The Gang of Three - Review

Richmond Theatre, London

*****

Written by Robert Kahn and Tom Salinsky

Directed by Kirsty Patrick Ward 

Hywel Morgan, Colin Tierney and Alan Cox

Returning after its 2025 premiere at London’s King’s Head Theatre, The Gang of Three is a fabulous dissection of the Labour Party between 1972 and 1980 and a fascinating glimpse into the skullduggery and disloyalties of parliamentary politics over the same era.

Labour grandees Tony Crosland, Roy Jenkins and Denis Healey are played, respectively, by Alan Cox, Hywel Morgan and Colin Tierney who all give performances that are as sparkling as Robert Kahn and Tom Salinsky’s script. This is an exquisitely crafted drama that layers frequently funny, fictional dialogue over a factual framework of modern history. As the story unfolds each of the three actors increasingly and uncannily evolves into the character that he is playing.

Opening to Jenkins having just resigned as deputy leader from the Labour Party's shadow cabinet, the play explores the trio’s friendships and bitter rivalries that dated back to their times at Oxford. Kahn and Salinsky's script scorches as Crosland and Jenkins caustically remark on their “ersatz camaraderie” while damning the left-wing Tony Benn as akin to a “vicar with a speech impediment”. 

Libby Watson's simple design, a book-cased wall and a red Chesterfield sofa elegantly frames the evening's one-act 90-minute narrative, itself copiously oiled with claret and gin. The trio mark Callaghan’s rise and fall that was to culminate in Margaret Thatcher's sweeping into 10 Downing Street in 1979. Throughout, the Machiavellian machinations of Westminster’s political machine are laid bare, the text at one point describing MP’s (who typically had responsibility for voting in the Labour Party’s leadership ) as the “most duplicitous electorate” - a phrase that has sadly proved timeless in its prescient truth.

There’s an intriguing glimpse of (hitherto largely unreported) intimacy between Crosland and Jenkins during their student years that only adds yet another immaculately researched fragment of history to the play.

If you lived through those years, the evening is unmissable. For everyone else, this is political drama of the highest calibre that deserves a West End showcase.

Runs until 17th October, then on tour

Photo credit: Manuel Harlan

Don Black's From The Heart - Review

Garrick Theatre, London

*****

Lyrics by Don Black

Directed by Nick Winston

The cast of One From The Heart

It is a rare show indeed that can translate the intimacy of a cabaret venue onto a West End Stage. Don Black however pulls it off in style, with From The Heart, a revue of his work that has been 30 years in the making and which now plays at the Garrick Theatre for the next 10 days.

In an evening of simply charming excellence, five stars of musical theatre deliver a five-star selection of Black’s cabaret-inspired compositions, many of which are likely to be unfamiliar to the audience, but, as the show’s title number suggests are all written from the heart. And as that title number’s lyrics explain, a song can frequently tell more in its 32 bars and three minutes then either a book, a film or a play.

Don Black introduces each song with the patter that one would expect from an evening of fine cabaret. At 88 it is possibly unfair to expect Black to tread the boards each night to deliver these intros and so in a neat twist of artistic flair, his spiels have been pre-recorded. Black’s pre-music career was as a stand-up comedian and it is clear that this boy from Hackney still possesses a gift for spotting the wry humour of the world around him, a gift that makes his speeches sparkle and his lyrics soar.

The quintet kick off the evening with From The Heart before Clive Rowe takes over with the gloriously satirical Doctors, a spoof that needs to be heard to be believed. Next up, Michael D. Xaver sung Me Too, carrying a humour that resembled Cole Porter in its sharp cynicism. In a moment (one of many) of self-revelation, Black shared with the audience that his sole bucket-list dream was to have a revue such as this play on a West End stage. This provided the perfect intro Frances Mayli McCann singing I’ve A Hundred Things To Do Before I Die. Caroline O’Connor then shone as a waitress in The Reluctant Star. Later in the evening Shona McGarty was to excel in the beautifully bluesy Things A Lady Shoudn’t  Do.

Black had added a handful of duetted and trio numbers into his setlist. Rowe and Xavier singing Fizzy or Still, two reformed alcoholics contemplating the merits of different bottled waters echoed the style of Bing Crosby and Dean Martin’s Well Did You Evah?. The three ladies combined to sing Straight Men, a hilarious lament on the lack of said gentlemen in their lives.

