Tag Archives: Dick Straker

Writer: David Hare (after Henrik Ibsen) Director: Jonathan Kent Reviewer: Maryam Philpott The search for self may seem like a post-1960s obsession as the rise of individualism dominates society in the late twentieth and early twenty-first century, but Ibsen’s 1867 verse-play Peer Gynt was way ahead of the curve, creating a protagonist who wanders the earth living by his own rules. ...

Music: Giuseppe Verdi Libretto: Antonio Ghislanzoni Director: Annabel Arden Conductor: Sir Richard Armstrong Reviewer: Sam Lowe There couldn’t have been a better venue choice for tonight’s opera than Bridgewater Hall. The sound of music and singing effortlessly swirls around the acoustics of the auditorium. Opera North’s concert staging of Aidamixes everyone around: the performers are right at the front, followed ...

Writer:Patrick Jones Director: Matthew Dunster Reviewer: Jacqui Onions National Theatre Wales and Wales Millennium Centre take on the difficult subject of dementia in their new play Before I Leave – and they do it with empathy, humour and love. This topic is huge and Patrick Jones’ script tackles it from as many angles as possible without ever feeling like there ...

Writer:Rachel Wagstaff Director &Lyricist:Steve Marmion Composer:Matthew Brind Reviewer:Jacqui Onions Only the Brave is a brand new musical from Wales Millennium Centre with Soho Theatre, Daniel Sparrow Productions, and Birdsong Productions. Inspired by real people and true accounts from World War II, the story focusses on Captain John Howard (David Thaxton) and the Company that he led to capture Benouville Bridge ...

Writer: Dan O’Brien Director: James Dacre Reviewer: Maggie Constable At the Royal and Derngate’s wonderfully intimate underground studio we are treated this week to poet and writer Dan O’Brien’s The Body of An American, a play based on the experiences of war photographer Paul Watson, in particular his disturbing photo of the body of US soldier William Cleveland as it ...