Taste of Honey

                                                         
                                                    Taste of Honey - Review


One of the joys of theatre is the different responses you have to productions.  They can leave you moved, informed, sad or upbeat, and having seen Taste of Honey at the Trafalgar Studios, I left feeling reflective.

The show, written by 19 year old Shelagh Delaney, is being performed in the West End for the first time in sixty years, and it tells the story of Helen (Jodie Prenger) and her 17 year old daughter Jo (Gemma Dobson), and their volatile relationship in 1950's Salford.

Helen wants love, and runs off to be with a car salesman, leaving Jo at home on her own.  Jo falls for Jimmie, a sailor who promises to marry her when he returns home on leave.  When things don't go as planned, Jo takes in Geoff as her new flat mate, and he looks after her until Helen returns.

The characters are all flawed, but intrinsically human.  There is love between mother and daughter but it is hidden behind a wall of ill feeling and resentment. Both women are hard and difficult to warm to, but they are each doing what they feel they need to do to survive.

The cast are all excellent and their performances are enhanced by the three piece jazz band who are onstage throughout the play, and the vocals of some of the cast during the performance.

The play is forthright about the issues of the day, and the social norms and expectations of Britain at that time.  Leaving the theatre you are aware that whatever is happening today in our still imperfect world, things have more forward a lot in the last sixty years.

The show is on a limited run until 29 February 2020.
For tickets visit  www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

Matilda The Musical - Review

                                                              Matilda The Musical Review

This week as we celebrate what would have been Roald Dahl's birthday I was fortunate enough to go and see the new cast in Matilda the Musical, the show which has been gracing London's West End since 2011.

The show tells the story of Matilda Wormwood, the exceptionally, intelligent, little girl who, although treated badly by her family, won't tolerate unfairness directed against others.

The show is musical, family entertainment at it's best.  Elliot Harper plays the villainous headteacher Miss Trunchball to perfection, ensuring the character doesn't become a cliched pantomime villain.  Every single one of the schoolchildren were fantastic, and led beautifully by Tilly Raye-Bayer as Matilda. Gina Beck is the caring teacher Miss Honey trying to make Matilda's parents Connor Lewis and Marianne Benedict see her worth.

I took my 13 year old son to watch the show with me.  He had a great evening and especially loved the dance number on the children's first day of school.

Theatre is about escapism and Matilda gives you that with lots of laughs, catchy musical numbers and fun for the whole family in a Roald Dahl classic story.

Bookings are now being taken until December 2020 at the Cambridge Theatre.
For tickets visit  www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

Heartbeat of Home - Review

                                                        Review  - Heartbeat of Home



You start with the banging of the shoes as they make the unique sound that can only come from the shoes worn in Irish dancing, and once you are held by the beat and the music, then the dancing erupts into life. 

In London's Piccadilly Theatre, the creators of Riverdance have made another dance spectacular, but this intertwines traditional Irish dancing with Contemporary, Latin and Hip Hop.

There is energy and athleticism from all of the 33 dancers, as the show mixes huge ensemble pieces with those just using one or two dancers.  The footwork, pace and beauty of the movement holds you entranced and the audience were cheering throughout.  All the styles of dances were combined during the show, but the Irish feel was never lost.

Narration at the beginning of the story talks about finding a home, but there was nothing else said until the beginning of the second half.  It was a shame as it made the dances disjointed, but it did improve in the second half, as the show moved forward in time.

There is something magical about dance that transports you away from the real world.  The audience marveled at the intricate steps and balletic moves, which seemed to be going at 100 mph, but added to this were beautiful costumes and great music.  For anyone who loves dance, this is a must see show.

