Theatre through the eyes of a Manc
"Discuss the role of the Rake in Restoration comedy" - This was a university assignment I had to write last year. After studying the drama produced during this period, I wrote about William Wycherley's The Country Wife, Etherege's The Man of Mode, and Molière's Misanthrope. Despite Restoration comedies celebrating sexual liberty, the plays written by women have... Continue Reading →
It's not very often that a piece of theatre has had such an impact on me that I end up watching it three times*. Danny and the Deep Blue Sea is one of these. It was one of the best shows I watched in 2019. Its characters moved me so much that they became seared into... Continue Reading →
Meet Kate. She’s a skank. Stuck in a job she hates, Kate dreams of being a writer. Anything to get away from her irritating co-workers; Anal Annie, Linda (who has the world’s most awful laugh), and her woefully dull manager, Chris. As relief from her mind-numbingly boring job, she investigates which of her colleagues have... Continue Reading →
2019 has been quite an eventful year for theatre in Manchester. It has been a year of new beginnings, with Sarah Frankcom stepping down as the Artistic Director of the Royal Exchange, paving the way for Roy Alexander Weise and Bryony Shanahan to put their own stamp on the theatre. This year also saw 53two... Continue Reading →
John Webster's The Duchess of Malfi is a highly underrated play that is rarely performed today. This Jacobean play is not an easy one to stage. It is horrifically, brutally violent, and incredibly uncomfortable to watch. As Shakespeare's contemporary, Webster's language can seem complex and quite outdated (there is a strange metaphor about tennis balls).... 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 →
