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Actor-producer Mónica Lopera and director Miguel Torres Umba talk London premiere of Colombian play ‘Goodbye’: “We all need to talk more openly about mental health, loneliness and connection”
One more year, Brixton House returns its flagship festival, championing new writing from diverse, international voices. Guillermo Nazara chats with the team behind the first English-language production of Alejandra Chamorro’s life-affirming play, discussing the challenges of reaching a culturally different audience and the difficulties Latin American and emerging theatre currently face in the London scene.…
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Artistic Director Sharon Willems talks premature closure of Arches Lane Theatre: “Culture and community can’t just be marketing talking points”
Despite last year’s takeover and its intent to breathe new life into the venue, the Arches Lane Theatre- formerly known as The Turbine -will go permanently dark at the end of the month following a unilateral termination by the development company. Guillermo Nazara chats with the woman behind the space’s latest iteration about the local…
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Writer and performer Derek Murphy talks new queer play ‘Mammy’s House’: “We’re only just starting to properly reckon with how much of this history was left undocumented”
Following a two-year research process featuring numerous conversations with its real-life protagonists, Upstairs at the Gatehouse welcomes this new play celebrating the lives, friendship, and resilience of Irish LGBT immigrants living in London during the AIDS crisis. Guillermo Nazara chats with its creator to learn more about the piece’s development and its uncanny resonance with…
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Review of ‘Deliver Us From Evil’: “New witch-trial play is no theatrical crucible”
Every story has been told. But not every story needs to be told again. Especially when they don’t have anything else to say; that’s the difference between a compelling reinterpretation and a derivative piece. The former speaks to a new audience with different lenses and its own voice. The latter shows no vision, and the…
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Review of ‘Tender’:”Scarring romance leaves no mark on its audience”
Don’t trust the title — for better and for worse. There’s nothing smooth about two wounded characters falling for each other, only for their story (spoiler alert) to break into pieces at the end. And it’s not like the script makes it too easy to masticate it either. There’s nothing inherently wrong about Eleanor Tindall’s…
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Actress Helena Devereux talks comedy show ‘Monarchs Anonymous’: “You are not being hit over the head with the history stick”
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 into this subject. How does…
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Review of ‘Camdenwalla’: “Good-hearted script makes the wrong calls”
All I can say is that they tried. And that their intentions were obviously good. But life can’t be built only on intentions. And neither can art. Or the attempts at it. There is something quite laudable about CAMDENWALLA, a play that honours the work and legacy of London’s first call centre help group for…
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Review of ‘Hot Pot’: “Simmering tension quickly goes cold”
It’s a hard swallow. Not because it’s too raw to digest. And definitely not because it comes across as too sugarcoated. The thing is, there are barely any flavours to analyse in Hongwei Bao’s overall bland play, which celebrated its world premiere at London’s Playhouse East last week and lacks the spice, heat, and elaborateness…
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Playwright Ryan Calais Cameron talks about becoming the first patron of Camden People’s Theatre: “If you only invest in what’s proven, you stop discovering what’s next”
With several widely acclaimed pieces to his credit, including Retrograde and For Black Boys, Ryan Calais Cameron has cemented his status as one of the most prominent authors of his generation. Now, the writer reconnects with his roots by becoming a benefactor to the venue that gave him the opportunity to set his artistic path.…
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Review of ‘Love Omar’: “Arabian night is hardly a stroke of genius”
I didn’t love him. Or like him. Just like I didn’t love or like this play either. It’s not a bad concept. But it’s a clumsy execution. Very clumsy. To the extent that, if it hadn’t been for the final 20 minutes, I wouldn’t know what the point of this piece is. Nor what it…
