That Bastard, Puccini! recounts the rivalry between the composer Ruggero Leoncavallo, best known for his opera, Pagliacci , and his more famous contemporary, Giacomo Puccini. While the story centres around their competing productions of operas based on Henri Murger's Scènes de la vie de bohème , it also wanders over other various points of contention between the two. Unfortunately, both of the major characters are presented as caricatures. Alasdair Buchan's Leoncavallo is simply an aggrieved blowhard, whereas Sebastien Torkia's Puccini is depicted as a condescending womaniser. One never really cares much about either composer, their motivations or their disagreements. The show is also littered with anachronisms, some intentionally introduced for humour, and others apparently quite unintended. The cast, particularly Lisa-Anne Wood, who plays Leoncavallo's wife, Berthe, also take on various other characters. Wood becomes Puccini's spouse, Elvira, and his publisher/pro...

Sean Daniels' autobiographical piece recounts the heartfelt journey of Steven, tracing his steps from alcoholism to sobriety. Coming from a dysfunctional Mormon home, Daniels' protagonist at a very early age begins to use alcohol to deal with his issues. Nevertheless, by employing the same engaging charm and humour which marks this recounting of his story, Steven manages to achieve social success and to pursue a high-achieving career even as his life is falling apart. Despite an unplanned marriage, a serious traffic accident and various other crises, it is only when Steven finds himself on the side of the road contemplating suicide that he honestly comes to terms with his plight. For us, the character of Steven and Daniels' unflinching portrait of his dilemma recalled F. Scott Fitzgerald's picture of the disintegration of a drunken Dick Diver in Tender is the Night . In both cases, it is the ability of the characters to use their charm, or humour, which allows them to n...

Beth Steel has a wonderful ear for dialogue and her Till The Stars Come Down is a brilliantly evocative piece. Although it is set in a very specific time and place, it manages to recall everyone's family and to create the timeless reality of family gatherings. The day of Sylvia and Marek's wedding begins simply enough. The three sisters, Hazel, Maggie and Sylvia are joined by Aunty Carol and the women put on their make-up for the big day. Amidst these preparations for the milestone occasion, there is the predictable banter, sniping and laughter - and, of course, there are hitches. The crisis of the dress that doesn't fit is fortunately resolved when the wedding gown of the sisters' late mother serves as a replacement. Then, there is the wedding reception. Despite the dinner being laced with references to old feuds, suggestions of secret liaisons and some casual racism, everything is smoothed over and appearances are maintained. However, when Act I ends there is a del...

Malorie Blackman's novel was written for young adults, and this production is likely to hold considerable appeal for that demographic. The extended parable of racial injustice, woven together with a story of forbidden teenage love, would no doubt strike a chord with younger audiences. However, for older viewers, the message can feel somewhat overstated, and the love story, at times, predictable. The initial impact of reversing racial dynamics – placing Black characters, the Crosses, in a position of power over the white underclass, the Noughts – is powerful and thought-provoking. Yet, this inversion quickly loses its novelty, and the central characters, Callum and Sephy, reminiscent of Romeo and Juliet, risk feeling one-dimensional. This is undoubtedly strong, teachable material, and it’s easy to see why it remains a staple of school curricula. On stage, however, the simplicity of the plot and reliance on stock characters might be better suited to the format of a musical. With the ...

The new Emerald Theatre is a well-appointed venue that is a welcome addition to the London cabaret scene. Unfortunately, its first show, Diamonds and Dust , is a rather lacklustre offering despite some quite spectacular costuming. The main drawback of this show is the script, which simply isn't very interesting. Faye Tozer portrays, and narrates the story of, Miss Kitty LeRoy who is a gold-digging diva in the Wild West. She is a much-married card shark, and her journey is told through a series of poker hands. The humour that is the hallmark of most drag shows is notably absent here, and Tozer's attempts to solicit applause and laughter fall completely flat. Among the lip-syncing of various pop songs and lots of laboured hoofing, the first act of this cabaret show has a brief acrobatic performance which is followed up in the second act by an aerial strap display by Lady Lydia and Zoë Marshall which is the showstopper of this whole experience. The main focus of the cabaret, howev...

