Reviews

Zenith Theatre Company Poole High School Theatre, Poole Steve O’Neill  13 July 2024 Based on the world famous board game Cluedo, Clue is a black comedy inspired by the American version of that game. It was originally a film released in 1985 and then adapted for stage in 2017. Set in 1954 McArthy era USA, six strangers are invited to a creepy mansion where they are greeted by Wadsworth the butler and Yvette the French maid. The strangers all have connections to the government, and all are being blackmailed. This is a very funny play, fast paced and full of word

SOS Presents MAST Mayflower Studios, Southampton Mark Ponsford  10 July 2024 It’s something of a titular irony that even after a major recruitment drive, S.O.S’s production of this Golden Age musical is notably light on Guys and heavy on Dolls, to the extent that a substantial amount of cross-dressing has been introduced, along with several character names I’ve certainly never encountered in any previous productions of the show. It’s cleverly accomplished, and you do get used to it, but with no disrespect to anyone, there’s still the odd occasion where it remains, inevitably, something of a distraction… albeit nowhere near as

Studio Theatre Studio Theatre, Salisbury Lloyd Perry  6 July 2024 The summer offering from Studio Theatre Salisbury is the brilliantly written One Man, Two Guvnors by Richard Bean. The play started off life premiering at the National Theatre and then went on a long production run in both the West End, before moving to Broadway. The leading role made famous by James Corden of Gavin And Stacey fame who won the Tony Award in the USA for best actor. The play is set in 1963. The lead character, Francis Henshall, becomes separately employed by two men – Roscoe Crabbe, a gangster,

Pinpoint Productions The Arch, Chandlers Ford Becki Lavender  20 June 2024   Company is the story of Bobby, a 35-year-old bachelor, living in the bustling New York City and trying to navigate the world of relationships. He is surrounded by his ‘good and crazy’ friends who he goes to for advice and conversation. Company is told through a series of dinner parties, dates and weddings to help Bobby understand the pros and cons of marriage and make sense of his persistent bachelorhood. Company is written for a group of strong actors and singers, with all of the roles having their own

Swanage Drama Company The Mowlem Theatre, Swanage KD Johnson  14 June 2024 The name Cooney is famous in the world of farce – but that would be Ray Cooney, playwright of Run for Your Wife (1983), which ran for 9 years in London’s West End and remains London’s longest running comedy to date.  The current play, running at the Mowlem Theatre in Swanage, is by Michael Cooney – his son.  Set in 1994 in the living room of Eric and Linda Swan, of 344 Chilton Road in East London, this hilarious 1997 comedy about benefit fraud harks back to those

Scaplen’s Community Players The Black Cherry Café Theatre, Boscombe Jade Morrell  8 June 2024   Stepping into Scaplens Community Players’ world for the first time, you are embraced by the warm and immersive atmosphere that positively hums with anticipation. The play for the evening’s performance, Unbroken Bonds, A Women’s War, promised a poignant journey through the untold stories of a community during wartime – a theme as rich with historical significance as it is with emotional depth. The intimate setting of the Black Cherry – which recently announced the sad news of its closure – allows the audience to feel