Aleks Sierz, Author at The Theatre Times

Aleks Sierz

regional managing editor

Aleks Sierz FRSA is a British theatre critic. He is author of In-Yer-Face Theatre: British Drama Today (Faber, 2001), The Theatre of Martin Crimp (Methuen, 2006), John Osborne’s Look Back in Anger (Continuum, 2008) and Rewriting the Nation: British Theatre Today (Methuen, 2011). He has also written, co-authored with Lia Ghilardi, The Time Traveller’s Guide to British Theatre: The First Four Hundred Years (Oberon, 2015). His latest book is Good Nights Out: A History of Popular British Theatre 1940–2015 (Methuen, 2019). Sierz has written for publications including Tribune, The Arts Desk and The Stage, as well as newspapers such as The Independent.

Terence Rattigan’s In Praise of Love at the Orange Tree Theatre: Rarely Revived 1973 Study Of Love In A Time Of Deception

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 17th Jun 2025 | London, Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom

Only the truth, we are told, can set us free — but there are times in love when the New Testament...

Conor McPherson’s The Brightening Air at the Old Vic: Wonderfully Numinous And Eccentric Account Of Family Life In 1980s Rural Ireland

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 29th Apr 2025 | Ireland, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom

Theatre needs mystery. In the darkened auditorium, with a crowd of strangers sharing your...

Julia Grogan’s Playfight at the Soho Theatre: Superbly Punchy Teen Drama That Electrifies The Senses And Engages The Emotions

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 15th Apr 2025 | LGBTQ+ Theatre, Review, United Kingdom

Coming of age stories are more or less all the same. But what distinguishes Julia Grogan’s...

Robert Icke’s Manhunt at the Royal Court Theatre: Terrifyingly Powerful Account Of Toxic Masculinity And Murderous Rage

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 11th Apr 2025 | Documentary Theatre, Dramaturgy, Review, United Kingdom

Are we really in “a new era of male anger, societal discontent and rage”? This is what Royal Court...

Chris Fung’s “The Society for New Cuisine” at Omnibus Theatre: Exceptionally Powerful Monologue About Grief And Mental Torment

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 28th Mar 2025 | Acting, London, Review, United Kingdom

Anxiety. Apprehension. Angst even. Yes, that’s the feeling that rises in me as I come into the...

Nikoletta Soumelidis’s Spent at the Old Red Lion Theatre: Intriguing And Suggestive Exploration Of Gender Roles

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 21st Mar 2025 | London, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom

One of the joys of contemporary playwriting is its openness to flexible casting. In Ruby Thomas’s...

Nick Payne’s One Day When We Were Young at Park Theatre: Time-Hopping Love Story Is Restrained By The Slenderness of the Plot

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 5th Mar 2025 | Acting, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom

How long would you wait for your soulmate? In “The Demon Lover”, a short story by Elizabeth Bowen,...

Coral Wylie’s Lavender, Hyacinth, Violet, Yew at the Bush Theatre: Tender And Original Debut About The Black Queer Experience

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 26th Feb 2025 | London, Playwriting, Review, Theatre and Decolonization, United Kingdom

Diaries are dynamite — they hold secrets, and secrets can tear families apart. In Coral Wylie’s...

Laura Horton’s Lynn Faces at the New Diorama Theatre: Surreal Gig Theatre Event Explores Coercive Control Through Comedy

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 21st Feb 2025 | Playwriting, Review, Theatre and Gender, United Kingdom

British people are socially awkward: this explains why we talk about the weather, queue...

Eline Arbo’s The Years At The Harold Pinter Theatre: Nobel Prize Winner Annie Ernaux’s Book Gets A Problematic West-End Staging

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 10th Feb 2025 | Adaptation, London, Review, United Kingdom

Marketing is the new real. For many years, in theatre as elsewhere in society, the most important...

Philip Ridley’s Tarantula at the Arcola Theatre: Blazingly Emotive And Beautifully Poetic Account Of Trauma From A Master Penman

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 22nd Jan 2025 | Covid-19, London, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom

Even the best streamed theatre can’t compete with the live version. It’s simple — with this art...

Roy Williams’s The Lonely Londoners at the Kiln Theatre: Superb Stage Adaptation Of The Classic Sam Selvon Windrush Novel

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 20th Jan 2025 | Adaptation, London, Review, Theatre and Decolonization, United Kingdom

Is resilience the most powerful character trait? When you think about the suffering of the...

Timberlake Wertenbaker’s “Our Country’s Good” at the Lyric Hammersmith: Slightly Updated Classic Grounded by an Awkward Production

Posted by Aleks Sierz | 12th Sep 2024 | Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom

Although the idea of deporting people to Rwanda as a punishment is now, following the defeat of...

Aleks Sierz

regional managing editor

Terence Rattigan’s In Praise of Love at the Orange Tree Theatre: Rarely Revived 1973 Study Of Love In A Time Of Deception

Conor McPherson’s The Brightening Air at the Old Vic: Wonderfully Numinous And Eccentric Account Of Family Life In 1980s Rural Ireland

Julia Grogan’s Playfight at the Soho Theatre: Superbly Punchy Teen Drama That Electrifies The Senses And Engages The Emotions

Robert Icke’s Manhunt at the Royal Court Theatre: Terrifyingly Powerful Account Of Toxic Masculinity And Murderous Rage

Chris Fung’s “The Society for New Cuisine” at Omnibus Theatre: Exceptionally Powerful Monologue About Grief And Mental Torment

Nikoletta Soumelidis’s Spent at the Old Red Lion Theatre: Intriguing And Suggestive Exploration Of Gender Roles

Nick Payne’s One Day When We Were Young at Park Theatre: Time-Hopping Love Story Is Restrained By The Slenderness of the Plot

Coral Wylie’s Lavender, Hyacinth, Violet, Yew at the Bush Theatre: Tender And Original Debut About The Black Queer Experience

Laura Horton’s Lynn Faces at the New Diorama Theatre: Surreal Gig Theatre Event Explores Coercive Control Through Comedy

Eline Arbo’s The Years At The Harold Pinter Theatre: Nobel Prize Winner Annie Ernaux’s Book Gets A Problematic West-End Staging

Philip Ridley’s Tarantula at the Arcola Theatre: Blazingly Emotive And Beautifully Poetic Account Of Trauma From A Master Penman

Roy Williams’s The Lonely Londoners at the Kiln Theatre: Superb Stage Adaptation Of The Classic Sam Selvon Windrush Novel

Ché Walker’s Burnt-Up Love at the Finborough Theatre: Crime and Redemption In A Shining Gem Of A Show

Robert Icke’s Oedipus at Wyndham’s Theatre: Lots Of Stunning Acting Compensates For Some Questionable Writing

Mark Rosenblatt’s Giant at the Royal Court: Provocative Drama About Anti-Semitism Is A Superb Play Of Ideas

Timberlake Wertenbaker’s “Our Country’s Good” at the Lyric Hammersmith: Slightly Updated Classic Grounded by an Awkward Production

Tom Stoppard’s The Real Thing at the Old Vic: Spirited and Highly Enjoyable Revival of Semi-Autobiographical Love Drama

The Bounds, Royal Court

“The Marilyn Conspiracy,” Park Theatre

“The Constituent,” Old Vic

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