Waleed Akhtar’s latest work charts the love and friendship between its central characters as ‘life comes for them’. The Real Ones Alright, this week’s theatre theme is even easier to spot than last week’s. This week is all about friendships between women and queer people. About the love and understanding between them. About when it’s […]
Martha Watson Allpress’s Lady Dealer is a mile-a-minute play about a girl-bossing, poetic, witty drug dealer who is fine. Totally fine. Lady Dealer The more someone reassures us they’re fine, the more we know they’re not, right? Generally speaking it holds true in real life, and also very much in the dramatic format of the […]
A transfer from the 2022 Edinburgh Fringe, Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen is at the Bush Theatre. This wry and witty character study takes a look at hook up culture, emotional connection, and the unreliable narrators of confessional comedy. Feeling Afraid As If Something Terrible Is Going To Happen Well, […]
A new work at the Bush Theatre, A Playlist for the Revolution is a love story set against the background of the 2019 Hong Kong protests. A Playlist For The Revolution In a time of intense social upheaval, A Playlist For The Revolution beautifully captures the essence of human connection and self discovery amidst the […]
Lenny Henry’s debut play August in England starts like a comedy set and ends like a punch to the gut. August In England 2023 marks the 75th anniversary of the HMT Empire Windrush bringing more than 800 passengers from the Caribbean to British shores. It became a symbol of a wave of post-war immigration: thousands […]
A fabulously warm-hearted celebration of love, friendship and finding your way in the world, Matilda Feyiṣayọ Ibini’s Sleepova is a joy to behold. Content warning: living with illness, LGBT ‘conversion therapy’, grief and bereavement. Sleepova I was excited going into Sleepova at the Bush Theatre. I had seen glowing feedback on social media from people who had […]
A review of Elephant, a deeply political, personal and musical work by Anoushka Lucas on at the Bush Theatre. Confronting and cathartic in all the right ways. Elephant Today’s work at the Bush Theatre was originally part of the Protest series in 2020 in response to the murder of George Floyd. Now it’s back and […]
A review of Clutch, a pithy new play by Will Jackson at the Bush Theatre. A simple presence is a vehicle (pun intended) to a story of connection and acceptance. Clutch This is a story about driving lessons. Max is the self-appointed Best Driving Instructor in Birmingham. He’s never had a student who didn’t pass […]
A review of Favour, an intergenerational drama by Ambreen Razia on now at the Bush Theatre. Powerful themes and strong performances from this all-female cast. Favour It has been a busy week for the Bush Theatre! Earlier in the week we saw Nikhil Parmar’s Invisible in their Studio space; today it’s Favour on the main […]
A review of Invisible, written and performed by Nikhil Parmar. This darkly comic one hour monologue is on at the Bush Theatre for a limited run. Invisible It’s perhaps fitting given the title, but Invisible is one of those plays where you don’t necessarily notice the change in tone until you find yourself wondering “When […]