#Theatre #Review By Lou of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel By #DeborahMoggach #HaleyMills #RulaLenska #AndyDeLaTour #ShilaIbqual #NishadMore #PaulNicholas #TheBestExoticMarigoldHotel #TheatreRoyalGlasgow #UKTour #2022Tour #2023Tour

Review of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
By Deborah Moggach.

Based on the film, my heart soared with joy from start to finish when watching the stage version at the Theatre Royal in Glasgow, Scotland. It is still touring and will into 2023. Find out more about the cast and my review below.

Review

Based on the film, The Best Exotic Marigold is stunning on stage. I saw it at the Theatre Royal In Glasgow. It is touring into next year. The cast is amazing. There is isn’t a single one who isn’t a strong member. I admit, I hesitated when I saw this was being made into a theatre play because I loved the films so much, but when the cast list appeared, I knew I had to give it a go and I also knew I may never see Haley Mills and Rula Lenska on stage again in this play, in Scotland. It is exciting that this is doing a tour before it even reaches London’s West End. That is so wonderful because it gives so many places a chance of seeing it now, instead of waiting. I love the Westend I hasten to add, but I often find this a genius way of doing theatre.
But, was the play good and my attraction to the storyline still there in my heart and soul?

The play was everything I had hoped for an more. Rula Lenska brought wit and glamour, Haley Mills brought charm, Shila Iqbal and Nishad More and Andy De La Tour played their parts with aplomb too and RekhaThe rest of the cast were also just as fabulous.

By and large it followed the film well and cleverly added updated references to means of communication, such as mentioning Zoom and in someways the highlighting to how the UK treat their elderly and comparing it to India was even more striking and also updated to reflect a bit of the political sphere.

There was humour, warmth and charm and everything the film has in droves and in some ways , certain points made and certain bits of humour was sharper, quicker. All eyes were on this fabulous cast. It was a cast of sheer skill as the cast made the audience feel involved, don’t mistaken this as an audience participation thing, it isn’t that, it was a hand gesture, a look, a sentence. I was captivated from start to finish.

The set was creative and awe inspiring for the hotel and it was ingenious to then become the call centre at various points.

This is a play I recommend you book if you can. It’s amazing and will remain in my heart and soul for a very long time.

The play is on a 2022/2023 tour in the UK.

#Review By Lou at Edinburgh Fringe Festival of – Once Sinha Lifetime ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️@paulsinha @edfringe @Edfringe2022 @ARedinburgh #OnceSinhaLifetime #Comedy

Review of In Conversation With
Paul Sinha and Once Sinha Lifetime

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I went to see Paul Sinha’s show – Once Sinha Lifetime in the Assembly Rooms on George Street at The Edinburgh Fringe. It’s a candid, yet very entertaining with its well thought out flow in its construction. It’s definitely one to go and see, with one of the catchiest titles I’ve seen.
Paul Sinha is known for The Chase. The chaser who is a doctor and cracks some jokes. This is because he is also a comedian and comedy took over from being a GP. I saw 2 shows – In Conversation With…. and Once Sinha Lifetime, do I’ll write about both here. I highly recommend seeing his skilled comedy that whisks you into fascinating insights and a really good late afternoon out.

Below, you’ll find a link to book for Once Sinha Lifetime.

Before I continue, thanks to Paul Sinha for the photo.
I first saw the show… In Conversation With Paul Sinha. It made me want to see Once Sinha Lifetime. The In conversation was informative and very interesting as he took an enthralled audience through his younger years, his relationship with his parents and how they really wanted him to study science to be a GP. He also talked about how he had to make a decision between being a comedian or a GP once his agent started to get him more gigs and he couldn’t always make them due to clinic work etc. Turned out he made the right decision. He talked candidly about how his diagnosis of Parkinson’s came about. What struck me is that he seems quite positive and upbeat, which in turn was heartening, but perhaps I found it so because my mum has MS and also has a positive attitude. He also talked candidly about The Chase and quizzing.

The ‘In Conversation’ show neatly fit together with his comedy show – Once Sinha Lifetime (and yet also good as a stand alone as the In Conversation was 1 night only, whereas the comedy show is on for longer). It has to be said, without a doubt that it is one of the most memorable titles at the festival.

There is much humour within his comedic retelling of lifetime moments, which created a different sort of atmosphere, a bit lighter with shades of darkness you might say, but still with a candid nature as he covered the topics mentioned previously.

It is all very well constructed as he expertly weaves jokes, politics, life story telling and more, in and out of bursts of song and keyboard playing as he tells his audience what he wants them to know.

He also treated the audience to an insight of the first show he performed, it gave an insight into how far he has come and his beginnings of how he got started.
The audience weren’t merely observers to this fabulous show as he also had time to put in another thing he does best – quizzing, as he put out to the audience as a whole, a few questions from time to time to time that fit perfectly into this show.

