Reviews of Habibi Funk 031, Kayatibu, and The Good Ones
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Riveting views from the eye of the storm
SIMON PARSONS recommends a spellbinding production of Life and Fate, set at the height of WWII in Soviet Russia
SIMON DUFF relishes the cross contamination of Damien Hirst’s greatest hits by street artists from France and the US
In view of the grooming gangs inquiry, SIMON PARSONS feels the relevance of this powerful examination of trauma suffered at Medomsley Youth Detention Centre
JOHN GREEN doubts the motivations of a US war photographer who never questions why, or for whom, she is producing images of imperialist conflict
MARIA DUARTE reviews Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere, Hedda, The Mastermind, and Regretting You
TONY CONWAY welcomes a thrilling and concise history of Hope not Hate, that is also a manual full of tactical advice
PAUL DONOVAN welcomes an inspiring account of living with deafness that has important lessons for the treatment of deaf people in today’s UK
Life and Fate
Theatre Royal Haymarket, London
VASILY GROSSMAN’S magnificent epic novel Life and Fate, performed by a renowned Russian theatre company and directed by the celebrated Lev Dodin, has all the potential for a memorable production.
But expectations are also accompanied by natural doubts. How can the settings and scale of this 700-page novel, performed in Russian by Maly Drama Theatre with surtitles and lasting three-and-a-half hours, capture the power and profundity of the novel?
Premiered in Paris in 2007, Dodin devised the production with actors from the company and the depth of feeling is evident throughout the performance.
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MARY CONWAY applauds the success of Beth Steel’s bitter-sweet state-of-the-nation play
SIMON PARSONS applauds a tense and thoughtful production that regularly challenges our political engagement and prejudices
SIMON PARSONS questions whether a dark take on Shakespeare’s Seasonal comedy is in harmony with the original text