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Washing the dust – 1

April 17, 2026 in Flotsam and Jetsam | No comments

“The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls”.

Pablo Picasso

There have been years – probably too many in all honesty – in which the winter and early spring months have seen life’s dust accumulate upon our souls just that little bit too briskly.

Exposure to the arts may not truly require that much of an effort, but those of us of ‘un certain âge‘ are doubtless sometimes guilty of hibernational tendencies when is comes to our artistic intake during these dark months.

Not so this year! We have already been out and about a fair bit – and the dust of daily life has been well and truly disturbed.

Herewith a few highlights:

The threatre season at The Belfry started in February with Tawiah M’Carthy and Brad Cook’s excellent ‘Maanomaa, My Brother’. The Belfry’s notes reveals this:

“Childhood friends Kwame and Will reunite in Ghana for the funeral of a loved one, and discover how much has changed since they separated 25 years earlier. Telling their story in a beautiful combination of dialogue and movement, the play is both fiercely personal and curiously abstract. It’s a meditation on grief and diaspora starring playwrights M’Carthy and Cook“.

This is an extraordinarily beautiful and moving piece of writing, brought fiercely to life by its authors. The writing and performance are excellent and I for one was delighted that the production did not shy away from the theatrical – something that to my mind is all too prevalent these days.

Neither The Girl nor I care for the west coast habit of leaping to one’s feet at the end of a show to award a generous ovation. We cleave to the British view that standing ovations should be reserved for the truly exceptional.

In this case, however, we were both on our feet!

At the opposite end of the theatrical scale The Girl and I travelled with dear friends, one weekend in March, to the mainland for the ‘Broadway Across Canada‘ touring production of ‘Les Misérables‘ at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Vancouver.

Now, The Girl and I – separately and together – have both seen ‘Les Mis‘ on many occasions, stretching right back to the show’s transfer to the West End in London from the RSC’s home at the Barbican in 1985.

That we have done so should not be taken as a sign of obsessive reverence for the piece – though we have always enjoyed it. The reality is more prosaic. In the decade that we lived together in the UK we were visited on a pleasing number of occasions by travellers from Canada. When asked what they would like to see in London, ‘a musical‘ was always near the top of the list. ‘Les Mis‘ proved to be a reliably satisfactory way of fulfilling that desire.

With regard to the Vancouver touring production – the show provided its accustomed magic, but we did miss the full-stage revolve that had been such a integral and bold feature of the original show’s staging.

On the other hand – it was good to hear a full 16 piece orchestra featured in this production. Many modern presentations save money by utilising a heavily stripped down pit band.

On which subject – next time, music!

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Doing new things

April 12, 2026 in Flotsam and Jetsam | No comments

“The goal of education is not to increase the amount of knowledge but to create the possibilities for a child to invent and discover, to create men who are capable of doing new things”

Jean Piaget

 

Gentle readers may recall (said he optimistically!) that in a post entitled ‘Safe Harbour‘ and uploaded to this site during the grim depths of February, I drew attention to the presence in my customary New Year anthology of some of the choices that The Girl and I are now making in relation to our general (and specific) well-being.

Diet and exercise were certainly mentioned – and will be returned to as the year progresses. Down (or, sadly more accurately ‘right‘) sizing, along with ‘getting our affairs in order‘, were also on that agenda. Hmm!

None of these tasks is, however, is the subject of this note. That distinction belongs to this cryptic announcement – from the above-mentioned posting:

“I have now done two productions with the Peninsula Players (as Musical Director) and I am into my second year on the Executive Committee. I have a new venture to report in this space – so look out for that also”.

What strangeness might lurk behind that by that enigmatic pronouncement?

Read on…

I have been fortunate enough – during my days upon this planet – to have been involved in many capacities with the true amateur worlds of music and the dramatic arts. I have written plays and composed musicals. I have many times been the director or musical director of productions. I have been a pit musician and I have also stood on the stage in my own right. I have taught drama and run a youth theatre.

What I have not done – and am adamant that I am not equipped to do – is to tread the boards as an actor myself.

Until now!

At the first executive meeting of the year of the Peninsula Players the assembled company were canvassed for interest a different sort of production. Our local radio station, Radio Sidney, has been granted federal funding to create a radio drama – in the form of a ten part serial – concerning a topic of interest to this and many other communities… that of financial fraud as perpetrated upon the elderly.

