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Bear with me: Sun Bear @ParkTheatre

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If The Light House is an uplifting tale of survival, Sarah Richardson’s Sun Bear gives a contrasting take on this. Sarah plays Katy. We’re introduced to Katy as she runs through a list of pet office peeves with her endlessly perky coworkers, particularly about coworkers stealing her pens. It’s a hilarious opening monologue that would have you wishing you had her as a coworker to help relieve you from the boredom of petty office politics.  But something is not quite right in the perfect petty office, where people work together well. And that is her. And despite her protesting that she is fine, the pet peeves and the outbursts are becoming more frequent. As the piece progresses, maybe the problem lies in a past relationship, where Katy had to be home by a particular hour, not stay out late with office colleagues and not be drunk enough not to answer his calls. Perhaps the perky office colleagues are trying to help, and perhaps Katy is trying to reach out for help. It has simple staging
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Theatre: Shalom Baby

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The message from Shalom Baby, currently running at the Theatre Royal Stratford East appears to be that no matter what the circumstances are, there is always a group of people out there that are beneath you. At a time when people are feeling less sympathetic for rioting chavs, travellers building illegally on green belt land, migration from Europe (or elsewhere) and Broken Britain , it is an interesting topic for reflection. Shalom Baby is a love story initially set in 1930s Berlin. Events unfold as the daughter of a wealthy Jewish family falls in love with their black "Shabbles Goy", which is a term used to describe people who assist Jews on their Sabbath with tasks they are unable to do within Jewish Law. The play then moves forward to the present day where a mixed-race couple in modern and unprejudiced Brooklyn have to cope with a dysfunctional family unit. Writer-director Rikki Beadle Blair originally became interested in exploring information about information abo
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Theatre: John Leguizamo Ghetto Klown

John Leguizamo's latest show is in London for the next couple of weeks. It is a chance for him to showcase his ability to impersonate people, dance and tell some pretty funny stories based on his personal and professional life. Relating the experiences of working with Al Pacino, Patrick Swayze and Sean Penn are funny, but it is his personal life stories that are particularly engaging. When he talks about his depression that involves drinking too much coffee and not being able to sleep it, the delivery and visuals take it to a whole new level. It isn't stand up comedy, it's more intense, it's more personal and as it is so coherent and well written it is much more satisfying. He calls it therapy. Whatever it is, it is good value. And it works really well in the Charing Cross Theatre.
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Theatre: Earthquakes in London (National tour)

Earthquakes in London , currently on a national tour, is having a quick stop this week at the Richmond Theatre . It is an engaging and and entertaining take on global warming, political activism and childbirth. It seems even more relevant in the week that the population hits seven billion and the world teeters on the brink of economic collapse that these big issues are up on stage. They are made even more palatable with a great pop/rock soundtrack, dance, movement and some pretty sharp and incisive dialogue. The neuroses of the country are on show warts and all at times, and we're even told that we are all c--ts and / or we are fucked... Now that is my kind of play...
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Overheard at the Affordable Art Fair Sunday...

Woman: Oh yes that's my sort of thing Man: What that? Woman: Yeah that's my sort of thing when I'm talking about abstract landscapes...
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Opera: Der fliegende Holländer

Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) at the Royal Opera is an opera with a long burn. But the story comes together in the last act so quickly, with music so rousing and a production so stylish that it will almost leave you breathless. The opera tells the tale of the captain and his ghost ship that is doomed to sail the seas forever unless its captain can find a wife once every seven years when the winds will bring him ashore. It is the seventh year and again his ship is washed to the shores of a Norwegian fishing village. The daughter of a ships captain has heard of the tale of the ghost ship and wants to save him, regardless of what her former boyfriend things. It is at times a frustrating opera as there is so little action happening and then there is so much at once. The production updates the time to a late twentieth century period when socialist aesthetics and polyester reign. It is jarring and gives rise to anachronisms about ship sails but as things progress it takes u
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Theatre: Backbeat

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Backbeat is based upon the film of the same name which is a snapshot of the period when The Beatles were on the edge of stardom. It is also about creativity, artists, relationships and some excellent classic rock and roll music. It is thoughtful and fun, with a talented and good looking cast that can act, sing and play musical instruments and the bar has now been set very high for the jukebox musical.
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Overheard at the supermarket

Woman (arriving at checkout with a lot of greens) : Don't laugh, but I have an unhealthy obsession with cucumbers. Well... I guess it is healthy...
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Opera: The Passenger

The Passenger which is having its UK premiere at the ENO's Coliseum, is a lavish production with a great cast. It is a pity that the music does not live up to the standards of production. By interval I found it to be hard going with little reward from the Shostakovitch-like score. However upon heading to the bar for interval drinks I found myself listening to an elderly gentleman also heading to the bar who thought it was brilliant and compared it to Shakespeare. Or Shakespeare with a lot of clanging... Following that brief discussion, it seemed like it would be too easy to leave and not come back for the second half. So @Johnnyfoxlondon and I returned to the general area of our seats. The lady next to me in the first half who was texting on her phone throughout and laughing at rather serious parts of the piece had not returned so we had room to spread out. Fortunately in the second half, the music and story is much stronger. There are also a surprising blend of styles includi
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Theatre: A Clockwork Orange

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The London riots come to mind when thinking about A Clockwork Orange, which has been "re-imagined" at the Theatre Royal Stratford East . While it is not the entire focus of the story, the lawlessness and the violence that features in this story evokes the memories of August when fear and panic gripped the city. A Clockwork Orange serves to remind us that perhaps this is not a new problem for this part of the world... This re-imagining and musicalisation of the story does take a different approach to the book by Anthony Burgess. But taking it on its own merits rather than a faithful adaptation it makes for a engaging and entertaining evening out. There is no classical music in this version of the story. Instead we have some thrilling music by Fred Carl that appears to be inspired by jazz, hip hop and perhaps AfroReggae . For the most part this propels the story forward and gives the performances the opportunity to deliver some emotionally charged songs. Holding the s
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Theatre: The Moon Is Halfway To Heaven

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The Moon is Halfway To Heaven is currently at the Jermyn Street Theatre and is an insightful look at friendships through the ages. Written and performed by  David Kerby-Kendall with Lucas Hare , it charts the history of two friends from seven through to eighty-nine, against the backdrop of events in England over the last century to the present day. They meet at the local park bench and discuss the times and their lives and where they are heading. What makes this play interesting is how natural and honest it is at exploring two characters emotions over the ages. I couldn't quite believe that a park bench would survive in England that entire period without being trashed, burned or weathered away, but it is was a reflective evening at the theatre nonetheless. And an opportunity to catch two excellent performances and some new writing in the West End. It runs through to 1 October.
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