Theatre in the round (well, square) at the Bush Theatre, The Cord is a powerful realist drama about the unshakeable bond of motherhood and the tests of being a new parent, written …
To stage Les Misérables is a massive undertaking for any theatre company, but Director Ben Jeffreys has consummately risen to the challenge with a production of the School’s Edi…
Celebrating the show’s first anniversary, Nicholas Hytner’s sensational, immersive production of Guys & Dolls continues at the Bridge Theatre with a new lineup of stars, th…
The Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, has scored a major triumph in securing the services of Sir Trevor Nunn to direct his faithful adaptation of Uncle Vanya in a production that has …
In a landscape often cluttered with musicals trying to emulate other modern successes, it is delightful to see a new musical carving its own visual and musical aesthetic in this 80…
Ryan Calais Cameron’s For Black Boys Who Have Considered Suicide When The Hue Gets Too Heavy, is now in its fourth run and second West End transfer with a brand new cast, and it …
London’s newest Pub Theatre has opened with a sublime production of Stephen Sondheim’s rarely-staged Marry Me A Little.
Eleanor Rhode’s new production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the RSC is a child’s-eye Shakespeare; a tale told in either the boring black and white of adult discourse or a …
It’s rare to see an original musical open in the West End.
Set in the summer of 1976, in the driest heatwave of the century, four sisters come back to their home in Blackpool as their mother teeters on the precipice between life and death.
Hard Feelings is no ordinary stand-up hour, but then Iliza Shlesinger is no ordinary comedian.
Time travel as a sci-fi trope is fascinating and presents us with endless possibilities and frontiers.
Pitched as “Pirates of the Caribbean meets Fishermen’s Friends”, this highly enjoyable production of Treasure Island at the Barn Theatre, Cirencester, turns out to be a swash…
Artistic Director Tom Littler, with Francesca Ellis, scores another inspired triumph with his production of Oliver Goldsmith’s She Stoops to Conquer.
Memory is a strange thing.
Following their hugely successful run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe this year Box Tale Soup are now performing Casting the Runes, based on stories by M R James, at the Pleasance…
Playwright Adam Taub says, “In the era of Google, Amazon and Meta, when our every move is monitored and recorded, there is no more relevant story than 1984”.
Making its London premier Maimuna Memon’s multi-award-winning Manic Street Creature is now showing at the Southwark Playhouse, Borough, following its barnstorming, sell-out world…
From time to time a play comes along that ticks every box and gives a surprise treatment to a contemporary topic.
A sincerely told story, a captivating performance and a wealth of humour make for a well-spent eighty minutes upstairs at The Lion & Unicorn Theatre with David Patterson, who makes…
Two lives come together in an unlikely match.
With horrific events occurring around the world, The White Factory at The Marylebone Theatre, written by Dmitry Glukhovsky’s and directed by Maxim Didenko comes as a poignant rem…
Is Exeter University emerging as the new powerhouse in student musical groups on the Edinburgh Fringe? Let’s not complicate this - the answer is simply but emphatically Yes.
There are many aspects to the brilliance of this show, but the greatest revelation is the singing.
Let’s just get this out the way: Colin Cloud’s After Dark is the most powerful, impressive and poignant magic and mentalist show I’ve ever seen.
“If you like dick and hate tories this is the show for you” – Reuben Kaye 2023I was gagged from start to finish, Reuben Kaye is one of the best performers I have seen at this…
The thing on the floor as you walk into Dance Base’s Studio One – this year under the Assembly umbrella – is not paper.
Snippets of newsreels fill the Haldane theatre as we take our seats.
Throwing the gauntlet down and challenging dominant narratives on women’s need to be vulnerable to be loved, Helen Bauer’s Grand Supreme Darling Princess is an incredibly empow…
Prepare for a sidesplitting and heartwarming comedic adventure in the must-see Soup Group: Art Show!; an exceptional masterpiece.
Bob Marley – How Reggae Changed the World is a show that is not only thought-provoking but stirs emotion too.
Voloz Collective’s production of The Man Who Thought He Knew Too Much is a masterclass in physical theatre.
Attempting to retell the story of someone as iconic of the modern age as Steve Jobs will naturally present a challenge, particularly as books and films have combed over every aspec…
Seeing the stars spangling Chicago based company Aloft Circus Arts’ posters for Brave Space, last year’s hit, you might wonder – is it as good as all that? The answer is yes,…
Iain Dale’s ALL TALK political interviews have in recent years become something of a regular fixture of the Fringe circuit.
From the moment Zach Zucker's comedy alter ego Jack Tucker walks out on stage to introduce Stamptown, the audience knows they're in for something truly special.
The show is performed by a brilliant pair of queer, tumbling, absurdist clowns.
A black hole is a place where gravity pulls so much that even light can’t get out.
The play follows Billy, a young man whose love of football is the dominant feature in his life, religiously attending every match day without fail.
Whisky and Witches sees the combination of Danish-born Christine Kammerer’s musical forte with the whimsical storytelling of Jane Ross.
You'll begin this show painfully aware that you’re sitting in the hall of a secondary school.
Duel Reality is circus theatre brought to you by The 7 Fingers.
Christopher Marlowe is forever fated to be associated with his peer and likely chum William Shakespeare.
Our first impression when seeing Antonio! is that it’s chaotic and hedonistic, a impression that is quickly proven to be correct, but in a gloriously celebratory way.
By the time the lipstick went on, I was hooked.
Based on one of Grimm’s lesser known fairytales, Godfather Death is a hidden gem and a must-see this Fringe.
Two bodies meet in a circular LED-lit space, framed by two sinister poppet dolls.
If you’ve ever been to a surprise party, you know the awkward anticipation of waiting for the guest of honour to arrive.
