Reviews

The latest Showstoppers’ performance of Sweeney Todd is being performed until Saturday at The Annex Theatre in Southampton. With a young, energetic and enthusiastic cast, from performers, musicians, technical team and production team, they certainly put their stamp on Sweeney Todd – The Demon Barber of Fleet Street! The cast really came into force with whole group numbers and singing was strong, loud and crisp; however, solo lines during chorus songs were missed at some points and at times throughout the show, diction was unclear. Leading man Alex Wareham played the title role and was extremely convincing, portraying the character

In this stage adaptation of the classic BBC TV comedy series, all the well-loved characters of the Home Guard of Walmington-on-Sea who battle daily against the Germans and local ARP Warden Hodges are vividly brought to life. From the moment that the actors appeared for their first drill practice, I was instantly transported back to Saturday evenings as a child watching the antics of the platoon with the rest of my family and was soon treated to remarkably faithful representations of the characters. There is so much to enjoy in this production and, with so many superb performances from a

Sam Steiner’s short, ingenious script, written while he was still an undergraduate at Warwick in the style of Nick Payne’s play Constellations, was a smash hit at the 2015 and 2016 Edinburgh Fringes: it concentrates on Bernadette and Oli’s touching, imperfect love story while also exploring the political and social repercussions of a soon to be and subsequently passed Hush Law. Distinctly Orwellian, the script references himself, yet with a sharply modern feel, the work is indeed very Big Brother as it watches its young couple attempt to cope practically and emotionally with the language restriction, the audience being “in

It all started so well. Most of the company were forming a lovely tableau on stage as the lights came up during the intro to the first number, ‘Follow the band’ from Barnum. Then through the auditorium and up onto the stage marched the band, made up of the rest of the company. A terrific opening. Then they started to sing. At least, I think they did. Certainly their mouths were opening and shutting. But could we in the auditorium hear anything? Not a single word, for we were being blasted by the backing tape being played at high volume

When I arrived to watch ACTS’ performance of Treasure Island The Panto, I was instantly transported back in time about ten years to my childhood days in village halls, surrounded by raffle tickets and cups of lovingly made coffee in white ceramic mugs. I felt an instant bout of nostalgia, remembering my days of prancing about on a stage side by side with my dad. I instantly wanted to love Treasure Island and was very excited to see it. I was almost instantly disappointed, but this had nothing to do with the opening number performed very well by Daniel Knight

I was genuinely excited to see this production as I absolutely loved Peter Pan as a child. The story of the boy who never grew up, the magic of Neverland and the wonderful characters along the way was always a source of great joy. I’m pleased to say that Poulner Players achieved something really rather special with a cumulative mix of clever scenery, smart special effects, great song choices and a talented cast. First and foremost, the most impressive part of this production by far was the simplicity but cleverness of the scenery. I watched with great interest during all