WILL STONE fact-checks the colourful life of Ozzy Osbourne
Eloquent body language
Simon Parsons admires the ambition of a spectacular show that pits disabled performers against Nazis
EMPOWERING: Abbie Purvis in Waldo's Circus of Magic and Terror
[Paul Blakemore] 
JAMES CROSSLEY applauds a lucid biography of the German radical preacher who reemerged as a hero in the GDR
Prizes all round: the Bard hands plaudits to the Miners Gala, OT&JC, Joe Solo, Black Sabbath’s frontman and the Lionesses
Star cartoonist JAMIE BRITTON is in awe of a graphic novel of epic proportions that explores class, religion and globalisation via the strange cultivation of Ginseng in the US Midwest
GUILLERMO THOMAS is intrigued by a history of the Middle East that demonstrates how promising post colonial beginnings were snuffed out by Western imperialist interests
MARIA DUARTE recommends the intricate study of a high-performance and highly dysfuntional German family
Waldo’s Circus of Magic and Terror
Bristol Old Vic
WITH elements of Cabaret and The Greatest Show on Earth this musical, set in 1933 Germany, explores the responses of a circus troupe to the rise of the Nazis. Largely made up of social outcasts with many disabled performers, the circus is a prime target for Hitler’s programme of eugenic cleansing.
Devised and co-written by Hattie Naylor this is a hugely ambitious production with a large cast of diversely abled performers who create a vibrant, co-dependent world under Ti Green’s magnificent big top set, and accompanied by Charles Hazlewood’s dynamic, musical composition.
With the assistance of Extraordinary Bodies (a charity championing diversity and equity in the performing arts) the aerial routines are truly breathtaking and the range of physicality on display impressive.
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