I was lucky enough to catch Buffy Revamped when the show toured to the Birmingham REP a few months ago, and upon seeing that it was returning to its roots at the Edinburgh Fringe, …
Life With Oscar is Nicholas Cohen's brutally honest first person (and occasionally third person) account, detailing his own personal heroes journey from Lewisham, South-east Lo…
Absolutely not what you are expecting.
This is the definitive piece of musical theatre for musical theatre lovers.
The Hunger is a chilling horror, following mother and daughter Deborah and Megan as they attempt to fend for themselves amid an apocalyptic pandemic.
My friend greets me in the queue, waving her ticket in the air.
They say a picture can tell a thousand words, but it turns out that if it is drawn on cardboard, it can tell a thousand more.
Ed Byrne breaks the five-star rating system to the point where multiples of stars could be added to this review and it will still not be close enough to what he deserves for this s…
How do you top Trainspotting, the defining film of the ‘90s? You top it by making it live.
From humble beginnings in a downstairs bar in London, originally styling themselves as Friday I’m In Love, Massaoke have certainly ventured a substantial journey in their more th…
A huge amount of fun and laughs are to be had with James Cook’s new stand-up show, Anonymously Viral.
At at a time when the world has never more needed to heed the whispers of history, when client journalism seeks to sanitise hate speech as a ‘balanced’ opinion, and social medi…
With riotous stand-up, jaw-dropping improvisation, smashing vocals, enchanting storytelling, sparkles and bubbles, Diamond Goddess Crystal Pussy is jam-packed with delights.
Not for the faint of heart or light of stomach, Butchered takes its audience into an absurdist descent of meat and madness.
Shortlist is a two-hander written by Brian Parks, directed by Margarett Perry, performed by Daniel Llewelyn-Williams and Matthew Boston.
Phil Ellis.
In what could be crowned the most uplifting show of the Fringe, The House of Life aka Ben Welch and Laurence Cole from Sheep Soup combine preaching, live music, comedy and all roun…
Gripping and emotionally charged, Forests is an experimental Fringe performance not to be missed.
Starting with a single spotlight shining down like a streetlamp on a romantic Parisian street we see a man and a woman slowly dance in an intimate embrace.
After over 30 years in the business, impressionist legend Jon Culshaw finally debuts his one-man show at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Magical, spellbinding and unashamedly camp, Tim Murray is Witches is a show unlike any other.
There is wonder here in Edinburgh, and it is being ignored.
Chloe Petts’ latest hour If You Can’t Say Anything Nice is teeming with insults and slander as she scrutinises rudeness, rage, and her own relationship with anger.
A microphone stand and a metal pole await a grinning Jay Lafferty as she takes to the stage.
This is how theatre should be.
Hello Kitty Must Die is a musical adaptation of the Angela S.
CHOO CHOO! (Or.
Temper Theatre’s Home is an environmental displacement, family and imagination.
Amy Matthews’ I Feel Like I’m Made of Spiders is a stand-up comedy with an edge.
Club Life is club promoter Fred Deakin's personal autobiography.
Public looks like it could be the next big musical phenomenon to have passed through the Fringe.
Making its Fringe debut after winning VAULT Festival ‘Show Of The Week Award’ and Pleasance ‘Pick of the VAULT Award’, Manchester Anthem has been restaged from the linear L…
The simple ‘good vs bad’ narrative is present in just about every aspect of our culture and society.
Staged in George Square’s magical spiegeltent, YUCK puts a feminist spin on traditional circus, packing out the space with shrieks of laughter.
The works of Tennessee Williams rank as some of the greatest and most iconic plays ever written.
As Robin Tran walks on stage, she greets us with a warm smile and soft voice.
Having never seen Alice Fraser before, I was apprehensive about what to expect from her comedy.
Attending John Kearns' show, The Varnishing Days, was an absolute treat that demands to be seen! Right from his entrance, he had us hooked with his distinctive and uproarious p…
This is a brilliant show.
In a world where queer characters are often two-dimensional, Cowboys And Lesbians pokes brilliant fun at romantic cliches while creating a sparklingly camp coming-of-age romcom.
If you need to restore your faith in what Fringe theatre has to offer, look no further than Eva O’Connor’s Chicken, showing in the Former Women’s Locker room at Summerhall �…
There are very few downsides to attending a steampunk musical based on Oscar Wilde’s life, unless you’re a reviewer trying to take discreet notes in the back of the room.
Goya Theatre’s new musical Actually, Love manages to find the sweet spot between being softly tender and incredibly rousing, as it pokes fun at and dismantles various rom-com tro…
Oftentimes when you go to a stand-up show, a comedian will attempt or fix or comment on a problem in the world, at least by providing a series of observations that you can’t real…
Friend, fan, or foe of Gyles Brandreth, there’s probably one thing upon which all can agree: the man simply cannot stop talking.
That humour has rarely trodden a more cobbled path than in recent years makes the mean streets of Edinburgh an especially apposite place for the good, the bad, and the downright ug…
Who amongst us hasn’t uttered the phrase, “I can’t believe you’ve done this!?” whilst laughing with a friend over a particularly embarrassing story.
At the tender age of thirty, I mostly associate Tony Blair with my very first childhood experiences of politics.
Milo Edwards' comedy is a little like marmalade, but love it or hate it, he is nevertheless a great comedian.
The Chatham House Rule is an agreement which allows those in power to share ideas with impunity: the discussion itself can be reported upon, but names are protected.
The Umbilical Brothers (Shane and David Umbilical) are two multi-award-winning Australian actor-comics who have created a genuinely fresh and modern style of comedy show, combining…
Kieran Hurley's Adults was like being taken for a 1 hour and 20 minute gripping joyride, which consisted of belly laughs and thrills throughout.