Be More Chill review " glorious misfit musical for the age of oddballs by Arifa Akbar

The Other Palace, LondonThe soaring joys and plunging agonies of adolescence are treated with humour and heart in this refreshing arrival from Broadway 'There's never been a better time in h…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:18pm on February 18, 2020☆⚑

The High Table review " coming out and coming together in tender debut by Arifa Akbar

Bush theatre, LondonInspired by Master of None, Temi Wilkey delivers a heartfelt and funny tale of love and ancestral ties in a Nigerian family 'Being gay isn't something black people love t…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 4:03am on February 17, 2020☆⚑

The Visit review " Tony Kushner's plodding revenge epic falls flat by Arifa Akbar

Olivier theatre, London Lesley Manville excels as the billionaire returning to her small town but even she can't save this bloated adaptation The Visit (or The Old Lady Comes to Call) is a 1…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:06am on February 14, 2020☆⚑

Leopoldstadt review " Stoppard's family portrait is an elegiac epic by Arifa Akbar

Wyndham's theatre, LondonPatrick Marber directs Tom Stoppard's sweeping story of a Jewish family in Vienna across six decades In 2003, Tom Stoppard was asked if he would ever write a "Jewis…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:24pm on February 12, 2020☆⚑

The Whip review " political drama exposes cost of abolishing slavery by Arifa Akbar

Swan theatre, Stratford-upon-AvonJuliet Gilkes Romero's play about the battle to end slave-owning in the British empire grows in intrigue and tension The Whip takes a moment in British histo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 1:24pm on February 12, 2020☆⚑

All of It review " everywoman takes us from cradle to grave by Arifa Akbar

Royal Court, LondonAlistair McDowall's monologue " performed by a mesmerising Kate O'Flynn " channels female experience with warmth and humour Alistair McDowall joined forces with the direct…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 1:36pm on February 11, 2020☆⚑

Sex Education's Aimee Lou Wood: 'I confronted my own school bully' by Arifa Akbar

She loved her nude scenes in the Netflix hit but the West End's Uncle Vanya gave her stage fright. The Stockport star remembers being the class clown and tracking down her tormentor Aimee L…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:54am on February 9, 2020☆⚑

Death of England review " Rafe Spall dazzles in punkish state-of-the-nation address by Arifa Akbar

National Theatre, LondonSpall is like a man possessed in Roy Williams' and Clint Dyer's hair-raising dramatic monologue about the grief and grievances of a working-class white male In the se…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 5:18am on February 7, 2020☆⚑

Albion review " Mike Bartlett's thorny study of politics and patriotism by Arifa Akbar

Almeida, LondonRevived by Rupert Goold just over two years after its premiere, this subtle drama has grown with new meaning In 2017, Rupert Goold directed a state-of-the-nation play by Mike …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:54am on February 6, 2020☆⚑

The Remains of Logan Dankworth review " a poet for our day by Arifa Akbar

Pound Arts Centre, Corsham Luke Wright's eloquent verse monologue pairs Brexit with the breakdown of a marriage Luke Wright is a poet for our day and today in particular. This dramatic monol…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 9:48am on January 31, 2020☆⚑

Faustus: That Damned Woman review " devilish drama is far from divine by Arifa Akbar

Lyric Hammersmith, LondonChris Bush's female Faustus is original, ambitious and fantastically revisionist " but this bare-boned production fails to save its soul Doctor Faustus, as we know h…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:48am on January 29, 2020☆⚑

The Sugar Syndrome review " Lucy Prebble's dark encounters still connect by Arifa Akbar

Orange Tree, LondonOscar Toeman directs a striking revival of the 2003 play about the relationship between a teenage girl and a paedophile Since Lucy Prebble's award-winning first play prem…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:36pm on January 28, 2020☆⚑

Dear Winnie review " thrilling homage to the flawed mother of South Africa by Arifa Akbar