The evening wasn’t all frivolity. Black’s wife Shirley died 8 years ago following a marriage that had lasted nearly an incredible 60 years. It is an understatement to say that she remains much missed, but it is a mark of Black’s songwriting craft that he could channel his grief into lyrics. As Clive Rowe sung I’d Go To Bed Earlier, the bittersweet poignancy of the lyrics was tangible.

The show’s run will see a surprise guest take to the stage each night. For the opening night Michael Ball sang Love Changes Everything from Aspects of Love marking 37 years since he first sang the song in the show’s London premiere.

Black’s most famous numbers formed the show's finale. McGarty got the ball rolling with Diamonds Are Forever before all the cast joined her for a medley of Black’s Bond themes. A lighting tricolore of red, white and green washed the stage for Getta Bloomin' Move On! (The Self Preservation Society) from the movie The Italian Job before Clive Rowe gave his trademark sweetness to Ben, a song originally recorded by Michael Jackson. Rowe also performed a beautiful (if repeated) Love Changes Everything, though at least for the rest of the run Rowe will not have been preceded by Michael Ball! Michael D. Xavier delivered a thrilling Sunset Boulevard as from the same show, Caroline O’Connor briefly took the roof off the Garrick with her sensational snatch of As If We Never Said Goodbye.

Throughout Nick Winston's stylishly visualised production the music was elegantly and flawlessly played by Joseph Curch on keyboards and Oliver Copeland on bass. Don Black himself came on stage to take a bow before the curtain came down - and the plan is for him to repeat this during the run. 

From The Heart is an evening of glorious cabaret that celebrates the musical love of one of our finest lyricists!

Runs until 18th October

Photo credit: Eamonn B Shanahan

Hay Fever - Review

Wyndham's Theatre, London

*****

Written by Noel Coward

Directed by Emily Burns

Richard E. Grant and Christine Baranski

Marking a trifecta of Noel Coward's work that has played on London's stages in recent weeks, Hay Fever has just opened a two-month residency at the Wyndham's Theatre. It speaks volumes for Coward’s writing that, when sublimely performed as in this instance, a farce that is firmly fixed in the Roaring Twenties can make for exceptional entertainment some 100 years later.

A wealthy household, headed by the eclectically appalling and bohemian Judith and David Bliss, and shared with their equally appalling adult children Simon and Sorel, sees each of that quartet having invited a guest to stay for the weekend. While romantic intentions may have inspired each of those four invitations, such is Coward’s genius that the carefully laid plans all go deliciously awry. Imagine if you will The Great Gatsby having been given a comic makeover, and you start to get close to how this classy confection of a play gloriously parodies England after the Great War.

The show’s star billing sees Christine Baranski and Richard E. Grant sparking off each other as Judith and David, with Will Close and Ophelia Lovibond as their petulantly privileged offspring. The evening’s comedy however is driven not by its leads (gifted though they are) but rather by the entire company, in a show that offers possibly the finest ensemble work in town. Nancy Carroll, Charles Edwards, Ash Hunter and Lucy Karczewski complement the Bliss family as their respective paramours with the acting and interacting between the eight, combining  to create a production of comic excellence.

Fusing acid barbs with immaculately timed and withering silences - matched only by moments of excruciatingly brilliant awkwardness - each of Coward’s quips lands perfectly, Emily Burns having helmed a magnificent company. Credit too to Jo McInnes as the much put-upon housemaid/domestic, Clara. As with Still Life, Coward’s gimlet eye picking out the nuances of the English class system.

The show’s production values are equally sumptuous. Frankie Bradshaw has designed a stunning lounge for the Bliss residence where all the action takes place, lacing the room with sufficient doors to enable the proceedings to run like clockwork.

Frightfully fabulous five-star farce!

Runs until 12th December

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

Kimberly Akimbo - Review

Hampstead Theatre, London

*****

Music by Jeanine Tesori

Book and lyrics by David Lindsay-Abaire

Directed by Michael Longhurst

Maria Friedman

Arriving in London after a Tony-studded run on Broadway three years ago, Kimberly Akimbo from David Lindsay-Abaire and Jeanine Tesori is possibly their finest work to date. Offering the writers' signature approach of viewing life through an unconventional lens, Maria Friedman plays Kimberly, a teenage girl afflicted by an extremely rare condition that has seen her age at between four and five times faster than normal. We meet Kimberly around her 16th birthday - in what is to be, effectively, the last expected year of her life. This skewed concept of time’s passage drives the narrative with Soutra Gilmour’s revolving set, focussed upon a clock face, has its hands sweeping throughout the show at a tragically accelerated pace.

