“The Effect” by Lucy Prebble
Nottingham New Theatre

“The Effect” is a clinical romance. Two young volunteers, Tristan and Connie, agree to take part in a clinical drug trial. Succumbing to the gravitational pull of attraction and love, however, Tristan and Connie manage to throw the trial off-course, much to the frustration of the clinicians involved.But the volunteers aren't the only ones under the microscope!

This is the sort of play that raises more questions than answers, especially in today’s world of modern medicine and what is, or isn’t available and possible in the world of medical and clinical trials.

The play digs deeply into the mysteries of the mind, and also examines the nature of depressive illness. Are anti-depressant drugs any more than a placebo, the play asks, and is being depressed just a natural part of the human condition rather than an illness?

Lois Baglin (Connie Hall) and Luke Slater (Tristan Frey) play the volunteers while Kate Maguire (Dr Lorna James) and Louis Djalili (Dr Toby Sealey) are the ones in charge of the clinical experiments.

All four were excellent with an amazing amount of passion in the characters, but Kate for me was so composed to start with, clinical in her role and delivery but when the human side of the character started to break through, well, and what happened after was a bit of a surprise!

Watching these four actors was like being a fly on the wall because the naturalistic way these four not only interact, but deliver the lines, doesn't come across as being part of a play. It's as if we weren't there. The fluidity of the delivery was a very comfortable watch, even if at times the subject matter wasn't.

Directed by Felicity Chilver and Produced by Rosie Hudson this pair make a great team. Making sure that the tension was forever bubbling under is an art, and this production team, as well as the actors got it spot on for me.

The Lighting Designer for this play is Sam Osbourne and Sound Designer is Andrew Houghton. Both aspects of theatre that is vital to the whole atmosphere and feel and these two made sure that we felt uneasy with the soundscape while highlighting sections with the lighting, ever pointing us to where we should be looking.

The Set itself was clinical white with two low beds and a smattering of medical props, while two screens guided us with what was happening medication wise. The Technical Director for this was Ben Woodford. It also ensured that we were aware of when the play had ended.

Stage manager is Amy Crighton

The play has been running since Wednesday 8 November until this evening Saturday 11 November 2017.

“Around The World In 80 Days”
Derby Theatre.

A The New Vic Theatre production in association with The Royal Exchange Theatre.

The story of Phileas Fogg who makes a bet that he can travel around the world in 80 days. I’d heard and read so many great things about this production, adapted by Laura Eason, that I just had to see it, and I was not disappointed.

Theresa Heskins’ production has a cast of eight playing over 125 characters in this whirlwind of a play which includes no less than six trains, five boats, four fights, three dances, two circus acts and an elephant! What happened to the partridge in a pear tree and the kitchen sink?

I read this book when I was a kid and was completely enthralled by the pictures the words could paint in your mind. Now seeing it on stage and in front of your eyes, that same child-like wonderment came to the fore once more. There’s bandit battling, Princess rescuing, winter storms but will Fogg find love at the end and will he win his bet?

I have to say that this is one of the best plays I've seen this year for several reasons.

The story draws in everyone of any age. It has smatterings of panto with the bad guy versus the good guys, the timing for this production is incredible with the sound to action timing and the reaction to the other actors is just incredibly tight. It's like watching a film with the sound effects dubbed in afterwards, but this is live theatre which makes this do impressive. James Earls-Davis, the Sound Designer and associate Sound Designer, Alex Day have done an incredible job.

The Lighting Designer, Alexandra Stafford is also to be exulted for the split second timing with the lights, creating an exciting feast for the eyes.

The fight sequences are magical, and again with the timing bring a comic book feel to the show, Borrowing from "The Matrix" for some of its' slow mo acting effects, it again gave you the sense of being on a movie set special effect department, and you have to keep reminding yourself that this is live action, not celluloid wizadry.

