Tag Archives: Adrian Linford

Writer: Alan Bennett Director: Philip Franks Reviewer: Abbie Rippon ‘Why must a play be such a performance?’ argues Neil, the writer of Caliban’s Day. The cast are rehearsing for an upcoming production which explores the life of WH Auden and his collaborations with Benjamin Britten, and The Habit of Art is the play within which this play falls. Confused yet? Don’t be. ...

Writer: Alan Bennett Director: Philip Franks Reviewer: Selwyn Knight Neil has meticulously researched his latest play, Caliban’s Day, in which he imagines a meeting between poet W. H. Auden and composer Benjamin Britten in 1973, shortly before the death of each and at the time Britten was writing Death in Venice. Today, the director can’t make it so the rehearsal ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Max Webster Reviewer: Jess Rowe The darkness in Shakespeare’s aching family tragedy remains resolute in Royal &Derngate's production ofKing Lear, with a never-ending sense of solemnity by the end. Following the ageing tyrant and title character, revived beautifully by Oliver-nominated Michael Pennington, whose mighty flaw is his inability to distinguish between forced materialistic love and that ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Max Webster Reviewer:Kris Hallett It’s a funny quirk that so often in that most Everest of roles Lear, the garlanded actor at its centre gets upstaged by his supporting cast. Blame the genius of the bard, who has created a motley band of memorable supporting turns to populate his masterpiece. There is no fear of that ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Max Webster Reviewer: Iain Sykes 400 years since the death of William Shakespeare and the country is awash with tributes to the Bard, including somewhat of a glut of his greatest tragic character, King Lear. Directed by Max Webster with Michael Pennington as Lear, this touring production is certainly towards the top of the list. Pennington’s ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Max Webster Reviewer: Fergus Morgan Michael Pennington has played them all: Richard II, Henry V, Leontes, Coriolanus, Macbeth, Hamlet, you name it. Now, nearing 73, he is touring the UK as the title role in Max Webster’s King Lear. His Lear is remarkable in its range of emotion, descending from barrel-chested brashness into doddery, near-silent senility ...

Writer: Paul Minx Director: Sarah Berger Reviewer: Stephen Bates   Seven years after the first black United States President took office, 1965 feels like a lot more than only half a century ago. The Long Road South, Paul Minx’s searing comedy/drama, first seen at the Hope Theatre along the road from here in 2014, takes us back to a time ...