BWW Review: THRILL ME: THE LEOPOLD & LOEB STORY, The Hope TheatreApril 10, 2019The crimes perpetrated by Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb in 1920s-Chicago have gone on to become interwoven in popular culture and have generated a multitude of films, plays, and fiction. They were barely 20 years old when they ensnared and murdered 14-year-old Bobby for no other gain but the thrill they'd get from killing a human being. They were sentenced for life plus 99 years but while the latter was attacked and killed in prison, Leopold was granted parole and released in 1958 - 33 years after being convicted.
BWW Review: INTRA MUROS, Park TheatreApril 6, 2019Richard, a theatre director who's seen better days, is asked to teach a drama class in a maximum security prison in Norwich. Only two inmates are attending the course, which kick-starts an exploration of guilt, time, and what it means to be human.
BWW Review: OPERATION BLACK ANTLER, Southbank CentreApril 5, 2019Operation Black Antler marked Blast Theory and Hydrocracker's sell-out venture at the Brighton Festival last year. Now they bring it to London as, one assumes, a bigger and more complex production, not quite succeeding in their ambitions.
BWW Review: MAGGIE MAY, Finborough TheatreMarch 31, 2019Liverpool, 1960s. Maggie May Duffy is a prostitute who's in love with her childhood sweetheart Patrick Casey, a sailor and son of a union leader who's been at sea for some time. She tries to rekindle their feelings when he finally comes back but his struggles with accepting his legacy and her reputation are difficult to leave to the side.
BWW Review: THE PHLEBOTOMIST, Hampstead TheatreMarch 30, 2019When Bea meets Aaron, she thinks she's found the one. He's handsome, smart, has a good job and, most importantly, his genetic profile is spotless. While she's slowly but surely getting to the top, her best friend Char is given the death sentence that will inevitably change her life.
BWW Review: GRIEF IS THE THING WITH FEATHERS, BarbicanMarch 29, 2019Enda Walsh and Cillian Murphy team up again after a streak of collaborations started with Disco Pigs that saw them working together on award-winning and career-defining productions throughout the years. Now, they bring Grief is the Thing with Feathers to the Barbican after it first premiered in Galway last year.
BWW Review: MARY'S BABIES, Jermyn Street TheatreMarch 23, 2019Mary Barton founded one of the first fertility clinics. She pioneered artificial insemination and worked within the confined of tabooed subjects, coming in aid of those married couples who were unable to conceive a child and going as far as destroying medical records in order to help them. Her husband, Dr Bertold Wiesner, was probably the main sperm donor and he's thought to have fathered many of the 1,500 children born thanks to Barton.
BWW Review: THE RUBENSTEIN KISS, Southwark PlayhouseMarch 19, 2019In June 1953 after a brutal trial lasted over two years, Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were executed for allegedly providing the Soviet Union with nuclear weapon designs, espionage, and conspiracy.
BWW Review: ANNA X, VAULT FestivalMarch 16, 2019Anna (Rosie Sheehy) is a Russian art lover who dreams of being the curator of her own gallery. Ariel (Joshua James) is the CEO of an exclusive dating app. But are they really who they pretend to be? What's the price of keeping up appearances in a world of million-dollar views and ruthless socialites?
BWW Review: LUCY LIGHT, VAULT FestivalMarch 16, 2019Lucy and Jess have just finished their GCSEs. They feel like their lives are about to start between a swig of Chardonnay in Jess' bedroom and the promise of having the best time ever at a party. Except that Lucy's mum is being treated for breast cancer and she's definitely not having a good time.
BWW Review: LET'S SUMMON DEMONS, VAULT FestivalMarch 15, 2019In a derelict house built on the path walked by the dead in the middle of nowhere in Wales, a coven of witches comes together. Written by Katy Schutte, Let's Summon Demons is a semi-participatory piece that takes a look at paganism and revenge, wrapping them up in an amusing and lightly spooky show.
BWW Review: 10, VAULT FestivalMarch 15, 2019Playwright Lizzie Milton unearths ten stories previously buried deep inside white history and delivers them with forward storytelling and a no-holds-barred attitude.
BWW Review: BETRAYAL, Harold Pinter TheatreMarch 13, 2019When Betrayal first premiered in 1978 it was received rather coldly by critics and audiences alike, who were perhaps expecting Pinter to deal with more significant themes instead of focusing on his own adulterous escapades. Since then, the piece has become one of the playwright's most known and successful works, partially thanks to its innovative reverse-chronology structure and the universality of the issues portrayed.
BWW Review: THE TWILIGHT ZONE, Ambassadors TheatreMarch 12, 2019Before Black Mirror, there was The Twilight Zone. First aired in 1959, the series was presented by Rod Serling who, at the time, had risen to prominence as a writer of television dramas as well as a commentator of the medium.
BWW Review: THROWN, VAULT FestivalMarch 9, 2019Thrown sees a child psychologist attempt to record her own childhood experiences and traumas in order to try to make sense of her past and who she has become. Written by Jodi Gray, the piece effectively exhibits the marvels of binaural technology but beats around the bush too much to result conclusive.
BWW Review: FEED, VAULT FestivalMarch 9, 2019Presented by physical theatre company Theatre Temoin, Feed takes a look at a world of algorithms, click-bait, targeted ads, and fake news.
BWW Review: PUFFERFISH, VAULT FestivalMarch 8, 2019Pufferfish marks Nick Bruckman's debut as a playwright. Based on the real-life deeds of serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, the play explores the strong link between violence and sexuality that pushed him to take the life of 17 men in the 80s.
BWW Review: THE CHURCH OF THE STURDY VIRGIN, VAULT FestivalMarch 8, 2019A closed casket arrives at the Leake Street Graffiti Tunnel. A couple of merry gravediggers beckon the crowd while they wait for the funeral director, who will lead the congregation to the Church of the Sturdy Virgin. The audience follow, 'somber and dignified', into a surreal universe where uncertainty reigns and death envelops kindly.
BWW Review: MEDEA, BarbicanMarch 7, 2019Euripides most famous and ruthless female character comes to life again at the hand of director Simon Stone and International Theatre Amsterdam after an award-winning run in the Dutch capital in 2014.