Entertainment
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Reviewed – Catch 22 at the Birmingham Rep
First I have to make a confession. I have never read the Joseph Heller classic Catch 22. Nor have I seen the 1970 film version starring Art Garfunkel and Alan Arkin. But I know all too well what a Catch 22 situation is – one where you just can’t win, where you’re damned if you do, and damned if you don’t, and this awesome piece of theatre, currently playing at the Birmingham Rep, perfectly illustrates this most frustrating of situations with style, humour and pathos. The truly wonderful Philip Ardetti is Yossarian, a war weary bombardier in World War 2. He dreams of going home, but fears it will never…
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West Side Story is the toast of Birmingham
It is quite rightly considered to be the greatest musical of them all, and last night ‘West Side Story’ at the New Alexandra Theatre mesmerised Birmingham with a production of power and intensity. A VIP audience was treated to a performance that had it all, a standout leading man, songs that made the heart both soar and ache in equal measure, dance that combined the most thrilling aspects of ballet and salsa in exhilarating form, and a ending that was tragic, and yet hopeful. West Side Story is a theatrical experience that shocked with its modernism and violence in the late 1950s, but has a story that still resonates today,…
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There’s a circus in the town – Billy Smart’s Circus is on tour
The Circus is in town! Yes, the world famous Billy Smart’s Circus is touring and will be hitting my neck of the woods, Wolverhampton West Park, next week (Tuesday April 1st to be exact), for a 6 day stay. Now in its 68th year, Billy Smart’s Circus is a name that is synonymous with the circus tradition and offers an exciting, family friendly experience for all to enjoy. This is a circus that celebrates the talents of the human performers – there are no animals on display here. What you can look forward to is described as a ‘dazzling combination of theatre, music and dance‘. An array of internationally renowned…
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West Side Story is coming to The New Alexandra Theatre
It is probably the best musical of all, and certainly one that changed the nature of them, bringing the musical kicking and screaming into the 20th Century. And now it has embarked on a nationwide tour, and will be hitting Birmingham next week. Yes, it could only be the Jerome Robbins and Leonard Bernstein masterpiece, ‘West Side Story’, the show that transferred the doomed romance of Romeo and Juliet to the brutal gangs of New York. This new production of “WEST SIDE STORY” features the entire original Jerome Robbins choreography, and has already played to sell-out audiences around the world. It will now be coming to Birmingham’s New Alexandra Theatre…
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A Fashionable Day Out at the Races
The main event at the Aintree festival every year is the Grand National, which always takes place on the Saturday of the meeting. This year, The Crabbie’s Grand National will run on Saturday 5 April, and will attract more than 600 million viewers who will watch it live on TV. But for people who prefer to mix their horse racing with fashion, then Ladies’ Day on Friday 4 April is the day to actually go to Aintree, if you have the chance. In the same vein as Ladies’ Day at Ascot, this is a day for the female visitors to the course to show off their finest outfits, hairstyles and…
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