BroadwayWorld

“The play’s shortcomings are still laid bare in this new production, but it’s an exciting chance to see a modern gem, that still has pertinent things to say a decade on from its premiere.”

“This musical version of Jane Eyre fares slightly better, but still makes a complex novel a hollow shell of itself.”

“The reality of Holy Fool is that this is a boring play, both dramatically and conceptually.”

“The result is a quiet, witty, and gently entertaining piece of theatre that leisurely examines the volatile passions of the upperclass.”

“This is a promising premise, but the play, despite updates to the script for this revival, falls strangely flat.”

“The production’s real strength is in the elegant parallels it draws, to form a new whole that enriches and enhances the work of both Sophocles and Bergman.”

“Lola Shalam’s take on Rosalind, perhaps Shakespeare’s most finely crafted female character, highlights her open pursuit of sexual desire, and hints at the gender euphoria the character might feel when dressing as Ganymede.”

“This vibrant and perfectly-pitched production means you just can't take your eyes off it.”

“For all its engaging and thoughtful elements, this is, however, a production that outstays its welcome.”

“If there's one thing Death Note won't do this summer, it's leave you dying of boredom.”

“Philip Breen's direction ticks like clockwork, slyly hints at their class duality.”

“Air Theatre production offers a sleek and modern take on a show that has now begun to show its age a little.”

“I'm Every Woman boasts an exceptionally talented cast whose extraordinary vocal performances consistently honour Chaka Khan 's remarkable catalogue.”

“Those brand new to magic or who have expectations somewhere around the level of the Mariana Trench will probably have a fine time but there are better alternatives around London.”

“This remains after all this time a genuine thriller albeit one built on bodies rather than plot twists.”

“Dinosaur World Live delivers an immersive family experience which celebrates imagination, learning and world class puppetry.”

“McDermott takes fractured storylines and fractured thoughts and, like kintsugi, creates a whole (using not gold paint as the Japanese do) but an endearing sense of hope for the future.”

“But the play's ambiguity blocks it from developing.”

“This creative approach is the best of both worlds.”

“Space Dogs can feel sometimes like watching two different shows, but the writers manage to balance the family-friendly with the introspective when it comes to the dogs themselves.”

“Brainiac Live remains an outstanding example of educational theatre.”

“New York City Center's presentation of Artists at the Center is spectacular from the first minute to the last.”

“The fictional concert staging is a unique, attractive conceit, that implies a reckoning with how we remember the past, particularly when we're doing so in front of an audience.”

“By the end of a gruelling three and a half hours, there isn't much moral meat left on the bone, just a slasher gorefest.”

“I quite like a touch of ambiguity, but I did find Tender a bit confusing.”

“It’s nonetheless a great deep dive into what made the young Larson tick, for diehard fans or as an introduction to his work, but these songs deserve a bit of narrative structure.”

“Sheader's engaging staging and a hugely talented cast bring the album powerfully to life.”

“The creative team combine efforts to completely submerge the audience in the apprehension and rapidly increasing anxiety rippling from the stage.”

“There’s a delicious pleasure to be had in seeing his rebuttal of every value (if that is the right word) that animates the MAGA movement”

“Despite its unevenness, the play earns its place.”

“At the centre of this deeply human drama is Robert Lindsay as FDR, in a performance that balances strength and vulnerability.”

“Pride feels on the brink of being the next big thing – and how glorious that the next big British musical is so proudly and fiercely queer and working class.”

“The poetic rhythm of the play is simply exquisite, seamlessly flowing from verse to prose.”

“Yes, you can admire the smarts of the plotting, the technically perfect stagecraft and the comic timing, but, Gee, it’s hard to love.”

“There's much to applaud in this exuberant and entertaining A Midsummer Night's Dream, even though at times speech was a bit muddied and the production could be tightened so the audience gets home before Fairy Hour.”

“As it stands, this version of Relics needs a substantial rewrite.”

“Despite all that, and factoring in a running time of close to three hours, the man and his motivations remain frustratingly opaque.”

“This version of Shakespeare’s classic deception comedy manages to be both minimalist and maximalist at once, starting with an ensemble of costumes ranging from TikTok-favoured butter yellow sundresses to BDSM harnesses, by way of sharp 1970s tailoring, offering a confused sense of time and place.”

“That's what makes this reinterpretation of it, through an electronic remix by DJ Walde and vibrant new dance production directed by Tinuke Craig and choreographed by Alexzandra Sarmiento, such a distinct pleasure.”

“It’s a strong script, and one rife with symbolism: the new batch of rum that makes the white characters choke, the lamp in the club flickering on and off, the idea of driftwood washing up unwanted on a beach.”

“It’s a shame that the outcome is so scattered, as there’s plenty of engaging thought in it.”

“But it's an enjoyable watch nonetheless, and a worthy addition to the dependably crowdpleasing Barbican Cole Porter canon.”

“This is theatre and theatrical invention at its finest.”

“An entertaining night out, but not a memorable one.”

“Adamson and Jones carry John and Barbara’s high-stakes forbidden romance with rich vocal harmonies and an intoxicating chemistry sure to appeal to romantasy fans.”

“Care is a great theatrical achievement just for its attempts to plumb the subconscious of the elderly, rather than treating them merely as objects of sympathy.”

“Featuring a remarkable cast and exquisite visuals, this is one not to be missed.”

