... excellent singers, Paris punching across songs like Surabaya Johnny with great aplomb and McAllister coming into his own with Speak Low and Lost in the Stars. Another asset is Sam Kenyon, doubling as pianist and youthfully sardonic narrator, while Toby Kelly ...

... production. It is loud brash and belligerent, but far too concerned to bully meaning out of the text instead of letting it speak for itself. Brett James' production has relentless noise and commotion. Actors constantly shouting their speeches may tap into ...

... La Valse des Adieux Almeida For the first of five performances, a largely French-speaking audience was here to see film actor Jean- Louis Trintignant make his British stage debut with a reflective verse piece by the late Louis Aragon written in 1972, ...

... taken at face value this is a Hellerian world where naked ambition and misin formation rules, a world whose dictum could be 'speak first, think later'. It is a captivating spectacle, not just because the suspense is maintained until the end. Sherwood writes ...

... shocks when she dons a light robe for her model's break in the middle section. The tools of her trade put to one side, so to speak, Jodie is now free to talk more of her private life. She recalls her childhood in South Africa, since the body is South Af ...

... from the two actors, John Kani and Winston Ntshona, and they seem to feel real pain as they groan with exertion. When they do speak, at the end of their day's stint, they are breathless and exhausted. But gradually their spirit returns as they discuss the ...

... about gay friends who have difficulty saying the L word in public, something she obviously has no qualms about, in fact she speaks of little else. Her comic vignettes work best; a sketch about waiting courtside for Martina Navratilova showing a wry eye ...

... ations are also applied to dress, with each character wearing a dark suit but showing a liking for different shirts which speaks volumes about class and background. Hugh Vanstone's lighting is clean, white and brilliant. He works like an artist, with ...

... holding any posts in office, and receive a knighthood? The party whip did not like him, and throughout his tales, Plympton speaks of no influential friends or colleagues. Only his wife thought politics would do him good. There is little indication in ...

... things to come Scarborough/Touring Virtual Reality Alan Ayckbourn makes a surprise appearance in his latest play--virtually speaking, that is. His signed photograph hangs in a restaurant set at the Stephen Josephs McCarthy Theatre. Witty mise en scene aside ...

... Hot Ice shows have changed over the years. I have been able to combine the two very different disciplines. Winston cannot speak highly enough of Thompson and her father Geoffrey, whose productions dominate Blackpool's south shore. He also choreographs ...

... Glow, published by Etoile Publications in paper back at £14.50, is a testament to that fact. Although this is, strictly speaking, an example of vanity publishing, it is also a worthwhile volume, a true example of what can be accomplished through enter ...