KVS, BrusselsThe complicated legacy of Winnie Madikizela-Mandela is fearlessly transformed into a radical and rousing musical When Winnie Madikizela-Mandela died in 2018, she was seen both a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:42am on January 27, 2020☆⚑

Uncle Vanya review " Toby Jones triumphs in perfect Chekhov by Arifa Akbar

Harold Pinter theatre, LondonIan Rickson's exquisite production is enlivened with expertly weighted humour and a modern beat Last year, David Hare teamed up with Rupert Everett to stage an U…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 9:12pm on January 23, 2020☆⚑

The Welkin review " Maxine Peake leads Lucy Kirkwood's jury of matrons by Arifa Akbar

Lyttelton, LondonTwelve bickering, bantering women must determine an accused murderer's pregnancy claim in this admirable drama The Welkin is a courtroom drama that sets itself up as a wink…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 7:48am on January 23, 2020☆⚑

The Sunset Limited review " Cormac McCarthy two-hander is all talk by Arifa Akbar

Boulevard theatre, LondonGary Beadle and Jasper Britton are excellent in this static and plotless existential treatise, but still can't transcend its dramatic limitations There is a flagrant…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:54am on January 22, 2020☆⚑

The Gift review " clever and complex vision of black Britons, then and now by Arifa Akbar

Belgrade theatre, CoventryThe story of Sarah Bonetta Davies, given to Queen Victoria, is contrasted with a modern black British woman in Janice Okoh's play The historian David Olusoga has sp…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:18pm on January 21, 2020☆⚑

Beckett Triple Bill review " ticklish satire and quiet melancholy by Arifa Akbar

Jermyn Street theatre, LondonDavid Threlfall, James Hayes, Niall Buggy and Lisa Dwan star in Trevor Nunn's atmospheric productions of Krapp's Last Tape, Eh Joe and The Old Tune Harold Pinter…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 8:06am on January 19, 2020☆⚑

Fix review " the plumber, the witch and the washing machine by Arifa Akbar

Pleasance theatre, London Julie Tsang's modern gothic fairytale is full of ideas and has some creepy moments but it never quite delivers Fix opens with all the thrilling promise of a modern …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 9:03am on January 17, 2020☆⚑

Clint Dyer on Death of England: 'It's radical for black people to write about white people' by Arifa Akbar

He gave up football after being racially abused on the terraces. Now the barrier-breaking writer, actor and director has turned his scars into a play about a bigoted white family As a child,…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:12pm on January 15, 2020☆⚑

Cuttin' It review " tale of friendship and FGM still wields terrible power by Arifa Akbar

Royal Exchange, ManchesterCharlene James's 2016 play about female genital mutilation combines a powerful social message with bursts of humour It's a "messed-up tradition" says one of the ch…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:54am on January 14, 2020☆⚑

Antigone review " a mesmerising tragedy with sisterhood at heart by Arifa Akbar

New Diorama, LondonSuperb performances by Annabel Baldwin and Rachel Hosker capture the intimacy and grief of this fearlessly revisionist retelling of Sophocles' drama This startling retelli…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 9:48am on January 13, 2020☆⚑

Scrounger review " the surreal case of the broken wheelchair by Arifa Akbar

Finborough theatre, LondonAthena Stevens creates comedy and occasional danger from a real-life incident in this tricksy drama 'Part of being a creative person who happens to have a disabilit…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 2:54pm on January 10, 2020☆⚑

The Tyler Sisters review " sibling love and loss across the decades by Arifa Akbar

Hampstead theatre, LondonAlexandra Wood's spirited story of modern womanhood reminds us that the blood-bond of sisterhood has hard edges For 40 years, the photographer Nicholas Nixon took a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 2:36pm on January 8, 2020☆⚑

Club 2B review " get down with Zeus and Lady Godiva by Arifa Akbar

Belgrade theatre, CoventryCharacters including The Great Gatsby's Daisy round on a Greek god in this bewildering Christmas show The setting is a cabaret-style jazz club with saxophonist, dru…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 6:12pm on December 13, 2019☆⚑