The Glass Menagerie - Royal Exchange Theatre


Joshua Jonas and Rhiannon Clements as Tom and Laura - photo by Marc Brenner

THEY say good things come to those who wait and that old saying certainly rings true for this production, originally planned for the Spring of 2020 when the country was plunged into lockdown for the first time.

From the pen of Tennessee Williams, this is American classic that’s given actors a verbal feast through the generations by putting some of the most exquisite lines ever written and the characters are strong and believable too.

This play first saw the light of day in the mid 40’s today and while the rules of social etiquette have invariably changed, domestic strife still forms a large part of our dramatic diet and from the soaps to the stage, we jjust can’t get enough of it.

Laura, young, pretty and hopelessly insecure as a result of disability, looks after her collection of miniature glass animals with a devotion that verges on that usually reserved for religious artefacts. She’s pining away, aching to find true love and Rhiannon Clements ensures by her fine performance we never feel sorry for Laura. We just ache for her to be happy.

Geraldine Sommerville is perfect as her mother, Amanda, trying to run Laura’s life and that of her other sibling Tom. Joshua Jonas is tailor made for this part and the spats between him and his stage mom Amanda are both heated and memorable.

We the audience feel empathy for Tom too, as he tries to plot his escape from the family’s purgatorial home.

But has Laura’s luck finally turned with the arrival of the silver tongued dinner guest Jim, played by Eloka Ivo? Ivo is wonderful as Jim, a character with an ego as big as the Eifel Tower and he and Clements treat us to a very memorable scene in the second act which had echoes of Hollywood in it. But I won’t spoil it for you.

Director Atri Bannerjee gives us a production that’s as engrossing as it is entertaining and so thoughtfully staged.

Highly recommended.

Until October 8. The box office is on 0161 833 9833. Star rating - ****

Devastating new take on classic launches new Exchange season

FOLLOWING on from his hugely popular production of the Lancashire classic Hobson’s Choice, director Atri Banerjee returns to the Royal Exchange with a devastating new take on The Glass Menagerie.

Tennessee Williams’ semi-autobiographical masterpiece launches the RET’s new season and runs from September 2 to October 8 at 7.30pm.

Matinees are also included in the run and tickets are available from 0161 833 9833 and the box office is open 11am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday or you can contact tickets@royalexchange.co.uk.


IF you thought the WI was all jam and Jerusalem, Calendar Girls – The Musical is sure to shatter that particular misconception.

The production, currently playing at Altrincham Garrick, also provides a much needed antidote to these gloomy times. Even Victor Meldrew’s grumpier twin brother would enjoy this. If he had one of course.

When one of their group loses a husband to cancer, her best friend and fellow WI member comes up with an idea to raise funds for research into this appalling illness and it’s a fundraising idea that can be summed up in one word – unique.

She persuades the women, many of whom are embarrassed by the bodies, to pose for a nude calendar.

But it’s all done in the best possible taste, to pinch a catchphrase from the late, great comedy genius Kenny Everett.

There’s nothing seedy about this show at all. It’s an uplifting tale of love, friendship and the most unlikely camaraderie. All of human life can be found at the WI.

Created by Take That’s Gary Barlow and Tim Firth, it’s also about women of a certain age re-discovering their sex appeal. You don’t have to be a stick insect to be sexy.

Musically, the score is a mixed bag, with the best numbers saved for the second half. But the acting here is exemplary and you the audience member, will find warming to the characters requires very little effort.

You’ll want to live in the picture postcard Yorkshire Dales among warm and friendly people like this and experience at first hand the extra dry wit for which the inhabitants of this fabulous county are famous.

By far the best performances come from Sarah Kirk as Annie, grieving the death of her husband John and Dawn Flint as her friend of 40 years, Chris. You’ll laugh and cry with them and feel like you’re watching two real pals, so engaging they are together.

But I also like Charlie Tomlinson as Chris’s husband Rod and it’s impossible not to warm to Adam Byrne’s Danny, drawn to the rebellious new girl at his school.

Celia Bonner is quite brilliant as the retired schoolteacher Jessie, putting people in their place with classic put downs.

It somehow feels wrong to single out individual performances as all the actors excel here, even those with relatively small parts.

A tribute then, to director Joseph Meighan and musical director Mark Goggins who ensure the exciting season at the Garrick ends on a spectacular high.

You couldn’t make it up is the only way to describe the true story that inspired Barlow and Firth’s show.

Trafford has a long and proud tradition when it comes to producing top quality musicals and this raises the bar even higher.

Not to be missed.

Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk. Star rating - *****

House of Ghosts - Altrincham Garrick


It’s a mystery - Morse and Lewis played by Jonathan Black and Andrew Higson

WHEN I discovered John Thaw was to play another TV detective I expected him to be something like Jack Regan, who I idolised as a child when I sat glued to The Sweeney in the 70’s.

This was a man straight out of the boot in the door and ask questions later school of policing. But Inspector Morse was a world away from the much loved maverick from the Flying Squad, cultured, considered, cerebral and with a deep seated love of classical music.

