The Canterbury Tales

* * * * 4 stars

Tabard Productions version of Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales has many virtues. The young cast show much versatility in successfully taking on many roles, and Harriet Bradley’s direction of her own adaptation is straightforward and clear. … Read More

The Shade Ain’t right

* * * 3 stars

This is the first play by Adiam Solomon, who has an Ethiopian background. It is an interesting take on racism. The setting is a dressing room in an American cabaret club during the Prohibition era. … Read More

Super Situation

* * * 3 stars

Dressed in a bright, yellow and blue outfit, and playing the part of Extraordinary Girl, Lois Tucker as the writer of the play has taken her inspiration from the style of comic books. She is … Read More

Balloon Boutique

Balloon Boutique is mime theatre with the characters portrayed by actors wearing masks. Naturally, balloons as props form an integral part of the action. All manner of ingenious ways are employed, with a particularly innovative final scene. The story … Read More

Doctor Faustus

Zig Zag Creations return to the Fringe with their production of Doctor Faustus. Utilising the burlesque and cabaret forms of theatre displayed in the costumes and movement. We see Faustus being tempted by the devil and Seven Deadly Sins … Read More

Knuckleball

I have seen a couple of William Whitehurst’s plays in the past and was well aware that the guy could create an excellent piece, but I had somehow missed this production in the Fringe programme until I was pointed … Read More

Party

Party written by Tom Basden is a hilarious and sharp satire exposing the many hypocrisies in modern Britain. Anybody who has served on a committee will recognise the entrenched, pompous attitudes, the petty enmities and the sudden wandering off … Read More

Sweeney Todd:  His Life, Times and Execution! 

The story of Sweeney Todd is a tale I thought I was well aware of, or so I thought!! But, in this version devised by the company the story has a definitely different interpretation. The slant they have set … Read More

Bane 

Joe Bone’s performance in his one man film noir parody is magnificent. I was drawn in by the sheer physical power of his acting and absorbed to the very end. He plays the lead role, the anti hero Bruce … Read More

Doctor Whom?  My Search For Samuel Johnson

This is David Benson’s second show at the Fringe. Whereas his Noel Coward show was delivered with smooth panache, this show is altogether more personal and less slick. It reveals his enthusiasm for Samuel Johnson and his intention to … Read More