... 'BREEZEBLOCK PARK' AT THE MERMAID Peter Hepple reviews Opened September 12 WILLY RUSSELL deserves the highest praise for writing a play about that trickiest of subjects, the affluent working class, an area of high sensitivity if ever there was one. In Breezeblock Park here they all are, gathered together for a family Christmas--Betty, Syd and Sandra;? Betty's brother Tommy and his wife Vera; ...

... Macbeth WAREHOUSE IF ANYBODY doubts the power of Shakespeare as a playwright, or for that matter the current acting strength of the Royal Shakespeare Company, a visit to Trevor Nunn's production of Macbeth at the? Warehouse should clinch the matter, for here is a staggeringly simple staging by a small company which has an almost frightening impact. Of course, the size of the theatre helps, ...

... The Magic Man MAY FAIR Opened December 13 A LONG-RUNNING success in the States, Barbara and Anthony D'A-mato's strange little musical The Magic Man proves, well not exactly disappointing, but rather different from what we expected. The songs, and there are only about half a dozen of them, have a slickness and? nuity; the book, however, is a reach- me-down affair which smacks vaguely of old ...

... The Kingfisher Quest BIRMINGHAM BRUM STUDIO'S Christmas season opened last week with The Kingfisher Quest. described as an 'Oriental tale of intrigue and daring' for seven to eleven year olds. It deals with the perils and pitfalls which beset those in search of the world's most beautiful emerald, where? ure means death. It is the combined effort of Roger Lancaster and Chris topher Honer who ...

... THE SECOND MONDAY A. S. ROBERTSON'S third play for One Man Theatre Company, The Second Monday, is an effective monologue for a man of indetermin ate age in that decaying state which is not quite tramp nor yet quite acceptable humanity. Close on one hour's running time is perhaps a little over-long for a flash-back as the man is shifted out of his dilapidated room through a succ ession of ...

... 'THE SONS OF OEDIPUS' AT GREENWICH Opened February 3 EWAN HOOPER is right when in a programme note for The Sons of Oedipus at Greenwich, he claims Greek playscan kick you like a mule, and it is not his fault that this production turns out to have little more kick than a glass of flat beer. Translated by David Thompson from Euripides' The Phoenician Women. the play seems more than usually a ...

... Piccadilly 'Very Good Eddie' A REASONABLY PRICED ticket policy was introduced on January 31 at the Piccadilly, where Very Good. Eddie! is still enjoying its successful run. Though now over ten months old. the production has stayed surpris ingly fresh, the pre-First World War humour as artificially theatrical as ever and the cast continuing to avoid sending it up. The Jerome Kern songs on the ...

... 'The Black Women' AMONG its other arts activities, the Keskidee Centre boasts a flourishing theatre workshop for both professional and aspiring actors, and this has produced an impressive showcase of an American play. Edgar White's The Black Women is a college view of some twenty-four hours in tne lives o! a mixed collection of New Yorkers, both temporary and permanent. As its title suggests ...

... Oh What A Lovely War' THE THIRD-YEAR professional acting course at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with considerable assistance from their colleagues on the music course staged Oh What a Lovely War as its last production in the old theatre--the school finally moved to its new Barbican premises last month, builders' continuing occupation not withstanding. This particular pro ...

... 'Piaf' THE NAME Piaf strikes a chord in many hearts the world over for her legend lives on. The little French singer captivated audiences wherever she appeared. But it was not only the powerful voice which won her fame. The love affairs and tragic events of her life made dramatic headlines and titillated the gossip columns, bringing her renown of a different kind. Piaf, a new musical play ...

... The Amazons ACTORS COMPANY SOME time last year, the Canonbury Tower Theatre Company unearthed a rarely revived Pinero--The Amazons,last seen in London before that in 1927. The Actors' Company has had a considerable success with its production of the same play on tour and it reached London, or at any rate the Wimble don Theatre, last week. Pinero's own description was a romantic farce, ...

... 'STEVIE' AT THE VAUDEVILLE Susan Corbett reviews Opened March 23 I'M LOW on energy, says Glenda Jackson's Stevie in Hugh White-more's dramatic portrait of Stevie Smith, the poet. Funny: till then it had seemed that energy was the lady's middle name. Perhaps she means that she reserves her energy for the important things in life: her relationship with her beloved sur- burban aunt, and her ...