Following sell-out runs in London, Berlin and Edinburgh, Newcastle based Encounter Productions are bringing this wonderfully dark physical comedy to venues throughout the UK this year. Written by Lee Mattinson, it is a whirlwind journey through Catherine Pistachio's childhood, from infancy to early adulthood, all set to a nostalgic 90s soundtrack.
Renowned Jerusalem-born choreographer Hofesh Shechter brought his company to Manchester's HOME theatre.
Shechter's work in experimental and contemporary dance has been lauded by critics worldwide, and after watching this trilogy of dances collectively known as Barbarians last night it is very easy to understand why.
It is always nice, even travelling a bit further than usual, to visit and see a new venue at which a real variety of shows are on available for the public to view; and one by the sea is an added bonus! This time I was missioned to venture past Liverpool on to the lovely area of New Brighton for Desperate Scousewives 2 at the Floral Pavilion on the Promenade.
A first for me here, I am welcomed by the staff (I guess volunteers) who don their burgundy pinafores branded proudly with the venue’s logo embroided on their breast. As with a particular theatre in Manchester, this place has various performance spaces and we were welcomed into The Blue Lounge (as oppose to the Panoramic one of the main Theatre).
This year Britain is celebrating the 400 year anniversary of the death of the ‘Bard of Avon’, William Shakespeare and what better way to honour his memory than by breathing new life into one of his most famous comedies. Add to this the opulence of the beautiful Theatre Royal I almost felt as if I had been transported back to the 1600’s. Merely Theatre began in 2007 and in 2014 they embarked on the ambitious Merely Shakespeare project which saw them selling out shows at the Cockpit Theatre every month and earning themselves the title of the first fully gender-blind Shakespearian theatre company.
Completely bizarre! That’s all that can be said after watching The Naughty Corner’s productions of ‘Not the Horse’ and ‘The Bastard Queen’.
When being seated for both shows, the actors were already on stage which gave a sense that you were already amongst the action from the moment you walked through the door.
Prime Impulse was a 45 minute presentation of some of the work the students on the Dance and Performance course at The Arden School of Theatre in Manchester have been working on over the last few months.
We were shown 13 short pieces covering the four main disciplines of ballet, jazz, tap and contemporary. Some of the work had been choreographed by the students themselves and some by their tutors, and the whole thing coordinated and directed by tutor Belinda Grantham.
Ok, so it’s hammering it down, as they say round these parts, and the steps up to the arena doors seem mighty long, but there’s a glitterball to be won, and for this self confessed Strictly obsessor, on her seventh visit to the tour in seven years, it would take more than a bit of rain to dampen these spirits.
Strictly became something of a champion in itself this year, battering the X Factor in the ratings and taking pride of place on the weekend schedules, and I for one, was glad to see it do so. A family favourite with a bit of something for everyone, the tour is something a Strictly fan would be crazy to miss, as the beautiful sets, costumes, live music and professional dancing makes it feel like you could be in the studio, if you were one of the 4.8 million who didn’t manage to get the tickets for the real thing.
Breathtakingly beautiful, the only way to describe Avant Garde Dance: The Black Album. The complexity of most contemporary pieces is normally rather vast but it is nothing compared to the range and dynamic of emotions displayed in this performance. The company 8 spectacular dances who were really the heart of the performance they displayed elegance, passion and pain - to be able to do this is truly the work of a professional.
This is a brave, visceral and honest proclamation of modern integration in the face of bloody history, hostility and clashes of faith. It is an important piece of theatre that needs to be seen by a wider audience; that will leave you moved and searching for difficult answers. It’s a unique piece of art that does not come around very often.
8 years after her last visit Mary Poppins has arrived back in Manchester at the Palace Theatre and with the might of Disney and Cameron Mackintosh heading up the production team you should expect one of the biggest shows to hit the city this year. Sadly, it doesn’t quite live up to all the hype and expectations as I found out last night. 
Last night a touch of class hit the Regent Theatre as Private Lives graced the stage. On entry to the theatre the stage was set with a huge balcony lit with twinkling Hollywood style bulbs and decorated with beautiful vivid flowers of pinks and reds, there was an obvious split down the middle of the balcony so it was obviously going to be two separate playing spaces. This spectacular set was used for the majority of the first half.
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