Naturally at the perfect stage of her own life to play the prematurely aged Kimberly, Friedman acts a 16-year with a heartbreaking sincerity that brings a kinetic credibility to the emotions of joy and profound sadness that her character experiences. As she relates to her family as well as to her own awkwardly adolescent high school peers, Friedman navigates Kimberly through perhaps the most nuanced and bittersweet journey to be found on a London stage.  Not only that, Friedman’s singing is heavenly too - a truly outstanding leading performance.   

Friedman is matched by a fine company with, on the night of this review, Rachel Flynn, one of the show's two swings, stepping up to the role of Pattie, Kimberly’s mother. Pattie is a complex creation of a character, in part a monster in how she treats her daughter, elsewhere a mother desperately trying to reconcile herself to Kimberly’s disability. Flynn’s cover work was sublime, and her powerful solo number Father Time, sensational. 

Peter Hannah puts in an equally fine shift as Buddy, Kimberly’s alcoholic father while Alice Fearn as the teenager’s errant aunt Debra offers the evening’s comic moments with her razor sharp acerbity.

As Seth, Kimberly’s closest school friend, Gilli Jones delivers thoughtful work, beautifully sung, that elegantly speaks of his love for his friend. His is a particularly challenging supporting role, with Jones flawless in his work.

In a show that is a homage both to the state of New Jersey and the ideal of the road trip that Kimberly dreams of before she dies, Tesori’s tunes prove to be a medley of well constructed Americana, perfectly conducted on the night by Nigel Lilley. Matt Cole’s choreography, best deployed amongst the quartet of Kimberly’s school friends is imaginative and immaculately drilled.

Fabulous new musical theatre!

Runs until 7th November 2026

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

Still Life - Review

Theatre Royal Drury Lane, London

*****

Written by Noel Coward

Directed by Tam Williams

Rachel Pickup

In an afternoon of simply exquisite theatre, the Grand Saloon Bar at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane is transformed into the tearoom of Milford Junction station to bring Noel Coward’s Still Life, literally, to life.

This gem of a short play, written in 1936, was the inspiration for David Lean’s movie Brief Encounter that was to follow some nine years later. Rachel Pickup and Alasdair Craig as Laura Jesson and Alec Harvey, the star-crossed couple at the story’s focus, are faced with the challenge of massive shoes to fill.

The pair rise to the challenge magnificently, and in performances of the utmost tenderness and nuance, rekindle perhaps the greatest British love story of the 20th century. Coward’s writing was magnificent at depicting the detail of England’s niceties, courtesies and class segregations and his script is a work of art in how so much is suggested with such minimal dialogue.

Both leads are flawless in their delivery, but in Pickup’s work particularly, as she grapples with her conflicting emotions, there is perhaps the finest acting to be found in London today.

The supporting cast of Elizabeth Elvin, Antony Jardine and Seren Sandham-Davies in assorted roles are equally top-notch, with an enchanting romantic subplot playing out alongside the hustle and bustle of a busy railway station, itself cleverly depicted by well timed sound effects.

The acoustics of the room occasionally muffled the dialogue - but the occasional musical interludes (including some stunning keyboard work from Sandham-Davies) more than compensated.

Credit to director Tam Williams for taking Coward’s genius and crafting it into this gem of a production, performed by a gifted company.

Only pulling into town for one week, jump on a London-bound express to catch this unmissable treat. Did I mention that the ticket includes a first-class cream tea too?

Deeply moving drama, I think I might have caught a piece of grit in my eye…. 

Runs until 12th September

Photo credit: Andreas Lambis

Songs of Survival and Hope - Review

 Kibbutz Nir Oz, Israel

*****

(This review was first published in Times of Israel)

 

 

Sagui Dekel-Chen

                                          

On a warm August night before an audience of thousands at Kibbutz Nir Oz, a place that sits almost adjacent to Israel’s border with Gaza, Sagui Dekel-Chen hosted Songs of Survival and Hope. A concert that once seemed barely imaginable created an evening that saw the Negev dance.

Born and raised on Nir Oz, Sagui was 35 when he was kidnapped into Gaza on October 7th 2023. Taken amidst scenes of murderous carnage, that saw nearly all of his fellow members of the kibbutz’s defence team killed by Hamas terrorists and which left him with bullet wounds in his shoulder and leg, Sagui was to spend 498 days in captivity before his release on February 12th last year.

