Feel-good love and friendship: Footloose the Musical

Sellardoor Productions opens its UK-wide tour of Footloose the Musical to an excitable audience in a packed house at York Theatre Royal. Essentially a feel-good story of love, friendship, and standing up for what you believe in, Footloose is clearly just the kind of toe-tapping tale that York theatre-goers have been craving post-restrictions. Continue reading

Alone in Berlin: swansong of a hesitant ally

Charlotte Emmerson (Therese Raquin, The Duchess of Malfi), Denis Conway (The Wind That Shakes the Barley, Brooklyn) and Joseph Marcell (King Lear, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air) lead a small ensemble cast directed by James Dacre, Artistic Director of Royal & Derngate Northampton, in the world premiere production of Alone in Berlin, Hans Fallada’s acclaimed novel translated and adapted for the stage by Alistair Beaton; a York Theatre Royal and Royal & Derngate Northampton co-production, in association with Oxford Playhouse. Continue reading

The Woman in Black: the wonder of mischievous light and shadow

Adapted by Stephen Mallatratt and directed by Robin Herford, Susan Hill’s 1983 ghost story The Woman in Black creeps the boards at York Theatre Royal, in a production first seen at the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Hill’s home town of Scarborough. Continue reading

A View From The Bridge: “How dark the room became when he looked at me”

Directed by Juliet Forster (Romeo & Juliet and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre; Sense and Sensibility for Theatre by the Lake), Arthur Miller’s potboiler case study of commuco-production between York Theatre Royal and Royal & Derngate Northampton. Continue reading

Swallows & Amazons: conquering heroes

Setting the course for a generous canon of children’s adventure stories, Arthur Ransome’s beloved 1930 tale is faithfully adapted by Helen Edmundson and co-directed by fresh swabbie John R. Wilkinson and seasoned seadog Damian Cruden, with a beautiful score by Neil Hannon and masterful musical direction from Kieran Buckeridge. Continue reading

Driving Miss Daisy: quiet power

With a cast of three, Suzann McLean’s Driving Miss Daisy is a short and sweet snapshot of a friendship spanning 25 years and a historical commentary spanning much further. Based on the 1989 film, 72-year-old Daisy Werthan (Paula Wilcox) is horrified when her son Boolie (Cory English) suggests she needs a chauffeur after she crashes her car, yet again. When Boolie finds African-American Hoke Colburn, (Maurey Richards) an instantly kind-hearted and funny character, the scene seems set for a warm family-friendly comedy about an unlikely friendship. Continue reading

The Rocky Horror Show: Car trouble? Make a pit stop at Frankenstein’s Place

Since its first appearance at The Royal Court Theatre in June 1973, Richard O’Brien’s The Rocky Horror Show has become the world’s favourite rock ‘n’ roll musical. It has been performed worldwide in over thirty countries in every continent and has been translated into more than twenty languages. To celebrate the fortieth anniversary, Director Christopher Luscombe created a brand new production for a year-long UK National Tour. Continue reading

The Alchemist: a raucous romp

No, The Alchemist isn’t that obscure Shakespeare play you forgot existed. Bronzehead Theatre’s wild and funny contribution to 2019’s York International Shakespeare Festival is a comedy from Shakespeare contemporary Ben Jonson. Continue reading

Bronzehead Theatre launches York International Shakespeare Festival with The Alchemist

Hijacking York International Shakespeare Festival (10-19 May) with a contraband classic Ben Jonson farce, Bronzehead Theatre present rambunctious conman romp The Alchemist. Continue reading