Review: Dance N’Speak Easy
An energetic dance show based on hip hop dance, breakdance, song and burlesque!
Genre: Family
Review: Timeless
Timeless comprises four contrasting dance pieces that are all interesting and well performed.
Review: Masquerade Mask
Commedia dell’arte at its highest level of quality imagined in its celebratory setting
Review: Ventriloquist Queen: A True African Queen
Great for families with children from age 8 and up. But even “kids at heart” (adults) will enjoy her charming presentation and lively music.
Review: All’s Well That Ends Well
Don’t go expecting searing insights, but do go for a crack ensemble who will surely turn many to Shakespeare. An endearing and uplifting enterprise.
Review: Tom’s Midnight Garden
An absolutely first-rate ensemble and they tell the story with all the wide-eyed wonder of a real enchantment, beyond Christmas, beyond, perhaps time. A gem.
Review: Refilwe
At just 45 minutes, a delightfully adapted fairy-tale, adapted in its turn. Bisola Aalbi’s rewrite is a lively, timely take on a silent culture war to make people of all ages think again.
Review: Pinocchio! The Panto
A pantomimic romp through Carlo Gollodi’s masterpiece that is very, very punny.
Review: The Little Iceberg Musical
An iceberg feels isolated and stranded until her friendship with a bird changes her outlook.
Review: Bumble’s Big Adventure
A worthy attempt at addressing the environmental impact around us and trying to teach the youngest about the natural world.
Review: Chevalier – Hobbyhorse Circus
A very sweet and well-executed homage to the circus horse, ideal for families with small children or those still young at heart.
Review: Casting the Runes
It is difficult not to be hooked by Box Tale Soup’s charming vision of M.R. James’ work.
Review: Mother Goose
This is more than panto: it’s an affirmation of something that panto here welcomes in, in our time uniquely invoking layers as only Elizabethan/Jacobean drama can.
Review: David Copperfield
A paean to live theatre; soaring seasonal spirit, struck with tenderness, joy, sorrow, plangent affirmation.
Review: Fruit Flies Like a Banana
No banana could fly as fast as these three virtuoso performers in this must see show as they combine virtuoso musicianship with acrobatics and dance
Review: Waiting For God
Sarah Mann and Nathan Ariss lead a fine company into a dash to eternity and back. With a memorable finale of two weddings and a funeral.
Review: Will Tell and the Big Bad Baron
A great family show: energetic, pacey with plenty of opportunity to join in and let off steam.
Review: Mary, Chris, Mars
Imaginative - and will appeal to families with an interest in space, astronauts and object/shadow puppetry.
Review: Dad’s Army
You feel you’ve been part of an invited audience at one of the original TV productions
Review: Donald and Benoit
Whimsical, distracting and delightful – from cat’s pajamas to the dog’s claws, this is a real panacea to the absurdity of life.
Review: Granny Smith’s
A lovely entrée to the bilingualism of French and English delivered in mask by a woman who knows and who entertains.
Review: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Some actors give transcendent performances up there with London’s finest. Out in the slant air this will now prove magical.
Review: The Twits
A summer must-see to charge you up for the autumn, and taking on the real twits ahead.
Review: More Grimm Tales
A rollicking production with razored timing, musical cues and ad-libs worked in to half-second slots. A must-see.
Review: Bag Lady
This could develop into something special. Thoroughly recommended as an industrial-strength ice-breaker.
Review: Beauty and the Beast
Nothing so convincing has been done with this legend. It deserves many revivals.
Review: The Sound of Music
Phenomenal singing all round. A more than solid recommendation for that alone.
Review: Treasure Island
First-rate theatre. In Joshua James’ Ben Gunn and above all Pasy Ferran’s Jim, we see stars rising quicker than Arthur Darvill’s superb Silver can point them out.
Review: Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat
A salutary reminder of how a great musical talent and collaboration started
Review: Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
It couldn’t be done any better and puts several touring shows to shame.
Review: Celeste’s Circus
A quant and lovely trip to the circus for little ones that take big ones along for the ride
Review: I’ll take you to Mrs Cole
A wonderful family show, adapted from the book of the same name, and I guarantee you will be singing the theme song under your breath for days.
Review: Islander: A New Musical
A haunting and highly evocative telling of the misty islands of Scotland told in an enchanting musical production.
Review: Wolfgang’s Magical Musical Circus
The performing brio is phenomenal, of a standard you’d be happy to see anywhere in the world. So would any child.
