by Meredith Jones Russell
Is what we like more important than what we believe? This is the question posed by a National Youth Theatre (NYT) company bubbling with enthusiasm, excitement and talent.
Month: August 2019
Hot Flush, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
Day two of Sinead’s hen party and enthusiasm for bottomless brunch is beginning to wane slightly in the ladies’ loo, where hen after hungover hen staggers in for a quick sit-down and some crisis talks.
Scream Phone, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
If you weren’t lucky enough to have spent your formative years playing the ‘90s Hasbro wonder that was DreamPhone, it might be worth having a quick Google before you see the show. There’s still more than enough to enjoy if you don’t, but there are some wickedly funny references that make this musical horror spoof even better for the initiated.
River in the Sky, Hope Theatre
By Laura Kressly
Waves quietly break along the beach outside a remote holiday home. A woman drinks Earl Gray, eats biscuits and mourns her infant son. Her husband checks on her regularly, but within the icy sea of debilitating grief, they’ve lost the ability to communicate other than through fantastical stories of mythical creatures. Time all but stops in this sparsely-written series of snapshots depicting a couple trying their best to piece their lives together after a tragedy.
I Wish My Life Were Like a Musical, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
Would life really be better if it were a musical? Alexander S. Bermange’s revue show suggests it’s not all lipstick grins and audience adulation. Featuring four performers and Bermange himself on piano, the show tells their story as struggling artists, going from drama school dreams to the disappointing reality of auditions, understudying, second jobs, debilitating dance routines, low pay and backstage backstabbing.
How to Save a Rock, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
By Meredith Jones Russell
An earnest entreaty to save our planet, How to Save a Rock is a hugely well-intentioned and charming play which just slightly runs out of steam. It’s packed full of other forms of energy, however, as the whole show claims to be carbon neutral, powered by an on-stage bike and solar power.
Sex Education, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
A mixture of confessional monologues, recorded interviews, dance, music, and a hefty smattering of hardcore porn, Harry Clayton-Wright’s deliberately shocking, no-holds-barred, one-man show attempts to address how we learn about sex and how that education informs our wants, needs and desires for the rest of our lives.
Shackleton’s Carpenter, Jermyn Street Theatre
by Laura Kressly
In 1914 Sir Earnest Shackleton set off to cross Antarctica via the South Pole, but the mission was cut short when one of the two ships froze in an ice floe that eventually crushed it. Miraculously, the men were able to seek help due to the ship’s carpenter repurposing the life boats to make them suitable for long journeys in turbulent water. That carpenter’s name was Harry McNish, and in his dying days on a New Zealand dock, he relives his memories of that voyage.
Neil Delamere: End of Watch, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
Structured around the story of his attempts to buy his 84-year-old father a posh new watch as a birthday present, Neil Delamere: End of Watch is a well-observed and warmly funny hour of razor-sharp comedy.
Crocodile Fever, Edinburgh Festival Fringe
by Meredith Jones Russell
Crocodile Fever is a shocking, staggering, darkly hilarious play which comes into its own in its second, bizarre half.
The Play's The Thing UK 