Author: The Reviews Hub - Yorkshire & North East

It may be the name, though The Darkening is simply the local term for “twilight”, but advance publicity tended to emphasise the dark, brooding Northumbrian past. In fact, though those elements were present, it was overall a joyous evening, notably varied, which would undoubtedly have led to dancing had the space been available. Kathryn Tickell has, in fact, assembled a remarkable band which is well equipped to deal with the diversity of material on offer. Drummer Joe Truswell is straight from the Dave Mattacks school of folk-rock drumming and ebullient guitarist/mandolinist Kieran Szifris can move from folk song delicacy to…

Writer: Steve Waters Director of On the Beach: Chelsea Walker Director of Resilience: Caroline Steinbeis The Contingency Plan by Steve Waters addresses the massive and complex problem of climate change. It is a double bill and has been revised and brought up to date for the Sheffield production. It was first performed at the Bush Theatre, London in 2009. Since then, scientists’ understanding and the world’s recognition of climate change have moved on, making awareness of the threats even greater. While climate change is having a catastrophic effect in other parts of the world, the two plays focus on a potential environmental…

Writer: Rob Ward Director: Clive Judd With the current issues in UK politics very much dominating the news cycle, The MP, Aunty Mandy and Me seems like a rather timely show to go and see. Billing itself as a dark comedy about a political sex scandal it seems like almost light relief from the real world. The audience are introduced on arrival to Dom, a socially anxious man of indeterminant age with an obsession for steam trains and – in his words – bumming. He is gay. If you didn’t realise that fact, he will tell you roughly once every…

Writers: Ian Hislop and Nick Newman Director: Paul Hart The influence of Spike Milligan on the world of comedy cannot be understated, but like many visionaries, Milligan had a troubled life that both fuelled and scupper his work. This new play looks at a very specific period with Milligan’s life as he writes and performs in the classic BBC radio program The Goon Show as it begins to grow into an international phenomenon, and the pressures that come from such success. It’s the early 1950s and Milligan is a thorn in the BBC’s side. His absurd comedy and exacting demands…

Writer: William Shakespeare Adaptors: Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett Director: Scott Graham Scott Graham’s retelling of the classic Othello bursts with violence, betrayal and jealousy. Set in a run-down pub, rival gangs battle over what is theirs, and friends turn enemies as lies are spat and pushed around the group. Within this at times pulsing red pub a microcosm of the society Shakespeare created plays outs with loves and hopes born and torn down. True to the ever-popular Frantic Assembly style, Othello is alive with energy. House music envelopes the audience, drowning out all other sounds so we are instantly…

Composers: Claudio Monteverdi and Jasdeep Singh Degun Director: Anna Himali Howard Musical Directors: Laurence Cummings and Jasdeep Singh Degun This is the production that surely couldn’t work: taking Monteverdi’s original, using some parts, replacing others with Indian classical music by Jasdeep Singh Degun, a cast pretty much evenly split between musical backgrounds and an 18-piece instrumental ensemble in which sitar, santoor and tabla rubbed shoulders with violin, harpsichord and cello. In fact, when the curtain rose on a large English back garden, houses in the background, with the band perched on the rockeries, in a colourful variety of costumes (the…

Writer: Henrik Ibsen Director: Jake Murray Christmas Eve in the Helmer house. The excited Nora Helmer (Hannah Ellis Ryan) enters laden with presents in a carefree excited manner. Nora’s immaturity and position in the house is highlighted in her interaction with husband Torvald (Danny Solomon) and friend Christine Linde (Heather Carroll). Household status is established with having a maid Anne-Marie (Wynne Potts). A delightful change of pace with Dr Rank’s (Robin Kingsland) entrance, an old family friend. The appearance of Krogstad (Michael Blair) introduces another atmosphere and so the plot thickens. First performed in 1879 in Copenhagen, Ibsen has been…

The Out of Many Festival, running from May to February next year, is organised by Jamaica Society Leeds to celebrate 60 years of Jamaican independence. Spirituality, named for Courtney Pine’s latest CD, brought the festival and a capacity audience to the Howard Assembly Room. Courtney Pine was a trailblazer for black jazz in this country and since the 1980s he has enlarged his scope as well as switching to the infrequently played bass clarinet. Spirituality is not a jazz album, but it’s difficult to imagine Courtney playing as he does without a jazz background. In the opening number he demonstrates…