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One hundred people’s ninth favourite thing: [title of show] @swkplay

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[title of show] takes you back to a time before the fast paced social media where word of mouth for a positive show came from chat boards, video diaries or (god forbid) blogs. A simple staging makes it an ideal (and economical piece to stage), but it’s sweet and earnest take on just putting on a show, and putting it out there and taking a chance gives this show its heart. With a strong and energetic cast and endless musical theatre references, it’s hard to resist and it’s currently playing at the Southwark Playhouse .  It opens with Hunter (Jacob Fowler) and Jeff (Thomas Oxley) as struggling young writers in New York City. An upcoming New York Musical Theatre festival, inspires them to write an original musical within three weeks to make the deadline. As they discuss ideas, writers block, distractions and endless other good and bad musicals, an idea for a show emerges. Which is about writing a show for a musical theatre festival.  Their friends Heidi (Abbie Budden) and Susan (Mary Moor
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No justice for minstrels but what a show: The Scottsboro Boys @youngvictheatre

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A musicalisation of a forgotten case of injustice in America's south seems like it could be a heavy night at the theatre. But the Scottsboro Boys  which is now playing at the Young Vic near Waterloo, manages to be brisk and entertaining, while making some sharp observations on injustice and romanticism of Americas south. With a great songs by Kander and Ebb and some thrilling choreography by Susan Stoman it should not be missed. The story of the Scottsboro Boys revolves around nine teenage boys who were accused of rape in Alabama in 1931. They were found guilty and sentenced to death but with the support of  the American Communist Party a series of retrials ensued over the course of the following decade. The story is presented in the format of a minstrel show, where the cast are entirely black, with the exception of the interlocutor / master of ceremonies, played by Julian Glover . The interlocutor gives the show the device to pare this complicated story back to its bare bo
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Weaving monologues: Crowning Glory

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Crowning Glory which is now playing at the Theatre Royal Stratford East is a frank, sassy, funny and thought-provoking piece which apart from being about hair and makeup, is full of insightful observations about life - particularly the lives of black British women - and some raw emotions. The piece is told through the eyes of seven women and features a series of interwoven monologues, video projections and music asking about what is beauty, what makes people happy and in doing so also reveals their vulnerabilities and fears.
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Between galleries: David Breuer-Weil's Heaven & Earth

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David Breuer-Weil , who earlier this year was exhibiting in the vast cavernous spaces under Waterloo Station is back with a new show at two art galleries in central London called Heaven & Earth. The volume of his output and ideas at the moment shows with the range of new pieces presented. The exhibition is intended to be shown in two separate spaces, and serves as a contrast the themes on display between the near (Earth) and the far (Heaven).  Across both you will see Breuer-Weil's usual themes of the environment, a sense of belonging and enlightenment throughout. Where the familiar becomes surreal and subjects are found in strange and interesting positions... Sometimes it is as if they are in orbit.
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Spinning flipping and flexing: Seven Brides for Seven Brothers tour (or @7B47BUKTour)

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Seven Brides for Seven Brothers stopped at the New Wimbledon Theatre this week. Its a fun, loud and incredibly energetic production with a terrific cast that will keep you entertained for its two hour run. Based on a parody of the Roman legend The Rape of the Sabine Women, called The Sobbin' Women, it is set in Oregon in 1850. Adam ( Sam Attwater ), the eldest of seven brothers, goes to town to get a wife. He convinces Milly ( Helena Blackman ) to marry him that same day, as she has no family of her own. But on their return to his backwoods home she then discovers he has six other brothers, all living in his small cabin. Milly sets out to reform the uncouth siblings, who want to get wives of their own and she sees it as a way to get them out of her house. After some basic lessons the men head to town for a local dance and to meet some women. But find that all the ladies are spoken for. Returning back home and feeling down, Adam inspires his brothers after reading one of Milly&
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Just wait 'till you see the missus: Jekyll & Hyde at Southwark Playhouse

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It is an evening of moody atmosphere and gender reversal in Jonathan Holloway's Jekyll & Hyde , which has been re-imagined in this production currently playing at Southwark Playhouse . The director, Jessica Edwards, notes in the programme that Jekyll & Hyde is a story that is so well known and mis-remembered, it gives the team a great deal of licence to unpick its ideas and mess around with it. They have indeed and it works quite well using a range of theatrical tricks, music and some good old fashioned shocks.
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Stuff happens: Love n Stuff

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A marriage and a lifetime of memories are the backdrop to a sweet, funny and often surprising comedy that is now playing at the Theatre Royal Stratford East . What is astonishing about this fast paced show is that even with over twenty characters are played by two people - Tony Jayawardena and Rina Fatania (pictured right) - you walk away from the show feeling as if you understand them all and want to see them again. Bindi and Mansoor are a popular couple on their street in Stratford. But after 45 years of marriage Mansoor has decided to swap Stratford for Delhi, shocking his wife and their friends. While he is waiting for his flight to Delhi at Heathrow Airport, Bindi conspires with their friends to make him stay. It helps that the flight has been delayed for many hours and this is the setup for the piece.
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Legal horse play: Same Deep Water As Me

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Nick Payne's latest play at the Donmar , Same Deep Water As Me looks at the world of personal injury lawyers and the people who make false claims for accidents. It seems to be an attempt at farce but mostly comes off as a muddled soap opera that alternatively tries to be funny and make some serious points about sacrifices in the modern economy. None of it really works even though the cast are excellent and try their hardest to make sense of the material. In the first half we are introduced to Andrew (Daniel Mays) and Barry (Nigel Lindsay). They are two struggling 'no win no fee' lawyers in Luton and business is a bit slow. Then Kevin (Marc Wooton), who is an old school friend of Andrew's, appears with a story about a crash with a Tesco delivery van. I could explain more but the problem with this piece is that by the time the set up is made the audience know what is going to happen. The comedy is mostly derived from attempts to make jokes from class differences and c
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Slappers and braggers: Fleabag at Soho Theatre

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Phoebe Waller-Bridge's one woman show Fleabag is an entertaining smutty, funny and bittersweet tale. In Mydidae she was naked but here her character's soul is laid bare, as "Fleabag", a woman obsessed with sex. Everything leads to sex from a dripping stuffed crust pizza to a chance encounter with an ugly man on the tube. But amongst all the wild crazy hedonism emerges a real vulnerable person who is coming to the end of period of her life, even if she does not know it yet. Sitting on a stool under a spotlight the piece opens with Fleabag taking an interview for an office job. It soon goes horribly wrong which then leads to her confessional-like monologue on her life. It is a life is full of asides about her ex-boyfriend, her family, casual sex and her friend, with who she ran a hamster-themed coffee shop with until her death.
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