There weren’t any props as such, except a table and keyboard, but nonetheless effective. Sometimes less really is more. I was curious about the book on the table and its significance.
For the readers out there, go and see his show to find out why there is an autobiography on the table that is not his own. I won’t say anything much more as there is a point to it and it would be a spoiler, but it is perhaps one of the most unexpected reasons that has much humour attached to it.

For both shows, it was clear that Paul Sinha cared how he was delivering to the audience and he talked about what he wanted to divulge. He also talked about considering writing an autobiography. As I said to him at the time, I absolutely think this should happen. There’s plenty of life experiences and enough that would interest audiences. He packs a lot in his hour long shows and I’m sure there’s even more to put into a book. I’d also be happy to see him again doing comedy. I’d be happy to read and review what he had to write about, based on what I’ve seen in these shows if a book ever does come into fruition.

The link to book your tickets, which I highly recommend you do – Once Sinha Lifetime

@edfringe #Review By Lou of Les Dawson Flying High performed by Jon Culshaw ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ @jonculshaw @edfringe @ARedinburgh #EdinburghFestivalFringe #EdFringe2022

Today I have a review from the Edinburgh Fringe Festival of an incredibly talented and humorous performance – Les Dawson Flying High performed by Jon Culshaw at the Assembly George Square – Gordon Aikman Theatre – I have put a couple of links to book below, first, onto the set picture and my review.

Les Dawson was one of those comedians that has longevity and comedians and audiences had admired for decades and even as the world changes and he is unfortunately long since passed away (1993), audiences watching tv, still have a right good laugh at his jokes and admire the construct of them and his piano playing skills, as do many modern day comedians.

Jon Culshaw, an impressionist who has great enduring success himself on tv and radio and is perhaps most famous for Dead Ringers and Horrible Histories as well as dramas such as Missing and so much more and has, according to IMDB, got a part in a Doctor Who story in 2023.

For now though, Jon Culshaw brings Les Dawson alive in the most joyous fashion in a one man show – Les Dawson Flying High. He looks like him and sounds like him as he delivers the writing of Tim Whitnall, with aplomb!

Audiences can enjoy watching as “Les Dawson” contemplates and looks back at his life. There is a giant tv screen where, for a short while, it is moving to see Les Dawson watch himself and his creations Cissie and Ada, which he performed with the late Roy Barraclough (who later appeared in the likes of Coronation Street).

It’s fascinating to be whisked into his world, from childhood up to when he became famous and starred in many tv shows, such as Blankety Blank, The Les Dawson Show and so many more…There are jokes galore that had the audience I was in, laughing a lot. There is of course music and songs, a couple which have the words up for audience participation. There are some parts that are a bit more somber and moving. Every inch of this performance also seemed heartfelt.
I’m too young to have been in any audience of Les Dawson’s, but this is how it may well have been for people who were and every second of it brought much laughter, many smiles and that joyous feeling, the signing off with an appeal for kindness, which is as relevant today as it ever was back in Les Dawson’s day and indeed that’s what he wanted the world to have – kindness.
The play felt completely respectful to the late Les Dawson and there are all the aspects that I had expected and indeed any audience would and for newcomers to his comedy and indeed the talented and well-executed impressions of Jon Culshaw, they are in for a treat! Book Here

As I’ve said, I was too young to see Les Dawson on stage, let alone know who he properly was at the time of his death, although at that time, I was starting to realise, just a bit that he filled people’s living rooms and theatres and was in a lot of people’s hearts. I later got introduced to his comedy on tv because my parents had got me to watch it and before long, I grew to enjoy and appreciate it and the talent and skill that he has. I’ve read articles wondering what younger folk who weren’t around in the height of his fame or too young to be watching his shows made of this. Well, I highly recommend it for all adults. This is one to have in your Edinburgh Fringe schedule. Book Here

#TheatreReview By Lou of The Dresser By Ronald Harwood Directed By Terry Johnson @captheatres #Terry Johnson #MatthewKelly #SamualHolmes #Review

The Dresser
By Ronald Harwood
Directed by Terry Johnson
Rated: 5 stars

I went to see The Dresser at The King’s Theatre in Edinburgh (Capital Theatres) on Saturday. It was packed of theatre-goers and no wonder. The cast and play was superb in this memorable, not going to leave you play. Ever since I saw the film version of The Dresser I had hoped it would be on stage. It, of course, with its subject matters, lends itself perfectly to actually being staged. This stage version is poignant, mesmorising, sad, funny and acted amazingly. Find out more about it below, including the rest of my no spoilers review.

