The Origin of Species Tangram Theatre at Norwich Arts Centre Review published in Eastern Daily Press, 23 October, 2010 The evolution of the one-man show artform is overdue an academic study. Add in acoustic guitar, original songs, physical comedy, awful puns and some challenging ideas, and The Origin of Species is a hybrid gem of the genre. John Hinton wrote and presented the piece, narrated around parts of Charles Darwin’s life in the form of a running monologue interspersed with effective, unembarrassing audience participation and stand-up repartee delivered in a style reminiscent of Michael McIntyre. It was billed as being ‘by means of Natural Selection or the Survival of (R)Evolutionary Theories in the Face of Scientific and Ecclesiastical Objections, a Musical Comedy.’ It largely delivered that. There was a sense of the scientist’s delight in discoveries and connections … Read entire article »

Novogo Fronta at the Norwich Arts Centre Review published by the Eastern Daily Press, 10 March 2005 Dias de las Noches Theatre that styles itself new frontier sets high expectations in using the old to invent the new. Set in 1974, two Russian performers have defected to Argentina and as they face the reality of never returning home, they are surrounded by a local military uprising. Having been told that much, we were off on a madcap whirl of cabaret, circus and burlesque in a seedy underworld peopled by the undead, the disturbed and the frantic. The show had the air of being rough and ready – spit and sawdust theatre. But that was deceptive. We tapped into somebody’s nightmare with the Big Bang – symbolised by twisted naked bodies writhing to a soundtrack to match. Some … Read entire article »

Norwich Arts Centre Review published in the Eastern Daily Press, 13 October 2006 Caligula on Ice If you are not much into poetry performance, it may sound like a hippy happening shrouded in substance fumes. But this was bang up to date. There were three sets, like a well-rounded play with long intervals. The opener was from Martin Figura, a stand-up poet of nostalgia and our first Christmas poem – “Every year we gather round the tree, opening old wounds”. Tim Turnbull recited a philosophical puzzle about God living with teenagers. His work is a narrative of assorted tales, littered with props, voices, mimes and acting. Turnbull’s final set is the main piece – Caligula on Ice. It’s a parody of a spiel for backers of a show that is comedy, circus and topical observation. After it was … Read entire article »

Hocus Pocus Theatre at the Norwich Arts Centre Review published in the Easten Daily Press, 9 April 2008 Nightmare Cafe New talent in the arts is often best grown by loosely following the recipe and being prepared to take a few risks. Using a cafe cabaret setting for a play is not that unusual, but local group Hocus Pocus are. Very. Pushing at the boundaries of the experimental and crossing into the bizarre, Nightmare Cafe is like a bad dream of the Addams Family meeting Carry On. In a sense it is a morality play, ‘to cook and serve your ills and you eat them”. A bottle of death containing every toxin known to man is the dish served warm – just desserts. They do it superbly well, this young fresh company, never taking themselves too seriously … Read entire article »

Norwich Arts Centre Review published in the Eastern Daily Press, 10 December 2008 Johnnie Walker Pirates have always meant romantic adventure on the high seas. To people of a certain age, radio ship pirates are part of the mythology of the Sixties, pioneers in broadcasting. Johnnie Walker’s is one of the authentic pirate voices, the first on Radio Caroline after the outlawing in 1967. A little grey, like most of his audience, he captivated them with tales about himself. From Birmingham, leaving school with no O-levels to Radio England, to Caroline – he travelled. His ‘kiss-in-the-car’ spot for romantic couples on the Essex coast flashing headlights at the ship was one of his broadcasting innovations. Then to Radio One, leaving when he couldn’t play album tracks, to the USA before returning to England, Radio Two, beating cancer and … Read entire article »