No holiday plans? What about a cruise? This hilarious spoof of the classic film could be the perfect getaway. It's all aboard for loads of fun in this nauti rewriting of Jack and Rose's soppy sea voyage in which all that sentimentality is replaced by a boatload of silliness. Acting as our guide to this gay romp is a ubiquitous Céline Dion who manages to insert herself into every situation while belting out the ballads that are her trademark. Hilariously played by Lauren Drew, Celine, with all her quirky mannerisms, is everywhere. She seizes any opportunity to upstage hapless Jack, pricelessly played by Luke Bayer, and his mousy mistress Rose, amusingly interpreted by Hiba Elchikhe. In fact, there are only a couple of points in this show when the irrepressible Céline finds herself pushed to the stern boat. As the ruthless Ruth, Rose's pushy mother, Carl Mullaney, delivers an epic rant that makes Gypsy's Mama Rose look like a nurturer. That tirade is a comic highpoint of ...

The 1979 album of The Who which went on to become a film and a musical, now returns as a ballet. Using Rachel Fuller's classical scoring, this version of Pete Townshend's story of Jimmy, the working class lad whose dismal home life and dead-end job lead him to embrace the Mod ethos of the '60s may be the most successful version yet. In this ballet adaptation of the time-honoured story of rival clans and frustrated love, which echoes Romeo and Juliet, and which is played out against the background of the conflict between the Mods vs Rockers, the style of the era is beautifully invoked but the symbolic depth of Jimmy's conflict is also brilliantly emphasised. The four aspects of his "quadrophenia" (The Tough Guy, The Lunatic, The Romantic, and The Hypocrite) are explicitly shown and explored, and they are directly contrasted to the external influences on his life as expressed by his father, Ace Face, his love interest, and his rocker friend. The real depths of J...

If you have seen previous productions of Evita , or even the film, you will first need to put aside any preconceptions arising from those experiences. Jamie Lloyd's reimagining of Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic will probably enrage some as much as it will delight others. There is no attempt to realistically present events here, and not much effort to tell the story of Eva Perón. This is a raucous, raunchy, concert version of the rags to riches story of Argentina's most famous First Lady. What was previously an operatic telling of her tale and a complex study of political compromise and the corruption of power is now a theatrical experience. In this production, every number is sung at a volume of plus ten, and the energetic choreography is dialled up to the max, overwhelming any story or character development. In fact, the characters barely interact. They all play to the audience often with microphones in their hands. The set is a bare-bones affair, matching the costumes whic...

In 1963, Anselm Kiefer traced the steps of Vincent Van Gogh through the Netherlands, Belgium and France. This exhibition is the product of Kiefer's lifelong fascination with Van Gogh and presents some of the works inspired by his travels and by the compositions of his mentor. The interesting handout which accompanies the exhibition provides excerpts from Kiefer's diaries about his journey and offers a thought-provoking insight into his youthful engagement with Van Gogh's work. That preoccupation was not confined to his youth, however. It was to be ongoing, and even Kiefer's most recent output references Van Gogh. The first and third galleries of the exhibition focus on Kiefer's own monumental works which address subjects inspired by Van Gogh, while the second gallery contains smaller pieces and sketches which are fascinating to compare with Van Gogh's treatment of similar scenes. Indeed, for us, this was perhaps the most intriguing of the three galleries where w...

Lynn Nottage's play follows the fortunes of a young black seamstress in 1905 New York. Esther makes undergarments for the wealthy, and the central metaphor of the play is that just as her corsets control and distort women's figures to meet the dictates of fashion, all of the characters in the story find their lives defined and limited by race, gender, class and religion. From the wealthy Mrs Van Buren who must play her part in society while privately enduring a loveless marriage, to the cloth merchant, Mr Marks, whose religion does not allow him to be touched by a woman who is not in his family and which would never sanction a relationship with a black woman, everyone in Esther's world is trapped. However, it is through love and marriage that Esther hopes she will find freedom and escape from the restrictions of her situation. Although Esther's friends, the landlady Mrs Dickson and the prostitute, Mayme, counsel a life based on compromise, Esther hopes that her romantic...