Review: A Carribbean Dream dir. Shakirah Bourne

Even when Shakespeare has been done to death, it always amazes us how directors constantly come up with new ways to visualize the bard’s work. The latest iteration, A Caribbean Dream, adapts A Midsummer Night’s Dream into a Barbados, modern day setting, rife with the feel of the carnival, with plenty of big, colourful costumes to represent the fairy realm, and romance at the edge of … Continue reading Review: A Carribbean Dream dir. Shakirah Bourne

Review: Broken Vows dir. Bram Coppens

How wrong can a wedding go? Plenty, particularly when you’ve got an insane stalker hot on your heels, hell bent on ruining it. Broken Vows boasts an impressive cast, including Jaime Alexander, Wes Bentley and Cam Gigandet. We’ve seen these actors at their best in various other films, and one would expect them to flourish with the roles they’ve been saddled with in this film – … Continue reading Review: Broken Vows dir. Bram Coppens

Review: The Black Eye Club by Phil Charles

“He’s one of the girls!” shouts Zoe (Rebecca Pryle) innocuously – except in this world of misconceptions and boundaries, he (Christopher Sherwood) legally isn’t. Himself a victim of domestic abuse, Dave turns up late at night at a refuge only to be told by its night concierge (Cathryn Sherman) that the rooms are strictly women-only. Dave is a gay man, and thus terribly fascinating to Zoe who … Continue reading Review: The Black Eye Club by Phil Charles

Preview: The Black Eye Club by Phil Charles

LONDON – This November, the Bread and Roses Theatre presents the 2017 winner of the annual Bread & Roses Playwriting Award – Phil Charles’ stage debut The Black Eye Club. Charles himself is no stranger to writing, having written for TV series such as Shameless and Doctors, and the former homeless support worker and advertising copywriter was inspired to write the play after witnessing cuts to council budgets and the subsequent … Continue reading Preview: The Black Eye Club by Phil Charles

Review: Base dir. Richard Parry

B.A.S.E., at first glance, was the kind of film that I thought I would absolutely hate. Two daredevil best friends who do proximity flying all the time, refer to each other as ‘bro’, ‘found footage’ shot from a GoPro and of course, pants-wettingly terrifying shots of jumps from high points. But B.A.S.E. surprised me. Once you get past the initial introductions and get used to watching the action … Continue reading Review: Base dir. Richard Parry

Review: Deliver Us (Liberami) dir. Federica di Giacomo

This Halloween, prepare yourselves for a film that’s straight out of The X-Files. There’s a strange combination of ghoulish pleasure and horror as we witness a woman screaming in agony in the opening scenes of Liberami. As a wizened old priest touches her forehead, she lets loose a primal howl of pure pain, gnashing her teeth and growling like a feral animal. It’s precisely the sort of … Continue reading Review: Deliver Us (Liberami) dir. Federica di Giacomo

Review: 48 Hours to Live dir. Benny Boom

Teased as film noir meets dance, 48 Hours To Live focuses on visual and aural overload in its opening scenes, with exciting montages of a drug addled brain going into hyperdrive, reeling from the death of his sister. There are times it almost feels like an experimental film as it plays out in ‘tracks’, an extended music video for an EDM driven playlist. Essentially an update on … Continue reading Review: 48 Hours to Live dir. Benny Boom

Preview: The Jungle Book by Jessica Swale

LONDON – An all new adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s beloved classic The Jungle Book hits theatres this November. Written by Jessica Swale and directed by Max Webster, with music by internationally renowned jazz songwriter Joe Stilgoe, the production will premiere Royal & Derngate, Northampton on 28th November and runs till 31st December before embarking on a UK national tour, starting in Chichester. Last adapted as a live action … Continue reading Preview: The Jungle Book by Jessica Swale

Review: School Life dir. Neasa ni Chianain and David Rane

If you ever needed proof that Hogwarts is a real place, then look no further than Neasa ni Chianain and David Rane’s School Life. Only instead of spells being slung back and forth, this Irish boarding school lays claim to enchantment of a different kind: the magic of education. In School Life, viewers are introduced to senior teachers and couple John and Amanda, teaching legends who’re absolute favourites … Continue reading Review: School Life dir. Neasa ni Chianain and David Rane

Artist Spotlight: Performer Iain Gibbons

We’ve seen actor Iain Gibbons in many a fringe show now, from Rounds at the Blue Elephant Theatre to America’s No.1 Detective Agency off at the Drayton Arms Pub, and he’s always delighted us with his quirky sense of humour and ridiculously likable onstage presence. Now, Gibbons is going to get the stage all to himself, as the Gaulier-trained actor stars in his very own devised … Continue reading Artist Spotlight: Performer Iain Gibbons