Tag Archives: noises off

Noises Off, Phoenix Theatre

Posted on January 26, 2023 by mkmswain

Michael Frayn’s enduring backstage farce is still sublime comedy. Read my full London Theatre review here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged alexander hanson, comedy, farce, felicity kendal, Jonathan Coy, Joseph Millson, katherine kingsley, london, london theatre, matthew kelly, michael frayn, noises off, play, review, theatre, tracy-ann oberman, west end | Leave a comment

“Doors and sardines. Getting on, getting off. Getting the sardines on, getting the sardines off. That’s farce. That’s the theatre. That’s life.” Michael Frayn’s laugh-til-you-weep backstage comedy transfers from the Lyric Hammersmith (where it first appeared in 1982), and Jeremy Herrin’s superb revival has … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged actor, backstage, bedroom farce, book tickets, comedy, daniel rigby, director, farce, funny, garrick theatre, humour, jeremy herrin, lisa mcgrillis, lloyd owen, lyric hammersmith, meera syal, michael frayn, noises off, play, play within a play, review, sarah hadland, theartsdesk, theatre, west end | Leave a comment

The Antipodes leads October’s Top 10 new London shows

Posted on September 24, 2019 by mkmswain

From Annie Baker to Ealing comedy and a royal reunion. Read my full BroadwayWorld article here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged a day in the death of joe egg, almeida theatre, annie baker, arthur darvill, best, blank, book tickets, boulevard theatre, broadwayworld, charlie fink, claire foy, claire skinner, clean break, comedy, conleth hill, dave malloy, death of a salesman, doctor who, donmar warehouse, drama, ealing comedy, farce, garrick theatre, ghost quartet, groan ups, kara tointon, london, lungs, matt smith, meera syal, michael frayn, Mike Bartlett, mischief theatre, musical, national theatre, noises off, october, old vic, piccadilly theatre, play, samantha bond, sarah hadland, sharon d clark, stephen mangan, the antipodes, the crown, the man in the white suit, theatre, toby stephens, top 10, trafalgar studios, vassa, vaudeville theatre, visit london, wendell pierce, west end, wyndhams theatre | Leave a comment

Noises Off, Lyric Hammersmith

Posted on July 3, 2019 by mkmswain

Do 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 … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged actors, backstage, bedroom farce, book tickets, broadwayworld, cheap tickets, comedy, director, farce, jeremy herrin, london, lyric hammersmith, meera syal, michael frayn, noises off, review, sex, slapstick, summer, theatre, ticket deal | Leave a comment

The Bridges of Madison County leads July’s Top 10 new London shows

Posted on June 26, 2019 by mkmswain

From Jason Robert Brown and Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals to riotous comedy. Read my full BroadwayWorld article here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged andrew lloyd webber, andrew scott, anna gunn, barbican, best, blues in the night, book tickets, broadwayworld, captain corellis mandolin, cheap tickets, clive owen, coliseum, comedy, fleabag, gloria estefan, harold pinter theatre, hot priest, jack thorne, jason donovan, jason robert brown, jazz, jenna russell, jesus christ superstar, joseph, joseph and the amazing technicolor dreamcoat, kiln theatre, lesley sharp, london, louis de bernieres, lyric hammersmith, matt cardle, meera syal, menier chocolate factory, michael frayn, musical, noel coward theatre, noises off, old vic, on your feet, palladium, present laughter, royal court, sale, save, sharon d clarke, sheridan smith, summer, tennessee williams, the bridges of madison county, the end of history, the night of the iguana, ticket deal, top 10, visit london, west end | Leave a comment

The Winter’s Tale, Harlequinade/All On Her Own, Garrick Theatre

Posted on November 9, 2015 by mkmswain

What exactly is the level of Kenneth Branagh’s self-awareness? He’s certainly conscious of inviting comparison with Olivier once again by presenting a year-long season of plays at the refurbished Garrick under the auspices of the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company – … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged all on her own, backstage, christmas, comedy, company, daughter, death, drama, exit pursued by a bear, family, father, garrick theatre, grief, harlequinade, husband, jessie buckley, judi dench, kenneth branagh, kiss me kate, london, loss, noises off, nutcracker, olivier, play, rattigan, rep, review, rob ashford, romeo and juliet, shakespeare, the arts desk, the winters tale, theartsdesk, theatre, west end, widow, wife, zoe wanamaker | Leave a comment

A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes, Tricycle Theatre

Posted on October 16, 2015 by mkmswain

Molière’s 1664 comedy Tartuffe transplanted to present-day Atlanta, Georgia: it sounds like an inspired idea. The hypocritical religious devotee becomes a charlatan preacher fleecing his flock, offering salvation in exchange for hard cash and a distinctly unpriestly grope. But Marcus … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged a wolf in snakeskin shoes, america, atlanta, bible, christian, church, comedy, deep south, drama, empire, faith, faith healer, family, farce, gay, georgia, god, gospel, homosexual, marcus gardley, moliere, music, noises off, play, poetry, preacher, religion, review, sex, singing, tartuffe, the arts desk, theartsdesk, theatre, tricycle theatre, verse | Leave a comment

Ten great plays within plays

Posted on August 26, 2015 by mkmswain

To coincide with the opening of Timberlake Wertenbaker’s Our Country’s Good at the National Theatre, here are 10 great examples of the play-within-a-play, from Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Kyd’s Spanish Tragedy to groundbreaking work from Stoppard, Pirandello, Weiss and Brecht. Read my full National Theatre article here

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged absurdist, act, acting, alan bennett, apartheid, australia, best, brecht, britten, caucasian chalk circle, chekhov, communist, convict, criminal, de sade, drama, epic theatre, farce, farquhar, fugard, great, guard, hamlet, kyd, marat, marat/sade, metatheatre, michael frayn, national theatre, noises off, our countrys good, peter weiss, pirandello, play, play within a play, plays within plays, restoration comedy, revenge tragedy, revolution, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, shakespeare, six characters in search of an author, soldier, south africa, Stoppard, the habit of art, the island, The Recruiting Officer, the seagull, the spanish tragedy, theatre, timberlake wertenbaker, top 10, w h auden | Leave a comment

Stop! The Play, Trafalgar Studios

Posted on June 4, 2015 by mkmswain

The play’s the thing, once again, in the latest backstage comedy, an affable if limited dig at luvvie pretensions. Noises Off still reigns supreme in this genre, with successors unable to match the bravura precision of Michael Frayn’s masterful multitasking … Continue reading →

Posted in Journalism, Theatre | Tagged acting, actor, actress, art, artist, backstage, banksy, behind the scenes, chaos, comedy, director, disaster, drama, farce, london, michael frayn, noises off, parody, play, play within a play, playwright, protest, reduced shakespeare company, rehearsal, review, sex, sketch, stand-up, stop the play, the arts desk, the play that goes wrong, theartsdesk, theatre, trafalgar studios, writer, writing | 1 Comment

Tag Archives: noises off

Noises Off, Phoenix Theatre

Noises Off, Garrick Theatre

The Antipodes leads October’s Top 10 new London shows

Noises Off, Lyric Hammersmith

The Bridges of Madison County leads July’s Top 10 new London shows

The Winter’s Tale, Harlequinade/All On Her Own, Garrick Theatre

A Wolf in Snakeskin Shoes, Tricycle Theatre

Ten great plays within plays

Stop! The Play, Trafalgar Studios

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