Gary Naylor - Page 24

Lit is an astonishing debut play from Sophie Ellerby telling the tale of Bex, a teen adrift in a world full of threats with wit, wisdom and overwhelming humanity. Eve Austin is in award-winning form as the girl on the edge.

Rust takes us into the lives - the other lives - of Daniel and Nadia, having an affair, but not quite able to leave their real homes at home.

Hedda Tesman transports one of theatre's great roles into the present day, but Cordelia Lynn's script never quite lands.

This take on the familiar tale brings out many of the subtleties of its source material and has much to say about today's world. It is a little too long though.

Hello Again is lovely to look at and a wonder to hear, let down only by a slightly half-hearted approach to the messy business of sex.

Gary Naylor sees his last show at this season's Grimeborn, an Italian opera based on the original sources of Romeo and Juliet sung with tremendous panache.

FormidAbility's unique approach to integrating those with disabilities on either side of the fourth wall enhances two pieces that prove tricky for the uninitiated to appreciate fully.

You know Scott Joplin is a genius, but having that conformed by this wonderful, uplifting, yet shocking opera, is a delight and a privilege. Beautifully performed too.

Opera Alegría plonk Rossini's naughty Count on the Home Front in 1943, with lots of laughs in between the fine singing and beautifully played piano.

Nicholas Wright's new play, set on the road in wartime America, examines the relationships between Paul Robeson and his Othello co-stars, José Ferrer and Uta Hagen. It does not waste that wonderful set up.

Iris Theatre's The Hunchback of Notre Dame lacks a little focus and is far too long, but has its moments of delight illuminated by a fine central performance from Robert Rhodes.

Grimeborn sees a condensed version version of the early part of Wagner's Ring Cycle that packs a punch in its intense 100 minutes running time.

The vivacity of this production of Kiss Me, Kate hits you even harder than the gifts of the multi-talented cast. Just what you need to escape these troubled times.

Violetta kicks off the Grimeborn Festival with a perfect example of how to pare back a grand opera and make a fine chamber piece that is played and sung beautifully.

This epic WNO production captures the scale of Prokofiev's ambition with a chorus that, like the Russian winter, just keeps coming.

Oklahoma! stands at the very start of musical theatre's post-war re-invention on Broadway, Rodgers and Hammerstein's template for storytelling on show for two wonderful hours. However, this production raises some unexpected questions.

Our Church looks at how a moral dilemma impacts on a small community and at how pain can vibrate through decades before re-surfacing - and it avoids the glibness of a resolution founded in easy answers.

Jellyfish is a wonderful piece of writing brilliantly brought to life by a marvellous cast in which Sarah Gordy shines.

David Hare's updating of Ibsen's Peer Gynt has plenty to say about the world in 2019 - perhaps a little too much - but James McArdle's central performance and the sheer chutzpah of the concept and direction pulls it through.

One Giant Leap takes a good set up - a failing sci-fi show asked to fake the moon landings - but loses its way amongst predictable stereotypes and laughs that come few and far between.