Theatre through the eyes of a Manc
It seems that these days almost every good indie film is being turned into a musical and transferred to the stage. Some have been successful, with Waitress securing a prestigious, lengthy run on London's West End. Others have been viewed as failures, like Little Miss Sunshine. Even the iconic 80s classic, Back to the Future... Continue Reading →
Zoey Barnes and Clementine Bogg-Hargroves are quickly becoming the best double act in Manchester's theatre scene. After the success of Skank at the GM Fringe, the couple's new collaboration, Austen Power, showcases Barnes' debut as a writer. And what an impressive debut this piece is! It tells of two sisters who inherit an independent, family bookshop from their father.... Continue Reading →
Welcome to The Community Centre, a place where you can relax and while away the time, or engage in "How to Charm Your Own Snakes" workshops. It is the lifeblood of the local Mancunian community, where elders can go to avoid paying their electric bills, and where people can skive off work. As the central... Continue Reading →
Sub-titled "Scenes from the Luddite Rebellion", this play has no relation to the song of the same name by The Smiths. What we get is a fascinating history lesson about the Luddite Rebellion and how the rise of the machine in the Industrial Revolution devastated the livelihoods of the working-classes, when their jobs were replaced with... Continue Reading →
A month of incredible fringe theatre came to an end last night with the 2019 GM Fringe Awards. Across July, there were over 250 productions that showcased local emerging talent. A multitude of venues welcomed artists, from pubs to train station platforms, and Manchester was a buzzing hive of creativity. Every single person involved in... Continue Reading →
Falling smack bang in-between the Spring/Summer and Autumn/Winter seasons, August is usually considered as a fallow month for theatre productions, as people flock to the Edinburgh Fringe for their theatre fix. In Manchester, there's no rest though, with plenty of great shows available throughout the month. Here are a handful of suggestions for what theatre... Continue Reading →
I want to begin this review by firmly stating that I truly dislike The Taming of the Shrew. Unlike most of William Shakespeare's plays, this one really hasn't aged well. I have always struggled to consider his play, in which a woman is broken into submission by her abusive husband, a comedy. It is difficult... Continue Reading →
Ben likes Al, even though he has a strange fetish for the A&E department. He met him online, but isn't even sure that Al is his real name. Well, it's better than "Master1507". Al just wanted a quick blowjob in the hospital's disabled toilet, but now Ben thinks their relationship is more serious than that.... Continue Reading →
Can you remember your first time? Nathaniel Hall can't seem to forget his. He contracted HIV the first time he had sex, aged 16. Receiving the diagnosis just two weeks after his 17th birthday, it took Nathaniel fourteen years to open up to his family. A year later, he penned an autobiographical play about his... Continue Reading →
