Theatre Reviews & More

Sophocles was not concerned with characters being relatable. Not that he didn’t want audiences to empathise with his characters, but rather that making them everyday people wasn't as important in ancient Greek plays. Warlords, nobility, seers, and gods are the focus, with a line or two for a common soldier or messenger. Modern storytelling tends to speak to audiences where they are, making characters people can see themselves in. Both are trying to speak to human nature, just

Kiren Virdee creates a space for reclamation: I recently watched a 1999 film called East Is East, a comedy-drama widely regarded as one of the best British Pakistani representations in the media. As rich a portrayal as it was, I was struck by the fact that a major plot point revolves around two Pakistani girls being “unattractive”. The audience is expected to laugh at these young women for their size, their facial features, and their body hair. How must it feel...

Autobiographical dance comedy has its charms: When I hear a title like Chunky Jewellery, from Barrowland Ballet, my Gen Z mind races thinking about the kind of chunky jewellery I know. The likes of Tatty Divine, big plastic bananas and moustaches dangling from wrists and ears, and the millennial celebration of all things bright and tacky that was slowly phased out to make way for more conservative trends. Then I see an array of big-beaded necklaces, the kind you would find in

There is a show about a celebrity turned radical feminist transphobe that has been grabbing headlines since well before the festival started

Feathered fun with a crazy swan: You probably know that Swan Lake is a story that can be told in many different ways. Some versions have...

Nicole Cooper shines as Hedda: Nothing proves a point about women’s “infinite variety” like opening your season with Jane Eyre and...

Toxic healing, girls?: It is a curse of feminist theatre that it can never really solve the problems it raises. That is true of any art...

Mary Magdalene reintroduced, but not revived: Thought you know_____? Well, think again! Perhaps it is a trope that theatre makers like to...

ELOINA gets to the meat of labiaplasty: It's rare to find a show that feels like it is at the beginning of a conversation. Even the...

High heels and heavy hearts in Amelia Pitcher’s One Woman Show. This is a title that needs a photo to accompany it. Poles: The Science...