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Co-Founder of Guildford Shakespeare Company and performer Sarah Gobran talks 20th anniversary season: “There’s simply nothing quite like experiencing Shakespeare outdoors”
With a well-established legacy as pioneers in their hometown, the group celebrates their latest milestone with a special double-bill production delivered in collaboration with the Orange Tree Theatre. Guillermo Nazara chats with the artist to learn more about their work over the last two decades, upcoming projects, and how their newest show connects one of…
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Review of Fantasia Orchestra’s ‘From Mahler to Manhattan’: “Tribute to golden classics shines with its own gilt”
It’s hard to describe beauty when it transcends words. And that’s the ongoing struggle that, as a critic, I often face when reviewing a classical music concert — especially when there’s so much brilliance in it. As my second encounter with the young but fast-growing Fantasia Orchestra, my expectations for high quality were reasonably cemented.…
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Review of ‘Arcadia’: “Revival of Stoppard classic is a theatrical locus amoenus”
This might not be the most gripping plot you’ll ever find. But that doesn’t make the writing any less exquisite. For some, that’s what defines a Tom Stoppard play. And that may be part of his genius. Stories that do not necessarily brim with excitement but whose introspective power makes up for anything else you…
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Review of ‘-320°F’: “Frozen-in-place narrative doesn’t send shivers down audience’s spine”
I commend art that challenges its audience. But that shouldn’t mean trying their patience. Sadly, that’s all you get after sitting through a two-and-a-half-hour Japanese-spoken performance — with no available break and a persistently obstructed screen as the only means to understand what the actors are saying. If you consider the fact that the story…
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Review of ‘Malory Towers’: “Low-grade adaptation barely has a pass”
The mob has spoken. Or so they claim. It’s not like the theatre was packed on the night I attended. Yet, I will admit there was a considerable number of children- girls, primarily -holding their favourite editions of Enid Blyton’s popular book series, ready to immerse themselves in the magic of a 1940s Cornwall boarding…
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Creative Romain Rachline Borgeaud talks London return of ‘STORIES’: “I want people to build their own plot”
Following a complete sellout during its latest London stay, the show returns to the Peacock Theatre for the autumn season, where it will play a two-week run before embarking on a national tour. Guillermo Nazara chats with the piece’s composer, director, and choreographer to learn more about the piece’s development and what makes it a…
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Director Yngvild Aspeli talks Plexus Polaire’s new production ‘Dracula – Lucy’s Dream’: “I was interested in how the story reveals the complexity of being human”
Known for its visually arresting puppet-based productions such as Moby Dick (Barbican), the company heads to this year’s Edinburgh Fringe festival with this new proposal based on Stoker’s classic novel. Guillermo Nazara chats with the show’s director to learn more about its development and their decision to sink their teeth in this subject. How does…
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Review of ‘Archduke’: “Regicidal comedy doesn’t seize the crown”
Someone’s plotting murder on the Royal Court stage this month. And someone has got away with it. So far, nobody’s been killed. But something has — repeatedly. Those who have sat through this tongue-in-cheek political drama dealing with the assassination of Austrian royalty, Franz Ferdinand, might have already guessed what I’m talking about. And chances…
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Review of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ (Regent’s Open Air Theatre, 2026): “Rustic production comes out too mechanical”
Comparisons are odious. But what else can you do if two major productions of arguably Shakespeare’s most popular comedy are running in London at the same time? Especially, if one of them is faultless and all you can say about the other, if you want to be kind, is that at least they tried. And…
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Review of ‘Relics’: “Family-matters play is rather urkel”
Money brings out the worst in people. And sometimes, the worst in art, too. That is, if anyone is able to find it in Ben Ockrent’s latest attempt at dark comedy, whose thought-provoking premise fails to translate into compelling storytelling, and whose soap-operatic style confuses grip and variety with campiness and an overloaded plot. Four…