Andrew Pollard (Fogg), Michael Hugo (Passpartout), Joey Parsad (Miss Singh), Kirsten Foster (Mrs Aouda), Dennis Herdman (Inspector Fix), Pushpinder Chani ( Mr Naidu),
Nyron Levy (Captain Speedy) and Matthew Ganley (Colonel Proctor) were all incredible and so full of energy.

Michael Hugo though was just amazingly entertaining, as they all were, and as a baddie, Dennis Herdman rightfully received his share of booing and hissing, reminding us that panto season was just around the corner.

Lis Evans designed the set, and what a clever set design this was. Each scene was transformed manually from the last scene and the boat scenes which had the actors, and props swaying was becoming so realistic, I found myself swaying along with them in my seat. This was also a massive

success for the Stage Management team.

James Atherton is the composer and Musical Director for this piece of theatre and his music took us to all the parts of the world that Fogg passed through, giving us an aural taste of the region.

One mustn't forget the Movement Director, Beverley Norris-Edmunds because without Beverley's work the often jelly like acrobatic and gymnastic movements would not have been as excellent as they were.

This show will appeal to all ages and is at Derby Theatre until Sunday 12 November 2017, and I would go and see this wonderful show over and over and over again. What a wonderful theatrical aperitif for the Christmas period

“Rent” by Kristian Thomas Company
Springfield Hall, Sandiacre.

The musical is loosely based on the Puccini opera “La Boheme”. It tells the story of a group of impoverished young artists struggling to survive and create a life in New York City's East Village in the thriving days of Bohemian Alphabet City, under the shadow of HIV/AIDS.

Kristian Thomas Company are one of the most local prolific theatre companies around at the moment, with a very high standard of productivity, and this production does not fall below the standards I’ve seen in the past and have come to expect.

They boast a fluid group of cast members which means that they can have the pick of their members to match the varied roles in the varied productions they perform.

The musical, for those who have never seen it before, feature some very charismatic roles.

Mimi the erotic dancer and Roger’s girlfriend, both have HIV and Mark, who also acts as the narrator of the play as well as being Roger’s flat mate are the main characters but the support roles are just as fascinating character wise.

Maureen, a performance artist and ex-girlfriend of Mark’s, and Joanne, the woman that Maureen left Mark for, are lovers and are fiery, as highlighted in their duet “The Tango Maureen”.

And then there’s Angel, the drag queen who has AIDS and is Tom Collins’ lover.

Benny, the yuppie landlord who has really fell on his feet who used to be where Mark and Roger once was.

Everything about this musical was spot on, apart from the sound in places. that's not anyone's fault as the venue has a high ceiling where some of the sounds can be lost. Nothing you can do about that, and having been to a few music gigs there, you recognise that this is something that will always be a minor problem. That aside the sound was as perfect as you're going to get thanks to the talented Harry Greatorex.

The harmonies were gorgeous and the four piece band, which sounded more like an orchestra created a beautiful backing to this talented bunch of vocalists. Tom Bond as musical director really brought the best out of the foursome.Dave Adey on keyboards, Tom on drums, Jeff Widdowson on bass and Rob Upton on guitar.

The musical score is ballsy and has some memorable songs, especially the wonderful “Seasons Of Love”, plus “I’ll Cover You”, “I Should Tell You”, the seductive “Light My Candle”, “Take Me Or Leave Me”, “Your Eyes” and of course the title track, “Rent”.

The setting was different with the action being played out on a catwalk stage so that the audience were on three sides, making you feel like you were part of the ensemble. A setting that worked so well for this story.

The whole staging was also a lot sexier than any production I'd seen, but not in a sleazy way, which it could have done taking into account that some of the scenes were in meant to have been set in exotic dance clubs.

Let's talk choreography!

Kristian Cunningham, who also produced this show, created some new and exciting choreography here. The section with the row of chairs was wonderful and looked great, and I imagine more complicated than we give credit for. Everything about the innovative dance sections was exciting to watch and I sat there with my mouth open in awe. The energy put in by every one took your breath away.

