Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Based on a 1977 cult text of the same by Larry Mitchell, The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions is a new opera composed by Ted Huffman with direction and text by Philip Venables. The mode of performance is more akin to that of storytellers gathered around a fire than your ‘typical’ opera – nobody here is playing a named role. Instead, the performers tell us stories of two historical revolutions which saw the rise of ‘the men’ and the oppression of minorities like the faggots, the women, the queens, and the faeries in the fictional land of Ramrod. The final minutes of the performance then hypothesise a third, future revolution that will see the end of a patriarchal society and a return to a more equitable way of living for all. 

The text may be fantastical and based on a nearly 50-year-old text, but the parallels with modern society are easy to see. The phrase ‘at once timely and timeless’ is thrown around all too frequently nowadays, but it truly does apply here. There are occasional signs which betray the age of the source material – it’s unlikely we’d see the passage of gay marriage posited as a negative thing in a modern text – but for the most part, it is shocking and saddening to see how many of the struggles Mitchell wrote about in 1977 are still applicable to queer life in 2023. 

The politics of this piece do not focus exclusively on gay liberation though, far from it. Intersectionality is at the heart of this piece, and it takes in women’s rights, racial equality, the perils of late-stage capitalism, and the destruction of the environment to show how oppression works across all of these categories. 

It probably sounds like very heavy, sincere, and worthy material, and it’s true that the production does not shy away from heavier topics. However, it is approached with such rousing ferocity and queer joy that you leave the theatre feeling more inspired and proactive than when you arrived. The performer-musicians are all hugely talented and capable of climbing from the most delicate leitmotif to a cacophonous noise at the drop of a hat. 

Huffman’s music is the focus of this production, and rightly so. Whilst many may see opera as a genre that overwhelmingly re-produces scores that are hundreds of years old, Huffman finds a way forward for the style which demonstrates just how vital it can still be. If you have an opera cynic you’re looking to convince, this is the perfect place to start.  

There are occasional moments that could have been trimmed out. The final moments in particular stand out as a slightly damp conclusion to an otherwise fiery piece of theatre. For the most part though, this is a glorious piece of communal storytelling in its purest form – sharing tales that have been passed down generationally, using them to inspire, to comfort, to warn, and to entertain each other. 

-Daniel Shipman

The Faggots and Their Friends Between Revolutions, part of Manchester International Festival 2023, runs at HOME until 2 July.

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Following a hugely successful run in London’s West End, Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial takes to The Lowry’s stage for four performances. A verbatim fast-paced production, bringing the best bits from seven days of High Court transcripts, Vardy v Rooney reveals a ridiculous, real-life saga of sleuthing, fame and social media. 

Since the story first surfaced in 2019, when Colleen Rooney took to Instagram to accuse Rebekah Vardy of leaking stories to the press, the WAGatha Christie trial had all the trappings of an absurdly entertaining drama. With the actual 2022 libel case transcipts soundly pruned by Liv Hennessy and sharp direction by Lisa Spirling, this production is the first faithful iteration of how this extraordinary week in court played out.

Polly Sullivan’s design consists of a bright courtroom-cum-football pitch set. Two football pundits act as narrators – pushing the drama along and offering a commentary on the court case. The cast are all brilliant but Lucy May Barker steals the first half of the show as stroppy, oversized sunglasses-wearing Vardy. With deadpan and nonchalant delivery, there is no need for any additional one-liners, as the actual testimony given writes itself. 

A performance of two halves, the two-act drama slows down after the interval when Laura Dos Santos, as Colleen Rooney (complete with surgical boot), steps up to give her testimony. Vardy’s testimony has already delivered all the best lines.

Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial is, for the most part, a gripping and humorous retelling. Exploring jealousy, class and the awkward relationship between the British press and celebrity, this performance poses questions around the function of social platforms like Instagram, its correlation with the media, and our role as consumers of it.

Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial runs at The Lowry until Sunday 11 June and then heads to Brighton Theatre Royal from 15 – 17 June.

Upstaged rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Fresh from the stellar adaption of My Fair Lady, another Bartlett Sher directed version of a musical theatre classic visits Manchester – this time, Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The King & I.

Premiering in 1951, The King and I follows confident British schoolmaster Anna as she takes residence in Siam to tutor the King’s many children. Over the course of many months, Anna and the stern King become well acquainted and she is welcomed into his trust – unusual for a woman at the time and in Siamese culture.

An impressively strong and surprisingly modern approach to feminism.

As you can imagine, the plot occasionally strays into the realm of exoticising foreign cultures, but Sher proves mainly adept at neutralising this. There is a hint of a white saviour narrative to the conclusion, but my fears of a plot that has aged like milk proved unfounded. (I must confess, I was entirely ignorant of the musical before this production.)