It was while he was held hostage that Sagui began to compose songs. These were to help him hold onto his mind while locked away in Gaza’s terror tunnels, and it was amidst the beautiful bright lights of this concert, that Sagui both told his story, and paid tribute to his most dearly loved ones.

The concert comprised some nine songs composed by Sagui, together with guest appearances from some of Israel’s leading music performers. Throughout, Sagui made it clear that his songs had not been written as words of “goodbye”, but rather as words written by a man who always knew and believed that he would one day be going home.

Simply dressed in black t-shirt and jeans Sagui opened the gig apologising for the fact that he was not a singer. He did himself a disservice. The evening was the definition of hallmarked excellence, for not only was Sagui’s singing a delight, but throughout the affair, from the staging, to the light show, to the drones and cameramen and not least the 11-piece band, the whole concert dripped with professionalism and talent. Sagui may not have been a singer when he emerged from the tunnels – but boy does he have a gorgeous voice now!

Understandably, the evening’s melodies danced with all of our emotions. My Corner had been written by Sagui in the dark depths of his captivity and spoke of how he had occasionally, and very rarely, caught sight of himself in a mirror during those months. Skeletal, broken, unkempt and unshaved the song painfully described his torment. It is worth noting that the Sagui that appeared on stage at Nir Oz is truly, physically at least, a man who has undergone remarkable healing and who looked fabulous!

Sagui Dekel-Chen and his wife Mili

More than just a beloved son of the kibbutz, Sagui is a husband to Mili and the father of three young girls, Bari, Gali and the youngest Sachar Mazal with whom Mili was pregnant when Sagui was captured. As the evening unfolded, we were offered a glimpse of the pain that Sagui suffered when, having seen so much slaughter on October 7th, he had resigned himself to his supposed tragic inevitable reality that Mili and the girls were dead.

When news eventually reached him that his release was imminent, Sagui told of how he started to prepare himself for attending their funerals – and when he heard at that time, over a terrorist’s radio, a snatch of Fields Of Gold by Sting, he resolved that that would be the music to be played at the funerals. As that song was played during the concert it was hard to stop the tears, recognising the sheer immensity of the physical and emotional trauma that Sagui had endured.

Miraculously, Mili and the girls all survived the horrors of October 7th, and that all five were re-united shortly after Sagui’s release, was another of the evening’s powerfully poignant themes. The evening’s painful ironies were spotlighted again when Sagui asked everyone in the audience who had held Sachar Mazal, before he had been able to, to raise their hands. Sagui had composed individual songs for each of his family, that spoke of speaking of their strengths and their sweetness. In listening to both himself and Mili speak of their daughters, the love that clearly exists within the Dekel-Chen family is beautiful and tangible.

The line-up of supporting artists was impressive with performers including Idan Raichel and Hatikva 6 joining Sagui on stage. Perhaps the most uplifting guest performance came from Marina Maximilian Blumin’s (almost) closing number, Back Again, a song that defined the spirit of Sagui, his family and the whole of Kibbutz Nir Oz.

Two weeks ago in London and in the face of a tsunami of hate, Boy George defiantly sung that We Will Dance Again. This week, at Kibbutz Nir Oz and inspired by Sagui Dekel-Chen, we danced!

Sagui Dekel-Chen and Marina Maximilian Blumin

Sagui's album can be downloaded here 

Credit for all images: Orit Pnini

CATS - Review

Open Air Theatre, London

*****

Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber 

Based on 'Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats' by T. S. Eliot

Directed and choreographed by Drew McOnie

Gary Wilmot

A star was born at CATS this week. With the show’s leading lady unable to perform, understudy Taziva-Faye Katsande faced the assembled press for the show’s opening night. Katsande didn’t put a foot (paw?) wrong from the getgo, with her Grizabella proving to be nothing short of sensational. As her voice rose to belt the immortal "Touch me!" from Memory, the audience broke into spontaneous applause before the song had even finished, then rising as one to give a spectacularly deserved show-stopping standing ovation at the song’s conclusion.

CATS has always been a beautiful show - but played under the moonlight of the Open Air Theatre allowed Sami Fendall’s simple set design to take on an ethereal beauty. Where John Napier once designed an impressive garbage dump for his cats to play on, Fendall offers us a more astral vision,  lunar-themed with incomplete circles and rocks, around which the felines gather and dance. Drew McOnie’s reimagined choreography proves not only respectful to Gillian Lynne’s brilliant original, but importantly allows the magic of Eliot’s verse and Lloyd Webber’s music to be shared through the medium of his company's exquisite dancework.

