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The greatest show and other bromances: Adam Riches and John Kearns ARE Ball and Boe @sohotheatre

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Alfie Boe and Michael Ball seem to be a bit of a joke act anyway. Their endless interpretations of popular songs (also known as covers) and their double-act bromance make them quintessential crossover artists where popular music meets opera and Broadway. And a perilous choice for the discerning listener. It’s not that they aren’t talented musicians and performers in their own right. Still, their musical choices are always safe, predictable and less than their potential. But every country deserves to have a pair of self-described national treasures that can tour the local arenas and give people a good time for the bargain price of £175 a seat.  And so the concept of Adam Riches and John Kearns - two world-famous from the Edinburgh Fringe comedians taking on this bromance seems like a curious choice for a Christmas musical fare. One can only hope that over the fourteen nights, it is playing at the Soho Theatre that the show evolves into something more substantial than a series of po...

When in Rome: For Reasons That Remain Unclear @KingsHeadThtr

A young screenwriter and an older priest walk into a hotel room in Rome. You just know it isn’t going to end well. But part of the suspense in For Reasons That Remain Unclear is you are never certain where things are heading. Mart Crowley’s sexually charged piece keeps you guessing. It’s having its UK premiere at The Kings Head Theatre as part of its Queer Season of theatre.

Patrick (Simon Haines) is working for Warner Brothers in Rome living out of a fabulous hotel. He meets Conrad (Corey Petersen) on the street and after a long lunch they head back to Patrick’s hotel. What then ensues is a series of mind games as faith, sexuality and secrets are explored. Conversations about the trivial meander into the personal. Then it builds into something darker.

It’s probably every gay priest’s fantasy to get picked up off the street by someone from Hollywood. But if you get past that it’s a rewarding piece, particularly given the performances. 

Haines and Petersen are terrific. They hold your attention throughout this intense and intimate show. Haine’s only has to roll up a sleeve before Petersen is nervously reaching for another cigarette. 

Only when room service arrives in the form of a sly performance by Daniele Alan-Carter is there any comic relief. 

Amanda Mascarenhas’s design makes inspired use of the space with it’s play on light from the Piazza De Spagna in 1990’s Rome. There’s a balcony, a corridor leading to a bathroom and then on what seems like a high altar is the bed. This is play that gives thanks to the higher things in life such as glorious linen sheets. 

Directed by Jessica Lazar, For Reasons That Remain Unclear is at the Kings Head Theatre until 18 August.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Photos by Alex Brenner

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