London

THEATRE REVIEW: Equus starring Toby Stephens, Amanda Abbington & Noah Valentine at Menier Chocolate Factory

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Saturday 9 May (matinee), opens 18 May and runs through 4 July 2026 RUNTIME: 170 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Inside No 9 and Waterloo Road‘s Noah Valentine follows in the footsteps of Daniel Radcliffe in baring all as troubled 17-year-old Alan Strang who is blinding horses.

  • Read on for reasons including how this version is so strong we do expect it to transfer to the West End
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THEATRE REVIEW: Please, Please Me starring Calam Lynch & Noah Ritter at Kiln Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHEN?: Thursday 30 April and runs through 29 May 2026 RUNTIME: 130 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

The depth of the relationship between John Lennon and Beatles manager Brian Epstein has been much speculated upon and here Calam Lynch and Noah Ritter explore what was certainly an unusually close friendship.

  • Read on for reasons including how it’s the talented cast that is the best reason to see this show
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SONG OF THE MONTH: I Feel So Free by Madonna (April 2026)

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

Madonna (Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona) chooses not to ape Hung Up, the all-conquering, chart-topping, ABBA-sampling banger that launched album Confessions On A Dancefloor 21 years ago.

  • Read on for reasons including how Madonna is perpetuating her career by growing old both joyously and disgracefully and we wouldn’t have it any other way
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THEATRE REVIEW: Kate Butch at Wilton’s Music Hall

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN?: Thursday 9 April, runs through 17 May 2026 RUNTIME: 130 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

‘Give me a shout if you’ve never heard of me before’, asks the RuPaul’s Drag Race UK vs The World runner up as part of the audience warm-up. ”Don’t they sound sad?’

  • Read on for reasons including how Butch is definitely our favourite and wittiest queen from Drag Race
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GIG REVIEW: Pet Shop Boys Obscure at Electric Ballroom, Camden

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Tuesday 7 April, runs through 10 April 2026

Setlist: The Theatre; Will-o-the-Wisp; Two Divided By Zero; Jack The Lad; To Face The Truth; After The Event; Hit And Miss; Always; One In A Million/Mister Vain; Sexy Northerner; Young Offender; Through You; It Couldn’t Happen Here; Bet She’s Not Your Girlfriend; King Of Rome; King’s Cross; Love Is The Law; Why Don’t We Live Together?; The Performance Of My Life; Your Funny Uncle; The Way It Used To Be; Later Tonight; A Dream Of A Better Tomorrow

The international juggernaut that is the Dreamworld: The Greatest Hits Tour celebrates its 4th birthday next month while rolling on and Obscure is alternatively a run of 5 nights in this 1,500-capacity venue of B-sides, album tracks and fan favourites.

  • Read on for reasons including how we can’t imagine any other band being as wilfully unexpected as Pet Shop Boys
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THEATRE REVIEW: Slippery starring John McCrea & Perry Williams at the Omnibus Theatre, Clapham

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN? Sunday 23 March, runs through 11 April 2026 RUNTIME: 80 minutes (no interval)

What would you do if the ex-boyfriend you ghosted for 10 years put you down as his emergency contact and the hospital called to ask you to pick him up after an accident?

  • Read on for reasons including how this captivating 2-hander refuses to let its audience out of its vice-like grip
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THEATRE REVIEW: Our Town starring Michael Sheen at Rose Theatre, Kingston

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN? Saturday 28 March (matinee) and runs through 28 March 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

‘No other play I’ve read or seen performed has ever affected me in quite the same way,’ writes star Michael Sheen (Nye, National Theatre) of this revival of a classic as the 1st production of the Welsh National Theatre.

  • Read on for reasons including how there’s a world where there is a West End transfer for this show
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THEATRE REVIEW: Choir Boy starring Terique Jarrett at Stratford East

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN? Saturday 28 March, opens 31 March and runs through 25 April 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Author Tarell Alvin McCraney won the 2017 Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for Moonlight and like that film Choir Boy is the story of a young black man struggling with his sexuality.

  • Read on for reasons including how this is exactly the sort of work we’ve longed to see at this venue
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THEATRE REVIEW: Romeo and Juliet starring Sadie Sink at the Harold Pinter Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN? Friday 27 March, opens 31 March and runs through 20 June 2026 RUNTIME: 175 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Sink may have found worldwide fame with Netflix’s Stranger Things but the 23-year-old has been performing in theatre since 2011 including as the lead in Annie on Broadway and being nominated for a Tony as Best Actress last year for John Proctor Is The Villain which has just opened in London.

  • Read on for reasons including how Sadie Sink is a mesmerising heroine in this production which breathes new life into a classic
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THEATRE REVIEW: Rachel Zegler and Ben Platt in The Last Five Years at the London Palladium

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

WHEN? Tuesday 25 March and runs through 29 March 2026 RUNTIME: 90 minutes (no interval)

Zegler (EVITA, London Palladium) plays struggling actress Cathy in this 25th anniversary concert performance of a musical opposite Ben Platt’s Jamie who is becoming a successful author.

  • Read on for reasons including how Zegler and Platt give thrilling performances in this unusual concert staging
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