The Cast

Matthew Kelly as Sir
Samual Holmes as The Dresser (understudy for Julian Clary for the day I saw this)
Emma Amos as Her Ladyship
Rebecca Charles as Madge
Natalie Servat as Irene
Pip Donaghy as Geoffrey
Robert Shaw Cameron as Kent
Peter Yapp as Gloucester
Stephen Cavanagh as Albany
Claire Jester and Michaela Bennison as the ensemble

Inspired by memories of working as Donald Wolfit’s dresser as a young man, Ronald Harwood’s evocative, affectionate and hilarious portrait of backstage life is one of the most acclaimed dramas of modern theatre.

Olivier award-winner, Matthew Kelly stars as an ageing actor-manager, known to his loyal acting company as ‘Sir’, who is struggling to cling on to his sanity and complete his two hundred and twenty seventh performance of King Lear.

Julian Clary (replaced by Samual Holmes due to illness for the day I saw this), stars as Norman, Sir’s devoted dresser who ensures that in spite of everything, the show goes on. For sixteen years Norman has been there to fix Sir’s wig, massage his ego, remind him of his opening lines and provide the sound effects in the storm scene.

Review

The Dresser takes place behind the scenes of the theatre during the war. The parts the general audience do not see. The portrayal is pretty accurate, there are attitudes, egos, tenderness and confidences. These and the memory loss (on-set dementia), was also portrayed perfectly by Matthew Kelly. The play gives great insight to behind the scenes moments into the life of a dresser and the relationship between the dresser and the actor.

The play has great poignancy and sadness, with some humour for those who perhaps recognise what is really going on and lived through such moments.

Matthew Kelly as Sir (the principle actor) plays lots of Shakespearan characters, that’s what he is known for. The decline in health is evident as he tries to remember his lines for King Lear and the frustration shows. His dresser, played by Samual Holmes had to take a lot of the flack, but the intensity of the relationship was evident. After seeing Matthew Kelly in The Habit of Art online as Covid and lockdowns struck in 2020, I was looking forward to seeing him in-person on stage and he was every bit as excellent as I thought he would be, even with a very different part.
Matthew Kelly and Samual Holmes in The Dresser were evenly matched and so charasmatic and both played their parts with aplomb!

This has now finished in Edinburgh, but if you ever get a chance to see this amazing play, I highly recommend it. This is a play I would happily see again and the company was fabulous!

#TheatreReview by Lou – A Cold Supper Behind Harrods @OriginalTheatre #DavidMorley #PhilipFranks #DavidJason #StephanieCole #AntonLesser #TheatrePlay

A Cold Supper Behind Harrods
By David Morley
Directed by Philip Franks
An Original Theatre Production

Innovative, Dramatic and wonderfully acted – I highly recommend A Cold Supper Behind Harrods. If you eer see this for a theatre near you or ever online again, I recommend you see it. When I saw this was going to be online, I just knew I had to buy a ticket and I wasn’t disappointed.
Here you can delve into the synopsis and further into the play and why it is so interesting, and I don’t just mean the plot…

Synopsis

Revenge is a dish best served cold.

Fifty years after the war that brought them together, three Special Operations Executive agents meet to record interviews for a television documentary.

As Leo, Vera and John wait to be interviewed in a beautiful English garden, drinking tea and doing the crossword, pleasantries give way to deeper darker subjects. A web of self-deception, lies and guilt begins to emerge. Only when all three are about to leave for London in a taxi, for “a cold supper behind Harrods” does the disturbing truth emerge.

David Morley’s heart-stopping play stars national treasure and 4-time BAFTA Award-winner David Jason, Stephanie Cole and Anton Lesser with Saffron Coomber and Lucy Doyle.

Produced by the award-winning Original Theatre Company, whose recent successes include hit online productions of Birdsong and The Haunting of Alice Bowles and stage productions including the five-star revival of Alan Bennett’s The Habit of Art.

Review

This was unusual and yet very interesting. The play was online and yet not just live, but in a theatre and those online were the audience. Cast came on with their scripts, but there was, amazingly, actual scenery and haunting imagery, that shown wonderful technical skill.

It started with conversation between the writer and director and ended with Q&A session that the online audience could participate in, with the 3 main actors involved in this.

What was fascinating was, because in a sense, it was done in quite a raw fashion, as a hybrid of theatre and radio play in a way, it allowed people to see even more of a purity in the inner workings of how actors work as they came on with their scripts. It wasn’t quite a reading, it was more than that and was fully acted out. There were some stumbles, but with so little time to rehearse, this seasoned cast did remarkably well and those moments really did not matter. It added something quite refreshing and the play just kept carrying on. This was just because instead of weeks of rehearsal, they had a day or two. So, no mean feat! There was a bit of a sense of comaraderie amongst them, which is heartwarming. All of the cast, but especially David Jason, Stephanie Cole and Anton Lesser were amazing and it was so good and exciting to see them on stage in a play.