Review: Grimm’s Tales
An exuberant Christmas production, and a miracle of compression, blocking, set-design and ensemble acting skills.
Review: Madagascar The Musical
Highly Recommended for monkeys and lemurs of all ages – quite apart from lions, zebras, hippos and giraffes.
Review: Private Peaceful
This is as good as a one-person show of this kind gets. Andy Daniel should be up there above his own rows of five-star ratings.
Review: Kaput
An engaging hour of brilliantly-constructed mime and slapstick performed by a loveable character who steals your heart while making you laugh.
Review: The Man Who Planted Trees
Charming, imaginative, entertaining storytelling and puppetry show, extremely well performed - thoughtful, moving story, with a noble message!
Review: Penguinpig
Charming, attractive, well thought out puppetry show set to lovely music, that will appeal to young children and accompanying grown ups!
Review: Animal Farm
A swift and telling production that’s quick-swerving on its feet with memorable vocal projection and physical acting that’s a delight and enticement. This outstanding outdoor version feels special.
Review: The Search for a Black-Browed Albatross
Creative, imaginative, beautifully crafted and well performed - excellent show!
Review: Summer Holiday
Stunning Ray Quinn and ensemble work their bobby-socks off with notable support from Rob Wicks and his band. Give No. 9 a proper MOT and it’ll strike gold too.
Review: The Adventures of Robin Hood
A Plethora of Swashbuckling Heroes and Lovable Rogues in this endearing rendition of Robin Hood
Review: Arr We There Yet?
A Madcap Mashup of Circus and Storytelling with a Little Tango for Extra Spice
Review: Whaddya Know – We’re In Love!
There’s first-class musical entertainment here, crouched under the disguise of a schoolboy plot. Irresistible.
Review: Bear North
Do come if you want charm, unpredictable choruses and weather. And where else can you see a dancing bear not even brushed backwards in the making of this show?
Review: The Jurassic Parks
A masterclass in storytelling using physical theatre, puppetry, song and dance, and audience interaction
Review: Random Selfies
This is sweet, fleet story-telling with just the right amount of pitch and yaw for anyone to take, without it becoming too dark or didactic. Ten-year-old Lola’s engaging, and in Natalia Hinds’ hands utterly believable, energetically inhabited with a sense of fun clearly relished by this revelatory actor.
Review: How To Be a Kid
More than an enchanting diversion Sarah McDonald’s play does ask just how quickly we need to grow up, even when we have.
Review: The Snowman
The most enduring British Christmas hits are melancholy, in stark contrast to say American. There’s a profound sadness in the magic. Its not a long work, perfectly proportioned for children. It’s still the ideal winter present, especially on a first trip to the theatre.
Review: The Messiah
Incestuous stars, passing of the ears, deep heat as a condition not an old muscle unguent. The dotty felicities of Patrick Barlow’s language in The Messiah directed by Rod Lewis are easily masked in the Norman Wisdom-like pratfalls of his hapless duo. Unless you add Mrs Flowers; and you should.
Review: Saint George and the Dragon
This is an unsettling, unsettled play. Creating its own world, it asks something of substance no-one else is quite doing – not even Rory Mullarkey previously in The Wolf From the Door. His adaptation of the Oresteia for the Globe has after all come between. It’ll be intriguing to see where this big-boned, big-themed dramatist will venture next.
Review: Fiddler on the Roof
Evans allows this musical theatre to breathe on his own big-hearted terms whilst allowing the bones to show, as it does with a breath-taking diminuendo that seems to raise and settle the dust of emigration as we watch. For sheer penetration, heart and balance it’s as definitive as we’re likely to see for many years.
Review: The Wedding Singer
This is an outstandingly-conceived show, generous to cast and audience alike, superbly choreographed and performed in what might seem challenging spaces. The last blast of summer’s breath: enjoy.
Review: Ingo’s War
Delightful and meaningful story - imaginative, creative, moving and extremely well done!
Review: The Wonderful World of Lapin
Charming and entertaining family show that will delight the very young.
Review: Jason and the Argonauts
An impressive modern take on the legend of Jason and the Golden Fleece with contemporary power and focus.
Review: Wonderland
The ingredients are there: it’s a magical idea, and just needs a quieter rationale and – to make it a great show - a few more memorable numbers. But if you care for musicals, see it for an outstanding clutch of performers and a dream of something perennial.
