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Extraordinary shenanigans: Extraordinary Women - Jermyn Street Theatre

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Compton Mackenzie’s novel about bed-hopping lesbians on Capri (here fictionalised as Sirene) and their escapades gets a musicalised treatment in this intimate show. It’s all a bit silly, really, and not much happens in the end. However, the musical succeeds in evoking a time, a place, and a mood with its sublime music and stellar cast. It’s currently playing at Jermyn Street Theatre . Set in the aftermath of World War I in 1919, Extraordinary Women explores the lives of unconventional women—chiefly English writer Aurora (Caroline Sheen) and her lover, Rosalba (Amy Ellen Richardson). Aurora has purchased a villa on the island with the hope of encouraging her part-time lover, Rosalba, to settle down with her exclusively. However, Rosalba, who is romantically involved with several women and depends on them for her lifestyle, is hesitant to commit. The story revolves around their on-again, off-again romance, along with the various affairs among the other women on Sirene. Meanwhile, the anc...
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Finishing the hat: Far Away @Donmarwarehouse

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Young Joan can't sleep. Was there a bump in the night? Or a scream? She is staying with her Aunt Harper, and she reassures her it's probably an owl. They seem to be in the English countryside. But with her aunt's responses becoming less and less convincing as she pauses and thinks about them, young Joan knows she has stumbled on something sinister about the world. And not just because aunty isn't a convincing liar or her armchair is filthy and worn. Thus begins the short descent into a dystopia where people are rounded up for inexplicable reasons, and you're never sure who is with you or against you. It’s currently playing at the Donmar Warehouse . It's a short descent as Caryl Churchill's piece runs only forty-five minutes. But in that time it's an unsettling enough to leave the audience nervously laughing. In the twenty years since its premiere, the fears of all controlling entities have only grown thanks to a vibrant network of social media, pseu...
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