Director Alysha Gomes kept this "rock opera" style musical incredibly fresh, and although the musical is a bit longer than some, time didn't stand still as the pace left no time to even glance at a watch. It was like Alysha had covered the musical in varnish it appeared fresh and exciting, and I've seen it several times.

The lighting (Stephen Greatorex) was really impressive and set the mood for every part of the musical perfectly.

What a cast!

Benito Preite (Mark) put in an emotional performance, playing his character with great eagerness and zest, all the while keeping his audience in the loop with what was happening in the timeline.

Tom Simpson (Roger) has a wonderful rock voice and again is charismatic to watch on stage.

Beth Denham (Mimi) turned up the sex appeal with her double entendre performance of "Light My Candle" as well s bringing a tear to the eye in Act Two.

Andrew Buxton (Tom Collins) is another actor with a great voice, full of grit and soul, and again in Act Two, his acting brought about many a moist eye I noticed.

Jack Draper (Benny) turned bully boy yuppie in "Rent" but showed a more compassionate side in the second act. Another solid performance from Jack, who seems to change his acting style from one show to the next, showing what a versatile actor he is.

The roles of Maureen and Joanne are played by Shannon O'Donnell and Hannah Eve Brent and Georgie Bond and Anna Cousins for different performances. All four actors are so talented and have such wonderfully powerful voices that you will love whichever pairing you get to see.

Lucas Young (Angel) is one of those actors who can do everything. Not only does he show off some impressive gymnastics but some eye watering dance moves as Angel. He plays percussion and there's no way I'm not going to mention just how good he looks in those red boots. The man has dancers legs and he showcases them in this role.

A wonderful ensemble and supporting cast made up of newcomers and faces we've seen and loved in other shows over the years, and which we always look forward to seeing.

A shame not more people turned out for this particular piece of theatre because they would have experienced a real treat, but there's still time.

“Rent” is on at Springfield Hall until Saturday 11 November 2017

“The Cherry Orchard” by Anton Chekhov
Nottingham Playhouse

Written shortly before the Russian Revolution, The Cherry Orchard is one of the greatest of all of Chekhov's plays and regarded as one of the classics of 20th Century theatre.

The play concerns an aristocratic Russian landowner, Ranevskaya, who returns to her family estate, which includes a large, popular cherry orchard, just before it is auctioned to pay the mortgage. Unresponsive to offers to save the estate, she allows its sale to the son of a former serf; the family leaves to the sound of the cherry orchard being cut down.

This is a newer version of the old classic, reimagined by Simon Stephens and directed by Giles Croft.

This is Giles’ final production, and his first Chekhov play, as the artistic director at the Nottingham Playhouse.It's an apt choice as the play is all about saying goodbye to the past and moving on to

pastures new. I know that Giles will, like most of the characters in the play, will be excited about what lies ahead, but look back fondly on what they had.

Set design is by Tim Meacock and as soon as you walk into the auditorium, the marvellous set just hits you right between the eyes. it reminded me a little of the TV set for the house in "The Durrells". Rustic but with great character but in need of tender loving care.

Lighting is designed by Steph Bartle and the Sound design by Adam McCready who also composed the original music for this play.

Choreographed by Adele Parry and the stylish costumes by Jane Temple.

The cast presented themselves as a family group surrounded by friends and that is how it came across. By doing this there didn't seem to be anyone who stuck out more than the next actor. This made for an easy watch and a most believable set of relationships.

That said I am now going to contradict myself because I was drawn towards the characterisation of Firs, the manservant played by Kenneth Alan-Taylor. You felt a certain empathy with Firs having to work into his old age but knowing that this was his life and if it all came to an end, then so would he.

Sara Stewart (Madame Lyubov Ranevskaya), John Elkington (Alexander Lopakhin ), Claire Storey (Charlotte Ivanovna), Jonathan Oliver (Boris Simeonov-Pishchik ), Robin Kingsland (Leonid Gayev), Jamie de Courcey (Peter Trofimov ), Patrick Osborne Goll (Lev the Station Master and Traveller) were all excellent, making you buy into their roles and characters.