Heartbeat of Home is on a limited run from 4th September  until 13th October 2019.
For ticket information visit: https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

Tina - The Tina Turner Musical

                                                        Review of Tina - The Tina The Musical

Take a rag to riches story of a child with a difficult upbringing who finds fame, but at a huge personal cost, and after years of abuse leaves her husband with only 36 cents to her name.  Starting again with nothing and struggling to pay her bills and feed her children, she makes it, finding success on a much higher level, and finds true love alongside her success.  This could be Hollywood at it's best, but it is actually the true story of Anne Mae Bullock, or as she is better known, Tina Turner, and this is the story behind Tina, the Tina Turner Musical.

Nkeki Obi-Melekwe is superb as Tina.  She manages to convey the innocence of the young Tina, the scared wife of Ike, and the strong woman who survives and flourishes as an independent solo artist.

The strength of  Tina's character and her resilience shines through.  Nkeki's voice is deep and gravelly as she sings all the classics.

Alongside Nkeki, Ashely Zhangazha is Ike Turner, the man who discovers Tina and goes on to marry her.  The show does not shy away from the reality of his relationship with Tina and it is another strong performance.

There are many important people in Tina's life, from her sister, her two sons, her manager Rhonda, the legendary Phil Spectre and Erwin Bach to name but a few.  All the people who have had an impact on her are here to fill in the gaps and the whole cast gives a strong performance.

I really enjoyed the show.  It was moving, funny and searingly honest.  The musical performances are fantastic and some of the choreography makes you exhausted just watching it!  A couple of sing-along songs at the end left the audience buzzing and I would highly recommend seeing the show.

Currently playing at the Aldwych Theatre, bookings are being taken until January 2020.

For more information or to book tickets visit https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk/tina-musical-tickets

Review - Man of La Mancha

Man of La Mancha

With an impressive cast in the setting of the beautiful London Coliseum, I went to see the Man of La Mancha as the show returns to the West End for the first time in fifty years.

The musical tells a story within a story as Miguel De Cervantes / Don Quixote (Kelsey Grammer) is imprisoned with his servant Sancho Panza (Peter Plolycarpou) awaiting trial during the Spanish Inquisition.  As the other prisoners try to steal his belongings he fights to keep his precious manuscript, and in order to do this, he tells them the story of Alonso Quijano, who believes he is the knight Don Quixote.  This leads us into the adventures of the man who pursues the beautiful Dulcinea (Danielle de Niese) fighting for his love and following the path he believes to be true.  Moving between the reality of the prison and the imagined world of Don Quixote is confusing in the beginning with a variety of different characters introduced, but this does settle down.

Overall there is a slow start to the show as Grammer persuades the Captain / Innkeeper (Nicholas Lyndhurst) to let him tell his tale, and really only picks up momentum before the interval.  However, the second half made up for this.  Danielle de Niese's brings vibrancy and strength to her character and her voice is beautiful as she outshines all the other performers on the stage.  Peter Polycarpou's role is limited but he ensures he brings all the humour he can from his character.

The one song everyone knows from this musical is the Impossible Dream and although Grammer does his best, it is obvious that he does not come from a musical theatre background.  However when it is repeated at the end of the play, there is a poignancy to the piece that gives the play a fitting ending.

The show is playing for a very limited season from 1st May until 8th June.

For bookings visit to https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

Everybody's Talking Great Things about Jamie

                                          Review  - Everybody's Talking About Jamie


In the real world there doesn't seem to be much joy at the moment.  Whatever you're politics, Brexit is polarising people and both in the UK and abroad everything in the news seems to be negative and worrying.  For me, theatre is an escape from this reality where I can lose myself for just over 2 hours and enter the world that the show is giving me.  If that show has a positive message of acceptance and inclusion, then this is even better.

Taken from a BBC documentary, this musical tells the story of 16 year old Jamie New, who is about to sit his GCSEs.  He has plans for his future, he wants to be a drag queen.  However, as he strives to achieve that goal he must first fight his first obstacle and be allowed to wear the clothes of his choice at his school prom.  To do this he has to persuade his teacher Miss Hedge (Hayley Tamadon).

With the love and support of family and close friends, we see his confidence grow, as he fights the prejudice of his father and the establishment to let the real Jamie New shine through.