The dramatisation that has resulted is drawn from an actual case in which an elderly English ex-pat living in Canada was preyed upon by unscrupulous fraudsters and ended up losing his house. The serialisation of this sorry tale is to include discussion segments with appropriate experts – producing over all a most valuable and timely resource.

The reason for its mention at the Peninsula Players meeting was that those recording the drama were in need of voice-actors to play the various parts… including one reasonably well brought up Englishman of a certain age who is the main victim of the criminals.

I feel sure that I have made mention before, somewhere in these postings, of my personal philosophy that is to say ‘Yes!‘ as much as possible if and when new challenges arise. Though I had not previously done any voice-acting I have done a great deal of recorded reading over the years. I therefore submitted to the audition process, was offered the part and as a result enjoyed the fascinating experience of playing a less fortunate version of myself.

In truth I have no idea whether or not I did a good job – though those in charge seemed satisfied. I was, however, most grateful for the opportunity.

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Safe harbour

February 9, 2026 in Life as we know it | Permalink

Photo by Andy Dawson Reid“A ship in harbour is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.”

John A. Shedd

High time to wrap up the New Year’s reflection and to get on with living the year itself:

If there is one thing of which we can be sure in this volatile day and age, it is that nothing now is certain. Making predictions as to how the year might unfold is most probably a fool’s errand. That having been said the following ventures are at least at some stage in the planning:

  • Something that I did not mention in my recent review of 2025 was that both The Girl (and to a lesser extent I) struggled during the year with various health related matters. I don’t want to overplay these issues because we are, after all, both getting older and some of our concerns really do just go with the territory. We are determined, nonetheless, to take steps to ensure that we do better in 2026 and beyond. We will be working on diet, exercise and general health during the year. I will, naturally, be reporting back on our progress.
  • We thought long and hard about spending another week in the sun this February. As ever it would have been good to have felt the warmth on our shoulders, but thus far (fingers crossed) this has been a mild winter on the west coast of Canada and there is not quite the same urgency so to escape the season as has been the case in some previous years.
  • Also, we decided early on to put all of our efforts this year into an expedition further afield. The Girl has been working hard at one of the many things at which she excels and plans are well advanced. Again, I will report back once things have been firmed up. Most likely that trip will take place in September/October.
  • This is the first full year of retirement for us both and we are still adjusting to the fact. Thus far we seem to have been even busier than when we were working (the which makes no sense to me at all
  • We will slowly continue to ‘right-size’ the clutter that seems to attend modern life. More on that soon
  • We intend spending as much time as we can with family and friends and we will, of course, be aiming to attend as many artistic events as is feasible. Some have already been booked and more are to come
  • I have now done two productions with the Peninsula Players (as Musical Director) and I am into my second year on the Executive Committee. I have a new venture to report in this space – so look out for that also.
  • There will certainly be more music making this year and there are indeed already things upon which I should be reporting. Look for further postings soon
  • We will definitely aim to entertain in our garden just as much as the weather allows

OK – enough with the ruminating – let’s get to work (and play)!

 

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Sir Tom Stoppard

November 30, 2025 in Life as we know it | Permalink

Sir Tom Stoppard
1937 – 2025
RIP

<a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Stoppard_02.jpg" target="_blank">"This work"</a> by <a>Gorup de Besanez</a> is licensed under <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0" target="_blank">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>Those who are no strangers to rambling the raggle-taggle byways of this eclectic journal will doubtless have observed that I am in the habit of marking the passing of those who have – through their words, works or actions – had a significant impact upon my life and consciousness. For example, when Brian Wilson passed away earlier this year I wrote the following:

“Whenever I post one of these messages lamenting the loss of one of the great figures of my (or the adjacent) generation(s) I do so with sadness but also with gratitude for their influence as ‘hero’ figures throughout my formative years. My aim is to compose something that captures their personal importance for me. Sometimes, however, no words can be found that are truly capable of expressing the extent of the loss”.

That being said, until yesterday I had not experienced (since starting this blog back in 2012) the passing of one of the truly paramount figures that I have followed, whose influence has been as hard to calculate as their loss is impossible to comprehend. Some of our heroes just feel as though they ought to be immortal. Since hearing the news yesterday of the death of Sir Tom Stoppard the only term that I can think of that comes close to capturing my feelings on the scale of the loss of is ‘devastated’.

