Theatre review: The Secret Diary of Henry VIII by The Three Inch Fools at Weald & Downland Living Museum [UK tour]

Photo credit: Anthony Oxley

I do not have the best track record with outdoors theatre. I attended a production at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre in London three times before I managed to see the whole show and it didn't finish prematurely due to heavy rain fall. And I don't think I've ever in my life been quite as soaked as I was during my visit to the iconic Minack Theatre in Cornwall (I'm still unsure how the actors didn't float from the puddle-filled stage straight into the sea). So I was due an open air experience that went without a hitch, and The Three Inch Fools' The Secret Diary of Henry VIII at the beautiful Weald & Downland Living Museum delivered – and then some. 

Theatre review: Agatha Christie's The Mirror Crack'd at Oxford Playhouse

Anyone who's visited this blog in recent years will know I'm a big fan of murder mysteries, especially those written by Agatha Christie. Her huge collection of works has stood the test of time for a reason, and is being adapted into brand-new cinematic and theatrical adaptations to this day. Witness for the Prosecution has been running successfully for years (as has The Mousetrap, which recently celebrated 70 years in the West End) and earlier this year I saw the excellent Murder on the Orient Express at the Chichester Festival Theatre (which also had a short stint in Bath). Now, The Mirror Crack'd is on tour across the UK and I had the pleasure of catching a performance at the Oxford Playhouse.

 

Rock of Ages at New Wimbledon Theatre [UK Tour]

[AD - Gifted] When Rock of Ages was playing in the West End I was obsessed with the show. The feel-good story, rockin' 80s score, absolutely perfect casting, and the hilarious absurdity of some of the characters, mashed together in a winning combination that had me return 20+ times. Yes, I thought it was THAT good. There is no other musical or play I've seen that often (or even more than a handful of times), so needless to say I was very excited when a new UK tour of my favourite 80s-inspired musical was announced. This week the tour hit the edge of London at the New Wimbledon Theatre and I was thrilled to be invited to attend the gala night.

Madagascar the Musical at New Wimbledon Theatre [UK tour]

It's been a while since I've regularly posted to my blog – sorry! The last month has been a hectic one doing handover stuff at work and starting an exciting new job at a major well-known tech firm. It's been a blast but man it's been crazy and I've been too exhausted in the evenings for a proper blog catch-up. I'm hoping things will settle down soon again though so you can expect a regular flow of book, theatre and London posts, as well as tons of awesome recs from the Lake District, which I visited earlier this month. But first things first... I got to see the UK tour of Madagascar the Musical last week when it came to London.

Legally Blonde The Musical at New Wimbledon Theatre

Omigod, omigod you guys, Legally Blonde The Musical has returned to London for a limited run before it takes its pink-hued charm up north! It's cheesier and camper than the last time it graced the boards in the capital, but it is still hella fun with a fabulously catchy soundtrack and empowering message at its heart (not to mention an adorable romance *swoon*).

Flashdance at New Wimbledon Theatre [UK tour]

As a young teen I was obsessed with 80s musicals, especially the TV adaptation of Fame which received steady reruns throughout the 90s and early 2000s in the Netherlands. However, despite watching all of the classics, one movie that I somehow never saw was Flashdance. It was a story I thought at the time wasn't very interesting and so I never made the effort to seek it out. Fast-forward a few decades and a musical adaptation has come to London. On a whim I decided to check it out and I fell head over heels in love with the stunning choreography, catchy soundtrack and cheesy but totally captivating love story at the heart of the show. 'Oh what a feeling' to discover a new musical love!

The Addams Family at New Wimbledon Theatre (UK Tour)

I adore the score of The Addams Family musical. It's fun, catchy and makes you instantly want to snap your fingers along to the beat of the music. I've listened to the original Broadway soundtrack tons of times, and may have played the clips on YouTube more times than I can remember. I love the music so much, in fact, that I went out of my way to see an amateur production of the show a few years ago.. it wasn't good. Needless to say I was very excited when a UK tour was announced, because finally I could see a production of this wonderfully cheesy musical that would do the source material justice.

My Top 10 Favourite Theatre Shows From 2016

With the year drawing to a close it's time to look back on all my theatrical outings of 2016 and which were the very best of the best. I've had the pleasure to see a fair share of mostly great productions and so narrowing it down to just 10 favourites wasn't an easy job, but I got there in the end. The final list is a decent mix of West End and fringe shows, with even a UK tour thrown in. The majority are musicals because I do tend to see more of those, but there are a few plays in my favourites too. So without further ado, here are my top 10 favourite theatre shows from 2016!

Little Shop of Horrors at New Wimbledon Theatre (UK Tour)

Photo credit: Matt Martin
Sell A Door Theatre Company has been doing stellar things within the UK in recent years, going from strength to strength with their touring productions that often rival West End shows in talent and production values. I've been a big fan ever since I saw Spring Awakening back in 2011 and they've gone on to produce shows such as Avenue Q, American Idiot and Hand to God. Their latest big musical venture is cult classic Little Shop of Horrors, which opened at New Wimbledon Theatre this week.

