594 stories by "Gary Naylor"
★★★★ HAMLET HAIL TO THE THIEF, RSC Music drives the prince to madness in spectacular show
An innovative take on a familiar play succeeds far more often than it fails
…
★★ THE KING OF PANGEA, KING'S HEAD THEATRE - Highly personal American musical fails to land in London
Heart and soul proves insufficient in world premiere of therapeutic show
The…
★★★ THIS IS MY FAMILY, SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE Play with music engenders a familiar warmth
Relatable or stereotyped - that's for you to decide
MOR. Twee. Unashamedly crowdpleas…
★★★ THE FROGS, SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE Pantomimeish adaptation of classic play
Tone never settles, but Sondheim's genius carries the day
As a regular theatregoer, you learn pre…
★★★★★ THE GANG OF THREE, KING'S HEAD THEATRE The big beasts banter 50 years ago
Beautifully written and equally well acted play resonates down the decades
There…
★★ CONVERSATIONS AFTER SEX, PARK THEATRE Nudity, but nothing new in UK debut
Award-winning Irish play fails to reach a memorable climax
In Dublin, a city that has changed more th…
★★★★ MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, RSC, STRATFORD Medieval court's mores translates uncomfortably well to modern football
Garish and gossipy, this new production packs a…
★★★★★ GHOSTS, LYRIC HAMMERSMITH - Ibsen screams into 2025 in this perfect reimagining
Ten years on, Gary Owen and Rachel O'Riordan top their triumphant Iphigeni…
★ MIDNIGHT COWBOY, SOUTHWARK PLAYHOUSE Ambitious project overwhelmed by challengesÂ
Two misfits misfire in misconceived show
It seems a bizarre idea. Take a pivotal film in America…
★★★★ THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING OSCAR, JERMYN STREET THEATRE One man play from 1960 given a compelling revival
Alastair Whatley honours his subject in a quietly powerful…
★★★★ STILETTO, CHARING CROSS THEATRE Castrato finds comfort by the canals
Quirky, operatic show won't please everyone, but will delight many
That friend you have wh…
★★★ ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS - THE MUSICAL, THEATRE ROYAL BATH Ambitious new musical isn't slaying 'em in the aislesÂ
1950s America feels a lot like 2020s America in…
★★★★ EDWARD II, SWAN THEATRE Rapid and racy adaptation draws on its writer's legend
Putsch in the palace brings down a king who chose the wrong person to love
"Do…
★★★★★ HAMLET, ROYAL SHAKESPEARE THEATRE Rupert Goold's staging lends a gnawing, troubling, transatlantic relevanceÂ
The iceberg cometh
The date, projected be…
★★★★★ THREE SISTERS, SAM WANAMAKER PLAYHOUSE Souls dissected in brilliantly conceived and executed production
Russia - but also here, there and everywhere
Russi…
★ MRS PRESIDENT, CHARING CROSS THEATRE A widow, a photographer but no soul
Curious play that fails to mobilise theatre's unique ability to tell a story
The phenomenal global success o…
★★★ SECOND BEST, RIVERSIDE STUDIOS First-class performance in a second-class play
Martin is not Harry Potter in the movies, then might be in real life, but proves to be the…
★★★★★ PLAY ON!, LYRIC HAMMERSMITH The Bard and The Duke in perfect harmony!
Super performances deliver magnificent entertainment
If you saw Upstart Crow on tele…
★★★ AN INTERROGATION, HAMPSTEAD THEATRE Detective gets her man, but at what cost?
Rosie Sheehy and Jamie Ballard shine in Edinburgh Festival import
In a dingy room with …
★★★ CYMBELINE, SAM WANAMAKER PLAYHOUSE Patriarchy defeated!
A new, if not as radical as once it were, take on Shakespeare's cross-dressing call to arms
There's not much…
★★★★ THE LONELY LONDONERS, KILN THEATRE A beautifully realised stage adaptation
Memories, frustrations and hopes in a city emerging from post-war austerity
As som…
★★★★ THE MAIDS, JERMYN STREET THEATRE Master and Servant, poison & procrastination
Class, in its 21st century manifestation, colours much performed play
There ar…
★ TITANIQUE, CRITERION THEATRE Celine! Tina! Jack and Rose! But no wit at all
Affectionate piss-take set for cult status at best
This Celine Dion jukebox musical has been a big hit in …
★★★ TWELFTH NIGHT The winter comedy provides more chills than chuckles despite a funny fool
Too much thinking; not enough laughing
It is not just Twelfth Night, it's Twe…
★★★★ NATASHA, PIERRE & THE GREAT COMET OF 1812, DONMAR WAREHOUSE Broadway show takes eight years to traverse the Atlantic, but proves worth the wait
War and Pe…
