Monthly Archives: July 2012

Ed Hall’s conceit is that Shakespeare’s pastoral tragedy is a fairy tale imagined by Leontes’ young son, Mamillius. The boy, who is in his pyjamas, imagines a story about his father’s insane jealousy, which leads directly to the death of … Continue reading →

The fact that Henry is admired so much, and his victory at the Battle of Agincourt against all the odds (five to one) in 1415 is still so well remembered 600 years on, is due entirely to Shakespeare’s very thorough, … Continue reading →

This cabaret entertainment is based on the songs of Noel Coward and Ivor Novello and will appeal to older theatregoers. The lyrics would have been better served if they had been sung by actors whose forte was revue. A shortened … Continue reading →

Druid Murphy is the collective title for three plays written by Tom Murphy, directed by Garry Hynes, artistic director of Galway’s Druid Theatre. The plays, written over a 24 year period, are quite separate; what unites them is emigration. Murphy, … Continue reading →

The setting is a maternity ward. I think it is generally agreed that if it were men, rather than women, who had to have babies, there wouldn’t be any babies. Joe Penhall, in his over-extended revue sketch, imagines a man … Continue reading →

Michael Healey’s play, premiered in Toronto in 1999 and inspired by a real event, is very popular in Canada and North America where it is considered a modern Canadian classic. A young actor, who is part of a collective theatre … Continue reading →

Is Henry a mirror of all Christian kings or is he a war criminal? It depends when Shakespeare’s history is being performed and whether the nation is in a pro- or anti-war mood. The play has been regularly revived for … Continue reading →

With a title like The Last of the Haussmans I was expecting a play about the rebuilding of Paris and the Second Empire or, not noticing Haussman had only one n, perhaps, a play about Berlin and Dada. Stephen Beresford’s … Continue reading →