Tag Archives: Adrian Lukis

Writer: Arthur Miller Director: Jonathan Church Reviewer: Stephen Bates Superficially, all of Arthur Miller’s great plays are deeply rooted in American culture and history, but their enduring appeal on this side of the Atlantic reflects the universality and timelessness of the writer’s human themes. Transferring from the Theatre Royal Bath, Jonathan Church’s production of the 1968 play The Price is ...

Writer: Halley Feiffer Director: Jake Smith Reviewer: Stephen Bates It is tricky to review a play that begins with a savage diatribe against theatre critics. Halley Feiffer's forensic study of the darker side of theatre sees successful playwright David convening with his daughter Ella, an actor, to await the first reviews of an off-Broadway production of The Seagull, in which she has ...

Writer: Austin Pendleton Director: Alice Hamilton Reviewer: Karl O'Doherty   Forget for a moment that you know, as a very knowledgeable theatre-goer, that the three people in question here are some of the most important names in performing arts of the 20th century (arguments in the comments section please). Come to this as a naïf expecting a play about a ...

Writer/Director: Peter Gill Reviewer: Alex Ramon The last play to be directed by Peter Gill at the Donmar was Robert Holman’s Making Noise Quietly, a triptych of war-themed, decades-spanning mini-dramas. Now, in this 100 year anniversary of the outbreak of WWI, with a multitude of books, docs and revivals centering on the conflict, Gill returns to the subject of war ...

Writer: Mark Catley Director: Nikolai Foster Reviewer: Tracey Lowe [Rating:3.5] Interest in Arthur Conan Doyle’s world-famous detective Sherlock Holmes has soared in the past few years, thanks to Steven Moffat’s BBC drama starring Benedict Cumberbatch. So it makes sense that theatre companies are eager to resurrect such a complex and interesting character. ‘The Best Kept Secret’ is an original story ...

Writer: Mark Catley Director: Nikolai Foster Designer: Michael Taylor Magic Consultant: Scott Penrose Music: Grant Olding Reviewer: S. E. Webster [rating:3] World-premiering at West Yorkshire Playhouse this summer is the latest wave of Sherlock Holmes revival, taking the form of a new and exciting production written by Mark Catley. The script and style of production has a highly authentic Conan ...

Writer: Ronald Harwood Director: Joe Harmston Reviewer: Alex Ramon [rating:3.5] Belying the excessive modesty of its title, Ronald Harwood’s play The Handyman deals in Big Themes: war crimes, guilt, retribution, the nature of evil, the unknowability of others. You won’t be able to miss these themes because the characters keep stopping to announce them. A tendency towards obvious speechifying gives ...