Tezza's Theatre Place

©Nobby Clark – L -R Sara Stewart, Theo Ancient and Tom Kanji. Before Narnia, and long before Hogwarts, there was a book where children were the heroes encountering magic, good versus evil and the saving of Christmas. The book, written by John Masefield was  The Box of Delights  and 83 years later, Piers Torday’s adaptation of the story opens once more at Wilton’s Music Hall. At the start of the Christmas Holidays, young orphan Kay Harker (Theo Ancient) is on a train to his guardian Caroline Louisa. Whilst on the train, Kay meets a vicar by the name of Charles (Tom Kanji) and his companion, the vivacious Pouncer (Sara Stewart). The two of them seem to warm to Kay and Charles introduces him to a card game called ‘find the lady’. When the two leave him, Kay is upset to find he appears to have lost his wallet. However, he cheers up somewhat when he meets an old man by the name of Cole Hawlings (Nigel Betts). Cole is a friendly chap, who seems to know a lot about Kay alre...

Andrea Miller, Emily Jane Kerr, Christian James, Tori Allen-Martin, Prince Plockey and Christopher Lyne in H.R.Haitch (Credit of Nick Rutter) Back, in the midsts of time, royal weddings were so easy. The reigning monarch would check their progeny and marry them off to another monarch’s child thus securing alliances and securing their own future. Love was never a feature of the deal but if it happened between the youngsters then that was just an added bonus. Nowadays, prince and princesses of the realm, lead a more normal life. They go off to school, university and then jobs. They get to meet and mix with, ordinary members of the public and, who knows, maybe they even get to fall in love all by themselves. This then is the central premise behind  H. R. Haitch  which recently opened at the Union Theatre. London 2011 and revolution is in the air. The coalition government has fallen and there is a new party in charge under a new Prime Minister Nathan (Prince Plockey). One of ...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/198816/review-philip-ridleys-vincent-river-park-theatre/ Vincent River – Thomas Mahy (Davey) Louise Jameson (Anita) Photo by David Monteith Hodge Losing a son or daughter must be devastating for any parent, but when that loss is the result of murder and nobody has been brought to justice then the pain and need for answers must be almost unbearable. This is the starting point for Philip Ridley’s one-act play  Vincent River currently in residence at the Park Theatre. Anita (Louise Jameson) has recently moved into a flat in Dagenham. The flat is a bit of a tip, and she hasn’t really done much about unpacking, but she is glad to be away from her old estate. Anita has moved because of the sniping and gossip following the murder of her son, Vincent, in a surprising and unlikely location. She is pleased to be away from everyone and is looking forward to starting a new life with no more prying eyes and wagging tongues. However, today she is not alo...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/172953/review-whitechapel-suspects-lunatics-and-a-leather-apron/ The year is 1888 and the place is East London. As summer comes to an end the area is rocked by the horrific murders of two ‘working’ girls. The murders are bizarre and violent and the locals are running scared. Welcome then to  Whitechapel: Suspects, Lunatics and a Leather Apron  an immersive trip into this world. The experience starts before your actual trip back in time. After booking, the audience members receive various emails giving them information about the murders and the experience they will be going through. Interestingly, among the emails is a disclaimer – something I’ve never had to complete for an immersive production before – which needs to be signed before the adventure begins. At the appointed time, you arrive in a nondescript road in London’s East End standing by a blue door and waiting for kick-off. A friendly local confirms your name – and that you have...