dinner guests: an opera seria about Ariadne on the island of Naxos and her rescue by the god Bacchus and a…

Jazz music quite often runs the risk of being self-indulgent; its cultural roots date back to the late 19th century. This ‘ain’t’ your usual shady New Orleans jazz spot but the Main House space at Hull Truck Theatre. The somewhat reserved crowd tonight, though subdued and upright, seemed to appreciate the quality of the work with pulse-keeping, foot tapping and subtle golf claps far removed from the sleazy, smoky Louisianan juice-joints. Clare Teal has, for years, delighted audiences with her easy-listening style – both as a radio DJ (16 years on BBC Radio 2 and now Jazz FM) and as…

From the second Henry Blofeld (aka Blowers) walked on stage he had the audience grinning. Dressed in full Indian wedding regalia, he strode carefully across the stage, addressing the audience with a smile, a twinkle in his eye. The cricket commentator took his place at a lectern at the side of the stage and proceeded to stand to give a first half talk of over an hour, with barely a break in his narration – not even for water. Blofeld is now 83, an icon, and is the owner of probably the most RP accent after that of royalty. His…

Writer: Garry Lyons Director: Tess Seddon This performance of Blow Down at the Grove Hall was a fine example of co-operation to produce community theatre. The venue, a simple wing-less, rake-less hall, in a former pit village, does everything in its power to put on quality theatre; Red Ladder supports this production through its touring arm (and, incidentally, runs a stand-up comedy workshop at the Grove); the play is produced by Wakefield Theatre Royal. And, of course, the subject matter is local, Ferrybridge Power Station and its neighbouring town of Knottingley. The result is a piece that speaks directly to its…

Creators: Tom Saunders and Luke Pearson Director: Tom Saunders Hull Truck’s much loved retelling of the classic fable is back to delight young audiences at the theatre and in community venues over half term. Tom Saunders’ and Luke Pearson’s take on the classic adventure between the speedy hare and the steady tortoise takes a twist on the short story to include themes of self-care, friendship and healthy eating. We meet school friends Tortoise and Hare who play games after school every day. One day they decide they will race each other and begin training. Tortoise, played by Hull actor Josie…

Music: Harry Strutters Hot Rhythm Orchestra It didn’t take very long to realise that here we had a first-class show, full of variety, not just a band with a few dancers. The eight-piece Harry Strutters gave us a smart arrangement of Duke Ellington’s Double Check Stomp, followed by the dancers of The Lindy Hop Dance Company doing the Charleston and compere Megs Etherington with a reminder of what a wonderful song 100 Years from Today is. Marlene Hill then attacked ‘Tain’t No Sin before a canny tribute to Bill “Bojangles” Robinson. Thus, in the first five numbers, we had the…

In 1945 American troops, entering the town of Garmisch, encountered an old man who announced himself as Richard Strauss. To their credit the  American troops treated him with the consideration he deserved. His position under the Third Reich had been ambiguous: through never a Nazi, he had been forced into accommodations with the regime by the uncomfortable number of Jews in his family and social circle. He was eventually cleared in 1948, the year before his death. The Four Last Songs is one of the glories of his so-called “Indian summer”, written individually, but performed as a unit posthumously by Strauss’s…