Please Post Your Review - Even Brief Comments Help!

Oops clearly I hadn't had enough coffee at that point!!

And aw thank you. Honestly the response I've had to that blog has been amazing, especially from women saying 'yes! that's what I felt too!' but also some great comments on the reflections it raises on the production which is great. 

I mean honestly, as long as it's not an email claiming this post proves I'm a sex addict at this point I'll take it (yes, that happened, yes I will keep talking about it because Men think it's ok to talk like that at women) 

I saw 'Tuck' at the WMC (Ffresh bar) last night. While there's a bit too much going on at times, I found it very moving, very interesting and of course a bit fabulous. Based in a Drag bar it tells the stories of 4 of the Queens in Welsh and English. And it's a piece with real heart, as well as some annoying songs. Also if you want to learn the C word in Welsh this is your play.

Full review:
thenerdytheatre.blogspot.com/2018/10/tuck.html

33 - Dracula - Kings Edinburgh

If you don't know the synopsis to this one then shame on you!

The Touring Consortium Theatre Company present their take on Bram Stoker's Dracula - a frankly terrible book that has somehow crept into the conscience of the world, probably because most of the world hasn't actually tried to read his turgid prose.

Anyway - this is distressingly entertaining as lots of dry ice, some blood bags under clothes, an amazing sound design, medical instruments with hidden blood inside them, young ladies panting for "it" and some hideously bad exposition all combine for a thoroughly thrilling evenings entertainment.


Script wise its an odd mix of the Keanu Reeves and Frank Langella film versions but here at least Philip Bretherton as Van Helsing is primarily playing it straight and not highlighting the accent or camping it up like a certain Mr Hopkins did. Renfield is switched to being Lady Renfield, with BAFTA winner Cheryl Campbell playing to the gallery, which I'm sure will upset the purists but which introduces a certain sadness to her final scene which improves on the characterisation of Renfield from the source material.


Elsewhere in the cast most are performing adequately with a couple of impressive beards on show but its Olivia Swann as Mina who is the weak link - this is supposed to be a character that all men are lusting after according to the dialogue as the Count seduces her but her line delivery is flatter than Belgium and there is nothing in the performance that raises it beyond someone on stage reciting lines they have memorised. As she is drinking the blood of Dracula as he promises to make her his immortal Countess you wonder if it'll take him more than 3 days to realise he's stuck with a hideously dull Countess. This lack of a character is only highlighted by newcomer Jessica Webber giving her all as the doomed Lucy who has to play horny young lady, dying young lady, horny dying young lady, baby killing vampire and sleeping young lady. I know its the Stoker characterisation at work here - horny young ladies = bad, chaste dullards = good but with some other plot points reworked its a shame they didn't get round to putting some meat on the Mina bones.

As mentioned, the sound design works well as the voice of Dracula comes from all round the theatre whilst the howling dogs and squealing bats are also bouncing round the auditorium. Be warned though the vibrant sound design does mean that there are a couple of noisy moments to get you on the edge of your seat - indeed the performance starts with a sound and lighting moment that is thoroughly unexpected.

there is also an illusionist listed in the programme but as I've seen way too many stage shows I have to admit that aside from some characters being lifted off the ground by the hand of Dracula and indeed the climax to act one involving the count setting out to fly over the stalls (he doesn't, there is a lot of dry ice and some lighting trickery) I was pondering where the actual illusions were as I can now tell when someone is standing in such a location on stage, right next to the big blacked out section, to get hooked onto a harness.

Also a quick word on the attendance last night, have to admit to being surprised at how full the Kings was for this but I guess the name sells it.

A good nights entertainment, enjoyable fluff for the masses - 8/10

Trial By Laughter - Tour - Ian Hislop & Nick Newman

"William Hone, the forgotten hero of free speech, was a bookseller, publisher and satirist. In 1817, he stood trial for ‘impious blasphemy and seditious libel’. The only crime he had committed was to be funny. Worse than that he was funny by parodying religious texts. And worst of all, he was funny about the despotic government and the libidinous monarchy."

Despite STILL not having seen their "The Wipers Times" (I've been as close as having a ticket for a performance I was then unable to attend), I'd heard enough to make me want to see it and was hoping this would be in the same vein in terms of entertainment and quality. But oh how disappointed I was - so much so that it has taken me several days to steel myself to post this and even so, my view has not mellowed.

Everything seemed promising: the performance had been sold out for some time so there was a good atmosphere but the treatment was more like panto than a play, with characters portrayed so crudely as to be caricatures and coarse attempts at humour which left me cold. Admittedly I dozed off - and this was the matinee! - but I was wide awake by the interval and heading for the exit.

And another one from this week Cardiff Boy by Kevin Jones. Full disclaimer, Kev is a mate, and I've followed this one through its inception as a short piece, and it was one of the things I've been most excited for this 'season' in Cardiff.

