WORTH A LOOK?: *****
33-year-old Norwegian singer Dagny Norvoll Sandvik’s debut collection Strangers/Lovers was an album of the month for us in January 2021 and this new single is a complete change in direction.
By Aline Mahrud
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHEN?: Saturday 27 May 2023 (last night)
There’s a moment during this dark Noel Coward revival when Stephen Mangan’s Elyot expertly plays his wordless response to Rachael Stirling’s ex-wife Sibyl (The Way You Look Tonight) on the piano and it’s absolutely exquisite.
WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2
Today is Kylie’s 55th birthday and this comeback electropop song is her biggest hit single in the UK since Into The Blue made number 12 in 2014.
By Aline Mahrud
WHEN?: Saturday 20 May, runs until 17 June 2023.
WORTH A LOOK?: *** RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including a 20 minute interval)
Southwark Playhouse is currently running theatres in 2 different south London locations and tonight we mistakenly pitch up at the new Elephant rather than the old Borough site which is our bad but gives a little insight into the rather haphazard nature of this venue.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHEN?: Wednesday 24 May, runs until 1 July 2023 RUNTIME: 135 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)
The most emotional moments during this 1-woman performance of the Dickens coming of age classic are when Izzard, who plays all the 20-or-so parts, conveys the heartache of not being the choice of someone loved by main character Pip.
The winner of 2 2022 Tonys is written by Michael R. Jackson and is the story of Usher, a black queer man writing a musical about a black queer man writing a musical. Starring Kyle Ramar Freeman and Jason Pennycooke (Hamilton, Victoria Palace) it runs at the Barbican 17 June through 9 September 2023. Tickets
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
TRACKLIST: NeverStop; Love Invention; Digging Deeper Now; In Electric Blue; The Beat Divine; Fever (This Is The Real Thing); Hotel (Suite 23); Subterfuge; Gatto Gelato; So Hard So Hot; SLoFLo
SETLIST: Hotel (Suite 23); Love Invention; Believer; Digging Deeper; In Electric Blue; NeverStop; Number One; The Beat Divine; Impossible; Anymore; SloFlo; Gatto Gelato; Strict Machine; Rocket; So Hard (So Hot); Ride A White Horse; Fever (This Is The Real Thing)
The Love Invention is an early contender for album of the year so far and this was our 1st visit to this new underground and modern Soho venue for Alison Goldfrapp’s debut solo gig.
By Aline Mahrud
WORTH A LOOK?: ***
WHEN?: Saturday 22 April (matinee), running to 29 April 2023 RUNTIME: 130 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)
Leading man Lewis Brown took over from writer/star Danny Lee Wynter midway through this run after the creator withdrew for personal reasons and it’s all credit to this production that you could never tell.
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: ****
WHEN?: Sunday 7 May, runs until 21 May and then tours until 14 October 2023 RUNTIME: 120 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)
We’re reminded of musical The Book Of Mormon by 2 of TV’s South Park creators during this show’s finale as the lead sings: ‘The Whole Wide World is run by assholes.’
By Neil Durham
WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2
WHEN?: Wednesday 10 May, runs until 12 August 2023
Songwriter Dan Gillespie Sells and director Jonathan Butterell have reunited after the success of musical Everybody’s Talking About Jamie to create something quite understated, haunting and beautiful with their take on Brokeback Mountain.
monstagigz 