Groan Ups, Vaudeville Theatre review - adding ambition and emotion to the mix

★★★ GROAN UPS, VAUDEVILLE THEATRE Mischief Theatre's latest stretches them in new ways

The ever-likable Mischief Theatre's latest stretches them in new if still-unfinished ways

If ambition were all, Groan Ups would get an A*. Marking the first of a very welcome three-show residency at the Vaudeville Theatre, this latest from the cheerfully unstoppable Mischief Theatre tethers the japery we have come to expect from the team behind The Play That Goes Wrong   mishaps aplenty, verbal hi-jinks   with a newfound interest in the human psyche.

Romesh Ranganathan, Brighton Dome review - transgressive, edgy and very likeable

★★★★ ROMESH RANGANATHAN, BRIGHTON DOME Transgressive, edgy and very likeable

The TV favourite hits the ground running at the start of his Cynic's Mixtape tour

One question springs immediately to mind on hearing that Romesh Ranganathan’s new stand-up show, The Cynic’s Mixtape, is touring: how does he find the time? Ranganathan has overtaken Jack Whitehall as Britain’s most media ubiquitous comic, with a deluge of TV shows and appearances, a column in the Guardian newspaper and even a recent autobiography. However, his TV CV is hit’n’miss, which leads to a second question: can he still cut it in the live arena?

Falsettos, The Other Palace review - affecting search for the new normal

★★★★ FALSETTOS, THE OTHER PLACE Affecting search for the new normal

This ambitious musical tackles the changing forms of family, romance and faith

William Finn and James Lapine’s musical – which combines two linked one-acts, March of the Falsettos and Falsettoland, set in late 1970s/early 1980s New York – picked up Tony Awards in 1992 for its book and score, and was nominated again in 2

It Chapter Two review – time to stop clowning around

★★ IT CHAPTER TWO Return of Stephen King's killer clown is gobbled up by its own plotting

The return of Stephen King's killer clown is gobbled up by its own plotting

Just two years after It Chapter One became the most successful horror film ever made, Pennywise the Dancing Clown is once again giving the American town of Derry absolutely nothing to laugh about. But this time around it’s audiences who may feel unable to enjoy the irony of a killer clown. For Chapter Two feels like a pointless, nay horrific case of déjà vu. 

Mr Gum and the Dancing Bear the Musical, National Theatre review – gleefully subversive family musical

★★★★ MR GUM & THE DANCING BEAR, NATIONAL THEATRE Subversive family musical

Madcap and menace as Andy Stanton adapts his cult children's books for the stage

A great hunk of rotting meat hangs centre stage, suspended over a rusty wheelbarrow. A figure in a bloody butcher’s apron picks through the stalls, searching for cans of ‘xxxtra cheap lager’. From the direction of the band, sinister Wurlitzer sounds begin to stir the air.

The Turn of the Screw, Garsington Opera review - superb music drama on an open stage

★★★★★ THE TURN OF THE SCREW, GARSINGTON OPERA Triumphant production of Britten's problematic ghost opera

Britten's problematic ghost opera allowed to triumph by way of the music

The famous ambiguity of Henry James's The Turn of the Screw is whether the ghosts that take possession of the two children are real or merely figments of the young Governess’s imagination. Britten’s opera resolves this unequivocally in favour of their reality: they appear alone together, and generally materialise so solidly that it never occurs to you to doubt their real existence.

Toy Story 4 review - fabulous return to the big screen

★★★★★ TOY STORY 4 A fabulous return to the big screen

To infinity and a blonde...reappearance of Woody's sweetheart takes story in a different direction

Making it to the fourth film in a series and maintaining quality is a feat pulled off by very few franchises, (see last week’s dreary Men in Black: International). But Pixar has done it with Toy Story 4. It might not have quite as many nifty gags without its originator John Lasseter at the helm, but the quality of animation has reached new heights and the story reduced me both to tears and helpless laughter. 

Bronx Gothic, Young Vic review - fervid intensity

★★★★ BRONX GOTHIC, YOUNG VIC Okwui Okpokwasili’s solo is an astounding piece of theatre

Okwui Okpokwasili’s solo performance piece is an astounding piece of theatre

It’s hard, and finally fruitless to attempt to describe Okwui Okpokwasili’s Bronx Gothic in conventional terms of genre: combining elements of dance and theatre, this visceral solo performance transcends both.