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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...

Rough trade: Market Boy @theuniontheatre


In Market Boy, the market is free and full of life lessons. Never dull. There’s no time to dwell on why you’re there as there’s merchandise to move and money to be made. And maybe a girl to impress. It's currently playing at the Union Theatre.

The show opens in the early 1980s at Romford Street Market. It’s the era before online deliveries and fashionable farmers markets selling fresh produce. This is a rough trade. And Boy (Tommy Knight), lands a job selling women's shoes. Under the apprenticeship of Trader (Andy Umerah), he learns a thing or two about shoes, selling to the women of Romford, and closing a deal.

David Eldridge’s play, first seen at the National Theatre over ten years ago, whisks you on a journey through the eighties from boom to bust. With over fifty characters, all are loveable rogues with hearts of gold. And they have a thing or two to teach the Boy.

What this show lacks in epic scale (or characterisation), it makes up with enthusiasm and energy from its young cast as they move through the decade changing characters, fashion and music.

There’s been a street market at Romford for as long as anyone cares to remember. It’s free-wheeling no rules approach gives you some idea why these hard working people loved Margaret Thatcher. And weren’t too keen about the European Union either. But politics isn’t the focus here. It’s the thrill of chasing the deal, no matter how small.

A slice of life set to the music of the eighties is hard to resist. Even if you’re left wondering how many of the characters nowadays are delivery drivers for Amazon. But that’s the power of the free market for you. Especially when it pays more, and you're not setting up a stall before dawn.

Directed by Nicky Allpress, Market Boy is at the Union Theatre until 11 May.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️



Photos by Mark Senior


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