“For all its ambition and Terry’s remarkable energy in portraying a remarkably energetic woman, the vision of this production never resolves into a clear picture, too sharp at some times, too fuzzy at others.”

“She commanded the stage at every turn, with each movement and note calculated to capture the audience.”

“We all enjoy a grassroots musical theatre success story, so it feels like an uncomfortable truth to acknowledge that the show itself simply isn’t very good.”

“Seldom can a character portrayed as often as Holmes on stage and screen, been vested with such energy.”

“If this show set out only to inject a little heart into these darkest of times, then it has succeeded.”

“The show is a remarkable achievement.”

“With carefully shaded line readings and nuanced singing, she makes it sound like she's spent lots of time with the score so she could emulate the emotions of the heroine, both shown and implied.”

“The script is intelligent and often very funny, but also there are some slow-moving sections to the dialogue, which occasionally comes across as clunky.”

“This version of Dream is something close to a folk musical, with original songs by Jim Fortune.”

“That's the best play I'll see this year.”

“This two-hander about wildlife photography is flawed, but has its moments of inspiration.”

“The play is an interesting curio from Miller’s oeuvre, but this production needs to make a stronger case for revisiting it.”

“It marries provocation with emotional intelligence, presenting its arguments in a fresh light and therefore instigating a new line of thought in its public.”

“He made up for it in the final duet with Tatiana.”

“The Balusters feels more like the latter – which makes it both more fun and less resonant than it probably should be.”

“Rude, crude and totally unsuitable for children; it's great to have it back.”

“That said, when he returns to the soil ruthlessly grabbed by genocidal invaders, it’s hard not to cheer.”

“It’s just a tad too sprawling and prosaic.”

“The real tragedy is that it’s so clear what the creative team wanted to do, but it never clicks.”

“It’s also a necessary balance to the successes of YouTube channels, which can explain and illustrate deep science with extraordinary clarity these days.”

“He certainly took her ideas and ran with them, in a brilliantly conceived concoction.”

“At its heart is a compelling character study of a woman forced to be everything at once, anchored by Pike, a clear favourite to win the Best Actress Olivier this Sunday.”

“As a tense, talky, quietly incendiary three-hander about race, legacy and intellectual power, it cuts deeper than any jump scare.”

“Manville is magnificent and really gets her teeth into the woman who is both cruel and highly manipulative.”

“It’s clever and original, making this an utterly thrilling vision.”

“It’s clever and original, making this an utterly thrilling vision.”

“It would be hard to not fall for the charm of Jaja’s African Hair Braiding.”

“It’s socially engaged contemporary theatre at its best.”

“There's fun to be had in Daniel Raggett's production, stripping away distraction and funnelling all attention onto Maggie's slow-motion implosion.”

“That manifest wisdom gives her vicious denunciation of an entire class of intelligentsia at a nightmarish end of summer dinner party all the more force, director Robert Hastie’s slow build to that climax fully vindicated.”

“All in all, this bleak capitalist drama hits a nerve in spite of its shortcomings.”

“Around the House At Night is a deliciously spine-tingling triumph of stagecraft.”

“The impact of evening was stunning.”

“Yet in trying to say everything at once, this revival ends up diluting its strongest ideas.”

“Blink allows us to sit in the knowledge that both these things can be true.”

“Being as constricted as it is to one setting, and one point in time, inevitably sometimes Marie & Rosetta runs out of steam.”

“Miller’s interrogation of antisemitism isn’t not relevant, it’s just that the political symbolism is overcomplicated by its entanglement with sexuality making it hard to detect what best to glean from Broken Glass.”

“It absolutely does as a compelling, emotionally resonant showcase of Memon's skill as both a performer and storyteller.”

“The production is sleek and the acting is exquisite, but the narrative is commonplace and the considerations are elementary.”

“As it is, the negative aspects of the project drag the positives down irreparably.”

“The production is a technical feat, but is so caught up in its own cleverness that it forgets one of the most intrinsic appeals of theatre; to connect an actor to an audience through their live presence on stage.”

“Their chemistry is irresistible.”

“Crucially, Francis appears to be enjoying it every bit as much as we are, an underrated skill in comic acting.”

“Kavanaugh's direction feels a little pedestrian overall, despite much use of the revolve, but this is a slow-burner of a production. Plodding in parts, but ultimately devastating.”

“Are Blueberries frames the brutality of the camps with staggering originality and never ignores the ethical concerns that offering this side implies.”

“When some of the unnecessary artifice is stripped away, however, this is an astutely written drama the National were right to revisit.”

“Funny, affecting and tender, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry is a production that unashamedly pulls on every emotion to touch the hardest of hearts.”

“Carrie Cracknell's magnificent revival has huge amounts of humour and heart, which is not always a given with Stoppard's work.”

“Beautiful Little Fool is a wasted opportunity to explore all these aspects and ultimately reduces this fascinating couple into flat and dull cardboard cutouts.”

“She now returns to the Duke of York's stage in truly compelling form as Susan.”

“They protest too much. “Oh, Mary!” may be silly, campy, even pointless, but “stupid,” I think not. Rather, the play, which opened on Thursday at the Lyceum Theater, is one of the best crafted and most exactingly directed Broadway comedies in years. Which is a surprise on many levels, and on each lev...”

“What earns the final star above is not the adaptation’s subtle relevance nor its urgent pacing but the fact that though there’s an inevitable corniness to the plot, some 73 years after the film’s release, I was moved.”