With this in mind, The King and I takes an impressively strong and surprisingly modern approach to feminism, especially given the age of the material. Anna is a force to be reckoned with, and Annalene Beechey strikes the balance between her tough, matronly exterior and motherly heart perfectly.

The orchestrations are grand and evocative of the cultural divide between colonial Europe and East Asia.

With the Rodgers and Hammerstein name behind it, you know precisely the quality of music you will be getting, and this production doesn’t disappoint. The orchestrations are grand and evocative of the cultural divide between colonial Europe and East Asia. Surely the most well-known number from the show is ‘Getting to Know You’, which is realised here as one of the most charming musical numbers I’ve seen in a long time, extolling the virtues of cultural collaboration and of teaching.

Costumes (Catherine Zuber) are absolutely sumptuous, as you would expect and desire from a production such as this. Shows from the ‘golden age’ of musicals don’t respond well to any sign of budgetary constraint. The sets (Michael Yeargan) were somewhat spartan at times, but this is mostly forgivable given the relatively short run in each venue.

Minor quibbles aside, this is another confident production from Sher. It’s always a treat to see classics such as this performed in a high-budget setting, and there seems to be a slew making their way through Manchester right now – make the most of it whilst you can.

-Daniel Shipman

The King & I runs at the Palace Theatre, Manchester until Saturday 13 May 2023.

Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Based on Nobel Prize-winning author Olga Tokarczuk’s novel of the same name, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is a dream-like thriller that follows the reclusive Janina (Kathryn Hunter) and her acquaintances as they discover a series of murders that are seemingly linked to the wildlife of the area.

Directed by Simon McBurney, the production has an unnerving, surreal quality throughout which is bolstered by beautiful projections – which reflect Janina’s preoccupation with astrology – and immersive sound design. Together with a series of incredible performances from the cast, the plot builds to a climax which is perhaps the most intense experience I’ve had in a theatre.

The plot builds to a climax which is perhaps the most intense experience I’ve had in a theatre.

The tonal balance is astonishing, consistently dark and bleak but with comic punctuation which makes the spectacle an enjoyable watch without ever derailing the overall mood. Even with this, Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is not an easy watch. The list of trigger warnings before the show is extensive, and the depictions of violence toward animals is graphic.

Kathryn Hunter’s performance is the crown jewel of the show.

Above all this though, Kathryn Hunter’s performance is the crown jewel of the show. To say that she embodies Janina doesn’t even begin to do it justice. The energy she brings to the role across the three-hour run time will blow you away, and makes the hefty run time pass in the blink of an eye. Striking the balance between ensuring the audience empathises with Janina whilst also being aware that she is an unreliable narrator is an almost impossible balancing act, but Hunter pulls it off with aplomb.

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead is not an easy night at the theatre, but it will be one of the most rewarding you ever experience.

-Daniel Shipman

Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead runs at The Lowry until Saturday 29 April 2023.

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

This new production of The Bodyguard, based on the 1992 Warner Bros film starring Whitney Houston with the best-selling movie soundtrack of all time, comes with a strong message at Manchester’s Palace Theatre. Signs at the bar and pre-show announcements instruct audience members to refrain from singing along until the encore. It’s a message that shouldn’t be taken personally, and the audience certainly shifted into full ‘jukebox musical’ mode at the end of the show, when singing along was positively encouraged.

The stage musical adheres closely to the original, easy-to-follow movie storyline. A former Secret Service Agent turned bodyguard, Frank Farmer, is hired to protect global superstar, Rachel Marron from an unknown stalker. However, writer Alexander Dinelaris has expanded the soundtrack to incorporate many more of Whitney Houston’s hits. Expect songs like ‘I Have Nothing’, ‘Queen of the Night’, ‘Run to You’ and ‘I Will Always Love You’ from the movie soundtrack as well as Whitney classics like ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’, ‘One Moment in Time’ and ‘How Will I Know’.

Melody Thornton, of The Pussycat Dolls, steps into Rachel Marron’s shoes but never manages to quite fill them. A powerful vocalist, but not a triple threat, some of the scenes between Rachel and Frank, played by Ayden Callaghan, lacked any romantic alchemy. Emily-Mae as Rachel’s talented, though overlooked, sister Nicki brought a stand-out performance – rich and soulful – delivering a sensational duet with Thornton during ‘Run to You’.

The show opens with a bang (quite literally) with impressive full-scale pyrotechnics to make the audience gasp, and comes down with a euphoric encore as the audience bound to their feet to join the cast in belting out Whitney’s glorious hits. However, it all feels like two pieces of bread lacking a good filling.

The Bodyguard dishes up all of the songs we know and love. A crowd-pleasing night at the theatre.

-Kristy Stott

The Bodyguard runs at the Palace Theatre, Manchester until 15 April 2023 before touring until 30 December 2023.

