The Wizard of Oz - Altrincham Garrick


DESIGNER Barry Purves certainly wasn’t kidding when he told me his latest set is colourful.

But it provides the perfect backdrop for a tale that has lost none of its power to engage and entertain even though the movie of the same name is 85 years old.

Anyone who follows Barrington Road to the Garrick this week can expect an evening of theatre magic that’s destined to be a huge hit, as it was with big kids in the audience like me.

A pity then that Barrington Road isn’t paved with yellow bricks. But you can’t have everything.

While I know this story backwards it has lost none of its power to capture the imagination and if you’re looking for an antidote to these dark and dank early autumn nights this is most definitely it.

Ciara-Alexandra Booker is a perfect Dorothy, the heroine of the piece, treating us to a show stealing performance as early as the musical’s first number, the immortal classic Over The Rainbow.

After being whisked away to the magical land of Oz, which can be summed up in the phrase expect the unexpected, she makes friends with a group of characters as colourful as the show’s set.

There’s a natural bond between Booker and Ronan Pilkington, Connor J Ryan and Matt Spilsbury as they bring The Scarecrow, The Tin Man and The Cowardly Lion so effectively to life, each character with their own dreams.

Director Joseph Meighan has taken this talented company to the next theatrical level and, at the time of writing, very few tickets remained.

Meighan even found time to co-design the set.

Until November 3. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.

Star rating - *****

Photo - Martin Ogden.

Peaky Blinders The Redemption of Thomas Shelby - The Lowry


EVERY so often there’s a TV show that makes a lasting impression on me and so it was with Peaky Blinders, inspired by the unsavoury antics of a bunch of Birmingham gangsters who brought fear and violence to the city’s streets for more than 40 years.

But never for the life of me did I imagine this compelling story could be told using the medium of dance.

How wrong I was.

Steven Knight, its creator, and choreographer/director Benoit Swan Pouffer have created an evening of theatre that saw me experience the whole gamut of emotions.

This production from Rambert Dance begins with a trip to the hell on earth that were battlefields of Flanders in the First World War before taking us to the university of hard graft, a factory in a city that was once a hot bed of heavy industry..

This is also a story of love and loss and we follow Thomas Shelby - Conor Kerrigan - as he sinks to the depths of despair. While I wouldn’t go as far to say we empathise with the afore mentioned character - obviously - those feelings felt very real.

Particularly memorable for me was Shelby’s wedding scene. All the scenes are performed against a live and uplifting musical backdrop that includes the super cool theme of the TV show.

It’s surely a result of Pouffer’s choreography and a group of dancers who take exciting agility, grace and energy to a whole new level and make it all look so, so easy.

While it probably helps a little to know something of the Peaky Blinders it’s not essential and this production is so good it's sure to win over plenty of converts to dance, of the world class variety here, thanks to Rambert Dance.

Astounding and unmissable.

Until October 26. The box office is on 0843 208 6000 or you can buy tickets at www.thelowry.com.

Star rating - *****

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Jane Eyre - Altrincham Garrick


IT’S almost impossible to believe, by today’s standards, that one of English literature’s most iconic novels had to be written under a pseudonym in order to guarantee its publication.

But so it was with Charlotte Bronte who gave us a tale of courage and quiet determination in the sense of overwhelming odds that would break anyone’s spirit. Jane Eyre is every inch the literary heroine.

Then there’s the romantic stuff - totally devoid of any degree of sentiment or slushiness. The course of true love never did run smooth. And then some.

I really enjoyed watching the relationship between Jane and her initially distant and aloof employer Mr Rochester grow, thanks to the natural chemistry between Melanie Beswick and Loui Quelcutti.

With an engaging effortlessness Beswick makes you care about her character which is remarkable really, when you remember she only exists in the author’s amazing imagination and ability to write from the heart.

It’s also a tribute to director Carole Carr who more than makes the most of a multi-talented cast, including one who plays Rochester’s dog.

The production’s final scene also has the power of a film.

Altrincham Garrick is theatrically the place to be at the moment. Fabulous and unmissable.

Until October 12. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.

Star rating - *****

Photo by Martin Ogden.

The Beauty Queen of Leenane - Lauriston Studio at Altrincham Garrick


THE plot of The Beauty Queen of Leenane will strike a chord with far, far too many people.

A 40 year old spinster has been forced to put her life, including her love life, on hold for more years than she’d care to remember to be at the beck and call of her mother, a woman constantly criticising her daughter’s unwavering devotion.

But supposing she had the chance to escape?

Director Mark Goggins has spent decades entertaining theatregoers in these parts with his top class and hugely memorable productions of musicals and he’s just as adept when it comes to straight plays as anyone lucky enough to have tickets for this will testify.

At the time of writing only a few tickets remained for a play that is both warmly funny and in certain parts, deeply disturbing. Let’s face it, nobody tells a tale quite like an Irishman and that gift is certainly part of Martin McDonagh’’s DNA.

Under Goggins’ accomplished direction, the performances are strong and very natural, with Kathryn Worthington have to do very little to win our sympathy as the poor put upon Maureen and Sarah Kirk suitably horrendous as her mother, Mag. Think Hitler in a pinny.

Timmie Lee Murphy and Ryan Jay are also really good value as Ray and Pato Dooley.

I was delighted to hear The Beauty Queen of Leenane attracted the audiences theatre this good richly deserves, even if the play sometimes does depict the ugly side of human nature.

Until Occtober 6. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.

Star rating - 4.5 out of 5.

Photo - Martin Ogden.

New Year treat for Sondheim fans from SAMT

I WAS delighted to discover Sale and Altrincham Musical Theatre will perform one of the best modern musicals around when they stage from March 26-29.

As someone who forever feels starved of Stephen Sondheim in these parts, this was great news, the production coming from a company I have a deep seated affection and respect for.

I saw Company for the first tine at the old Library Theatre in Manchester and I’ve been a self-confessed Sondheim nut ever since, without the desire to be cured.

Company will be performed at Altrincham Little Theatre.

The History Boys - Altrincham Garrick


The History Boys.

MY general studies lessons were never as entertaining as this.

The pupils often find themselves acting out scenes from romantic films and literature under the watchful eye of Hector, a teacher who can best be described as unorthodox in terms of his teaching methods.

He evidently believes in nurturing rounded individuals as his charges chase places to read history at Oxford or Cambridge.

But this much loved figure, something of a cult hero among his students also has a seedy side. However, this seediness is played down by the grammar school pupils who have a deep seated love for his lessons.

Alan Bennett’s multi award winning play launches the Garrick’s season in spectacular fashion and the curtain call at the end made me feel I was at a pop concert. The noise, the out pouring of appreciation from the audience very nearly lifted the theatre roof off.

Writing as good as this deserves performances of a similar standard and director Su Mowatt has ensured not one of her cast disappoint, from the actors playing the often rowdy students to Ivor Farley as Hector and Lindsey Barker as Mrs Linott, a female teacher often struggling to make sense of her male dominated working environment.

Ben Walsh makes a sympathetic Irwin and William Teller, a relative newcomer to this theatre has quite a presence as the hot tempered headmaster. I expect offers of future roles to flood in on the basis of this erformance.

We also have Bennett’s script to enjoy, peppered with numerous gems that are the hallmark of a modest man who is a national treasure. And then some.

Until September 21. Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.

Star rating - *****

Photo by Martin Ogden.