Hairspray UK Tour at the New Wimbledon Theatre

The cast of Hairspray©Ellie Kurttz

I love the New Wimbledon Theatre, even though the UK tours I have seen there in recent years have often been hit (Avenue Q, Barnum, Anything Goes) or miss (Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, 20th Century Boy, and an Agatha Cristie murder mystery I don't even remember the name of...), and so it's always guess work what the next show will bring. Thankfully, this touring production of Hairspray is very much a hit as it swings the New Wimbledon Theatre right back into the sixties; outrageously big hair, dubious fashion sense, and all.

Theatre review: Avenue Q (UK tour)

©Matt Martin Photography

Almost a year ago to the day I had the profound pleasure of discovering the joy that is Avenue Q when I reviewed it for Woman's World. I saw the show on press night in Greenwich and loved it so much that when it returned to London, Wimbledon this time around, I booked myself a ticket to see it again. So you can imagine how excited I was when I first heard the news that the tour would come back this year, and would once more play my favourite London fringe venue; Greenwich Theatre.

Admittedly when I initially saw that there would be cast changes for the tour I felt disappointed as the two leads that left, Lucie-Mae Sumner (Kate Monster/Lucy the Slut) and Tom Steedon (protagonist Princeton/Rod), made my previous viewings of this show so very special. Thankfully my other favourite, Stephen Arden (Nicky/Trekkie), was still a firm part of the musical and newcomers Sarah Harlington and Richard Lowe brought a breath of fresh air to it.

I was particularly stoked to see Richard in one of the leads as I loved his performance in the West End run of Loserville and while I have also caught him in The Light Princess at the National Theatre, it was brilliant to see him, deservingly, take centre-stage once more. He was already fantastic in his West End debut several years ago and he has only become even more impressive since. 

The Tony Award-winning show tells the story of recent graduate Princeton (Lowe) who feels a little disillusioned as he tries to find his purpose in life. With a degree in his pocket but no job to go with it, he can only afford to rent a place all the way down Avenue Q and that is where he meets our merry band of characters. A mixture of puppets and humans creates an ingenious and fun display and one that could almost be mistaken for the cheery innocence of Sesame Street, were it not for the fact that the musical is filled with profanity, adult themes and a character obsessed with porn.

It sounds mental, particularly when you add in wacky though oh so catchy tunes by the hand of Jeff Marx and Bobby Lopez (Frozen, Book of Mormon), which have titles such as If You Were Gay (That'd Be Okay), You Can Be as Loud as the Hell You Want (When You're Makin' Love) and Everyone's a Little Bit Racist. But the charmingly honest and surprisingly realistic (considering half the cast are puppets) book by Jeff Whitty makes it work, aided by a fantastic direction from Cressida Carre and a delightful set design by Richard Evans (slightly updated from last year's tour).

I've been a massive fan of Sell a Door ever since I caught their beautiful and haunting production of Spring Awakening (also at Greenwich Theatre) and with both Avenue Q tours they have shown once more what a fantastic and inspiring company they are. This year they're also touring The History Boys and bringing American Idiot to the West End, so there's a lot of exciting theatre to look forward to from Sell a Door in 2015. I, for one, will be penning the dates into my diary as soon as I have hit 'publish' on this review.



Avenue Q is running at Greenwich Theatre until 24 May 2015. You can buy tickets here. After that it will be touring the UK again, including a return to New Wimbledon Theatre next year.

Theatre Review: Anything Goes (UK tour)

©Photo Johan Persson
Billy Crocker (Matt Rawle) is a broker who instead of following the orders of his boss, Elisha Whitney (Simon Rouse), follows his heart straight onto the SS American, determined to convince the love of his life, Hope Harcourt (Zoë Rainey), that they belong together. The fact that Whitney is also on board of the ship, and that the girl he has eyes for is already engaged to Lord Evelyn Oakleigh (Stephen Matthews), doesn't stop Billy from sneaking on with a fake passport, which belongs to Public Enemy 1; Snake Eyes Johnson.

Theatre review: Avenue Q (UK tour)

Synopsis: Avenue Q is a laugh-out-loud musical that tells the story of a recent college graduate named Princeton who moves into a shabby New York apartment all the way out on Avenue Q.

There, he meets Kate (the girl next door), Rod (the Republican), Trekkie (the internet sexpert), Lucy the Slut and other colorful types who help Pprinceton finally discover his true purpose in life.

From the producers of Seussical (West End), Spring Awakening (Debut UK Tour) and Lord of the Flies (UK Tour) Sell a Door Theatre Company revive this critically acclaimed musical at their London home the Greenwich Theatre before embarking on a 12 Week UK Tour.


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