My theatre visits ease up as the Summer months approach. It’s an odd time of the year for me, as I cease teaching and it gets fairly quiet on stage in Manchester. Although this year it is busier than usual with the Manchester Festival and 24:7 both there to tempt you. Then in Aug, we have Tintin at the Lowry and the jukebox musical (I thought these were over!) Never Forget. I am going to give this one the benefit of the doubt, as I do love writer, Danny Brocklehurst’s work.

It will be busier than ever here, as (touch wood) the Manchester Micro-site will be up and running. David is currently working behind the scenes- getting it ready. As soon as we are about to go live, I will let you all know. For those of you done with theatre, for now, but want to see a comeback kid in action, Marc Almond is at the Ritz this weekend. Following his motorcycle accident, this brilliant singer has come bouncing back with his new album, Stardom Road. To book for the gig this Sunday, click here.

My next theatre visit is Into The Woods, but I will be back with more news before then.

I was lucky enough to catch Kiss Of The Spiderwoman at the Lowry on Tuesday, direct form the Donmar. What a stunning little play this turned out to be. Apart form a non menacing voice-over in place of a tough prison guard, this play was nigh on faultless. Rupert Evans and Will Keen give really heartfelt performances in a beautiful, welcome revival. If you get the chance to go before it closes on Saturday, it is worth it. More thoughts on the play, here.

From a classic- to a Broadway hit, I saw 42nd Street at the Opera House, last night. This toe tapping show is worth seeing for the excellent ensemble and a lovely lead. But, unfortunately it lacks heart and the cheap set makes it looks distinctly amateur. At £32.50 a ticket, an audience need more than a few painted backdrops. This is a fun show and it zips along in act two, but the set will grate on you, especially when it wobbles.

My review of 42nd Street will be on the main site tomorrow (Fri).

Have a good weekend, but with no Any Dream Will Do, what are you going to do?!!

So, the hunt is over! The show has a leading man and many of us will need to leave the house on a Saturday night! What a great series, Any Dream Will Do turned out to be; camp, kitsch, manipulative and compulsive viewing every week. The winner was Lee Mead. As many of you know, I would have personally preferred Keith to win as there was something fresh about his talent. But, I am sure he will go onto greater things. As for Lee, let’s just hope he doesn’t end up with those 1980′s hair exentions that they seem to give a leading Joe! Seriously, I wish Lee all the best. You can denounce the show all you like, but misgivings aside, the show plugged musical theatre every Saturday night and got people talking about it. The bookings have gone through the roof. For plugging the genre and giving theatre a boost, Any Dream should be applauded. Good Luck, Keith. For a re-cap of the final, click here.

I have spent nine hours in the theatre this week. Seven of these precious hours belonged to one production; Tony Kushner’s Angels In America. But, far from feeling fatigued, I find myself missing the production tonight- after spending two evenings in the company of Kushner’s captivating characters. If you were worried that this Aids related drama would appear dated, fear not, as it has lost nothing. A full review of this fantastic production is on the main site, here.

I also joined a packed Lowry audience to see Patricia Routledge tread the boards in Alan Bennett’s double bill, Office Suite. The first part was excellent, incredibly poignant and well performed. The second play though suffered from being too televisual. For a full review of Office Space, follow this link.

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I know this isn’t spefically Manchester news, but let’s face it, we are all watching it! Grease Is The What, anyone? I don’t know about you, but I expected a decent semi final, whereby the guys attempted to wipe the floor with each other. But there was something lacking and part of this was down to (as always) the songs! “Could It Be Magic”, “Sweet Caroline” and “Ease On Down The Road” might have been great on the show Seaside Special on a Saturday night, but this is 2007! In Heat magazine, the Lord said that he was not allowed to keep choosing musical songs as it would be seen as false advertising? The whole show itself is an advert, for a musical which is about to open!

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