Stan Graham's Leisure Guide for North and West Yorkshire
I am being spoiled for comedy this week, what with Consumed on Thursday and Black Tie Ball tonight. Both were hilarious and both relied on stereotypes, doesn’t most comedy, but they couldn’t have been more different. I wrote that Consumed took stereotypes and turned them on their head, whereas Black Tie reinforces the initial opinion…
Read More
This past six weeks or so have been a case of feast or famine insofar as the world of theatre is concerned. August was definitely a famine – and drought – with only one engagement in the whole month; September, however, brings the feast – and the rain! When it comes to feasts there can…
Read More
The more observant amongst you will have noticed that I classified this play under the heading Comedy, which indeed it was, but there was so much more to it than a laughfest. The whole production was set – pardon the pun – in the kitchen/diner of a house on the occasion of Great Grandma’s 90th…
Read More
There is an old saying that you should always beware of what you wish for – you might just have it answered. Normally this is a warning that something which might seem like a good thing, can go disastrously wrong. I recently reviewed War Horse at Leeds Grand Theatre and started by saying that it…
Read More
After a very quiet August, it was great to get back to work, and what better way than with a play staged within walking distance of home which ended at the civilised time of 9.20pm. The Signalman is based on a short novel by Charles Dickens, which was part of a collection called The Mugby…
Read More
There are times when I wish I didn’t write theatre reviews, not many I grant you, but this was one of them. Not because I thought that the play was bad, far from it, it was absolutely superb, ironically that was the problem. Instead of concentrating on the different elements which make up a great…
Read More
It’s been five years since the last Slung Low Shorts, but well worth the wait. The venue has changed to The Warehouse at Holbeck but the standard of plays hasn’t. The Producers Mark Catley, Jonathan Hall and Lisa Holdsworth have brought together some of the finest local actors and writers to stage five short pieces…
Read More
Another week, another end of academic year celebration, this time showcasing the talents of Leeds Grand Youth Theatre. I recently saw The Maladies, which was presented by the alumni of Leeds Actors In Training, featuring the age group 18-25; Leeds Grand Youth Theatre comprises the younger aspiring actors in the 8-18 bracket. Both of these…
Read More
There seems to be no more appropriate time and place for this classic musical to be performed than now, in Leeds. The time, because the themes concern antisemitism, persecution and forced displacement, by Imperialist Russia in the area which is now Ukraine. The place, because Leeds used to have a large Jewish community, which helped…
Read More
I am writing this article the day following the Lionesses retaining their Women’s European Championship after extra time and penalties. Had the men’s team enjoyed even a fraction of the success gained by the women, this play by Christopher Wollaton may have turned out much differently. The piece is a two-hander, starring the playwright and…
Read More
Tyke It To The Limit 