Rev Stan's Theatre Blog
London theatre reviews and interviews
Category: Off West End
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Cormac McCarthy isn't known for cheery topics as anyone who has sat through (or read) The Road will testify and his play The Sunset Limited is no exception. Gary Beadle and Jasper Britton in The Sunset Limited. Photo: Marc Brenner But where there was the drama of danger and survival in the apocalyptic The Road,…
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It's been tough but I've managed to whittle down my 'best theatre of 2019' list to 10 plays, well, one isn't actually a play but deserves a place nonetheless. So here goes, in no particular order: Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash 1. Downstate, National Theatre A challenging, difficult play with humour and wit inflected…
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Lydia Wilson is back on stage, hurrah! Haven't seen her since she played Kate in Charles III back in 2014 and seeing her as the Duchess of Malfi reminded me how much I've missed her on stage. And it was a great way to round off my year of theatre-going, I love a good, gruesome…
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A few weeks ago I decided to try something new: quick video reviews (reactions) to plays I've just seen. I've been posting them on my Instagram account and on the Rev Stan Theatre blog Facebook page (connect/like to get all sorts of extra bits and bobs) and thought I might start posting them here on…
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Robert Icke has certainly made his mark while associate director at the Almeida. Highs include Hamlet with Andrew Scott and Oresteia with Lia Williams although there was also Mr Burns. He leaves the Almeida with a challenging piece, his adaptation of the early 20th Century play Professor Bernhardi by Arthur Schnitzler. Set in a modern…
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Saw Wife at the Kiln Theatre a few weeks ago but it was a really busy time with work and I got distracted from writing my review – which I now want to quickly rectify because I really enjoyed it. Karen Fishwick (Daisy) and Sirine Saba (Suzannah) in Wife © Marc Brenner Samuel Adamson's play…
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London's theatreland is ripe for a good hearty laugh. I mean look at the state of the world, who wouldn't want to bury their head in giggles for a couple of hours? And so we are spoiled by not one but two classic comedies both with stellar casts: Present Laughter starring Andrew Scott and Indira…
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Review: Cyprus Avenue, Royal Court – David Ireland’s absurdist, existential comedy packs a grim bite
It is a superb play and one that can be cogitated over and debated but which in a perverse, bloody way is also highly entertaining. Cyprus Avenue at the Royal Court has long finished its run but it's such an extraordinary play that I wanted to get some thoughts down as I didn't get a…
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The signs are glaring, a figurative and literal Chekhov's gun, it's a car crash in slow motion and you can't look away. There is a heartbreaking inevitability to Florian Zeller's play The Son which is currently on at the Kiln Theatre. Nicolas (Laurie Kynaston), a once bubbly teenager has become withdrawn since his parent's divorce.…