A show that hailed from an era of brave and innovative writing - who today would have the cojones or the talent to set a book of vintage poems to music? - this production has been (mostly) immaculately cast. 

Charlotte Riby kicks off the featured roles with an enchanting Gumbie Cat before Jaydon Vijn oozes testosterone as a gloriously provocative Rum Tum Tugger. There is a hint of déjà vu from producers Lloyd Webber Harrison, with the gender swapping of Old Deuteronomy who’s now played by Melanie La Barrie. A similar switch was made in LWH's recent Starlight Express, where Jade Marvin was cast to play Momma, replacing the originally created Poppa. To be clear, La Barrie is great but she lacks gravitas. The role did not need tinkering with.

The show’s first act may well be gorgeous but after the interval McOnie elevates the whole production to a Heaviside Layer of sheer genius. Gary Wilmot makes his entrance as Gus the theatre cat (and of course as Growltiger) bringing a carefully crafted fusion of frailty, pathos and swashbuckling humour to the role. Wilmot is a rare talent and an inspired casting choice. Skimbleshanks the railway cat is kept immaculately on track by Matthew Caputo, while Macavity, the mystery cat, is impressively performed (accompanied by some stunning pyro effects) by Diante Lodge. Jet Yau takes Mr. Mistoffelees to the next level with a jaw-dropping breakdance routine, and a mention too to Elliot Broadfoot whose Bustopher Jones kicks off the evening’s comic moments. In an understated role that denies him a song of his own, Jack Wilcox’s Munkustrap was key to the show’s fluidity, deftly supporting a number of key routines.

Alex Parker wielded the baton over his lavishly furnished 12-piece band, making fine work of Lord Lloyd Webbers synth-heavy score. This show’s choreography may well be strikingly for the moment, but CATS’s score truly is now and forever ! 

CATS at the Open Air Theatre is a personal best for McOnie. This show ranks alongside Trevor Nunn and John Caird's Les Miserables from 1985 and Richard Eyre's Guys And Dolls from some three years ealier for sheer groundbreaking originality. Setting his sights high, McOnie smashes his target, in a production that drips with carefully rehearsed and immaculately drilled vision.

Drew McOnie has taken CATS, one of modern musical theatre’s finest gems and re-worked it into a completely new piece of exceptional theatre. Touring from the autumn, don’t miss it!

Runs until 19th September, then on tour

Photo credit: Mark Senior

The Car Man - Review

Sadler's Wells, London

*****

Music by Terry Davies and Rodion Shchedrin's Carmen Suite (after Bizet's Carmen)

Directed and choregraphed by Matthew Bourne

The company of The Car Man

Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man is more than just a ballet. This modern classic that was first performed some 20 years ago is a homage to both cinema and opera delivered through the sublime fusion of dance.

Inspired by Georges Bizet’s opera Carmen, Bourne translates the tale of simmering lust, jealousy, revenge and murder from 19th century Spain to America’s 1950s Midwest and the small town of Harmony. Where Bizet’s opera was set in and around a tobacco factory in Seville, Bourne’s action focusses on Dino’s car repair shop and diner that sits at the heart of the town’s Hispanic community. Lana is Dino’s smoulderingly beautiful and profoundly frustrated wife, and when  handsome drifter Luca arrives in town looking for work, Lana finds him irresistible. Throw in the subplot of a romance between locals Angelo and Rita and with Bourne adding a strand of bisexuality to the plot, the components are all in place for a story that proves as tragic as it is grippingly exciting throughout.

Bourne’s New Adventures company alternate the principal roles throughout the run and on the evening of this review, the characters were danced thus:

LUCA - Will Bozier

LANA - Ashley Shaw

ANGELO - Harry Ondrak-Wright

RITA – Anna-Maria De Freitas

DINO - Danny Reubens

The evening’s music is drawn from the Carmen Suite, Russian composer Rodion Shchedrin's Bolshoi Ballet version of Bizet's original, with additional music by composer Terry Davies and of course, the melodies work beautifully. For opera buffs, the score respects Bizet’s brilliant original, while for those in the audience whose knowledge may be more confined to Now That’s What I Call Opera highlights, all the classic tunes are there. The Habanera plays as a recurring motif throughout the evening, while to have the car mechanics taking a steamy shower after a hard day’s labour, to the Prelude from Carmen, is a moment of rare, comically choreographed genius. 

As is to be expected, the acting and dance are beyond flawless. Rage, passion and desire are all palpably conveyed through the dancers’ faces and bodies, with the story's twists and turns all proving incredibly easy to follow.

