512 stories by "Caroline Hanks-Farmer"
In a claustrophobic set where the actors never really leave, we are confronted with a father and daughter's grief, after the loss of the one person who held them together " Mum.
Omid Djalili is truly sensational as Tevye. His witty 'If I were a Rich Man' is worth the ticket price and five stars alone. Djalili's meticulous gesticulation, facial expressions and voice …
Yank!, a musical by Joseph Zellnik with books and lyrics by David Zellnik, follows the fortunes of a young (nearly 19) squaddie, drafted into the American army in the early 1940s. The fictio…
Make sure you get to your seat early so you don't miss the pre-show shenanigans but more importantly you have time to read the hilarious programme. Never have I laughed so much before a show…
Following their Grammy Award nominated production Inala, Sisters Grimm return to Sadler's Wells this week with their new dance musical Voices of the Amazon. Inspired by indigenous myth, it t…
Benjamin Rubin (F Murray Abraham) wrote his one hit play decades ago at the age of 24 and has not tasted success again. He is asked (and paid handsomely) by an art foundation to mentor up-an…
A new West End production opened this week in one of the most prestigious theatres in London, the show was The Wind In The Willows. Previously touring, it's now hit London for a limited run …
We all know and love the 1978 hit film Grease and for many years now it has been a stage show. I've seen this musical a good number of times and so I was interested to see how this touring p…
Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill and the incomparable Audra McDonald are finally in London and on the West End. Following a year postponement due to McDonald falling pregnant, this cri…
Alice is in Rotterdam. Still. After seven years, she still hasn't quite managed to tell her parents that she's gay. Her life is in limbo. Living with her outgoing partner Fiona and seeking a…
If there's a theme to the events of the past year " particularly the incidents in Westminster, Manchester, London Bridge, Grenfell Tower and Finsbury Park Mosque, but also the potential resu…
Thirty-three years ago I went on a school trip to London to see Blondel. It was my very first experience of going to London to see a show. It left a lasting impression and I firmly believe …
A romantic adventure about rebellious youth and passionate love, set against the backdrop of a post-cataclysmic city adrift from the mainland. Strat, the forever young leader of The Lost, ha…
At one point in The Kite Runner, taxi driver Farid says "I don't think there is a more Afghan way to die than stepping on a mine." Or, indeed, live. The role may be one of the smallest but t…
Tom is currently appearing as Kenicky in Grease touring the country. I caught up with Tom and we chatted previous roles, what he enjoys in this show and touring life.
A vibrantly painted backdrop hangs over the stage, with piercing blue lights reaching their fingers out to the audience. With its exuberant staging and lighting that encourages everyone to g…
Sweet Bird of Youth is a 1959 play by now legendary playwright Tennessee Williams. As with many of his plays it follows the themes of age, mental illness and social standing as well as faile…
Lette works in plugs. His life seems normal " he is happily married, and doing well in his firm. But then he is told that he may not present a new product at a convention because his face is…
Understated and superbly strange Tape Face is a show that twists and turns and asks it's audience to suspend their disbelief and enjoy the pure silliness on offer. The Boy With Tape On His F…
I keenly took up my seat half an hour before curtain-up, which is where my confusion began. Recorded music is usually welcome pre-show however Carols filled the auditorium. It's June! Though…
You meet someone at a party. The first question is nearly always: 'What do you do?' We are curious, it's a starting point for a conversation and upon the answer we tend to judge whether it's…
Having sat on audition panels for over 25 years " I have seen too many very talented young people make obvious and often silly mistakes at audition. The aim, vision and inspiration for my Au…
The Addams Family, created by American cartoonist, Charles Addams, have been a part of popular culture for decades through a audience-pleasing sitcom, several films and now a musical. The Ad…
We are sat in a stifling hot theatre space, it's been an ordinary kind of day. The heat makes you wonder if you are ever going to experience goosebumps or a chill to the spine again. And the…
Sir John Betjeman: now, there was a poet. In Hugh Whitemore's Sand In The Sandwiches, we get a soup-to-nuts understanding of the Poet Laureate who was more than the simple versifier that tit…
