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Review of ‘Hay Fever’ (Wyndham’s Theatre, 2026): “Drowsy performances are something to sneeze at”
“Don’t be so theatrical”, cries Christine Baranski’s son (only in fiction) as her character engages in one of her overdramatic tantrums. A confused audience chuckles. The thing is that she isn’t as flamboyant as her family tries to paint her. In fact, you may say that she isn’t flamboyant at all. Those who know her,…
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Review of ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’ (Soho Place, 2026): “Billy Crudup and Gillian Anderson are the hottest hot mess in town”
She’s finally done it. She’s no longer flat and boring as when she portrayed the nagging nonbeliever Dana Scully. And she isn’t the inaccurate caricature she played as Margaret Thatcher in The Crown. I must say I am really shocked. Surprised might be the word. And I shall add “pleasantly” to the description. Here comes…
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Review of ‘Rhythm Riot’ (Sadler’s Wells, 2026): “Superb middle section and satisfying conclusion make up for clunky opening”
This is the kind of show that proves how important it is to return after the interval. It’s not that Act One was appalling. But it wasn’t awe-striking either. Not by the standards of what the English National Ballet has offered us in the past. You can breathe a sigh of relief, however. This is…
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Review of ‘Darkling’: “Coming-of-age drama doesn’t reach maturity, and neither does the performance”
The pieces are all there. Some of them are properly assembled. Others (perhaps most) need further polishing for the whole thing to come together. Still, something pulsates about Darkling, a play that depicts the struggles of a disadvantaged Indian girl born into strict cultural traditions, culminating in the infamous Bhopal disaster that changed and, in…
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Review of ‘Table 17’: “Lacklustre rom-com isn’t out of date, but it isn’t flavourful either”
Maybe I’m just a cynic. Or maybe life has taught me well. But this isn’t the kind of story that melts my heart. Nor is it the type of humour that gets me. To be fair, I do enjoy a good romantic comedy. And this play features two of those three terms: there’s love (in…
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Review of ‘The Last Ship’: “Sting’s hulk of a musical sinks on its West End maiden voyage”
It flopped on Broadway. No wonder why. The reason has nothing to do with Americans not understanding the struggles of working-class Britons. The show is just bad. Terribly bad. From a sluggish plot devoid of grip and poignancy to a clueless, nondescript score, there are no redeeming features (or even a speck of adequacy) in…
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Review of ‘Present Laughter’ (2026, Richmond Theatre): “Gender-swapped revival is not that transgressive, but it’s remarkably funny”
Nothing says Noël Coward like a snowballing series of shenanigans featuring the most endearingly self-entitled characters anybody could ever imagine. And Present Laughter spares no expense in that department. Over 80 years after its original post-war incarnation, the play still shows how timeless Coward’s signature wit is, keeping its freshness and infectiousness intact—without a single…
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Review of ‘Golden Boy’ (2026, Almeida): “Striking revival pulls no punches back, and it’s a theatrical heavyweight”
Even if flawed, a classic is still a classic for a reason. And many make this play worthy of the title. It might not have aged all that well, not because of cultural sensitivities, but because of narrative conventions. What probably felt like gripping romance back then can feel clunky and cliched today. But that’s…
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Review of ‘Fire Fire’: “Promising premise doesn’t go up in smoke, but it doesn’t ignite the flame either”
Here comes another climate change play that’s surprisingly not preachy. For the record, I’m not part of the deniers’ group. But a call to action works only when you inspire people, not tell them what to do or think. Fortunately, John Webber demonstrates higher competence in that department, and the result is a gripping, introspective…
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Review of ‘Million Dollar Quartet’: “Plotless musical features sixteen tons of emptiness”
They’ve got Elvis. They’ve got Johnny Cash. And they’ve got Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. The only thing they don’t have is a plot. Call me fastidious, but without one of those, your chances of having a musical are slim—even Andrew Lloyd Webber, despite his dramatically insubstantial Cats and Starlight Express, will tell you…