I first encountered the works of Sir Tom Stoppard – England’s preeminent playwright for considerably more than half a century – back in the mid 1960s. Tom’s breakthrough play – ‘Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead’ was premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe in 1966 and at the Old Vic in London in 1967. Faber and Faber published a playscript of the work in 1967 and I came across it in the senior school library at my grammar school when I joined the seniors back in 1968 or 1969.

I had never read anything like ‘Rosencrantz and Guildenstern‘ and it completely changed my then ingenuous view of what theatre could do and what it might be. Tom was a brilliant thinker and writer and had the facility of approaching difficult subjects in ways that gave the impression that the ideas concerned were much simpler than they in fact were. He dealt with intellectual topics with humour and a lightness of touch that carried audiences with him. Amongst his many awards his Oscar for the brilliant screenplay of the timeless ‘Shakespeare in Love’ was well deserved.

in addition to reading and attending performances of just about all of his plays, I have directed a number of them myself, including The Real Inspector Hound, Every Good Boy Deserves Favour and The Real Thing. I would have loved to have directed ‘Arcadia’ – perhaps his masterpiece.

I was fortunate enough to have met Sir Tom twice – at first night receptions for ‘Indian Ink’ and for ‘The Invention of Love’. On the second occasion – reinforcing the belief that one perhaps might best not meet one’s heroes – I embarrassed us both by declaring that I considered him to be a genius.

I am finding it really difficult to contemplate a world in which Sir Tom Stoppard is no longer living and working. A precious light has gone out.

Rest in peace Sir Tom.

 

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…and then it’s gone!

October 22, 2025 in Life as we know it | Permalink

“I like the ephemeral thing about theatre, every performance is like a ghost – it’s there and then it’s gone”.

Maggie Smith

This post brings up to date my recent communication regarding the theatrical events that we were lucky enough to attend this year.

Back in the day – a goodly period before The Girl and I finally relocated to Victoria – we had, nonetheless, commenced a series of visits to British Columbia as part of what one might consider a softening up process prior to actually getting down to the business of emigrating.

On one of these expeditions we spent a few nights in Vancouver and took advantage of the opportunity to attend a performance at the annual Shakespeare event – ‘Bard on the Beach‘ – which takes place in Vanier Park overlooking English Bay.

On a few select nights of the year the performances co-incide with the spectacular “Festival of Light” firework displays over English Bay – and one may so order things that the performance of the play (“A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in this instance) might be book-ended by a thoroughly decent repast and the joyous release of pyrotechnics.

This we duly did…

In the ten years since we moved to Canada, however, we had not – until this year – repeated any part of that experience.

The reasons for this come down largely to logistics and the expense of the trip. Vancouver is close enough to us as the raven flies (or as the orca swims) but when one factors in the show itself and eating and the time it takes for everything to happen one usually ends up booking a hotel room for a night or two and making a proper junket of it…

…which all costs money!

This year our attention was drawn to a production of “Two Gentlemen of Verona”  re-set in the 1980s. Reviews were good and – even though we could not make any of the firework evenings work – we decided that we wanted to see the show. The Girl being who she is she immediately applied herself – and came up with a cunning plan!

It worked like this:

We would drive to Swartz Bay (10 minutes) and park the car. We would then sail to Tsawwassen on the mainland (90 minutes) – as foot passengers on the ferry. Having arranged for an Uber to pick us up at the terminal we would be whisked to Vanier Park in time for a quick lunch at the festival site and a matinee of the show. Afterwards it was a simple matter of reversing the process (eating on the ferry home) and turning a major expedition into a mere day out.

Well – everything worked out exactly as planned and we found ourselves still pleasantly fresh upon our arrival home.

“But what of the show?” – I hear you cry…

The show was a lot of fun and, as I say, the reviews were positive. These extracts are from from Julie Hammonds (author of ‘Blue Mountain Rose‘):

  • The Play: The Two Gentlemen of Verona
  • Hot Quote: “They do not love that do not show their love.”  ~Julia
  • The Company: Bard on the Beach, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
  • The Stage: An elaborate set in a walled circus tent, with a view of distant mountains and sky. The audience sits comfortably in padded chairs on risers, with excellent sightlines.
  • Memorable for: The ending, which I won’t spoil. I want to! But I won’t.
  • With apologies to all the excellent human actors, the Scene-stealer Award goes to Mason the Dog (playing Crab), who yawned during Launce’s first long speech and brought the house down. I suspect dogs have been stealing this show since the first performance.