The plot itself was intriguing. We all hear about war heroes or those that started wars, but rarely, to almost never hear of those who weren’t war heroes, but those, in that gap in history, as it were, who seem like ordinary men in wartimes, doing something that later comes back to haunt them. That’s what this play shows with great thought and consideration. David Jason’s character is convincingly a figment of the author’s clever imagination. Stephanie Cole’s and Anton Lesser’s characters were based on real people. Stephanie Coomber and Lucy Doyle were excellent supporting cast, but nevertheless, with important parts.

The play took its twists and turns into their personalities and lives and bit by bit, like droplets of water that get bigger and bigger, the web of lies comes out, until its pouring with deceipt about what had happened to a woman during the war. The technology to portray this woman every so often was expertly done, just enough to show her and depict the memory of her still lingering, still haunting. It all ends in a terrific crescendo and “revenge is best served cold”. When it does come to its conclusion, it may well stay, grasping you and swirling round your mind after it has finished.

If you ever see this play at a theatre, I highly recommend it. I hope that one day this and other plays from The Original Theatre Company tour to each nation in the UK. They are producing some stunning theatre. This performance was online from the Oxford Playhouse Theatre.

#Review by Lou of Love In The Wood – 5 stars for the entertaining play (still available) by William Wycherley, Directed by Hermione Guiliford @hermy1G @JSTheatre #theatre #TheShowMustGoOn #YouTube

Love In A Wood
By William Wycherley
Rated: 5 stars *****

Love In A Wood is a great night in! There is humour, intrigue, romance and jealousy in this entertaining play with a terrific cast from stage and TV. It premiered on Sunday 31st January and is available for a week. Find out more below in the plot and then my review. Throughout, you can also find the link.

Love In The Wood is a free online reading of a 1671 comedy by William Wycherley (The Country Wife), conceived and directed by Hermione Gulliford, is performed in aid of Equity Charitable Trust, supporting industry professionals in need of urgent assistance. There is an opton to donate on Just Giving.

Discover more about it in the plot and then you will come across my full review.

You Tube Link: Love In A Wood

THE PLOT

Lady Flippant wants a husband, while pretending not to, with her eyes on Dapperwit. Sir Simon Addleplot’s looking for a wife with a fortune, eying up Mrs Martha. Valentine only has eyes for Christina, but is jealous of everyone. Ranger has his eye on anyone, playing fast with his love, Lydia. And Vincent only has eyes on anyone if it’s in the dark. The night is young, and never has there been a better time for frolics and fun in the wood. —————- LOVE IN A WOOD By William Wycherley Directed by Hermione Gulliford STARRING Jo Stone-Fewings as Mr Ranger James Anderson as Mr Vincent Danny Sapani as Mr Valentine Ian Gelder as Alderman Gripe Nicholas Le Prevost as Sir Simon Addleplot Paul Chahidi as Mr Dapperwit Christopher Chung as Mrs Crossbite’s landlord, a waiter & servant Nancy Carroll as Christina Lorna Brown as Lydia Linda Bassett as Lady Flippant Ellie Fanyinka as Mrs Martha Debbie Chazen as Mrs Joiner Hermione Gulliford as Mrs Crossbite Shaofan Wilson as Miss Lucy May Walker as Isabel Jules Melvin as Leonore Stage Managed by Lou Ballard Edited by Daniel Morley-Fletcher.

You Tube Link: Love In A Wood

Review

Love In A Wood is a delightfully entertaining play in 5 Acts with a 15 minute interval. There is also a lovely surprise from the cast during part of that time.

You get a wonderful feel for who the characters are at the start to read about and then the cast come on. It clearly and ingeniously states character names as people come on and the setting for each act and scene.

It’s brilliant and witty and technically it works well with what they’ve got. It’s a wonderful script and one which I was not familiar of, but that’s one of the beauties of the arts. There are opportunities to explore something different.
The cast speak as though they were in character and on a stage. The characterisation of the households is sublimely played out.
You cleverly only see each character at the time you need to ie not all at once, which works so well and seems theatrical, even on screen. The timing from them all is perfect in all aspects, from comedic timing to when they appear on screen, to passing on coins. It would be no mean feat, but is expertly done and is so well directed by Hermione Guilliford.

Acts in St. James Park, has some lovely sound effects to suggest so. There are occasionally some props and inventive ways to create scenery and costume – pretty impressive for such times. The timely period music is used to great effect between scenes.

There’s some gossip and passing on information and some scandal to be had, which has some intrigue to see what happens next. Throughout they are able to create some changes of atmosphere from humour, to a bit of seriousness and trepidation to more comedy and the energy given, even in a reading is brilliant!

It is above all, such an enjoyable, entertaining Restoration Play that is well worth a look.

You Tube Link: Love In A Wood