... Rosmersholm Nottingham It is a rare treat for a British audience to see Henrik Ibsen's work performed by a Norwegian company. The National Theatre of Norway, directed by Terje Maerli, does full justice to this rarely performed play, which tells the darkly brooding tale of Johannes Rosmer, a pastor who has lost his faith, and his self-seeking foster-daughter Rebekka. She is an emancipated ...

... Brief Encounter Windsor/Touring Andrew Taylor's creaky transliteration of David Lean's movie masterpiece from screen to stage, revived for a short season at the Theatre Royal, has been partly recast since it was last seen on tour. Jenny Seagrove takes over as a poignant if rather lachrymose Laura, missing the stoic gaiety of Celia Johnson's film portrayal but still cutting an attractive figure ...

... Gerald Berkowitz ...

... Shelf Life Staged at the Phoenix Centre, this is a diverse entertainment encompassing farm grumbles and rural concerns, a view of consumer society and human life. Its start, on a farm, suggests a gritty drama, but diverting animal props and humour soon make the point that gritty is not the house style of Theatre Alibi. The plot soon begins to whim sically consider the plight of a shy man ...

... Essential Scottish Opera Musselburgh/Touring This annual tour of highlights from Scottish Opera is an unashamedly populist treat. It provides people across Scotland with an evening of guaranteed hits. Beyond that, it allows regular patrons to savour strong and confident voices, like that of tenor Alfred Boe, up close in a relatively small space, as here at the Brunton. Cleverly directed by ...

... Peppered with frenetic action Sadler's Wells Salt Edouard Lock, choreographer of radical Canadian dance company La La La Human Steps, gave up studying literature for dance, and the switch seems more than academic. Actively resisting to embed meaning in his direction, he attempts to get as close as possible to a state of pure dance. For the nine performers this means 100 minutes of the most ...

... Versatility shines through Criterion London Studio Centre/Musical Theatre Showcase Seedtime, directed by Ian Dewar, is the performing company of third year students following the Musical Theatre Professional Option on London Studio Centre's theatre dance course. At this point in the year, the company is divided into three groups which undertake different projects a play, a TV and video ...

... Best Before Etcetera This cleverly titled new play about Alzheimer's Disease, written and directed by Lizi Hann, is not as grim as you might expect. Although it does not shirk the stark realities of dementia and it does not offer any easy comfort, you do not come away feeling depressed. For one thing, this does have some surprisingly funny moments. But there is a strong sense of the value ...

... Running riot with cliches Edinburgh The Shaughraun Dion Boucicault's 19th century comic melodrama runs riot with every cliche about the Irish in the book. From the big-hearted wandering poacher of the title to feisty Irish county ladies, red-headed informers and dim British soldiers, Boucicault sets them all up. And in this fast-paced production at the Royal Lyceum, director Mark Lambert ...

... Things We Do for Love Chester Alan Ayckbourn's mordant look at the destructive effects of love receives its north west premiere at the Gateway. Guy Retallack's beautifully- judged production portrays every shift of mood and emotion as the play moves from the style of Abigail's Party to that of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Barbara, a poised career woman, lives in the elegant flat which ...

... The Pearl Fishers London Coliseum Philip Prowse's exotic version of Bizet's Gallic Mills et Boon romance set on an island in the Indian Ocean is back. Savour again the petal-strewn stage, the central pillared platform, sacred elephants carved on its columns, the beached boat and huge slatted overhang, all awash with Gerry Jenkinson's colourfully expressive lighting. It is possible to find ...

... Salient points among laughs Donmar Warehouse Helpless If Dusty Hughes is to be believed, Tony Blair's greatest achievement has been to antagonise both the followers of Thatcherism, presumably by appropriating many of its policies, and the quasi-revolutionaries of the sixties. Helpless is an amusing generational play which has quite a number of salient points to make in between the laughs, as ...