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Jenna Coleman (The Serpent, All My Sons) and Aidan Turner (Poldark, The Lieutenant of Inishmore) fizz and shine in this musing romantic comedy, written by Sam Steiner. 

A two-hander about the value of language, the words we use and how we choose to communicate.

Fresh from the West End – playing on Manchester Opera House’s stage as part of an exclusive run – Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons is a two-hander about the value of language, the words we use and how we choose to communicate.

The show focuses on a young couple, Oliver and Bernadette, who are living in a world where a gag law limits the number of words they are allowed to speak. With legislation forcing them to communicate with a word limit of just 140 words per day, the couple have to get creative to find different ways to understand and connect with each other. Under Josie Rourke’s smart and reflective directorial hand, there are some wonderfully, well-paced comic moments as the couple experiment with other modes of communication: intense eye contact, morse code and their own reduced language. Ultimately, at a time of linguistic austerity and increased tensions in their relationship, the couple have no choice but to use their words wisely to bridge the gap between them.

All sorts of thought-provoking themes are raised as language becomes a form of currency. If language was limited and valuable, how would you choose the spend your words? And who would you choose to communicate with? Furthermore, in terms of your job and home life, how would you proportion your allowance? Perhaps, more vitally, under the legislation (or due to corruption), would some people have access to more words? Timely and bold, Steiner’s script still feels startlingly relevant and political. The government in the play are intent on silencing protestors and censoring free speech – quite urgent themes considering our current climate of anti-protest laws and debates around freedom of expression; seen most recently, when Gary Lineker tweeted out against government immigration policy. 

Robert Jones’ set design – of a large wall decorated with junk and clutter of everyday life – contrasts brilliantly with the increasingly restricted existence of Bernadette and Oliver. The play’s 100 fragmented scenes are punctuated by Aideen Malone’s clever lighting design – strip lights brilliantly symbolising the tally of the word count.

An intelligent and witty play about the beauty of words and the language we share with those closest to us.

Running at a neat 85 minutes with no interval, Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons is an intelligent and witty play about the beauty of words and the language we share with those closest to us.

-Kristy Stott

Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons Lemons runs at Manchester Opera House until 25 March 2023.

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

Guest Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Death Drop 2: Back in the Habit is billed as a sequel to the hit drag whodunnit, but this is actually something of a misnomer. There are no recurring characters or plot points. Instead, we find ourselves inside a monastery, accompanied by an appropriate number of Sound of Music references. (ie, lots.) What HAS been carried over from the original however is the ultra-camp sense of humour, and enough innuendo to make the cast of a Carry On film blush.

Father Alfie Romeo (Louis Cyfer) is dispatched to the convent of St Babs, in search of a holy ring. (Spoiler: this ring belonged to Jesus Christ himself… and it wasn’t a piece of jewellery.) If that seems like vulgar humour, then this is not the show for you. If you can get on board with it, then grab yourself a ticket and brace your funny bone.

Jujubee’s status as the biggest star of the show is somewhat wasted by limited stage time, but she certainly makes the most of her appearances as Sister Maria Julie Andrews. The physical comedy between her and Alfie Romeo in a number of corridor-running scenes is top-tier.

The hammy accents deployed by the entire cast have strong comedic value, but they do overwhelm the actual dialogue at times, leading to a few of the jokes being missed. Similarly, the stars could have used a bit more precision with their comic timing – yet more jokes are lost by a cast that routinely launches straight into the next line when the audience isn’t yet finished laughing at the previous one, something which should be a pretty innate skill for performers of this level. In other shows, this would have a terminal effect on the comedy, but the script (penned by Louis Cyfer) keeps the humour coming so consistently that it is (at least partially) forgivable.

Dropped gags aside, there are some excellent performances here – Victoria Scone and Kitty Scott-Claus prove themselves to be masterful scene partners. Scone with a camp melodrama which suits her role perfectly, and Scott-Claus with a down-to-earth frankness which proves the perfect foil and ensures that the tone is sufficiently varied throughout.

If an evening full of double-entendre is your idea of fun, then you’ll find a lot to love in Death Drop 2.

-Daniel Shipman

Death Drop – Back In The Habit runs at Manchester Opera House until 12 March 2023 and then Birmingham Hippodrome from 14-18 March 2023.

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Beginning is a sharply perceptive and beautifully written two-hander by David Eldridge. Sat in the first gallery in the Royal Exchange, I certainly felt like a ‘fly on the wall’ at an intimate, awkward and entertaining meeting between two strangers, 38-year-old high-flying MD Laura and 42-year-old divorced middle manager Danny.

Set in the early hours, Laura’s flatwarming party has drawn to a close and Danny is the last remaining guest, and only attending because his friend invited him. As the night ends, a candid conversation begins as the unlikely couple slowly let their true selves slip – exposing their hopes and hurts, imperfections and insecurities – drifting from complete awkwardness to absolute heart-pounding intensity. It’s a dark rom-com. Rigorously naturalistic, punctuated with sparkling comic lines and brilliantly performed.

