BWW Review: THE DOCTOR, Almeida TheatreAugust 21, 2019Robert Icke, an associate director at the Almeida for the past six years, bids farewell in typically bold and epic fashion with his latest contemporary update. Arthur Schnitzler's Professor Bernhardi, which premiered in 1912, has been skilfully reconfigured as an interrogation of 2019's preoccupation with 'identity'.
BWW Interview: Steph Parry Talks MAMMA MIA! THE PARTYAugust 20, 2019Steph Parry's previous work includes 42nd Street, Mamma Mia!, Wicked and Billy Elliot. Her current project is the immersive theatrical dining experience Mamma Mia! The Party, which begins at The O2 on 29 August.
BWW Review: PROM 35: ENIGMA VARIATIONS, Royal Albert HallAugust 15, 2019Conductor Martyn Brabbins celebrated his 60th birthday in fine fashion: with a new commission for 14 composers to create their own set of orchestral variations on an anonymous theme, mirroring the shape of Elgar's Enigma Variations. Programme notes from the composers illustrated a genuine fondness for the celebrated conductor, and their perceptions of him - energy, warmth, generosity, humour and virtuosity - shone through in an impressively unified work.
THE DOCTOR Leads August's Top 10 New London ShowsJuly 21, 2019London is never short of temptations, whether splashy West End shows, epic dramas or bold fringe offerings. From Robert Icke's latest to Fleabag, Evita and witchy adventures, here are some of this month's most eye-catching openings. Don't forget to check back for BroadwayWorld's reviews, interviews and features!
BWW Review: THE NIGHT OF THE IGUANA, Noel Coward TheatreJuly 17, 2019In Tahiti in 1940, a penniless Tennessee Williams lay in a hammock beside another writer also despairing of ever finding success, both binge-drinking rum-cocos and welcoming the dramatic storms that temporarily eclipsed their melancholy. To make matters worse, a party of German Nazis was bragging about their success in the war, and Williams' friend pitched 'the long swim to China'.
Review Roundup: Critics Weigh In On THE NIGHT OF THE IGUANA, Starring Clive Owen, Anna Gunn and Lia WilliamsJuly 16, 2019Tennessee William's The Night of the Iguana plays a strictly limited season at the Noel Coward Theatre. The cast is led by Golden Globe-winner Clive Owen (Closer, Children of Men) who returns to the West End as Rev. T. Lawrence Shannon for the first time in 18 years; Lia Williams (The Crown, Mary Stuart) as Hannah Jelkes; two-time Emmy Award-winner Anna Gunn (Deadwood, Breaking Bad) in her West End debut as Maxine Faulk and Julian Glover (Game of Thrones) as Nonno. Let's see what the critics had to say!
BWW Review: JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT, London PalladiumJuly 11, 2019Oh Lord! The second Biblical Andrew Lloyd Webber opening of the week (taking his current London production total up to a whopping five from next month) is his early collaboration with Tim Rice, celebrating 50 years since its original concept album, and back home at the Palladium. But a joyfully fresh staging makes this a Joseph for 2019 - and a family-friendly summer hit.
BWW Review: THE END OF HISTORY..., Royal CourtJuly 4, 2019Harry Potter and the Cursed Child's creative dream team are reunited for another new venture - although this drama's family doesn't come with an in-built, wand-waving fanbase. Instead, this is a personal work from writer Jack Thorne, who based the play's ideologically committed Sal and David on his own parents.
BWW Review: NOISES OFF, Lyric HammersmithJuly 3, 2019Do not anger the theatre gods, for their vengeance is swift and mighty. On press night of Michael Frayn's peerless portrait of backstage disasters, the Lyric suffered its own "technical difficulties", adding a distinctly meta frisson to this already gloriously layered comedy.
BWW Review: LAURA BENANTI LIVE IN LONDON, Cadogan HallJune 30, 2019Tony Award-winning actress Laura Benanti took a quick hiatus from starring in My Fair Lady on Broadway to make her London debut - and those missing out on the former needn't have worried, as she opened with a bravura 15-minute precis of the production, complete with musical highlights.
Review Roundup: What Did Critics Think Of ON YOUR FEET! In London?June 27, 2019Gloria and Emilio Estefan's smash-hit musical comes to London direct from Broadway for a strictly limited season. On Your Feet! is the inspiring true love story of Emilio and Gloria and charts their journey from its origins in Cuba, onto the streets of Miami and finally to international superstardom. Let's see what the critics are saying...
BWW Review: PRESENT LAUGHTER, Old VicJune 26, 2019Great Scott! His recent turn as Fleabag's Hot Priest made him a global sex symbol. Now, Andrew Scott reminds audiences that he's just as irresistible on stage, leading Matthew Warchus's absolute romp of Noel Coward revival with the kind of panache that makes this the comic performance of the year so far - and yet one also shot through with aching melancholy.
THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY Leads July's Top 10 New London ShowsJune 26, 2019London is never short of temptations, whether splashy West End shows, epic dramas or bold fringe offerings. From Jason Robert Brown and Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals to riotous comedy, here are some of this month's most eye-catching openings. Don't forget to check back for BroadwayWorld's reviews, interviews and features!