2020 Year In Review: Natalie O'Donoghue's Best of Theatre

I feel pretty confident in saying that I'm probably finished reviewing productions in Scotland for the year 2020. Although I'm devastated by what this year has meant for live theatre, I feel very lucky to have seen some excellent productions at the beginning of the year.

One that springs straight to mind is the Oor Wullie musical by Dundee Rep. Featuring all-new songs by Noisemaker, I still have some of the lyrics in my head ten months after viewing. Had I known how 2020 was going to go, I'd definitely have ventured to another date on the tour to see it again.

On Your Feet was a repeat visit. I reviewed the production in late 2019 in Edinburgh and was delighted to see it again in March at the King's Theatre in Glasgow. It was a pretty miserable evening weather-wise so it was an utter joy to see this glorious jukebox musical again.

Another repeat visit was Kieran Hurley's Mouthpiece at the Tron Theatre in Glasgow. Mouthpiece completely blew me away at the 2019 Edinburgh Festival Fringe and I found it even more emotional second time around. One of the very few online productions I've watched this year was the Traverse Theatre's Declan which puts the audience in the shoes of Declan from Mouthpiece and made a gripping addition to the story.

The King and I was one of the first-ever productions I saw in London- I think it was around 2001. I remember liking but not loving it so although I had heard incredible things about this production I didn't have my expectations set too high. I can't stress enough how stunning this production was- it was completely faultless. This was one that I left the theatre gushing about and I would love to see again.

Curtains was the last big musical production that I saw before the world came to a grinding halt. I didn't know what to expect from a musical whodunnit but I found Curtains to be fresh and original with an exceptional cast.

I'm very grateful to have seen these productions at the beginning of 2020 and while I'm disappointed with my theatre-going year, I'm mindful that this is a lot more than most people get to see. I'm just hoping that my schedule for 2021 might be a little bit busier!

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