... Magic Box BATTERSEA ARTS CENTRE THIS apparently aimless and artless short dialogue, written by Bertie, who plays the role of a cross-drcsser Claire, has something of the charm of an early hand-held camera surrealist short movie. Claire admonishes himself for neglecting to paint his fingernails and opens up a box, on a tablctop, which contains the head of his chum and confidante Thud (Helen ...

... Moliere NOTTINGHAM WITH the twin benefits of a synopsis and a very direct style of acting, this all-Russian play is surprisingly easy to follow, especially in the more active first part. In parallel with difficulties in his own time (and since) in Russia, Mikhail Bulgakov's play covers Moliere's last ten years. when his struggle with Church and State to pro duce his satire Tartuffe, ...

... Ambition pays off in Hoffman's masterpiece ROH Tales Of Hoffman OFFENBACH'S 1860 masterpiece--his biggest and most ambitious stage work--follows previous work based upon Hoffman's stories. Here the protagonist is the self-deluding lovestruck poet, unable to distinguish between the real and the fantastic. sung here by Alfredo Kraus making his debut in the role the singer, who ought to be ...

... Doctor Faust us Hammersmith THE COMMONWEALTH Theatre Company--in effect Artistic Directors Max Hafler and Tony Hegarty--have gone out on a limb with Marlowe's play by shearing it to the bare essentials so that the poetry comes across loud and clear without being obscured by any irrelevancies of production. Max Hafler plays the title role and looks younger than the often border- ing-on-middle ...

... As You Like It Greenwich AS WELL as this revival, As You Like It can be seen this year at Regent's Park as well as at Stratford-on-Avon so it looks very much as though it is one of 1992's set books. Greenwich's production was one of the first in the field and seemed on paper to have a lot going for it the director, James Robert Carson, is a former Scottish Arts Council trainee who has worked ...

... Simplicity reaps dividends Barbican Pit 'Tis Pity She's A Whore WE HAVE become so accustomed to the RSC's unearthing neglected plays by Shakespeare's contemporaries at the Stratford Swan (where this production by David Leveaux in fact first saw the light of day last year) that it comes as something of a surprise to leam that the rediscovery of Ford's play about incest is due to the last of the ...

... Polygraph Glasgow POLYGRAPH, as presented by Robert Lepage's Theatre Repere of Quebec City, turned out to be a riv eting theatrical experience, not so much for the dramatic performances of the three strong cast which were in all truth most impressive but for the brilliantly innovative special effects and settings which were so profoundly effective. In a series of film-like sequences, ...

... Making the connection Sadler's Wells La Fille Mal Gardee WITH the version of La Fille Mai Gardee shown by Ballet du Rhin, we find ourselves caught in a time-cycle in which both coincidence and com-monaliry feature. This production, by Swedish choreographer-historian Ivo Cramer, was made in 1989 for the Ballets de Nantes (where the Ballet du Rhin's director Jean-Paul Gravier was then in ...

... When seeing is believing Paul Chand sees a radio play successfully reincarnated on the London stage KINGS HEAD Artists Descending a Staircase IN STOPPARD'S fizzy, elegantly written radio play, now brought to the stage by director Tim Luscombe, misconceptions abound, easily aided by the fact that the central character, Sophie (Sarah Woodward) is blind. The three males, Martello (William Lucas). ...

... Barnstorming killjoys HIGHBURY FIELDS A Midsummer Night's Dream THE INTERNATIONAL Footsbarn Travelling Theatre cheerfully tramples all over Shakespeare's text in its barnstorming approach to the Bard which opens the London International Festival of Theatre. Instead the emphasis is on gaudy surface trappings, while the protracted comic sequences provide a classic case of the actors having ...

... The Garden Venture The Judgment Of Paris/Echoes/The Panic RIVERSIDE THESE three brief pieces set their composers and librettists enormous tasks: who, apart from Puccini and a handful of names, has managed to be incisive and beautiful or memorable within such a short span? It is part of the fascination of these short pieces to watch the attempt. Perhaps the most successful is Paris (composer ...

... Margot La Rouge (Delius) Les Mamelles de Tiresias (Poulenc) GUILDHALL SCHOOL OF MUSIC AND DRAMA VISITTNG the Guildhall is always an adventure. The productions and repertoire rarely fail to interest. Their current double bill is no exception. Delius Margot La Rouge ts an oddity. Unlucky cop, Thibault, dis covers childhood sweetheart Marg uerite in a bar frequented by prosti tutes, only to be ...