REVIEW

THEATRE REVIEW: One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest starring Aaron Pierre, Giles Terera & Kedar Williams-Stirling at the Old Vic

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHEN?: Thursday 2 April, opens 15 April and runs through 23 May 2026 RUNTIME: 160 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Film One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest starred a dynamic Jack Nicholson and won 5 Oscars in 1975 but director Clint Dyer (Death Of England: The Plays) has chosen instead to go back to the 1962 novel for inspiration.

  • Read on for reasons including how those who thought they knew this story may just have their minds changed by this powerful and emotional reinvention
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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: Les Liaisons Dangereuses starring Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner at the National Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Monday 30 March, opens 1 April and runs through 6 June 2026 RUNTIME: 180 minutes (includes a 20-minute interval)

Manville (Oedipus, Wyndham’s Theatre) played young virgin Cécile in the original Royal Shakespeare Company production of this 1985 play and so it’s deliciously appropriate she returns to lead the cast in this Marianne Elliott-directed (COCK, Ambassadors Theatre) revival.

  • Read on for reasons including how this is a wonderfully cast romp through a razor-sharp period piece which doesn’t quite convince of its relevance to today
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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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THEATRE REVIEW: Avenue Q at Shaftesbury Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Saturday 21 March (matinee), opens 16 April and runs through August 29 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (with a 20-minute interval)

With song titles like It Sucks To Be Me, If You Were Gay and Everyone’s A Little Bit Racist, this 3-time Tony Award winner is very much an adult take on Sesame Street with puppets.

  • Read on for reasons including how Avenue Q has lots of irreverent laughs and more fun-filled songs than you could shake a stick (puppet) at
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THEATRE REVIEW: A Mirrored Monet: The Musical starring Dean John-Wilson at Charing Cross Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHEN? Tuesday 17 March, opens 24 March and runs through 9 May 2026 RUNTIME: 140 minutes (including 20-minute interval)

The best thing about this musical of the life of French painter and founder of the Impressionists Monet is when his wife contemplates their relationship in 11pm number There Are No Stars.

  • Read on for reasons including whether Monet’s story benefitted from musical form and why the songs weren’t better
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THEATRE REVIEW: Evening All Afternoon starring Anastasia Hille at the Donmar

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Aline Mahrud

WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHEN?: Friday 20 February, opens 24 February and runs through 11 April 2026 RUNTIME: 85 minutes (no interval)

Anastasia Hille (A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Young Vic) plays Jennifer, a woman marrying late and nervous about how she is perceived by her soon-to-be stepdaughter.

  • Read on for reasons including how meditating on grief, acceptance, unexpected love and finding contentment where you never dared look are themes that feel universal
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THEATRE REVIEW: Arcadia by Tom Stoppard at the Old Vic

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Monday 26 January, opens 4 February and runs through 21 March 2026 RUNTIME: 170 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Tom Stoppard died in November and 1993’s Arcadia is considered to be his masterpiece which makes this undercast revival all the more curious.

  • Read on for reasons including how it seems a missed opportunity that this 2nd revival of his classic is so understated
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THEATRE REVIEW: Gerry & Sewell at the Aldwych Theatre

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

By Neil Durham

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHEN? Thursday 15 January 2026, runs through 24 January 2026 (review ticket) RUNTIME: 120 minutes (including a 20-minute interval)

Non-league Macclesfield beat FA Cup holders Crystal Palace 5 days ago and Gerry & Sewell is the giant-killing theatrical equivalent.

  • Read on for reasons including how Gerry & Sewell is about the everyday hopes and dreams that every one of us needs to keep going, pet
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