The first instalment in an ongoing trilogy, Beginning was a hit at the National Theatre in 2017; for this production, Eldridge has reframed the play for Northern audiences, moving the setting from Crouch End to West Didsbury. Bryony Shanahan’s direction is perfectly paced too; the characters deliver staccato-style speech at the start before opening up into moving monologues. Navigating through some wonderfully uneasy silences, Laura and Danny are interesting, though insecure, likeable characters who become closer throughout the play’s one hour 50 minute duration.

Astutely written – packed with tension and some superb comic touches – Beginning is a fascinating piece of theatre and definitely worth getting a ticket for.

-Kristy Stott

Beginning runs at the Royal Exchange until 11 March 2023.

Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Upstaged rating:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

It’s panto season! (Oh no it isn’t, etc…) Full disclosure: I haven’t seen a panto since I was a kid, and went in to the Opera House’s Peter Pan frankly a little bit cynical. I’d assumed it was just for parents wanting to introduce their kids to theatre – a great aim, but one with not much to offer someone like me. How wrong I was!

This show works perfectly well for that – the children in the audience are visibly (and audibly!) having a wonderful time, but this is a hugely entertaining show in its own right.

There is obviously a high budget here, none of the DIY costumes I was used to from the pantomimes of my youth. Director Guy Unsworth has thrown everything but the kitchen sink at this show, and it pays off big time. The enthusiastic audience are treated to pyrotechnics, computer generated graphics, and an animatronic crocodile that looked bigger than my flat.

Ben Nickless is a fixture of Manchester’s pantomime scene, returning every year to offer comic relief for kids and knowing winks to adults in equal measure. It’s easy to see why he has such a stellar reputation, with his hugely charismatic stage persona being the highlight of a packed evening. He also manages to ram in more slyly obscene jokes than I ever would have thought you could get away in a room full of children, whilst making it look easy. If his role is to ensure that the parents enjoy themselves just as much as the kids, then he succeeds admirably.

The obligatory star power is provided this year by Jason Manford, but this is no mere case of style over substance. Manford’s extensive comic experience is put to excellent use, with his villainous Captain Hook (boo) creating an enviable double act with Nickless’s hapless Smee.

The whole evening is as camp as a field of tents, and so much fun. What more could you want from a panto! I was blown away. It takes a lot to convert an old cynic like me, but I’ll be making this a yearly tradition from now on.

-Daniel Shipman

The Pantomime Adventures of Peter Pan runs at Manchester Opera House until 31 December 2022.

Reviewer: Daniel Shipman

Upstaged Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The Royal Exchange has a solid reputation for outstanding, non-pantomime Christmas shows, and Betty (written by and starring Maxine Peake) is no exception. Described as ‘a sort of musical’, Betty follows the misadventures of the Dewsbury Players as they attempt to mount a Christmas show which traces the life of Betty Boothroyd – Dewsbury native and the first female speaker of parliament.

There is so much to enjoy here, and part of that is the cheeky lilt to Peake’s script.

If this sounds like intentionally obscure material for a show, that’s because it is. There is so much to enjoy here, and part of that is the cheeky lilt to Peake’s script. Her writing contains wit in such abundance that even niche source material feels universally accessible. Her performance is similarly outstanding, straddling the line of snobby villain and beating heart of the group with precision.

It may sound like a lazy comparison in light of the ‘Maxine Peake’ connection, but there is so much of Victoria Wood’s heart and humour here. The ability to cram multiple laughs into each and every minute whilst also imbuing the script with so much sincere emotion feels like a uniquely northern tradition, and it is more than safe in Peake’s hands. I left having cried tears of both joy and empathy, and that is all one can really ask from a night at the theatre.

Every member of the cast is truly perfection.

Every member of the cast is truly perfection. They look and sound like real am-dram group members. They don’t suddenly spring into Olivier-worthy voices at the drop of a sequinned hat, which demonstrates an admirable lightness of touch in Sarah Frankcom’s direction. This makes you feel as though you’ve never actually left a village hall in Dewsbury – the performers are transported by ‘the magic of theatre’ in the same way the audience are (there is a notable exception to this, but I refuse to say anymore – go and see it to find out).

References to late twentieth-century politics and popular culture whistle past at lightning speed. It’s probably impossible to catch every single one on a first viewing, but that’s okay – the quality and density of the script means that another one (of equally sublime quality) will be here in a matter of moments, and it will have your sides splitting. By the end of the first act, I would have been worrying that I was bothering my neighbours with my constant belly laughs, were it not for the fact that they were in the same state.

One thing is for certain though – Betty is a BLAST.

-Daniel Shipman

Betty! A Sort of Musical runs at the Royal Exchange Theatre until 14 January 2023.