April - 2022

Archive

Review: Little Wimmin at Unity Theatre ****

When an email drops into your inbox advising the show you’re about to see contains haze, flashing lights, sudden loud music and “citrus fruit used on stage” you know you’re in for an interesting evening. And if oranges are not the only fruit (which, it turns out, they’re not), orange, in all its tangerine/carrot/sunset glory, certainly infuses this absurdist adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s cherished classic. I say adaptation, but Alcott’s Little Women is just a vague framew

Walker show celebrates contemporary Liverpool painters

The Walker Art Gallery is hosting an exhibition of art by some of the most exciting contemporary painters currently working in the city. Refractive Pool: Contemporary Painting in Liverpool, which opens on April 29, is artist-led and features work from 21 painters who live or work in Liverpool or its surroundings. Among them are Frances Disley, The Singh Twins, Gary Sollars, David Jacques, Pete Clarke and Jason Thompson, along with a number of early-career artists, while the e

Review: Animal Farm at Liverpool Playhouse ****1/2

George Orwell’s allegorical tale of revolution gone bad may be almost 80 years old, but it continues to resonate strongly, not least in the current climate of war and oppression. Orwell may have created a cast of animal characters, but they represent and embrace the very worst and best of humankind. And part of the power of Animal Farm is recognising the human nature - both good and bad - in, as well as the specific identities of, its protagonists. So it's perhaps a bold move

Simon Callow talks life on board Anything Goes at the Liverpool Empire

It’s a two-show day for the cast of Anything Goes and Simon Callow hasn’t long come off stage at the Liverpool Empire after an energetic matinee. “I’ve just torn off my moustache,” he reveals as he settles down for a chat about the Barbican’s smash hit production of Cole Porter’s sparky musical which is currently enjoying a 10-day residency at the Lime Street landmark. But surely there must be a temptation, with barely two hours to call your own between shows, to simply stay

Review: Making It at Royal Court Studio ****

Fame and fortune are fickle mistresses, and trying to make it in the world of entertainment certainly isn’t for the faint-hearted. The hopes and dreams of generations of aspiring stars have been left tattered in the gutter outside a hundred social clubs, theatres, recording studios or on cutting room floors, while for others like Norma Desmond, all they can do is yearn for a return to the successes of yesteryear. Stephen Fletcher and Catherine Rice’s Making It, currently doin

Twopence UK tour cast revealed

Mark Moraghan, Lynn Francis and Daniel Taylor are among the cast announced for a new touring version of Helen Forrester’s much-loved Twopence to Cross the Mersey. Moraghan will reprise his role as Helen's father while Francis will play her mother in the new production which includes stories told by the author to the stage show's writer but which were never revealed in her best-selling book. The show, which will embark on its premiere UK tour in September, also stars Parry Gla

Review: Anything Goes at Liverpool Empire *****

It was a smash hit in London last summer – so much so the Beeb broadcast it on television as part of its Boxing Day schedule. And now the Barbican’s award-winning production of Anything Goes is on a voyage around the UK – crewed by a mixture of old hands and new recruits - before heading back to home port for another summer run. And what a spectacular, nay, spec-tap-ular showstopper it is. A first class celebration of Cole Porter’s screwball comedy at sea filled with cracklin

Fabulous frocks on show at Walker Art Gallery

Glamorous and intricate evening dresses from the inter-war years are on show in a new free display at the Walker Art Gallery. Shimmer and Shine: Beaded Evening Dresses, 1920-1940 features 14 fabulous and fashionable frocks from the period. Many of them were made in France and then exported throughout Europe including to Britain. Among the dazzling examples on display is a 1930s sequinned evening gown which belonged to Jane Moreton, daughter of Titanic Chief Officer Henry Tin

Kunichika kabuki prints at Lady Lever Art Gallery

Vibrant artworks by 19th Century Japanese printmaker Toyohara Kunichika are going on show at the Lady Lever Art Gallery. Kunichika: Japanese Prints features dozens of fascinating depictions of the stars of traditional kabuki theatre, captured both in some of their most famous and popular roles but also behind the scenes. The exhibition of works, which come from the private collection of art historian Frank Milner, is the first outside Japan to concentrate on Kunichika and fol

Unity Theatre announces new 2022 season shows

Liverpool’s Unity Theatre has revealed the second half of its 2022 season – with more than 50 productions being staged at the Hope Place venue. The season includes 21 new successful Open Call Programme artists who were chosen from more than 200 applications for support through the scheme. Nine new plays, two writing festivals, two interactive theatre premieres and an audio experience walking tour are among the new shows which will be staged through the initiative which offers