Layton Williams is superb as Jamie.  He is funny and irreverent,  at times vulnerable, but also gutsy.  There is real joy in his performance. Jamie's friendship with his best friend Pritti (Sabrina Sandhu)  is sweet and genuine.  Polar opposites, they support and understand each other.

Jamie also feels that he has met a kindred spirit in Hugo Battersby (Shane Ritchie), especially when he tells him about the Legend of Loco Chanelle.

Even with this support, Jamie's biggest champions are his mother Margaret (Rebecca McKinnis) and Rae (Sejal Keshwala) who only want Jamie to be true to himself.

The strength of the bond between mother and son is shown in the beautifully haunting song 'My Son' which as a parent myself, brought me to tears.  There are also plenty of upbeat, catchy numbers, including 'Don't Even Know It' and 'Everybody's Talking About Jamie'.

This is an upbeat, fun show, with a positive message of acceptance.  You will leave singing the songs and with your day just that little bit brighter.

The show is currently running at the Appollo Theatre. 


For bookings visit to https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

Come From Away Worth Coming To See

                                                            Review - Come From Away


Like so many people, I can still remember exactly where I was when I found out about the horrific 9/11 terror attacks.  However, I wasn't aware that American airspace was closed in the immediate aftermath or of the 38 flights that had to land in the small town of Gander in Newfoundland.

Come From Away tells the story of the people who landed there, spending hours on their planes before they were allowed to disembark with only their hand luggage.  They were reliant on the kindness and generosity of the Canadian people for food, clothing and shelter.  The 10,000 residents suddenly had an additional 6,500 people to look after.  Some stayed for 5 days before they were able to continue their journeys.

This Broadway musical tells their story, with equal importance being given to both the locals and the thousands who descended upon them.  Every single member of the 12 strong cast brings a depth of feeling to their roles as both a Newfoundland resident and visitor, with warmth, sensitivity and also a lot of humour.

The music is uplifting, with real energy behind it.  The show runs straight through without any break and this gives the story the continuity that it needs.

I took my teenage son with me, and he came out saying it was the best show he had ever seen.  You can't get better praise than that!

The show is running at the Phoenix Theatre with bookings currently until September 2019.


For bookings visit to https://www.londonboxoffice.co.uk

                                                   FIDDLER ON THE ROOF - REVIEW

As I walked into the tiny Menier Chocolate Factory theatre and took my seat, people were walking past me getting water from the well, chatting and going about their daily tasks.  It felt as though I was in an alternate universe sitting in Anatevka at the start of the twentieth century.

The story revolves around Tevye (Andy Nyman).  Married to Golde (Judy Kuhn), he is living with his 5 daughters and as a poor milkman, trying to survive and look after his family. As part of an Orthodox, religious community, their world revolves around their Jewish faith and this is instilled in every element of their lives, with the opening song 'Tradition' showing this beautifully.

The town's matchmaker has matched his oldest daughter Tzeitel to the local, but much older butcher.  Despite Tevye agreeing to the match, Tzeitel pleads with her father to be allowed to marry the tailor.  During the course of the story the audience sees Tzeitel and Tevye's other daughters Hodel and Chava each find their own love, but in doing so they make Tevye question how far he feels he can accept the changes his daughters demand, and if he can reconcile them with his faith.

At its heart, this story is about family.  The 'Sabbath Prayer' at the Friday night table and Teye and Golde sing the beautiful 'Sunrise Sunset' during Tzeitel's wedding bring a sense of community and belonging. With the setting of the show on the floor and not on a raised stage, the audience become part of the celebrations and traumas that are suffered.

 Andy Nyman and Judy Kuhn, bring warmth and honesty to their roles as Tevye and Golde.  They are supported by a strong cast with great musical numbers during the wedding and the 'dream sequence'.  The memorable songs finish with the beautiful 'Anatevka' reminding everyone what home really means.

Fiddler on the Roof will be transferring to The Playhouse Theatre in March.