Category Archives: Theatre

THEATRE REVIEW: ‘The Cherry Orchard’ and ‘The Winter’s Tale’

Posted on June 10, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Simon Russell Beale leads a splendid British and American cast in William Shakespeare’s “The Winter’s Tale” and Anton Chekhov’s “The Cherry Orchard” as the Bridge Project – which began at the Brooklyn Academy of Music … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Tom Stoppard’s ‘Arcadia’

Posted on June 9, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – There are many terrific productions on currently in London’s West End but none is better than the revival of “Arcadia” at the Duke of York’s theatre, which is revealed as probably Tom Stoppard’s finest play. … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Jude Law in ‘Hamlet’

Posted on June 4, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Anyone who expects a fey and fragile prince from Jude Law in the Donmar’s new West End production of “Hamlet” is in for a surprise as he renders the troubled Dane as rugged and fit, … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: ‘Sister Act” the musical

Posted on June 3, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Brash and sentimental but witty and tuneful, the stage musical version of Whoopi Goldberg’s 1992 comedy film “Sister Act” is a foot-stomping, hand-clapping success with great songs by multiple Oscar-winner Alan Menken and a star-making … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: McKellen and Stewart in ‘Waiting for Godot’

Posted on May 7, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – So much portentous meaning has been read into Samuel Beckett’s play “Waiting for Godot” that it’s pleasure to be reminded by Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart what an entertaining show it is. The two “X-Men” … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Tim Firth’s ‘Calendar Girls’

Posted on April 22, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – It’s not a musical, but screenwriter Tim Firth’s stage version of his script for the hit 2003 Nigel Cole film “Calendar Girls” takes aim squarely at the audience that flocked to see “Mamma Mia!” and … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: ‘Dancing at Lughnasa’ at The Old Vic

Posted on March 9, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Kevin Spacey’s Old Vic is back on form with a sumptuous revival of what has become an Irish classic. Presented in the round beneath the branches of a vast dying tree, Brian Friel’s “Dancing at … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: ‘A Sentimental Journey’ with Doris Day

Posted on March 6, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – Away from her bright and breezy film and television image, the often troubled life of singer and movie star Doris Day offers plenty of drama for a show and Adam Rolston’s “A Sentimental Journey” makes … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Peter Flannery’s ‘Burnt By the Sun’

Posted on March 6, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – The Gulag comes to Chekhov in “Burnt By the Sun,” Peter Flannery’s absorbing stage adaptation of Nikita Mikhalkov’s 1995 foreign-language Oscar-winning film. The story is set just before the Second World War as Russian dictator … Continue reading →

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THEATRE REVIEW: Nicholas de Jongh’s ‘Plague Over England’

Posted on February 26, 2009 by admin

By Ray Bennett LONDON – At a time when Sean Penn is honoured for playing a gay man who was slain, Nicholas de Jongh’s dull play “Plague Over England,” about how legendary British Shakespearean actor John Gielgud was embarrassed in … Continue reading →

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