Lez Brotherston (who else?) has designed the set with a staging that incorporates nods to film as well as Americana, with the town’s jailhouse and nightclub, as well as the workshop (complete with the arcing flickers of welders’ torches) all woven seamlessly into the tale.  

That Bourne’s choreography includes a car race between two rival gangs of young men (think of Grease and you’re getting close) only emphasises the creative mastery of this, our finest choreographer.

At Sadler’s Wells for the rest of August and then on tour. UNMISSABLE!

Runs until 29th August, then on tour.

Photo credit: Johan Persson

Here Comes J. Edgar - Review

King's Head, London

*****

Music by Peter Matz

Lyrics & book by Harry Shearer and Tom Leopold

Directed by Josh Seymour

Marc Elliott and Bryan Batt

Here Comes J. Edgar makes its world premiere at London’s King’s Head Theatre this week, some 30 years after it was written. This sparkling satire has a remarkable pedigree with book and lyrics penned by LA’s masters of comedy Harry Shearer and Tom Leopold and a stunning score composed by the equally gifted Peter Matz who was to tragically pass away in 2002.

The titular J. Edgar is of course the USA’s J. Edgar Hoover who served as the director of that nation’s Bureau of Investigation for 11 years from 1924, before changing its name to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (the FBI) and remaining in post for a remarkable 37 further years. It has been recognised that the vast amount of surveillance information that Hoover had amassed over the years, including compromising information on all of the Presidents that he served under, went a long way to assist him in corruptly keeping his job for such an inordinately long period of time.

Hoover’s alleged corruption went much further than just holding onto his job for 48 years. The vast extent of the secrets held in his files enabled him to abuse his powers, largely at whim, enabling him to persecute and manipulate politicians, celebrities, activists and ordinary citizens. Tasked with tackling the spread of communism, his association with Senator Joe McCarthy was frightening.

It was however in his approach to matters sexual that Hoover’s hypocrisy was most apparent and Shearer, Leopold and Matz mercilessly mine this rich seam of his life to deliver the sharpest historical satire around.

Hoover never married and was widely believed to be gay – developing over the years a very close association with his assistant Clyde Tolson.  The show opens (and closes) with the dying Hoover on his hospital bed, before delivering a whistle-stop tour through Hoover’s life touching upon a handful of the eight presidents that he was to serve under, from Coolidge through to Nixon.

Mad Men’s Bryan Batt makes a terrific London stage debut in the title role. Capturing the vain, egomaniacal Hoover, Batt’s presence is convincing – and boy can he hold a note too. Wickedly exploring his character’s sexual proclivities, including an inspired dalliance with transvestism, Batt’s performance cuts through the evening like a hoover at a glitter convention.

The King’s Head maybe one of the capital’s fringe venues, but the production values that underscore this show are breathtaking. Alongside Batt, the key principal players include Hugo Bolton as Tolson and Marc Elliott as Walter Winchell, a fading Entertainments Journalist who forges a symbiotic relationship with Hoover, both feeding each other the titbits of scandal they need to survive.

Laura Medforth plays Helen, Hoover’s devoted secretary at the Bureau, while Lucy O’Byrne plays the ghost of Hoover’s long departed mother. Medforth’s and O’Byrne’s vocal work is simply sensational. Equally sharp, albeit in a very brief cameo, is Judith Owen as the Madam of a brothel, tasked with the entrapment of Public Enemy Number One, gangster John Dillinger.

Josh Seymour directs his glorious company at a pace while leading choreographer Bill Deamer, a man more accustomed to the West End’s more glamorous stages, arranges routines that are stunningly executed within the venue’s compact space. And in the show’s closing act, the routine that has a quartet of Presidents ( chronologically FDR, Ike, JFK and LBJ) regretting that they had never acted more decisively to remove Hoover from his post is theatrical magic. 

The genius underlying the construction of this show is breathtaking. Matz’s music deliberately pastiches some Broadway greats – listen out for the nods to Guys & Dolls and West Side Story – with his tunes, often in musical snatches lasting barely a few seconds, covering a wide spectrum of genres. Perched high above the stage, Luke Holman deftly directs the show's small band. 

This is musical theatre at its best. Sharply, hilariously written and faultlessly performed. For those not easily offended, it’s unmissable.