With a set splashed in bubblegum colors, costumes straight from the Jane Fonda Workout, and visual references to movies like Say Anything (1989), Vancouver’s Bard on the Beach delivers a joyful, nontraditional take on The Two Gentlemen of Verona. A 1980s aesthetic infuses the production. Boom boxes pound out the Billboard Hot 100 circa 1985. The female leads, Julia and Sylvia, wear long, curly side ponytails that would make Madonna proud. The hilarious Scott Bellis plays Launce as Doc from Back to the Future.

The male leads, Proteus and Valentine, are teenagers on their first trip away from home. Love and loss, friendship and jealousy are in play, but the stakes seem low because unlike in other Shakespeare plays, these aren’t kings and queens. They’re just kids taking risks, disobeying their parents, and learning that we can hurt people we love with our words and actions.

Angie Rico of ‘Stir‘ adds this with regard to the play’s troublesome ending:

One of the queasier legacies of vintage teen movies is how often they brushed past consent for the sake of comedy. The original ending of the The Two Gentlemen of Verona carries a similar kind of whiplash: a near-assault, quickly forgiven, and everyone paired off like nothing happened. This production, without adding a single line to the ending, shifts the whole tone subtly but decisively, and to more satisfying effect. 

So – good show all round!

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It’s there…

October 15, 2025 in Life in BC | Permalink

“I like the ephemeral thing about theatre, every performance is like a ghost – it’s there and then it’s gone”.

Maggie Smith

As promised but a few posts back – herewith a brief disquisition (please forgive the contradiction in terms – it feels longer than it is!) on our theatrical experiences thus far this year.

Regular attendees to this forum will be well aware that The Girl and I have always been avid theatre goers. Indeed, one of the things that we really do miss from the Old Country is the sheer extent, variety and boldness of the theatrical fare on offer in London and elsewhere in the UK.

With a considerably smaller oeuvre upon which to call it is perhaps inevitable that, on occasion, we find ourselves a little disappointed by the quality and vision of the offerings here in Victoria. We are enthusiasts for The Belfry Theatre and continue to hold season tickets there, but we find the programming to be, on occasion, uneven and the theatre’s perhaps understandable emphasis on contemporary Canadian writing to feel somewhat parochial.

We did, however, enjoy Anosh Irani’s “Behind the Moon” back at the start of the year and, even more so, the most recent production; Michael Healey’s clever political comedy, “1979“. This brilliantly written and acted piece would have been entertaining regardless, but to one such as I – a neophyte when it comes to Canadian political history – this examination of the political career of Canada’s youngest prime minister, Joe Clark, was fascinating and inevitably prescient. As a theatrical device I particularly enjoyed the manner in which the projected captions had a voice all of their own.

Arguably, the best production that we have seen at the Belfry thus far this year was not one of their own at all. Two Victoria companies – Puente Theatre and Blue Bridge Repertory Theatre – joined forces to launch the ‘Great Works Theatre Festival‘. Of this venture they say:

“The Great Works Theatre Festival is a ground-breaking new initiative dedicated to bold interpretations and adaptations of the world’s great theatrical works. By joining forces, both companies aim to enrich Victoria’s cultural landscape and foster artistic collaboration through fresh takes on timeless classics“.

The festival’s inaugural season featured two works, staged at The Belfry; Federico García Lorca’s ‘Blood Wedding‘ (in a new version by Mercedes Bátiz-Benét) and David Hirson’s 1991 comedy, ‘La Bête‘ (‘The Beast‘). We saw the latter back in August and were mightily impressed. Of the production Christine van Reeuwyk wrote in the Peninsula News Review:

“David Hirson’s 1992 Olivier Award-winning comedy is set on the estate of Princess Conti in 1654 Languedoc, France. The play is an homage to the man who is considered France’s greatest playwright and satirist Jean-Baptiste Poquelin – better known by his stage name, Moliere. Revolving around the attempt by a royal patron to introduce a megalomaniac street performer and playwright into one of France’s most respected theatre ensembles, La Bete is a contemporary comic masterpiece that skewers a world that has gone mad with the thrall of ego“.

