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And Then There Were None at the Wolverhampton Grand
A beautiful but secluded house sitting alone on a weather ravaged island. A group of 10 people, all strangers to one another, invited to the island for a range of different reasons. A mysterious host delayed in London, not there to great his guests. And ten mysterious statues sitting on a mantlepiece, that, one by one, start to disappear and break as the guests are picked off by a murderous assassin, out to dish the justice they thought they had escaped. This is the premise of the 2015 version of the classic Agatha Christie play ‘And then there was none’, which opened last night at Wolverhampton’s Grand Theatre. A classy…
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The Tiger Who Came to Tea at Birmingham Town Hall
If you have a small child, you will know all about ‘The Tiger Who Came to Tea.’ To put it in its simplest terms, it is one of the most beloved and popular children’s books of all time. Written by ‘Mog’ author Judith Kerr, The Tiger Who Came to Tea is a wonderful story of a rather large tiger, who visits a little girl called Sophie and her mother, and stays for tea, literally eating the family out of house and home. The latest production of the stage version of the story is currently midway through a run at Birmingham’s Town Hall, and is totally thrilling its audiences, young and…
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Christmas with The Rat Pack – Yes please!
Last night was a very special one at Birmingham’s New Alexandra Theatre. It was the grand opening of the Ambassador’s Lounge, an exclusive area of the theatre to be used as part of deluxe packages for theatre goers. It was also the start of a three-day run of one of my favourite theatre shows, ‘Christmas with The Rat Pack’. So when I was invited to the launch of the Ambassadors Lounge, with the opportunity to watch the Rat Pack thrown in, I have to admit to being very excited. The Ambassadors lounge almost resembles a private members bar mixed with the cool dark atmosphere of a 1920s speakeasy. Lit with…
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Top Hat brings Hollywood Glamour to the Wolverhampton Grand
The glamour and elegance of the Hollywood musical came to the Wolverhampton Grand last night, for the opening of the award-winning musical delight that is Top Hat. The classic songs of Irving Berlin and the sheer romance and screwball comedy of the show had the audience totally enthralled from start to finish, with the spirit of Fred and Ginger most definitely lingering in the air. Top Hat is one of the most beloved musicals of the 1930s, it was certainly the crowing moment of the Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers partnership. It is one of the strange paradoxes of the 1930s that whilst the world was going through the great…
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Rudy’s Rare Records brings The Rep to its feet
A midweek standing ovation is a pretty rare thing, but that is what the hilarious ‘Rudy’s Rare Records’ got at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre last night. The superb comedy starring Lenny Henry had audiences on their feet with its mixture of warmth, laughter and Reggae, and is probably the only play I have ever seen where I have wished I had tickets for the following night. Yes, it is that good. Rudy’s Rare Records tells the tale of a dusty, musty record shop in Birmingham that has seen better and busier days, and is now under threat from developers who are buying up the street it stands on. Rudy, an…





