Originally published in two volumes in 1868 and 1869, Louisa May Alcott’s ‘Little Women’ has been enchanting and captivating readers and audiences of both stage and screen for many years (the first film adaptation came in silent form in 1917, five short years after it first came to the stage on Broadway). It is a story of four sisters, Meg, Jo, Beth and Amy March, and their journey from childhood to adulthood, balancing poverty, love, loss and personal growth as they each try

Chocolate box cottages, rolling green fields, viewpoints out to the sea and little spaces buried into hillsides, the glow of bedroom windows the only light in dark cold evenings. That’s the image of Devon that is painted to many, but what sits beneath that perfect ideal? Villages where teenagers are left with little to do, their limited resources leading them to experiment with alcohol, drugs and loud, wild parties, small places with big skies where they are often forgotten.

The Orient Express, the train described as ‘Poetry on Wheels’ is stuck in a snow drift, trapping its passengers in a cold, dark claustrophobic warren of narrow corridors and sliding doors. The conductor is trying to contact a rescue team, the train company manager is trying to keep spirits high, and a world-famous detective is trying his best to keep his head down and get to London in a hurried response to an emergency telegram. But when a passenger is found brutally murdered

Heartbreak, grief, treacherous journeys, loss, war, mental health and the process of seeking asylum, a hard-hitting combination that may be difficult to convey in a way which people would be able to understand and relate too, but these are all topics that are bravely and sensitively covered in the stage adaptation of Christy Lefteri’s number one best seller ‘The Beekeeper of Aleppo’. Driven from their home by war and threats upon their lives, married couple Nuri (Alfred Clay)

Growing up, I think it’s safe to assume that most children stumbled across at least one Roald Dahl story. Tales that oozed with magic, cheekiness, mystery and everyone, be that child or adult, ultimately getting what they deserved. The Twits, George’s Marvellous Medicine, James and the Giant Peach, the list could go on and on, but over the years a few of these classic stories have leapt from the pages onto our stages, with the biggest hits being Matilda and Charlie and the Ch

Please note - The photographs in this review feature the original cast, not the cast that are currently starring in the production It isn’t uncommon for stage productions these days to have had other lives before they even reach the stage itself, with screen to stage adaptations becoming increasingly popular and the idea of audience members having some idea of what to expect helping to put bums on seats. In the case of this particular production, it was Deborah Moggach’s 2004

Okay, I’ll admit. Upon being invited to the press night of the UK Tour of Heathers at Theatre Royal Plymouth, I didn’t know masses about it. I knew it was an American high school drama, based on an 80’s cult classic, that took some dark turns and had a massive following of passionate fans, but that was about it. And if I’m being honest, sometimes I really enjoy going into productions mostly blind, ready to be both surprised and entertained, but when it came to this production

Up and down the country, from the glittering West End to our much-loved regional theatres, stages are a new constant revolve. One show out, one show in, and the cycle starts again. But, nevertheless, some productions stick around a little bit longer, a year here maybe, a 3 three stint there? It’s pretty common, but what is more uncommon is that sometimes a show can run and run, the revolving door of change nowhere to be seen. The Phantom of the Opera, Les Miserables, and for

Okay, hands up in the air, time for some honesty. I did not know anything about ‘The Ocean At The End Of The Lane’ before I was kindly invited to the press night of the stage adaptation at Theatre Royal Plymouth. Beyond the knowledge of it being based on a novel by Neil Gaiman (Good Omens, Stardust, Coraline), I knew nothing of the plot, and made the decision not to look it up before going to see the show. Because, after all, sometimes going into something blind can be worth

What makes a show a musical and what makes a show a play with music. It’s a thin line and one that many shows walk like a tightrope, especially when said show is about a musical act itself. ‘The Commitments’, currently touring the UK, walks this line, balancing music with story in a humorous and believable tale of a band trying to make it big. Based on the Roddy Doyle book, ‘The Commitments’ tells the tale of a group growing up in Dublin in the 1980’s, brought together by you

Co-produced by Figueteatret I Nordland (Nordland Visual Theatre) and Theatre Royal Plymouth, and presented by Extraordinary Bodies, ‘Delicate’ explores the idea that sometimes in order to find your place in the world, things need to go wrong and fall apart. What exactly does the word ‘Delicate’ mean? The Cambridge Dictionary defines it as ‘needing careful treatment, especially because easily damaged’, but how does that apply to someone’s life. In this production, we are intro

After proving a hit and a star making machine on Broadway, Dreamgirls opened in London’s West End in late 2016, running through to early 2019 and now, after what felt like a long delay due to Covid, the show has hit the road on a UK Tour, bringing the glitz, glamour, and grit of showbusiness in the hard-hitting music industry. Loosely, shall we say inspired, by the story of musical legend Diana Ross and her experiences of the challenging industry, Dreamgirls tells the story o

Jukebox musicals, love them or hate them, have been around for quite some time and won’t be going anywhere any time soon. Mamma Mia, The Band, Sunshine on Leith, The Bodyguard and &Juliet are just some examples of shows based around the catalogues of popular artists from ABBA to The Proclaimers and whilst you may think that Jukebox musicals cater for the party audience, the light-hearted night out that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but Jim Steinman’s Bat out of Hell, ins

‘Returning for yet another calamitous run! We can’t believe it either’ Mischief Comedy has achieved global fame for their unique brand of slapstick, wordplay, and improvisation, bringing their comedic talents to stages and screens all over the world much to the delight of their fans. It’s hard to believe that such success started from humble beginnings, runs at the Edinburgh Fringe and a small stage production in a pub theatre in London, but here we are. That original show th

Cher is an icon of the pop fame, that cannot be denied, and like many other famous faces of music such as Tina and Frankie Valli, she is the latest of a long line of world-famous talent to have their story brought to life on the stage in an all singing, all dancing jukebox musical. She may have found super stardom in The Sonny and Cher Show, becoming half of an iconic double act but this production is all about her. The Cher Show follows the star’s journey from her teenage ye