BY TIMOTHY! Michael Bartholomew-Biggs rediscovers and re-examines the Paul Temple stories he enjoyed listening to on the wireless in his younger days
plays
Mr. Jones. Review by Barbara Lewis. Nearly 60 years on, the tragedy of Aberfan haunts us, not least because it could have been avoided. There is no consolation unless you turn to art. Then the dramatic tension between what was and what might have been becomes theatrical gold in the hands of Liam Holmes.
The Box of Delights, Review by Barbara Lewis. By turns, a happy child, a devastated orphan, a traumatised sailor, a beggar, a factory hand and ultimately the writer he had always wanted to be, John Masefield proved that dreams can come true – and when they do, they are all the more magical for the pain suffered on the way.
Ikaria. Review by Barbara Lewis. Ikaria is a Greek island famed for the longevity of its inhabitants, helped by a Mediterranean diet and plenty of sex. For the purposes of writer-director Philippa Lawford’s eloquent, debut play, it’s also a university hall of residence.
Beyond Ourselves. Review by Barbara Lewis. Making dreams come true has never been easy, but the joy of theatre is in the trying.
The Wind and The Rain. Finborough Theatre. Review by Barbara Lewis. A wistful story of Edinburgh medical students tussling with exams and affairs of the heart was one of the biggest international hits of the 1930s and a staple of British repertory theatre for decades after.
As You Like It. Review by Barbara Lewis. The line “ripeness is all” from Shakespeare’s tragedy of old age Lear could easily be the motto of the RSC’s latest joyful version of one of his most youthful comedies of love.
THREE SCORE YEARS AND TEN – Under Milk Wood seventy years on: an appreciation by Kevin Saving
Pussycat in Memory of Darkness. Review by Barbara Lewis. Kristin Milward’s performance of Pussycat in Memory of Darkness in Kyiv in December was the first visiting foreign production in the capital since the Russian invasion began in February last year.
The Human Voice, Charing Cross Theatre. Review by Barbara Lewis. It’s surely a temptation for today’s directors of Poulenc and Cocteau’s La Voix Humaine, or The Human Voice in this English version, to transpose it to the world of mobile phones. It’s one director Alejandro Bonatto wisely resists.
Love Goddess. Review by Barbara Lewis. Rita Hayworth was considered one of the most beautiful women of her day, was Fred Astaire’s favourite dance partner, and was married five times, including to Orson Welles, the man she is believed to have truly loved. She also suffered from Alzheimer’s for two decades before being diagnosed.
Transgression, Life in the Aftermath of the Eocene. Review by Barbara Lewis. The Eocene lasted from about 55.8 million to 33.9 million years ago, which has left a lot to happen in the aftermath. By the 1990s of “Transgression”, humanity is being perpetuated by fleeting moments of sexual attraction that give way to years of cruelty.
By Barbara Lewis • plays, theatre, year 2024 • Tags: Barbara Lewis, plays, theatre