“Audiences attending La Bête will experience a virtual hurricane of words,” director Brian Richmond said in a news release. “Thoughtful words, complex words but, mostly, hysterically funny words placed in a structure of perfectly rhymed couplets that mirror the form and practice of the French theatre of the 17th century. Although utilizing the lush scenery and costumes present in France at the height of its power, we could have just as easily set the production in the City of Babel or modern day Washington, DC, so timeless is its satirical focus.”

The street performer – Valere – was played in this production by the extraordinary Britt Candide Small, who won a well deserved ovation for her delivery of the stunning 30 minute monologue in iambic pentameter which is the centrepiece of the first part of the show.

The blog – ‘Haska’s Haunt‘ – says of the production:

“Where audiences have so often seen pared down, two-hander, black box shows, the richness of this production feels almost surprising, but every detail included was utilized. Every bit of stage magic, every piece of costuming, every character was there with purpose, and it all contributed to a work that can easily be revisited and has so much to enjoy”.

“Hear, hear” – say I!

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Dame Maggie Smith

September 30, 2024 in Life as we know it | Permalink

Dame Maggie Smith

1934 – 2024

RIP

Kebl0597, CC BY-SA 2.5 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5>, via Wikimedia CommonsThe British thespian profession has always punched well above it’s weight – from the secularisation of drama that followed the Reformation onward. This extraordinary tide has shown no sign of abating; long may the trend continue.

In recent times the Brits have furnished the dramatic universe with an abundance of fierce talents, particularly when it comes to those great ladies of the dramatic arts. We have been blessed with more than our fair share of ‘national treasures’.

Sadly, this weekend saw the passing of one of the greatest of those treasures – the brilliant Dame Maggie Smith. I saw her first many decades back in the film adaptation of the Muriel Spark novel – ‘The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie‘ – in which she was, naturally, excellent. That has been the case, of course, with pretty much everything to which she turned her hand.

In the few days since her passing much has already been written in her praise. Rather than re-hash any of these eulogies here I recommend that you search out some such. The Guardian obit would be a good place to start.

Dame Maggie Smith will surely be most sadly missed by us all.

Rest in peace.

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On the town

September 27, 2023 in Flotsam and Jetsam | Permalink

As trailed in this recent post the autumn (or fall) season that has suddenly announced itself here in BC (to the great relief of fire-fighters and gardeners alike) gets underway for The Girl and I in a haze of cultural events. I thought I would just briefly report back on a few of them…

Having enjoyed one of the season-closing concerts at Butchart Gardens which featured soul/blues stalwart Miss Emily (”An angelic voice with just a hint of sultry devilishness. This gal is a rocket ready to take-off!” – The Tragically Hip) we were more than ready to be splendidly entertained by the wonderful Bonnie Raitt at the Royal Theatre here in Victoria at the start of September. The Girl introduced me to Bonnie back in the UK in around 2007 – at the New Theatre in Oxford as I recall – and I rapidly became a fan. Ms. Raitt is 73! Sorry – I shouldn’t have mentioned that, but if I look half as good, perform with a quarter of the energy and have but a fraction of her vocal talents and guitar chops when I reach that age… I too would probably still be earning standing ovations from 1500 seat theatres some fifty years into my career.

Kudos!

I reported back in May this year the manner in which The Belfry theatre’s closing show for the 2022/2023 season – “Old Stock – A Refugee Love Story” – had gone a long way to restoring our faith in Canadian theatre. I described the production thus: “It is witty but sensitive, riotously risque but touching, beautifully performed by musicians and actor/musicians alike and splendidly directed and staged.”

We have just been to see the opening production of the new 2023/2024 season (the which I will not name to protect the innocent!). I fear that our faith in the theatre is now right back somewhere adjacent to where it was before. This was an odd production which seemed to us not really to know what it was trying to accomplish. It certainly tried hard in so doing; way too hard, some might say. I was unimpressed by the writing (advertised as funny… not funny!) – the direction or the performances. To be fair, the material did not give any of those involved much of a chance. On the journey home The Girl and I found ourselves trying to recall as many as possible of the productions by which we had been impressed in a decade of theatre-going in London before we headed to Canada. It was a goodly list!

