National Theatre
Fortitude, emotional intelligence and wit – the defining qualities of Simon Russell Beale
The Shakespearean actor has taken on 18 of the great roles since his first gig at the RSC in 1985 and recalls them with insight, sensitivity and a sharp passion for language
How is Arnold Wesker’s Roots, which resembles an Archers episode, considered a classic?
The Almeida wants to examine the ‘Angry Young Man’ phenomenon of the 1950s but the term ‘man’ seems to create…
Faultless visuals – shame about the play: the National’s Coriolanus reviewed
Weird play, Coriolanus. It’s like a playground fight that spills out into the street and has to be resolved by…
Shapeless and facile: The Hot Wing King, at the Dorfman Theatre, reviewed
Our subsidised theatres often import shows from the US without asking whether our theatrical tastes align with America’s. The latest…
Cheesy remake of Our Mutual Friend: London Tide, at the Lyttelton Theatre, reviewed
Our Mutual Friend has been turned into a musical with a new title, London Tide, which sounds duller and more…
The tumultuous story behind Caravaggio’s last painting
For centuries no one knew who it was by or even what it was of. The picture that had hung…
Two very long hours: The Effect, at the Lyttelton Theatre, reviewed
Lucy Prebble belongs to the posse of scribblers responsible for the HBO hit, Succession. Perhaps in honour of this distinction,…
A show for politicians: John Gabriel Borkman, at the Bridge Theatre, reviewed
Clunk, clunk, clunk. John Gabriel Borkman opens with the obsessive footfalls of a disgraced banker as he prowls the attic…
Stupendously good: Much Ado About Nothing, at the Lyttelton Theatre, reviewed
Simon Godwin’s Much Ado About Nothing is set in a steamy Italian holiday resort, the Hotel Messina, in the 1920s.…
Gandhi’s killer is more loveable than his victim: The Father and the Assassin reviewed
Dictating to the Estate is a piece of community theatre that explains why Grenfell Tower went up in flames on…
Two hours of bickering from a couple of doughnut-shaped crybabies: Middle, at the Dorfman Theatre, reviewed
‘I fink I doan luv yew any maw.’ A marital bust-up drama at the National Theatre opens with a whining…
A tangle of nonsense from the sloppy Caryl Churchill: A Number, at the Old Vic, reviewed
A Number, by Caryl Churchill, is a sci-fi drama of impenetrable complexity. It’s set in a future society where cloning…
One of the best nights of my life: Hampstead Theatre's Peggy For You reviewed
Hampstead Theatre has revived a play about Peggy Ramsay, the legendary West End agent who shaped the careers of Joe…
The National has become the graveyard of talent: Manor, at the Lyttelton, reviewed
Somewhere in the wilds of England a stately home is collapsing. Rising floodwaters threaten the foundations. Storms break over the…
Tsunami of piffle: Rockets and Blue Lights at the Dorfman Theatre reviewed
Deep breath. Here goes. Winsome Pinnock’s new play about Turner opens with one of the most confusing and illogical scenes…
Captures the rapturous gaiety of the original: Globe's Twelfth Night reviewed
The new Lily Allen vehicle opens in a spruced-up terrace in the East End. Allen plays a self-satisfied yuppie, Jenny,…
Homeric levels of misery: Paradise, at the Olivier Theatre, reviewed
The National Theatre has given Sophocles’s Philoctetes a makeover and a new title, Paradise. This must be ironic because the…
Enjoyable in spite of the National's best efforts: Under Milk Wood reviewed
Before the National Theatre produced Dylan Thomas’s Under Milk Wood they had to make a decision. How could they stuff…
Theatre's final taboo: fun
The stage has become a pleasure-free zone in which snarling dramatists fight over their pet political causes, says Lloyd Evans
Racists will love it: National Theatre's Death of England – Delroy reviewed
Death of England: Delroy is a companion piece to Death of England, which ran in February at the NT and…
Defund theatres – and give the money to gardeners and bingo halls
Why does the state fund theatres and not gardening and bingo, asks Lloyd Evans
The Madness of George III is much easier to like than King Lear
The longest interval in theatre history continues. Last week the National Theatre livestreamed a 2018 version of The Madness of…
As a lyricist, Ian Dury had few equals in the 20th century
The National Theatre’s programme of livestreamed shows continues with the Donmar’s 2014 production of Coriolanus starring Tom Hiddleston. The play…