Runs until 16th August

Photo credit: Mark Douet

Suzie Kennedy - Review

Crazy Coqs, London

*****

Suzie Kennedy

So much more than just a tribute act, Suzie Kennedy, when she assumes the persona of Marilyn Monroe, breathes a brilliantly vivacious life into one of the 20th century’s most inconic and enigmatic women. And in this year that marks the centenary of Monroe’s birth, Kennedy’s act takes on even greater significance.

From the moment she stepped into the spotlight in London’s intimate Crazy Coqs venue, Kennedy not only sang those numbers most associated with Monroe, she inhabited the star’s style – her script and audience interactions never letting the character drop, not for one second.

Kennedy’s hour-long setlist was a celebration of songs that defined not just Marilyn’s life but possibly and even more importantly, the impact that she made not only in her short lifetime but in the decades since then. Of course the classics were there and as Kennedy wrapped her mellifluous vocals around I Wanna Be Loved By You, My Heart Belongs to Daddy and (later in the act) Happy Birthday, she became that immortalised Hollywood idol.

I Was Born This Way (in a neat touch, duetted with Lady GaGa tribute artiste, the excellent Lallie Burns) along with a soulful solo (by Kennedy) of I Am What I Am defined the day’s Pride credentials, as Kennedy spoke (as Marilyn) sincerely and above all knowledgably, about Monroe’s troubled life.

Kennedy brings a sincerity to her act that transcends her sublime performance skills, showing a profound respect to Monroe that only imbues her otherwise stellar performance. An eclectic choice of songs supports this deep understanding. The Leslie Gore classic You Don’t Own Me (delivered complete with its sublime key change) brings a charged profundity to the evening, while Charlene’s I’ve Never Been To Me comes across as though it could almost have been inspired by Marilyn Monroe. 

In 1962 and aged just 36, Marilyn Monroe’s life was tragically cut short. The tragedy of her death is  reflected in Kennedy's final act, where following Over The Rainbow a song steeped in heartbreak for so many reasons, she silently slipped away from the stage. Paul Rahme her talented musical director then took over the mic with a powerfully poignant delivery of Elton John’s song from 53(!) years ago, Goodbye Norma Jean.

Notwithstanding the sadness, Kennedy makes sure the show ends with a bang, returning from the wings, costumed-changed and shimmering in sparkles to deliver another of Monroe’s signature tunes, from the movie Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend.

Sparkling entertainment – Suzie Kennedy defines the legacy of Marilyn Monroe.

Arcadia - Review

Duke of York's Theatre, London

*****

Written by Tom Stoppard

Directed by Carrie Cracknell

Isis Hainsworth

Arguably the zenith of Tom Stoppard’s all encompassing genius, Arcadia is a play that bends time to explore the intriguing complexities of maths, physics and art.

We meet the Coverly family on their country estate, firstly in the 19th century and latterly, some generations later, in the present day. Thomasina Cloverly is from the 1800s a gifted thinker who Stoppard aligns with the mathematical geniuses of her time. Aged just 16, her character is combination of precocious intellect fused with sexual curiosity. Played by Isis Hainsworth, hers is a masterful performance. Also striking from that era is Seamus Dillane’s take on Septimus Hodge, tutor to Thomasina. As the unseen Lord Byron drifts in and out of the narrative, Stoppard crafts a richly woven tapestry.

Fast forwarding to the modern era where the latter-day Coverlys are visited at their still-standing country pile by warring academics Bernard Nightingale (Oliver Chris) and Hannah Jarvis (Nikki Amuka-Bird). As the pair clash over the finer points of Lord Byron’s life and romances, Nightingale is ultimately and deliciously exposed as a pompously self-opinionated arse, all making for great theatre and as the 21st century family, aided by computer, uncover the genius of Thomasina’s mathematical theorems, the drama becomes electrifying. A further mark of Stoppard’s craft is that throughout both the story and the centuries that it spans, there is a beautifully penned undercurrent of lustful desires, both consummated and frustrated.

Carrie Cracknell has helmed her production that hails from the Old Vic magnificently. Stoppard created the piece to let the historical timelines segue seamlessly and Cracknell directs her cast with a perfectly placed accuracy. Alex Eales's set design of concentric revolves beneath suspended spheres emphasises the metaphysicality of Stoppard’s creation.

Three hours (including interval) makes for a long haul, but it’s worth it. Rarely is such brilliant writing so beautifully performed.

