Tezza's Theatre Place

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From left to right – Top row – Catrine Kirkman, Jennie Jacobs. Bottom row – Hannah Crerar, Philip Lee. (c) Robert Workman. The second paragraph of the United States Declaration of Independence starts as follows: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”. Of course, this is rubbish. Men – or more importantly people – are not created equal. Where and to whom you are born will often set the path for your life to come and nowhere was this truer than in the English class system of the 1800s. A theme which is central to the plot of Gilbert & Sullivan’s H.M.S. Pinafore at the King’s Head Theatre. H.M.S. Pinafore is a submarine in the Royal Navy. It is commanded by the urbane Captain Corcoran (Matthew Palmer/Matthew Siveter) a man assured of his place in the world as indeed are those below decks – Able Seamen Rackstraw...

I’m terrible at flirting. It’s a fact of life and something I’ve had to accept over the course of many failed attempts to catch someone’s eye and get them to want me the way I want them. However, some people can flirt with words or even a glance. They can take the most innocent of sentences and load them full of innuendo and meaning. One such person was Hollywood icon Mae West and I recently had a chance to find out more about this particular screen goddess at a performance of  Better Than Sex  in the Toulouse Lautrec. Told as a first-person monologue, with piano accompaniment provided by Kieran Stallard, Mae (Bella Bevan) herself is on stage recounting her early life and completely blowing away everything I thought I knew about her. For a start, Mae was so much more than an actress from the 1930s. In fact, she was a singer, playwright, screenwriter, comedian whose entertainment career spanned seven decades and, even in her later years, remind a major sex symbol. Over the...

Matthew Baldwin Queereteria TV – Credit PBG STUDIOS Ever had a night at the theatre where, by the end, you’ve thoroughly enjoyed the show but ultimately are totally confused about what you have seen? Well, I had just such a night at the Above the Stag theatre which is currently playing host to  Queereteria TV . Thanks to an accident whilst doing something interesting with a senior member of the royal family, Lady Domina Bizarre (Matthew Baldwin) has caused the planet to be pretty much decimated. Now, thanks to her actions, there is only one television channel available, funnily enough, run by and starring Lady Dominina. The channel comes from an old gay cruising club called Queereteria. Lady Domina’s show is called ‘Club Bizarre’ and, as well as the lady herself is presented by people she is control of including Rupert (Peter Straker) and the former celebrity singer Torsten (Andy Bell) now over 100 and locked in a cryogenic chamber as the show’s resident feature. But the Lady’...

Where is Peter Rabbit? One of the big problems for parents is what to do with their little ones during the school holidays. Days out are great, but with the British weather, the chances are limited to experience the great outdoors. However, fear not, for if you pop down to the Theatre Royal Haymarket, you can keep the ankle biters entertained and happy as one of literature’s best-known bunny comes to the West End at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in  Where is Peter Rabbit? Beatrix Potter (Joanna Brown) welcomes us to her magical world and, tells us that she has lost Peter Rabbit (Charlotte Harrington). She enlists the help of Jemima Puddle-Duck (Grace Osborn) and, as the two of them search for the errant rabbit, they share some of Beatrix’s stories with us – assisted by the voices of Griff Rhys Jones and Miriam Margolyes. These include the wonderful tale of bitter enemies Tommy Brock (Samuel Knight) and Mr Tod (Matthew Whitby), not to mention Mrs Tiggy-Winkle and Lucie and the ta...

The Marvelous Wonderettes Ah, the 1950s. For every American high school senior year student of the era, only one thing really mattered and that was the end of year prom. But, after what was usually a very important rite of passage for the students, as the confetti was swept up and the last decorations were taken down, it was time to face their futures as adults. So, what happens after the prom? Well, that is at the heart of  The Marvelous Wonderettes  which is receiving its UK premiere at the Upstairs at the Gatehouse Theatre. Springfield High School in 1958 and its prom time. Due to their lead, Billy Ray Patton, being suspended from school for smoking, the Glee club aren’t able to perform at the prom so, thanks to Mr Lee, entertainment is being provided by a group of cheerleaders called The Marvelous Wonderettes. The four girls – Missy (Sophie Camble), Cindy Lou (Rosie Needham), Betty Jean (Louise Young) and Suzy (Kara Taylor Alberts) – are best friends determined to mak...

Operation Black Antler. Deep swimming in a murky world – Image Credit Blast Theory I love immersive theatre. In my time writing reviews, I have experienced many immersive theatre shows. I’ve survived a zombie apocalypse, hunted for Jack the Ripper, lost my sense of sight and trained as a WWII spy. But of all the immersive shows I’ve been involved with,  Operation Black Antler  is the most unusual and thought-provoking production so far. For obvious reasons, I can’t go into detail about  Operation Black Antler , but I can give you an idea of what happens taken from the production company – Blast Theory – website. “ In Operation Black Antler you are given a new identity as part of a small team; you are briefed and then sent into an undercover operation. You must meet, build empathy with and ultimately try to win the trust of someone whose political and moral views may be the polar opposite of our own. What will you do when the power is in your hands? ” Having taken p...

We think of the Restoration as being the start of a more enlightened age where things changed for the better. King Charles II learned from the mistakes of his father and, on the whole, his reign was not a bad one. However, the balance of power was, as had always been the case, very much skewed in favour of men with women very much in a secondary position. However, two ladies have gone down in history as being the ‘Spice Girls’ of their day. Intrigued? Then pop along to see  Oranges and Ink  by Claire Louise Amias which is having its world premiere at the Tristan Bates Theatre Nell Gwyn (Sarah Lawrie) and Aphra Behn (Claire Louise Amias) are two best friends united by theatre. Before becoming mistress to the King, Nell had been an actor and had appeared in a play written by Aphra. In fact, Aphra had pretty much given Nell her big break. Since then, Nell’s life has changed. Living in a lovely house in Pall Mall, dressed in exquisite gowns, today, Aphra has come for a favour....

In May 2018 I met and interviewed two lovely young theatricals preparing to take their show to the Edinburgh Festival. Their names are Linus Karp and Joseph Martin and the show was  Awkward Conversations with Animals I’ve F*cked . Move forward to April this year and the show is about to open at Islington’s famous King’s Head Theatre and I met up with the guys once more in the wonderful Scandi Kitchen to find out how things had been going. I started by asking about the run in Edinburgh LK: It was good. I did a full run of 25 shows which sold really well. It was really tough, so much hard work as I was doing pretty much everything for the show. I was doing producing, marketing, performing, everything. I’d been to Edinburgh before but only performing so this was completely different. It was a great experience but I don’t think I’d ever do it that way again. JM: Unfortunately I missed all this as I spent the summer with the National Youth Theatre so could only provide moral suppo...