Tezza's Theatre Place

Do you know who Ada Lovelace or Charles Babbage are? The chances are that you will say no to the first and yes to the second name. Well, back in the 19th Century, Ada Lovelace carried out pioneering computing work on the Analytical Engine with Charles Babbage. Ada is one of the great unsung heroines of science whose works are only known by the men they collaborated with. Of course, that was the 19th Century and things are so much different today aren’t they? Unfortunately not. Historically the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) specialisations have always been perceived as the purview of men. This is one of the themes running through Katie Granger’s play  Ares  being performed during the final week of the Vault Festival in Waterloo. This one-woman show tells the story of Alice (Andrea Hall) a young lady who has moved from a humble farm – where she was brought up by her father after her mother abandoned the family – through to becoming an astrophysicis...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/166447/what-shall-we-do-with-the-cello-review-vault-festival/ The Vault Festival is renowned for the diversity of its productions. Over the course of the festival, there will be a show or two that are pure ‘marmite’, loved by some and disliked by others. An example of this can be found in Atelier Theatre Studio’s UK premiere of Matei Visniec’s  What Shall We Do With the Cello? . The action is set in a waiting room where there are four chairs, a cello and a bow. Suddenly, in rushes, a man (Nick Allen) obviously getting away from the storm outside. He picks up the cello and starts to play. The music is very contemporary, with hard, discordant notes that jar the ears rather than a flowing melody. Soon after the man starts to play, the Lady with the Veil (Simona Armstrong) enters. She is young and pretty but and has a rather prim and proper appearance. The two of them are not alone for long and are soon joined by The Man with the Stick (Mihai A...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/165712/willis-veres-the-starship-osiris-the-vault-festival/ It is said that inside every great actor there is a writer, director and producer bursting to get out. Sometimes this does occur and a fabulous show is born. To take an example, pop down to the Vault Festival under Waterloo Station and take in writer, producer director and star George Veer’s  The Starship Osiris . And now we hit a problem as  The Starship Osiris  is one of those shows that is very, very difficult to describe without giving too much away and potentially spoiling the experience for audience members. So here goes. George Veer has written a play set aboard a starship (the Osiris of the title) George plays the lead character, Captain Harrison, a steely- eyed, tall – some might say lanky – handsome chap in the mould of great starship captains such as the one and only James Tiberius Kirk. The starship’s crew consists of three mini-skirted ladies – Roxie (Molly ...

http://www.carnstheatrepassion.com/review-hip-the-2017-vault-festival-until-feb-5th/ Remember the old song,”if you go down to the woods today, you’re sure of a big surprise”? Well, let’s bring it right up to date with some new lyrics so, altogether now “If you go down to the Vaults this month you’re sure of a big surprise”. Yes, the annual Vaults festival is back causing thousands of people to go underneath Waterloo station, walk along the fascinating road known as graffiti street and enter a subterranean world where not just every night is a different but every hour brings surprises galore. Last night I had my first visit to the festival of 2017, to see Jolie Booth’s one woman show Hip. Now, the first thing about this show you need to know is that this is not an ordinary show. Any production that starts with a notice at the entrance stating “This is an Extra-live Performance. Audiences are invited to respond to a show in whatever way feels natural; Latecomers’ are permitted” is n...

https://www.londontheatre1.com/news/155194/review-hamlet-part-2-hen-and-chickens-theatre/ How many times have you watched a play and, as the curtain came down, thought to yourself “what happens next?” I think this is especially true of the works of Shakespeare – in fact, there was even a Dr Who episode that revolved around a follow-up to ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’ – where the story in which the audience has spent the last three hours is so engrossing that it is natural to ask what follows. Luckily, in the case of one of his most famous tragedies, the audience no longer has to wonder about the future as Theatre Heaven and Hell return to the Hen and Chickens Theatre with Perry Pontac’s  Hamlet Part II . The play opens with the return of Seltazar (Darren Ruston) a member of the Court of Denmark who has been away acting as the King’s ambassador to somewhere hot and exotic. A place where, as it turns out, there was a distinct lack of news coming through about the going’s on at Elsinore...