Runs until 12th September

Photo credit: Manuel Harlan

Cyrano - Review

Noel Coward Theatre, London

*****

Written by Edmond Rostand

Adapted by Simon Evans and Debris Stevenson

Directed by Simon Evans

Adrian Lester

Anyone who has ever been in love knows the impossible rollercoaster of feelings it brings: from the silly, adorable goofiness of sweet beginnings, to the nuanced hesitation of self-reflection and the gushing warmth of love — and sometimes, the salty taste of a tragic end. The Royal Shakespeare Company’s new adaptation of the classic French play Cyrano de Bergerac, originally written by Edmond Rostand in 1897, offers all that and more: a wild combination of Greek comedy and tragedy.

At the centre of the story is the iconic Cyrano de Bergerac, played by Adrian Lester. A poet, soldier and philosopher whose words are as sharp as his sword, but despite his charm and wit, Cyrano carries a paralysing insecurity about his appearance, feeling unworthy of the woman he secretly loves: Roxane (Susannah Fielding). As a long-standing friend of Cyrano’s, charming and sharp-tongued herself and recently widowed from her old husband who she had been forced to marry, Roxane longs to be dazzled by raw, breathtaking love.

As Cyrano finds himself watching Roxane fall for the dashingly handsome Christian de Neuvillette (Levi Brown), a man with the looks if not the brains that Roxane demands, he becomes the voice behind another man’s wooing, ghostwriting his rival’s terms of endearment, desperately hoping to provide the love that he believes Roxane deserves.

Simon Evans and Debris Stevenson’s adaptation — Evans’ second encounter with the play, having directed it around 20 years ago — provides a thrilling tale, crafted not only by an outstanding cast of actors, but also by a thoughtful balance between modern and classical language. The hilarious dialogue made the whole theatre laugh uncontrollably, while the emotionally moving monologues were full of romantic, rhythmic pathos.

The immersive staging, using the whole theatre with actors suddenly appearing among the audience adds to the evening’s effective comedy. Grace Smart’s stage designs are also remarkable, moving the audience smoothly through time and places, from Cyrano’s theatre to the battlefield.

In the original play, Cyrano says he has won, on a bet, a private orchestra for a day. Quite wittily, in Evans’ version, the band has apparently decided to stick with Cyrano for much longer. The gloomy yet obedient musicians quietly appear and disappear on the theatre’s balconies, on the stage and behind him, providing a heartwarming mixture of comic moments and a subtle echo of Cyrano’s feelings, sometimes before the character himself is able to acknowledge them. Outstanding amazing work from the band of actor-musicians and the composer Alex Baranowski.

There are no weak performances in the large cast of this big-hearted, bittersweet play. Lester is mesmerising and convincing as Cyrano, moving virtuously from impressive action fighting scenes to upbeat comedy and then to raw emotion. Brown, as Christian, reveals a great comic gift too. Fielding crafts Roxane as a believable character, goofy and vulnerable, allowing us to see her through Cyrano’s loving eyes and to care for her deeply too. 

This is a masterful production that tells of insecurities overshadowing even the greatest of loves — a familiar pain that makes this story so timeless.

Reviewed by Florit Shoihet

Runs until 5th September

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

Beshert - Review

*****

Written by Gary Enkin

Directed by Lewis Rose

2025 - 19 minutes

Anton Lesser and Kit Rakusen

Winner of the 2025 Pears Short Film Fund award, Beshert is a perfectly crafted 20-minute drama. Set in Leeds, Oliver Simon is approaching his barmitzvah while having been set a Care In The Community assignment from his school to visit an elderly resident in a local care home. On stumbling into the curmudgeonly Mr Pinsky the most charming and touching friendship evolves between (the unbeknownst to Oliver, dying) Pinsky and the convincingly awkward adolescent.

To say much more about the plot would spoil things and it’s only a short movie anyway, but what shines out from Beshert is its beautifully worded script from 70 year old newcomer(!) Gary Enkin that touches on moments of powerfully poignant tenderness while completely swerving sugary cliché. The relationships are played out with authenticity – with Pinksy’s final scene offering the most exquisitely understated depiction of hope emerging from devastating sadness. 

Of course it is not just the script. The young Kit Rakusen is Oliver while the venerable and accomplished Anton Lesser plays Pinsky, the spark between the pair proving electrifying. As Pinsky coaxes Oliver into embracing rather than resenting his barmitzvah, so too does the young boy re-ignite a spark of warmth and compassion in the old man. 

Lewis Rose directs with perfectly pitched nuance, and the whole affair is graced by a score from the always talented Erran Baron Cohen.

This movie is not just beshert, it’s beautiful.

Photo credit: Joanne Davidson