(Simeon Yepikhodov ), Sasha Frost (Dushanbe), Graham Butler (Yasha ), Babirye Bukilwa (Varya), Evlyne Oyedokun (Anya ) and Rob

An ensemble of dancers also appeared at the end who had only been visible from a certain angle from the auditorium created the atmosphere of a party just off stage.

The play is worthy of it's "classic" label and with such an able and talented cast, this night at the theatre was an absolute joy. The story isn't locked into the era of its' origin, but has relevance in today's society.

Chekhov's "The Cherry Orchard" is at the Nottingham Playhouse until Saturday 18 November 2017.

“Over There” by Mark Ravenhill
Nottingham New Theatre

When Franz’s mother escaped to the West with one of her identical twin boys, Franz, she left the other, Karl behind. Now, 15 years later, Karl crosses the border in search of his other half. As history takes an unexpected turn, the brothers must struggle to reconnect. Exploring the true essence of brotherhood and the effect political events can have on relationships,

Mark Ravenhill’s plays are no stranger to NNT as last year they performed “Shopping and F***ing”, the controversial play that launched Ravenhill’s career back in 1996.

This play is dark, and if they haven't made a film of this, then someone ought to. There are reflections of a fraternal "Single White Female" here as well touches of the supernatural.

For a play that is brash and flashy in many regards, its beauty lies in the subtle way that it builds emotion and tension between the twins.It's that emotion that explodes into the shocking end.

Franz is played by Sasha Gibson and Karl is played by Anna Scholes. In other versions of the play that I've read about, the twins are played by men, so straight away this has another twist to it and there's a lot of fun played out in several scenes, especially in the disco section.

Both Sasha and Anna give powerful and emotive performances with brilliant timing.

Directed by Charlotte Sanders, assisted by Tara Phillips, they kept that tension up, then diffused it, only to ramp it up further. It literally had me on the edge of my seat, eager to know what was going to happen next.

Produced by Harry Pavlou who also doubles as the Sound Designer (assisted by Emily Dimino) for this one.Set firmly in the 80's, as depicted by the 80's music and videos, and I love the tongue in cheek humour with Aerosmith's "Dude Looks Like A Lady" as these two dudes were played by ladies!

The lighting design (Darcey Graham) helped to move the timeline on by fading in and out, making it easy to follow.

The set is designed by Beth Wilson, and while being sparse, it said all it needed to, therefore not distracting from the script or the actors.

The video work for this play is courtesy of Louis Djalili and placed you firmly in that decade.Research for this was also noted with the news items that were shown.

“Over There” is at the Nottingham New Theatre until Saturday 4 November 2017 and is a brilliant start to their Autumn/Winter season.

“Follies” by Good Companions Stage Society
Derby Theatre

Set at a 30-years-on reunion of vaudeville singers and dancers from a New York theatre that closed in 1941, the show moves between the time periods with the 1971 characters and younger versions of their characters.

It begins with a reunion of showgirls who were once members of Broadway's glamorous Weismann Follies. They meet in a crumbling theatre that will soon be demolished to make way for a parking lot,and recall past glories but also look at dreams they once cherished. And as always when memories are delved into, old wounds can be re opened, and are, and ghosts unearthed.

We follow two couples, Ben and Phyllis Stone (Davron Hicks and Yvonne Taylor) and Buddy and Sally Plummer (Steve Foster and Hilary Leam).

Sally has never really got over her love for Ben and while she starts off nervous about meeting up with Ben again, by the end her feelings have turned in the other direction and shows a more angry side which is depicted clearly with her version of the beautifully poetic “Losing My Mind”, the most well-known song from this musical. She comes to the conclusion that the time she had waited and dreamt about Ben were wasted years.

This basically is the plot which is spread over two and a half hours.

For every Lloyd-Webber "Joseph", "Evita" or "Phantom", there's an "Aspects Of Love".

