Tezza's Theatre Place

Crystal Clear – CREDIT Lidia Crisafulli. Every so often there will be a quiz or a dinner party topic around the subject of which of our senses we would be OK with losing. Safe in the knowledge it’s unlikely to happen, we will plummet for a sense we think is superfluous, such as smell. The reality is that should we lose a sense we will not get a choice as to which one goes. We are so used to having all five that the loss of any one of them would have a devastating effect on our lives. This is the fate that awaits one of the characters in Phil Young’s play  Crystal Clear  which is making a long-awaited return to Islington’s Red Lion Theatre. Picture dealer Richard (Gareth Kennerley) has recently moved into a small flat. It’s not much but it’s his and although there is not really room to swing a cat, there is space for his futon, his favourite chair and his bookshelf filled to overflowing with knick-knacks and objets d’art that he has picked up. Tonight is a special night fo...

Athena Stevens and Jonathan McGuinness – Photo by Stephen Cummiskey Playwrights like to manipulate people. When they pen a show, they will write certain characters from certain angles in order to get the audience to feel a certain way about them. Sometimes, this is just something that happens, based on where the show is meant to go. Sometimes though, this audience manipulation is a deliberate act on the part of a playwright determined to make the audience think a certain way. A prime example of this can be found in Athena Stevens play  Schism  which has just opened at the Park Theatre. Schism  is the story of two people and their twenty-year relationship together. It starts back in Chicago in 1998 where failed architect turned maths teacher Harrison (Jonathan McGuinness) is contemplating suicide in his small house. As the radio fills the air with the ‘wise words’ of Shumaker, Harrison starts to swallow tablets. He goes on doing this until he is suddenly interrupted by...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/173806/review-the-whos-tommy-theatre-royal-stratford-east/ William Grint as Tommy – Photo Credit Mike Kwasniak It’s often good when an old classic musical comes on again, particularly if the original writer has been involved in the new production, even contributing a new song to the show. This is particularly true of production company Ramps on the Moon who are currently touring with  The Who’s Tommy  which I was lucky enough to catch at the Theatre Royal Stratford East this week. World War II and two people fall in love. Captain Walker (Max Runham) and Nora (Donna Mullings, voiced by Shekinah McFarlane) meet and after a whirlwind romance they marry. As Captain Walker goes off back to war, he leaves his pregnant wife at home waiting for his return. Time passes, and Nora gives birth to a son who she names Tommy (William Grint, voiced by Julian Capolei and Matthew Jacobs-Morgan) who, like his mother is anticipating the day his father re...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/173480/review-punts-theatre503/ Punts, Theatre503 – Christopher Adams and Florence Roberts (courtesy of Claudia Marinaro) Parents always want what is best for their offspring. That’s a pretty fundamental fact of life really. For most parents, it’s fairly simple. Keep the sprog safe and warm, send them to school and provide a safe haven for them as they learn life’s various lessons before they are ready to stretch their wings and fly the nest. However, things are different as Jack has a learning disability. In these cases, Parents not only need to do everything above but will also try and provide as normal a life as possible for their youngster, even if this means doing things they themselves are not entirely happy with. This idea forms the backdrop to Sarah Page’s one-act play  Punts  at Theatre503. In a very nice West London house, a young lad is getting ready for an important night. Jack (Christopher Adams), a young man with le...