Now – something that was funny – a riotous evening in the company of the very excellent Dara O’Briain – also at the Royal Theatre. Dara – for those who have never had the huge pleasure of watching him at work (examples easily found on YouTube should you care to look… you lucky people!) – is perhaps our favourite comedian. He has the great advantage (for a comedian) of being massively intelligent and extremely quick on his feet. He is also, of course, Irish – which gives him a huge advantage.

It makes me very happy when it proves possible to see musicians, comedians and (very occasionally) actors that we know and love from over the water – here on the far west coast of Canada. It makes me even more happy that we get to see Peter Gabriel in Vancouver in about a week and a half’s time.

Can’t wait!

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Come From Away

May 20, 2023 in Life in BC | Permalink

Scarcely a fortnight had passed since our faith in Canadian theatre received a significant boost as a result of our attendance at The Belfry for Halifax-based 2B Theatre’s production of Ben Caplan, Christian Barry and Hannah Moscovitch’s musical play – “Old Stock” – before we found ourselves once again cheering on a Canadian musical production and enjoying ourselves hugely to boot.

In this instance the show concerned has already garnered a considerably reputation – being none other than the multi-award winning (including an Olivier Award for Best New Musical) – “Come From Away“.

That “Come From Away” (which tells the story of the 7,000 airline passengers who found themselves stranded in Gander, Newfoundland, following the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Centre in 2001) might be the most successful musical to have come out of Canada is arguable… but it wouldn’t be a very long argument.

The show is a fabulous ensemble piece, excellently staged and choreographed, which uses the music of Newfoundland and Labrador to paint vivid vignettes of many of those who were involved. Newfie music is, of course, fundamentally Celtic and, in particular, Irish. As you might imagine there is a fair bit of foot stomping and hand-clapping, delivered with a general all-round panache and enthusiastic energy.

The basic message of the work – which celebrates the kindness and generosity with which the communities concerned pulled together to provide comfort and shelter for those caught up in the tragic crisis – sits so centrally in the spectrum of what it is to be Canadian – that I found myself afterwards declaring to anyone who would listen that this was surely the most Canadian thing that I had ever seen. Further, I pronounced myself amazed that no-one had previously (to my knowledge, anyway) used Newfie music as the basis of a show.

I must admit that I felt slightly guilty that the show had been so successfully re-staged in so many places around the world (including on Broadway and in the West End) for so long before we finally caught up with the North American touring production at the Royal Theatre here in Victoria.

Still – better late than never…

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Old Stock

May 5, 2023 in Life in BC | Permalink

To the Belfry Theatre the weekend just passed to catch “Old Stock”, the last production of the current theatrical season there.

You may recall – should you be a continuing consumer of this random reportage – that The Girl and I are long(ish) standing season ticket holders at the home of Victorian fringe theatre. Each year at about this time we have to decide whether or not to renew our subscription for the coming season (the which commences in the autumn). We do this by contemplating just how impressed (or otherwise) we have been by the season just closing and by studying the advance notices of next year’s programme. No surprises there…

It has to be said that there have been years in which we have come close to giving it a miss; this coming year conceivably – until the weekend just gone – being one of them. It would be no exaggeration to say that, for the past couple of seasons, we have not been exactly enthralled by what we have seen. Whereas we must be fair – noting that the tail end of the Covid pandemic has made things a whole lot more difficult for theatre companies far and wide – we cannot ignore the fact that sitting packed together with others in a theatre audience (the majority these days going un-masked!) still carries a fair degree of risk. Should we choose to take that risk it really had better be for something worthwhile…

…which brings us neatly to Halifax-based 2B Theatre’s production of Ben Caplan, Christian Barry and Hannah Moscovitch’s musical play – “Old Stock” (which bears the subtitle “A Refugee Love Story“).

Let us not beat around the bush. This quite brilliant production has gone a long way towards restoring our faith in Canadian theatre. It is witty but sensitive, riotously risque but touching, beautifully performed by musicians and actor/musicians alike and splendidly directed and staged. The show made us fall about laughing one moment and blub like babies the next. It had plenty to say without being puritanical about it. Most importantly it took the sort of risks that theatre must take to be any good (in any sense!) without being mealy-mouthed about it.

Brilliant!

If theatre companies on this side of the pond really want to win the ongoing and unflagging support of folks like us then they need to do a lot more of ‘this sort of thing‘!

IMHO…

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