With Sondheim, for every "West Side Story", "Sweeney Todd" or "Into the Woods" there's a "Follies". For me the "Emperor's New Clothes" of the musical world.

I'm sorry I just do not see the greatness in this musical. If I hadn't had read up about the musical, I would have been a rather confused viewer as most of the main characters also had a younger version of their character. Even being aware of this, the storyline didn't make this clear, which I overheard several audience members comment on.

Salesman Buddy is unfaithful but loves Sally. Ben, the old flame and former politician also recognises his wasted life and has a breakdown. Phyllis is sophisticated but hides her misery behind her wise cracking.

There's some really good stuff in here though, so please don't shoot the reviewer just yet!

There are some great songs here, Sondheim mini classics. Not only the epic and aching “Losing My Mind” but the wit in “Could I Leave You”, the glitzy “Broadway Baby”, the soaring ballad “One Last Kiss”, the wonderful "Too Many Mornings" and the defiant “I’m Still Here”.

The costumes are gorgeous and the orchestra, under the direction of Dave Adey, is lush and sweeping, creating the romantic atmosphere.

Directed by Phil Simcox with the wonderful choreography of Pauline Reader, There are some beautiful dance pieces here which are truly hypnotic.

There are some very strong voices in Good Companions, most notably Davron Hicks (Benjamin), Hilary Leam (Sally) and Dionne Reid (Carlotta). They are all very strong vocally, and I appreciate that Sondheim pieces are notoriously difficult to perform.

The cast is massive, boasting 45 strong, but the stage didn't look overcrowded, giving due credit to the Director and Stage Manager, Steve Cole..

There were a few teething issues where the sound was concerned and throughout it was sometimes difficult to hear some of the spoken word and the quiet start of "Losing My Mind" when the mics didn't come on in time. It was first night so I expect sound issues, it's not uncommon.

Sondheim’s musicals can be dark and look at the more morose side of life, and that’s good as a contrast to many musicals which all end happy and in love. What this particular musical lacked though was a sustainable plot. The songs were good, the cast did their job admirably and looked and sounded good but i just don't think the musical is one of Sondheim's strongest.

“Follies” is at Derby Theatre until Saturday 4 November 2017

“Topsy Turvey/Trial By Jury” by Matthew Siveter and Derbyshire Gilbert & Sullivan Society
Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton.

Tonight was like a football match of two halves because in the first half we have a one man show featuring Matthew Siveter called “Topsy Turvey” featuring a selection of quirky songs, comedy and Gilbert & Sullivan songs.

With a novel introduction piece and an even more novel ending, and I won't say what these are and spoil the magic for if you see Matt's one man show in the future, but they are very funny, as is the rest of his material in between.

With musical pieces like "Poisoning The Pigeons In The Park", "I'm Not Like The Other Cavemen" and "The Masochism Tango", as well as parodies of G&S pieces, this is one comedy show with a difference. I must also add though that Matt is an excellent singer, as he proves throughout his show.

Supported by Chris Flint on keyboards, this is one classy presentation.

In the second half the Derby Gilbert & Sullivan Society present the one act comic opera “Trial by Jury”.

As with most Gilbert & Sullivan operas, the plot of “Trial By Jury” is ludicrous, but the characters behave as if the events were perfectly reasonable.

Matt continues with the comedy as the Judge, complete with a "fat suit", robes and wig alongside Stephen Godward (Counsel for the Plaintiff), Tom Rushton (The Defendant), Peter Bostock (Foreman of the Jury), John Carter (Usher), Jenny Ashworth (The Plaintiff) and the Bridesmaids Sue Parker and Claire Warren.

The filming of the trial by the "media" is done live by Jean Krzeminski, Lynda Dunkley and Richard Miller plus an ensemble of eighteen providing a wave of vocals that swamped the Duchess Theatre.

Directed by Andrew Nicklin

A one night only performance which would prove to any doubter the comedy in Gilbert & Sullivan's works is for everyone.