Theatreboard Top 5 of 2022

I loved a lot this year.

Honourable mentions go to shows with amazing elements, such as:-

Jodie Comer's performance in "Prima Facie," just the most astonishing, multifaceted, commanding and mindblowing performance;
Claes Bang singing "Father Figure" in the Almeida's "Daddy," the capper on one of the most cynical takes on relationships I've ever seen;
The vicious social media scrolling behind, and hilariously drowning out, the actors in "Eureka Day;"
Marcello Magni and Kathryn Hunter bouncing off each other, in "The Chairs," the most dreamy and zany duo on stage this year;
The tender Henry Higgins - Eliza Doolittle style relationship at the heart of "Folk" at Hampstead Downstairs;
Hadley Fraser in the Chess concert;
The sheer joyful exuberance and infectious passion of "I Joan" at the Globe, embodied by Isobel Thom;
The playfulness of the puppeteers in "My Neighbo(u)r Totoro;"
The way the entire ensemble of "Jitney" flawlessly recreated a completely beliveable world;
Joseph Potter's fast, furious and funny tour-de-force in "the Poltergeist" at the Arcola;
How Maria Friedman, with 6 days rehearsal, created a fully realised version of "the Witches of Eastwick," that seemed even more fun and entertaining than the original, a truly peerless feat of directing;
Rob Madge's preternatural home videos, and their interaction with their past self, in "My Son's a Queer;"
How Katie Brayben elevated "Tammy Faye the Musical," by giving it a soul;
The dynamic staging and the honing of the musical, "From Here to Eternity" to it's passionate core;
Lucy May Barker’s Rebekah Vardy, in "Vardy vs Rooney," was one of the most incisive comic caricatures of the year, and the funniest;
The comic brilliance of the writing, and the precision comic timing of the performance, of Liz Kingsman, in the most successful and sustained act of pisstaking I saw on stage all year;
Ian McKellen being just the most unmissably loveable, inclusive and funny person in "Mother Goose;"
Mark Rylance reprising one of the best, and funniest, performances of all time in "Jerusalem;"
Rakhee Thakrar's and Carmel Winters's equally brilliant, contrasting comic performances in "Paradise Now!" at the Bush Theatre;
The brilliant staging of "Life of Pi."

But my 5 votes go to shows that were new to me this year, and which I couldn't fault in any way (in no particular order):-

"Blues for an Alabama Sky," at the much-maligned National, which excelled in it's drama, it's acting ensemble, it's music, it's comedy, and which gave us a Giles Terera performance for the ages;

"Sing yer Heart out for the Lads," at Chichester, in which completely convincing characters you'd recognise from any pub, gathering to watch a world cup on TV, devolved into devastating and heartbreaking Shakespearian tragedy;

"Cruise," in which, through perceptive observational writing, and precise yet affectionate mimicry, Jack Holden brought a whole bygone world of Soho life humorously and lovingly back to life;


"Elephant," at the Bush Studio theatre, the debut play of Anoushka Lucas, whose peerless storytelling, utilising music, took small minor notes on a piano, and turned them by impish and incisive degrees, into a masterful one-woman symphony about the complexities of modern life and mixed-race identity; and

"Diva - Live from Hell," at the Turbine Theatre, in which Luke Bayer mischievously acted and sensationally sang a version of "All About Eve" that never flagged for a single moment, and was riotously and taboobreakingly funny!