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A little less conversation: After Sex @Arcolatheatre

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According to research, millennials in rich countries are having sex less these days. But they were prepared to talk more about it. So, it is no surprise to see a story about what happens when a series of no-strings-attached encounters start to become attachments. And the conversations arising from it. Such is the premise of After Sex, Siofra Dromgoole’s two-hander of the conversations afterwards. It’s not particularly sexy or erotic, and the snappy pacing and short scenes sometimes make you wish they stayed longer to finish the conversation. Nevertheless, it is still a funny and, at times, bittersweet picture of single lives in the big city. It’s currently playing at the Arcola Theatre .  He is bi and works for her in an office job. She is neither ready for a commitment nor to let the office know what’s happening. He isn’t prepared to tell his mum there’s someone special in his life. He doesn’t speak to his dad, so his mum is his world. It’s a perfect relationship/arrangement. Or so it

The Monster chills: Frankenstein @Blackeyedtheatr


There are more than just the usual chills in Blackeyed Theatre's Frankenstein. And it wasn't due to the lack of any perceptible heating at Greenwich Theatre last week during a particularly bitter cold snap.

Mary Shelley's tale is given a theatrical flourish in this adaptation by John Ginman. Percussion instruments underscore the tension and the monster is depicted by a giant puppet. He isn't particularly hideous and that makes you even more sympathetic towards him.



Perhaps that is the intention. Designed and built by Yvonne Stone (of Warhorse and His Dark Materials fame) and worked on by three actors, it is an impressive thing. It breathes. It leaps about the stage. It stares. It looks abandoned and unloved.  And when he starts to kill as revenge for his treatment even if you're familiar with the story, it still manages to surprise and shock.

The piece takes a little time to get going, but once it does it is worth the wait. With music, tension  and the giant puppet it becomes quite a spectacle.

It opens with Frankenstein (Ben Warwick) in pursuit of the beast near the North Pole and Frankenstein telling his tale to Captain Walton. Here he is pretty unsympathetic. He is a man obsessed with the meaning of life while letting life (and others) pass him by.


Max Gallagher as Henry and Lara Cowin as Elizabeth give the piece its human element and its heart.

The rest of the cast fill out supporting characters and provide the evocative musical accompaniment.

Directed Eliot Giuralarocca, it has concluded its run at the chilly Greenwich Theatre.  But is continuing its tour around the country until 22 March. Catch the beast if you can. Check their website for dates.

⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎⭐︎

Photos: production images by Alex Harvey-Brown

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