★★★★★
120 min • Arts Theatre • From April 13, 2013

The grit, humour and emotion of Jonathan Harvey’s Beautiful Thing are all still wonderfully affecting 20 years on.

“The play is set (and was written) in a time when Section 28 was in place and gay characters were usually limited to marginalised rent boys.”

★★★★★
150 min • Prince of Wales Theatre • From March 21, 2013

The Book of Mormon is a masterpiece of musical theatre. It’s witty, clever, base, crude and even touching, finding profundity in profanity.

“One would expect the creators of South Park to have penned a musical that’s rude & crude laced with humour that’s juvenile and vile, all boxes that The Book Of Mormon ticks, and does so with relish – but it is also incredibly slick, well staged and deceptively intelligent.”

★★★★★
100 min • Manchester Arena • March 7, 2013

DJ David Robson watches The Girls Aloud tour, and sees the Girls going through the motions … and not much else.

“Pop today is ruled by reality star competitors who are such products they haven’t got anything to say. They are happy to go along as part of the machine and as a result become such faceless acts that, when it comes to performing in an arena tour, the flaw in the pop plan is plain to see.”

★★★★★
110 min • Palladium Theatre • From February 19, 2013

Bob Avian directs A Chorus Line. Dazzling revival of a classic. Forget the Hollywood debacle, this is the real deal.

“A Chorus Line was the first major Broadway musical that not only had openly gay characters but it was the first show in which they were given songs and script that delved unashamedly into their private lives and sexuality.”

★★★★★
150 min • Savoy Theatre • From October 3, 2012

Rufus Norris’ Cabaret, with Michelle Ryan and Will Young, dazzles and impresses Little Bastard.

“The ensemble seems to have been stripped down, and whilst looking slightly thin on the ground, each section is danced flawlessly, with the perfect balance of technical ability and debauchery.”

★★★★★
60 min • Leicester Square Theatre • Jun 16, Jul 1, Jul 31, 2012

Clayton Littlewood is blown away by Dexter Clark’s Fabulous Head. The hecklers didn’t stand a chance.

“It was refreshing. Funny. With a minute amount of Mrs Merton, a sprinkling of Savage and a big bite of Bernhard.”

★★★★★
135 min • Threesixty Theatre, Kensington Gardens • May 8 – Sep 9, 2012

Rupert Goold & Michael Fentiman’s adaptation of The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe is dark and inventive, and boasts a perfect cast.

“A master class in creativity, with a beautifully artistic vision, but younger children may lose their way with it.”

★★★★★
160 min • Theatre Royal, Haymarket, London • March 15th, 2012

Fast-paced and astronomically funny, One Man, Two Guvnors is perhaps the funniest play on the London stage right now.

“One Man, Two Guvnors is riotous. Owain Arthur as Francis Henshall is the perfect guide to the chaos, and his comic timing is flawless.”

★★★★★
150 min • Apollo Victoria Theatre, London • June 4th, 2009

Impressive, complex, and subversive, Wicked is an unusual and surprising musical.

Wicked explores ideas of social & political power by questioning one of the defining totems of evil in 20th century mass media: the Wicked Witch of the West.

★★★★★
170 min • English National Opera, London Coliseum • May 29th, 2009

A magnificent production of one of Mozart’s greatest operas.

The scenario is somewhat ridiculous, and that is why it is rather funny as opposed to being an exercise in misogyny. One must not forget that the subjects are young men and women, slave to their hormones and the drama that invokes.