It's a very 'Cardiff' play as the title suggests, and we were all roaring with laughter at a lot of the local jokes. More than that though its one of those where the identity of the place is really woven into it. Added to that a lot of 'Bangin' 90s tunes' as it says on the poster and well, us 90s teens were like pigs in muck (like Glasto in the 90s actually). But it was also one of the most heart wrenching pieces I've seen in a while, as my poor friend's jumper, which i sobbed into at the end will attest.

thenerdytheatre.blogspot.com/2018/11/cardiff-boy.html

Shed Man- Kevin Jones

Concluding the unofficial Kevin Jones season in Cardiff, (we've had 3 plays in as many weeks) is 'Shed Man' a slightly surrealist, shed building adventure.

thenerdytheatre.blogspot.com/2018/11/shed-man.html

American Idiot - Mountview

That classic rock musical about the disillusioned smartphone, selfie and hashtag generation.

Okay, this is the usual well produced musical starring musical theatre students (before they head on to cheaper looking productions at the Union and the like). A snappy one hour 35 minutes without an interval, some good voices and a decent band.

Sound levels weren’t very well balanced and there were a few issues, but these weren’t due to lack of rehearsal. One of the three leads was particularly quiet and I assumed it was a faulty microphone, but it was never fixed.

Good energy levels and some overacting, particularly when the ensemble got their lines, but I guess that’s in keeping with the show.

One major negative. This was my first time in Mountview’s new building in Peckham and their Backstage Theatre. The sight lines in almost all seats are terrible. You lose the front of the stake and anywhere you can’t angle around the people you’re barely above in front.

Also, don’t get there early. The front of the queue is rewarded with the worst seats at the back and there’s no choice where you sit. The front rows were reserved for Mountview staff and students. I appreciate many attendees are comped, but I paid, as did many others.

Another annoyance. The sign warning of gunshots and explosions. Large guns waved into the audience to put everyone at edge. At the end, I realised the only bangs had been quiet sound effects and a few party poppers (all much quieter than the drums).

Finally, removing everything to do with 9/11. I know all the cast were barely born, but what were they thinking?

There were some good fresh ideas in there and I enjoyed it. Just wasn’t quite fluid and I don’t think this musical needed reinvention just yet.

Cry Baby - Arts Ed

A show from the final year musical theatre students.

First time I've been to Arts Ed, which turns out to be just a few doors down from the Tabard Theatre.

This show was in the Studio Theatre, which is a nice stage, raked seating on two sides of the set. You are rather left to your own devices to find it within Arts Ed, which is trusting (they also have a larger theatre by the entrance, which I'll try for Newsies in a week or so).

I knew little about this show going in, which briefly ran on Broadway and, I don't think, has ever been professionally produced in the UK. It's a fun 1950s set musical, which reminded me a lot of Grease. Good sound, good view (I was in the front row, but I think all the seats were good), good acting and a group of students looking very prepared for the future. Isaac Gryn and Charlie Burn as the leads were both excellent. A professional show on all levels.

There is some audience interaction as you go in, so I was invited to get my polio vaccination and received a leaflet reminded me of the dangers of polio. Other people were taught how to twirl their batons. It's very much a good teenager rebels against the system type show, with lots of rock and roll and a few twists. Not the most involved plot. It's also a short show, 2 hours 10 minutes including the interval.

Recommended, if you have a slot free before the weekend and can grab a ticket.

It was at the Marriott Maquis darling, so even the alleyway there is sophisticated! (and normally I only go in there to use the loos!) 

Crazy For You - The New Gershwin Musical - The Pleasance, Islington

A Mountview presentation from, I believe, the final year students.

I saw cast 2, with Jordan Crouch as the lead. Good singer and dancer, although you have to suspend a bit of disbelief for the mistaken identity part of the plot.

The Pleasance is a decent venue. New to me. Looked like a good rake to the seats (I sat on the front row, so I couldn't really tell). The stage is on the floor and not raised. The theatre was fairly full, but there were some seats left, so you may still be able to get before the end of the run.

This is quite a slight musical. It's amazing how many Gershwin jukebox musicals are doing the rounds right now, mostly using the same songs. On a par with the touring actor-musician version from a couple of years ago.

Only thing that made this look like an actors in training production is that some of the large ensemble numbers weren't as tight as they could have been. Particularly noticeable with I've Got Rhythm played with a dustbin lids and whatever else fit the scene.

Anyway, this is a fun way to spend an evening. Running time is a swift 2 hours 20 minutes.

Two contrasting new plays this week in Cardiff/Newport.

Blue from Chippy Lane theatre at Chapter.
This was a 3* for me. I appreciated the play, and the writing, but I didn't love it. A 'dinner table' play reflecting on the secrets the family is hiding, what they really feel about one another and what might be going on under the surface. It was an interesting reflection on family life, that at once took too long to get anywhere but also tried to cram in too many issues (and resolved relatively little). Some excellent performances including Sophie Mellville, and some really excellent direction and design. But it did feel long and frustrating at times.

Table 5 at the Dolman in Newport.
Similar in set up in some ways to the above, but a broader comedy. Set at two weddings and the unravelling of secrets around the dinner table. Very funny at times, and indeed touching. I found the writing far better paced and engaging than Blue, but perhaps just because the dark comedy approach appeals more to my taste. It was performed by an Amateur company so not as polished as the other play, but plenty fo convinction etc. One major issue I did have was that there was a trans character who wasn't played by a trans actor. I appreciate doing it with an amdram company this isn't as easy, but obviously, if they take it elsewhere that's something they'll need to address.

Oh and one fun perk of the above was watching two of my closest friends a) play themselves (the good boy and the bad boy) and b) have a ridiculous punch up with each other.