Reviews

The Miller’s sons, Jasper and Jethro, and their adopted brother, Jack, congregate to hear the reading of their father’s will: while Jasper and Jethro receive a wealthy inheritance, Jack is bequeathed his adoptive father’s beloved cat – and a silver coin. It soon becomes apparent, however, that the greater legacy is not the money, but Jack’s favourite feline friend. A kindly fairy bestows Puss with a special pair of boots, enabling the cat to not only talk but also become the brains behind humble Jack’s attempts to find his fortune and win the hand of his true love, Alice. What

She Kills Monsters is a window into the Dungeons and Dragons world of fantasy role-playing games by cult Vietnamese-American playwright Qui Nguyen. This comedy-drama was first performed in New York in 2011 and has been brought to the Bournemouth Little Theatre by Arena Theatre to entertain audiences looking for a funny, lively and imaginative alternative, or addition, to traditional Christmas pantomimes. Set in a small Ohio town in 1995, amidst the early days of the internet and a backdrop of 1990s’ pop music with a radio DJ commentary, She Kills Monsters introduces a distinctly average Agnes Evans who has recently

I don’t know how long it takes for a tradition to become established, but seven years is a pretty good guess and certainly the Christmas Spectacular, now in its seventh year as a joint production between the Regent Centre and the Glad Rag Production Company, has become an indispensable feature of Christmas in Christchurch. ‘Spectacular’ is definitely the right word, with lighting, costumes and choreography building up a sumptuous visual feast. There is a sort of story: Santa Claus has to go from his toy factory at the North Pole to help the Easter Bunny, whose factory has been sabotaged

The Stage Door is a well-known and much loved venue situated in the heart of Southampton, but I simply don’t think that this was the right place for this ‘adult’ panto. It may have been the raucous crowd or the drunken mumblings of a man discussing the difference between Kiwis and passionfruit as he got increasingly more inebriated, but this show tonight felt a little bit like a struggle between cast and audience. I simply must commend the cast on their continued professionalism, however, as nothing seemed to faze them and, as the old adage states, the show must go

I must admit, when I was asked to review this play, I was a teensy bit confused as to why the group chose to put on a performance like this so close to Christmas. The title doesn’t allude to a festive theme at all, but as it happens there is an undercurrent of Christmas within the storyline, so my confusion was cleared up almost immediately. The play, written by Don Taylor, follows Edmund and Rachael who have recently moved into their new country home. At ease with entertaining, they invite Dan and Margaret to the cottage for Christmas Day to

Two hundred years since the release of Mary Shelley’s seminal piece Frankenstein, AUB Productions stages its latest play Ctrl C as part of the Shelley Frankenstein Festival – in the very place where the author is buried, St Peter’s Church. An abstract piece, feasibly influenced by stage theorist Adolphe Appia, Ctrl C explores the theme of human creation and the danger this causes when said creations take on a life of their own. The play follows young writer Clara as she undertakes her latest project; a modern re-imagining of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Against publisher deadlines, relationship and family struggles, Clara