DV8’s latest production, JOHN arrives the West Yorkshire playhouse 22-24th October. Renowned for their powerful work and influence within physical theatre, DV8 are back with a hard-hitting and thought-provoking new work. Creator, Lloyd Newson sent […]
Review: Richard III at the West Yorkshire Playhouse
The West Yorkshire Playhouse’s adaption of Shakespeare’s Richard III is likely to be one of their biggest draws this season, as it should be. After all, Shakespeare can be argued to be the linchpin of […]
A feminist fairy tale – Interview with ‘Mermaid’ director Polly Teale
Of all the best-known European fairy tales, Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid is arguably the most problematic. The story of a young mermaid who leaves behind everything she has ever known, changes her appearance, […]
Irving Berlin musical ‘White Christmas’ hits all the right notes
Image: West Yorkshire Playhouse The West Yorkshire Playhouse’s production of jukebox musical White Christmas, featuring the songs of Irving Berlin, has extended its run due to popular demand, proving that tried and tested formulas […]
We talk to Oliver Thompsett about ‘jukebox musicals’ ahead of his new show White Christmas
The first time I saw Oliver Tompsett he was in a wheelbarrow. Wearing a red waistcoat and a pair of the West End’s tightest trousers, his swaggering entrance as Fiyero in hit Wizard of Oz […]
The Kite Runner tries to match the novel too perfectly
Turning a novel such as The Kite Runner in to a theatre production was never going to be easy. Spanning almost a lifetime, three countries and the tumultuous events of recent Afghan history, The Kite […]
Private Peaceful is a deeply moving portrayal of a young boy’s transition during the war
Acclaimed children’s author Michael Morpurgo’s book-turn-play ‘Private Peaceful’ is an arresting, deeply moving performance that charters one soldier’s last hours before his execution by firing squad. Accused of desertion, Peaceful is sentenced to death and […]
Theatre | My Perfect Mind – a beautifully told story that switches between depricating self-portrait and a frail, heartwrenching King Lear
Images: Manuel Harlan In 2007, classically trained actor Edward Petherbridge suffered two strokes while preparing to play King Lear in New Zealand. The attacks left him partially paralysed, and put the role of a lifetime […]
Features | DIY – Make your own theatre company
Bethany Taylor talks about starting a theatre company at the age of 18. Called Cognito Theatre, the company was created with the intention of using performance to tackle and discuss current issues. Their first project […]
Theatre | Spring Awakening – the infamous play gets an evocative modern update
Image: West Yorkshire Playhouse The West Yorkshire Playhouse’s adaptation of Spring Awakening, first performed in 1906, is not for the fainthearted. The line “when I first came, I became an atheist” does not even begin […]
Theatre | Of Mice and Men – the American masterpiece comes to the WYP
Image: West Yorkshire Playhouse With a jarringly off-key wail, Heather Christian ushered in the Mark Rosenblatt era at the West Yorkshire Playhouse, on a night when the American dream flickered and then died an undignified […]
Interview | Ekow Quartey – Spring Awakening Star
An exciting and contemporary version of Wedekind’s Spring Awakening is bursting onto stage at the West Yorkshire Playhouse next month. Provocative and unnerving, the play depicts the confusion and intensity of teenage life today. The […]