Review: Funny Turns
April 29, 2009
Date revieved: 28 April 2009
Venue: Hull Truck Theatre
Funny Turns is a well chosen welcome to Hull Truck’s splendid new premises on Ferensway. John Godber’s new play is very much within the company’s tradition: people on hard times in Hull find their lives transformed Cinderella-style, but by their own boldness rather than some fairy godmother (though Funny Turns boasts a sort of fairy godmother, but he’s a large, hairy roadie!). The doubling of parts, the strong sense of ensemble and the short blackout scenes carry on the old Spring Street ways. On the other hand, it’s doubtful if the Spring Street stage could have accommodated a speaking chorus of eight (male) and a dance troupe of the same size (female), both from the Truck Youth Theatre – a neat way of celebrating both the spacious new venue and the future of the company.
Review: Northern Exposure double bill
April 29, 2009
Date reviewed: 28 April 2009
Venue: West Yorkshire Playhouse
Now in its seventh iteration, the annual Northern Exposure season is an established fixture at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. However, while its exact shape varies between years, this is the first time that the main item has been a double bill of short plays, with each around an hour long and performed by the same cast under the leadership of WYP associate director (literary) Alex Chisholm.
Truck asks to borrow Tigers memorabilia
April 28, 2009
Gareth Tudor Price has today asked Hull City fans to donate their club memorabilia to Hull Truck ahead of this season’s revival of Confessions of a City Supporter by Alan Plater. Truck’s artistic director has appealed to followers of The Tigers to lend items such as club shirts from past seasons, scarves, flags, caps and rosettes to the company before the updated version of the play, which recounts the club’s route to its first ever season in the top flight of English football, opens on 21 May.
Review: Kellerman
April 23, 2009
Date reviewed: 22 April 2009
Venue: West Yorkshire Playhouse
With Kellerman, Leeds company imitating the dog, along with serial collaborator Pete Brooks, tackles the achingly cool theme of time travel. It’s usually seen more as a haunt of filmmakers than theatre companies, but this is consistent with itd’s style, which sews live performance to film and animation.
Review: Paradise Moscow and Russian season
April 21, 2009
Date reviewed: 20 April 2009
Venue: Leeds Grand Theatre and Opera House
According to Richard Mantle, general director of Opera North, Shostakovich’s “block-busting musical comedy”, Paradise Moscow, first performed by the company in 2001, has been one of the productions most requested for revival. In some ways the timing this year might seem a little unusual, with the 2008-9 season already top-heavy (or, possibly, top-light) with operetta. In another sense the timing is perfect, as Paradise Moscow sits in the middle of a splendid series of Russian-themed events at the Howard Assembly Room.