It takes a lot of guts and no amount of talent to play a character so inextricably linked with an acting icon like Thaw. But Jonathan Black certainly succeeds here and doesn’t try to impersonate the late stage and screen great.

Black has quite a presence and the way he reprimands his sidekick Sergeant Lewis for his verbal faux pas is genuinely funny. Andrew Higson plays the part perfectly and the chemistry between the two very different men certainly comes across.

The duo are asked to investigate the dubious death of a young actress playing Ophelia in Shakespeare’s Hamlet. All of a sudden the company finds itself embroiled in a real life tragedy as fingers of suspicion are pointed and cupboards release their skeletons.

I’ve seen Sarat Broughton in countless productions at the Garrick and her performance as Ellen Underwood is her best yet and Jacque Hamilton also impressed me as the old soak actress Verity Carr, an actress who has been there, done it and bought enough t-shirts to open her own t-shirt shop.

My only criticism of Alma Cullen’s play is it is something of a slow burner in places. But this in an engrossing and intriguing tale all the same.

Who can resist the chance to play detective?

Until May 28. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk. Star rating - 3.5/5.

Photo - Martin Ogden

Ross and Rachel - Lauriston Studio


ONE lady in the audience she was in tears by the time Fiona Primrose was bowing to the audience at the end of the evening.

While this deeply unusual piece of theatre didn’t have me reaching for my handkerchief, it certainly takes us on an emotional journey.

Ross and Rachel isn’t a case of love hurts. More a case of it should come with a Government health warning.

This engrossing single hander may be inspired by the off and on romance of their namesakes from the TV show Friends, but that’s where the comparisons well and truly end.

If you turn up to the Lauriston expect a night of cosy camaraderie and witty jokes that were a hallmark of the hugely popular 90’s sitcom, you’ll be disappointed.

This is an evening of raw emotion, from jealousy to devotion or rather taking devotion to whole new depths.

Fiona Primrose plays both characters and her gender swapping is as effortless as it is engaging. While in character she has a few sips of wine but she certainly deserves a glass or two of the real thing afterwards for putting so much into roles that are anything but carbon copies of their small screen namesakes.

How frustrating then, for both her and her director Carole Carr, for there to be just 12 of us in Altrincham Garrick’s fabulous little studio space on Wednesday night to watch a play she’s evidently nurtured with so much love and care.

But I’ve often found that to be the case as a reviewer, with certain people shying away from plays and shows they’re not quite sure of.

Ross and Rachel is very different, absorbing to the point of being hypnotic and well worth the ticket money.

Enjoy this piece of top quality, brilliantly acted theatre.

Until May 22. The box office is on 0161 928 1677. Star rating - ****

Photo - Martin Ogden

Jumpers for Goalposts - Altrincham Garrick


Team spirit - Jumpers for Goalposts

JUMPERS For Goalposts will, on the evidence of Monday night’s performance, attract a different, younger audience.

For far too many years Altrincham Garrick has been seen as a safe night out for older people and the appointment of artistic director Joseph Meighan, a dynamic and adventurous twenty something, is about to change that misguided perception.

A quiet revolution is taking place on Barrington Road and it feels so exciting and exhilarating to be part of it.

But this theatre isn’t working hard to get the message across that the Garrick is a is a theatre for everybody. All power to their elbow, say I.

Jumpers for Goalposts follow the misfortunes of Barely Athletic, a five-a-side team largely made up of gay men who struggle with the basics of the beautiful game.

This doesn’t stop Viv, their straight talking coach with a very short fuse, encouraging her clueless charges to try to win the league in which they play.

It’s certainly a league with a difference – one team plays in drag!

The play takes place in the club’s dressing room, an ideal backdrop for writer Tom Wells to delve into the private lives of the players, including a burgeoning relationship between Danny and Luke.

Danny carries a secret that he feels unable to share with the child like Luke, a lovable geek and a study in social awkwardness.

Joe Meighan, who directs this engaging, absorbing and heart-warming comedy must have thought all his birthdays had come at once when Dan Ellis and Mason Lockwood turned up to audition for these roles.

If anyone was ever born to play these parts it’s these two actors and Lockwood, who gets the funniest lines as Luke, displays a sense of comic timing that is simply second to none.

Beverley Stuart-Cole is highly believable as Viv, Sebastian Farrell is also enjoyable as the team’s token straight man Joe, aka the keeper who couldn’t catch a cold and Lewis Sewell is perfect as the crackpot Beardy Geoff.

Throughout the production the cast convinces the audience they’re watching a real football team, complete with the personality clashes you find in all organisations, sporting or otherwise.

They say football is a game of two halves and that old adage can certainly be applied to Jumpers for Goalposts, with the best one liners saved for the second half.

While this play contains some strong language it’s in context and gives the play a realistic feel. It’s sure to strike a chord with anyone whose set foot inside a sports club’s dressing room while not alienating those who haven’t.

Great fun, with a dash of poignancy thrown in.

Until May 14. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677. Star rating - ****

In aid of The George House Trust.

Photo - Martin Ogden