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Message in a Bottle, Sadler’s Wells

Posted on April 1, 2020 by mkmswain

A penetrating theatrical response to the global refugee crisis might not seem like obvious terrain for ZooNation founder Kate Prince, creator of the exuberant hip-hop shows Into the Hoods and Some Like It Hip Hop – still less one soundtracked by Sting. But, while not every little thing she does is magic, there are numerous transporting moments in this dynamic new production.

Read my full Dancing Times review here

Posted in Dance, Journalism, Theatre | Tagged dance, dance theatre, dancing times, hip hop, kate prince, message in a bottle, peacock theatre, refugee, review, sadlers wells, sting, the police, zoonation | Leave a comment

Balletboyz: Deluxe, Sadler’s Wells Facebook Premiere

Posted on March 31, 2020 by mkmswain

BalletBoyz were on tour to mark their 20th anniversary when the shutdown came. Undeterred, the artistic directors Michael Nunn and William Trevitt pivoted to video: their latest BalletBoyz show Deluxe kicked off Sadler’s Wells’ Facebook Premieres series on 27 March (running until 2 April, facebook.com/sadlerswells), and will also appear in the BBC’s Culture in Quarantine festival.

Read my full The i Paper review here

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

BWW Interview: Kumiko Mendl

Posted on March 31, 2020 by mkmswain

The Artistic Director talks 25 years of Yellow Earth Theatre.

Read my full BroadwayWorld interview here

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged actor, arts, asian, british east asian, broadwayworld, company, coronavirus, director, east asian, interview, Kumiko Mendl, play, shutdown, theatre, yellow earth theatre | Leave a comment

I and You, Hampstead Theatre

Posted on March 24, 2020 by mkmswain

Now streaming online, this YA play is oddly pertinent. Head to Instagram for a 2018 production with plenty of 2020 shutdown wisdom.

Read my full theartsdesk review here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged coronavirus, drama, edward hall, free, game of thrones, hampstead theatre, home schooling, i and you, IGTV, instagram, lauren gunderson, maisie williams, online, play, poem, poetry, review, shutdown, streaming, teenager, theartsdesk, theatre, walt whitman, YA, young adult, Zach Wyatt | Leave a comment

Sondheim at 90 Songs: 1 – ‘I’m Still Here’

Posted on March 23, 2020 by mkmswain

We’re celebrating the great man’s birthday with favourite numbers – mine’s from ‘Follies’.

Read my full theartsdesk article here

Posted in Film, Journalism, Theatre | Tagged 90, 90th, best, birthday, broadway, carol burnett, carrie fisher, composer, debbie reynolds, favourite, film, follies, london, meryl streep, movie, musical, national theatre, postcards from the edge, shirley maclaine, sondheim, song, stephen sondheim, theartsdesk, theatre, tracie bennett, video, watch, west end | Leave a comment

Happy 90th Birthday! Why We Love Stephen Sondheim

Posted on March 22, 2020 by mkmswain

Today, the almighty composer and lyricist Stephen Sondheim turns 90 – happy birthday from all of us at BroadwayWorld! Here, BWW reviewers share some of the reasons why we adore his work.

Read the full BroadwayWorld article here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged 90, 90th, a little night music, birthday, broadway, broadwayworld, company, composer, follies, london, lyrics, musical theatre, patti lupone, send in the clowns, sondheim, stephen sondheim, sunday in the park with george, sweeney todd, west end, west side story | Leave a comment

Come From Away, Phoenix Theatre

Posted on March 12, 2020 by mkmswain

It’s the mark of a great show that it seems to speak directly to the present moment, even if that moment is years after its original creation. Come From Away passes that test with flying colours; in its depiction of an international community dealing with a crisis – including, raising a wry audience laugh, stockpiling loo paper – this 9/11 musical has plenty of resonance with our coronavirus times. Except that the world would be a much better place if we all behaved a bit more like the people of Gander.

Read my full BroadwayWorld review here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged 9/11, alice fearn, book tickets, cheap tickets, come from away, gander, hamilton, london, musical, new cast, newfoundland, passengers, plane, review, tarinn callender, ticket deal, west end, wicked | Leave a comment

Blithe Spirit, Duke of York’s Theatre

Posted on March 11, 2020 by mkmswain

This is perhaps an odd time for Nöel Coward’s comedy about death and supernatural apparitions to land in the West End – Richard Eyre’s revival transferring from Theatre Royal Bath. On the other hand, there’s something comforting about Coward’s wartime portrait of the afterlife as essentially a continuation, with our personalities, desires and enmities very much intact. Plus the opportunity to socialise with Joan of Arc.