Category Archives: live show

Revisionist Shakespeare is off with the fairies

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Where: The Bridge Theatre, London Bridge, London

When: July 1-3 2025

What: A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

Today’s productions of William Shakespeare’s plays tend to fall into two categories. There are those which are archly modernist and revisionist. Then there are those which try to retain the spirit and art of the original manuscript – not in a hidebound sense, nor always in Elizabethan dress.

An example of the former would be most of the output of the Royal Shakespeare Company over recent years. Many reviews of their work can be found here on this site1. An example of the latter would be the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival:

“… no knee-bending to trendy revisionism… but rather a tour de force of Elizabethan drama”2

So, where would the current production at the Bridge Theatre fall? In the former or the latter?

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The New York Yankees in March / April – Part Two – The Pitchers (2024)

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And so we turn our attention to the Yankees pitchers. The starting rotation has had some necessary changes. The bullpen has changed beyond recognition.

Obviously, the major need is to cover for the absence because of injury of Gerrit Cole. He’ll be out until June.

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More Than Cool Reason Ever Comprehends – The Lunatic, the Lover, The Poet

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What: A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

Where: The Royal Shakespeare Theatre (RST), Stratford-Upon-Avon

Who: The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

When: February – March 2024

So, when I come to assess a production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, I am considering a play that I have acted in, directed and produced on a professional level. Whatever else this means, it means that I am coming to view a play that I have strong opinions about. I consider that I have a firm understanding of the play’s strengths.

This I think is important to establish in the critique I offer – not least because I think that Eleanor Rhodes’ direction of the play is remarkably uneven.

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What air’s from home. Haply this life is best

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What: Cymbeline by William Shakespeare

Where: The Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon (RST)

When: 22nd April-27 May, 2023

Who: The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

An excellent production!!

But that does need some explanation and clarification.

What do we have here?

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Steve Hackett – Dancing a Foxtrot in 2022

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What: Foxtrot at 50 and Hackett Highlights

Who: Steve Hackett and his band

Where: Hammersmith Apollo, London

When: October 12, 2022

Steve Hackett’s idea of incorporating his classic Genesis hits into his concert tours, setlist,and consequent live albums, has resulted in a commercial revival also. Prior to his Genesis Revisited II set in 2012, no album of his had charted in the UK for 15 years. Since then 12 of his albums (live and studio) have hit the UK top 100 album chart. His most recent release reached no. 28 in the charts. They don’t hang around for long, but it keeps his name in the public eye and these tours are at a reasonable profile.

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For Thou Mayest See a Sunshine and a Hail in me at once

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What: All’s Well That Ends Well by William Shakespeare

Where: The Royal Shakespeare Theatre (RST), Stratford-upon-Avon

When: August 22-28 2022 (runs until late October 2022)

Who: The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

William Shakespeare’s “All’s Well That Ends Well” is, they say, a problem play. Having read all the main literature on that subject, I’m still not convinced on that subject, but this I do know – the RSC’s current production of it makes it more of a problem than it needs to be.

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The King’s Name is a Tower of Strength

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What: Richard III by William Shakespeare

Where: The Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon

When: Late June to early July 2022

Who: The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)

This is a very good RSC production. It fades a little in the final third but on the whole, it has much to offer. And frankly, if you look through my recent reviews of the Stratford-Upon-Avon-based theatre, it hasn’t been too often I have been able to say that in the last 5 years.

Of course, the shutdown because of the pandemic has affected the percentages, but some productions have been a real struggle.

The recent Much Ado Nothing had some good sections. Measure for Measure and the Comedy of Errors were absolutely excellent, and far, far beyond my expectations. But, most often the RSC seems to have been embroiled in experimentation, tricky notions and slightly bizarre shapes for their own shape.

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Working My Way Back to You…!

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Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons at the Royal Albert Hall in London, July 2022

I wasn’t born when the 4 Seasons first came to prominence in the early ’60s. By the time they made their second time around in the ’70s, I was still young but an admirer of their harmonies and the beautifully structured songwriting.

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Out of Hell… And Back into Hell Again

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Bat out of Hell – The Musical, touring version

January – November 2022 (various venues)

  1. If I have seen the show before (during its two West End stints), what differences will I notice?

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Your Jest is Earnest… I familiarly sometimes do use you for my fool and chat with you.

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What: The Comedy of Errors by William Shakespeare

When: July 21 and 22, 2021

Where: The Lydia and Manfred Gorvy Garden Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon

Who: The Royal Shakespeare Company

William Shakespeare’s play “The Comedy of Errors” is a better play than many believe and the Royal Shakespeare Company current production of it is better than I expected…

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