Tag Archives: Dan Parr

Writer: Jules Verne Adapter: Toby Hulse Director: Alexander Ferris Reviewer: Jay Nuttall There’s a split in the Leeds Playhouse ensemble! As their season draws to a close the female members are in rehearsal for Be My Baby whilst their male counterparts perform a lightning speed version of Jules Verne’s 1873 globe-trotting novel and race against the clock. With just four ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Amy Leach Reviewer: Jay Nuttall The play is the thing in Amy Leach’s solid production of Hamlet, as Leeds Playhouse’s ensemble season continues in their pop-up space while the theatre continues redevelopment. This radically cut-down, easily digestible version of Shakespeare’s masterpiece places story first and foremost and injects a pace that can very often be the ...

Writer: David Greig Director: James Brining Reviewer: Jay Nuttall For the last couple of years, there hasn’t been a day gone by without Brexit being front page news. It is no surprise, therefore, that David Greig’s Europe is being staged by Leeds Playhouse as the UK’s departure from the European Union looms. A timely yet timeless play it has much ...

Writer: Jim Cartwright Director: Amy Leach Reviewer: Jay Nuttall It’s back to its roots for the Leeds Playhouse. While The Quarry and Courtyard theatres are closed for redevelopment for several months, the theatre is renamed from The West Yorkshire Playhouse to its original title of Leeds Playhouse and a new, repertory company of actors have been assembled – standard in ...

Writer: Bill Naughton Adaptor: Lawrence Till Director: Elizabeth Newman     Reviewer: Mel Duncan ‘You don’t get to choose the story you’re told ’ A landmark on the Bolton landscape, and a cultural gem the Octagon Theatre is proudly celebrating 50 years of theatre.  In a world where we are constantly finding arts and cultural endeavours pared down and marginalised, this is ...

Writer: William Shakespeare Director: Amy Leach Reviewer: Dawn Smallwood Amy Leach has adapted Shakespeare’s tragedy with a very modern take, linking with current affairs so that every member of the audience can relate to this production. This production is contemporary and radical, supported by Hayley Grindle’s urban staging with contrast lighting by Joshua Carr.  The production’s aim is to link to ...

Writer: Daniel Foxsmith Director: Bryony Shanahan Reviewer: Stephen Bates   The role of men in a world in which the gender balance has shifted and pressures of life have increased is the underlying theme of Daniel Foxsmith’s new one-act play, taking the perspectives of two generations. The play’s rural setting represents a simpler lifestyle that allows basic priorities to be ...

Writer: Rona Munro Director: Wils Wilson Reviewer: Hannah Hiett It’s 1885 and the streets of Manchester are crackling with energy, youth and violence in Rona Munro’s brand new play, Scuttlers. Following hot on the heels of The James Plays, which has taken the theatre world by storm, Munro has found her niche in creating historical works that speak across centuries. ...