A 1996 play by Canadian writer Jason Sherman, The Retreat finally gets its European debut at the Finborough Theatre. Personal desires and professionalism collide when a producer and aspiring screenwriter meet. The Retreat Sometimes you need to wait to produce a play until the timing is right. The Retreat, the work of Canadian playwright Jason […]
Supernova is the story of Harry and Tess, who bond over a conversation about favourite planets. But will their love story shine like the brightest star, or explode and burn out in a supernova? A VAULT Transfer To The Omnibus Theatre, Clapham I saw a few things at this year’s VAULT Festival. Six in total. […]
Toska uses movement to tell the story of three Russian sisters who murdered their father. A powerful and politically engaged piece of theatre. Content warning: mentions of death and abuse. The Story Of The Khachaturyan Sisters It’s a story so shocking it barely feels real. And yet we know it is a story that plays […]
An innovative play at one of London’s newer theatres, Fragments sees history, puppetry, music and acting combined when an Ancient Greek muse is invoked. Euripides’ Lost Play I like a play which is based on solid research. So I was immediately on board when Fragments opened with a scene in an academic office. No, really, […]
Sucker Punch is an insightful portrait of 1980s Britain, the world of boxing, and the barriers faced by young Black men in both. Sucker Punch Boxing. It’s one of those things. The prowess, the energy, the passion. It can bear the weight of stories greater than the fights themselves. It’s not so long ago I […]
Continuing my exploration of Tate exhibitions of female sculptors, Maria Bartuszová’s works in plaster combine the solid and the ephemeral in pleasingly natural forms. Maria Bartuszová I wrote recently when I went to see Magdalena Abakanowicz: Every Tangle of Thread and Rope about the Tate’s efforts to exhibit the work of female sculptors. Why sculptors […]
Peter Doig’s recent works show why he is such an important contemporary painter. This small Courtauld Gallery show gives space to the complexity and uniqueness of his art historical and personal references. Peter Doig Long-time readers know that the Courtauld Gallery’s exhibition space is one of my London favourites. The main reason is that it […]
This exhibition on abstraction by female artists aims to widen our understanding of this important mid-Century tendency in art. How wide it casts its net in achieving this is both its strength and its weakness. Action, Gesture, Paint “Don’t boil the ocean” is something my former boss used to say. Meaning that if you try […]
Dominic Cooke’s simple take on Robinson Jeffers’ version of Medea gives plenty of space for devastating performances, especially from Sophie Okonedo in the lead role. Medea That a story that goes at least as far back as Euripides in 431BCE continues to resonate with us today tells us something about human nature. About suffering and […]
An informative and thoughtfully-curated exhibition at the Museum of London Docklands, Executions does not shy away from London’s bloody past. Executions As an exhibition, Executions basically does what it says on the tin. It’s about executions. Specifically in London. Centuries of bloodshed and violence, baying crowds and those making money off them. Places that seem […]
