feminist

Why is the exploration of gender in Shakespeare such an important triumph and talking point? It could be the fact that Shakespeare never wrote his roles for women in the mind that they would one day be played by a female actor rather than boys in dresses. He simply did not live in a time where that would be possible. It could also be the fact that out of 981 characters that Shakespeare wrote, only 155 are women, which accounts for 16% of all roles.

Harriet Walter’s new book, Brutus and Other Heroines, explores the idea (and some would argue, FACT) that the women in Shakespeare’s plays unfortunately “only matter in as much as they relate to the men.”

The use of computers and digital technology projections in theatrical has been steadily increasing in recent years. While the likes of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and The Nether have helped with awareness of the limits of its use, the real questions paradoxically are can its use ever feel 'organic' to a production and does digital tech ever fall in danger of sacrificing humanity for sophistication?

Without a doubt, the decision by the 51% of the UK population who bothered to vote to leave the EU, left many – including myself – angry and bewildered. Almost immediately, naked aggression has come to the fore with an 78% rise in race hate crimes. Hot on its heels, the British government toyed with different ideas and legislation to curtail levels of immigration and to scrutinise the levels of non-British personnel working for British firms. The latest Little Pieces of Gold event run by Suzette Coon deals with the ramifications of Brexit and all the concerns raised above. As you might expect, it makes for unnerving viewing, especially as some of the more satirical pieces when written earlier this year, have borne out to be true in time.

This is my first review for a dance piece of theatre, which ignited my inner (very deep down) prima ballerina! I was thrilled to go to the Blue Elephant Theatre to watch two contemporary dancers, Julie Havelund-Willett and Agnese Lanza perform their self-choreographed show, Inter Pares Project.

Allegedly, when Native American medicine men talk to the sick, they usually ask three questions: When was the last time you sang? When was the last time you danced? When was the last time you told your story? Whether she was conscious of this notion or not, theatremaker Bryony Kimmings has adopted this practise for her latest show, to address and throw light on one of the most pernicious of diseases: cancer.

There's something about plays set in pubs/bar that naturally brings with it a sense of melancholy and a gathering of disparate characters. Tennessee Williams – long known for writing some of the stage's most iconic female characters – like most artists had his successes and works that were less performed during his lifetime. Tramp Theatre Company have taken Confessional, one of Williams' lesser works – and transposed it to a coastal town in Essex. Starring Lizzie Stanton, she plays Leona Dawson, a beautician who has more than her hands full with her Bill (Gavin Brocker), her fella with the roaming eye. If he wasn't enough to contend with, the play takes place on the anniversary of Leona's brother's death, someone she was once very close to. Still wrought at his passing, she plays Tchaikovsky's Serenade Melancholique on the jukebox because it reminds her of his talents as a musician.

Historically, epic tales that span many years and places are told from a male perspective. Yes, there examples to the contrary, but even with stories like Moll Flanders and Anna Karenina, they are examples of a woman not following the path of women in 'polite society'. Tracing the use of oil (as a global means of power from the late 19th - mid-21st century) Carrie Cracknell has artfully brought to life Ella Hickson's pioneering play, which tethers the rise and decline of this fossil fuel with civilisation – and more importantly, a mother's relationship with her daughter.

Written by Isla Gray, Left Luggage centres on two sisters who have to deal with the funeral arrangements of their late-grandmother.

Wow! Fringe Theatre at it's best!

"I would get you a glass but... they're still in the shops."