“A Mirror” at Almeida Theatre
This is a play about censorship in a totalitarian state — but, no, I’m not reviewing The...
Read MoreAleks 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.
Posted by Aleks Sierz | 3rd Sep 2023 | Acting, London, Review, United Kingdom
This is a play about censorship in a totalitarian state — but, no, I’m not reviewing The...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 21st Aug 2023 | Review, United Kingdom
Success always opens doors. Ever since the HBO drama Succession was lauded as a huge international...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 4th Aug 2023 | London, Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom
Trauma is the source of identity politics. In the case of African-Americans, the experience of...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 6th Jul 2023 | Review, Theatre and Science, United Kingdom
Climate-change activist Greta Thunberg is great at doing two things: irritating complacent adults...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 3rd Jul 2023 | Review, United Kingdom
James Graham’s Dear England at the National Theatre: Joseph Fiennes plays a mesmerizing soccer manager in this sport-of-the-nation drama
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 13th Jun 2023 | Latest, London, Review, United Kingdom
Polymath Philip Ridley has a rare superpower — he able to consistently astonish both audiences and...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 11th Jun 2023 | Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom
Peter Morgan’s Patriots at the Noël Coward Theatre: award-winning story of Putin’s triumph is vivid but unreal
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 8th Jun 2023 | London, News, Review, United Kingdom
The summer season at the Royal Court, London’s premiere new writing venue, features two plays...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 6th Jun 2023 | London, Review, United Kingdom
Can you enjoy a ghost story during summer? Usually the idea of a haunted house suggests images of...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 3rd Jun 2023 | London, Review, Theatre and Dance, United Kingdom
Last Saturday, I went to the Excelsior Studios in Park Royal to see a performance of the Russell...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 3rd May 2023 | Adaptation, London, Review, United Kingdom
Imagine yourself in a remote place: it could be a mountaintop, or a lost village, or the Amazon....
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 1st May 2023 | London, Review, Theatre and Gender, United Kingdom
We are watching history being made: after decades of being in the shadows, queer drama is now...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 28th Apr 2023 | Review, Theatre and Gender, United Kingdom
Is it possible to successfully challenge naturalism in British theatre today? At a time when...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 27th Apr 2023 | Directing, Ireland, Review, United Kingdom
Brian Friel’s classic play about the blending of Paganism and Christianity in 1930s Ireland is...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 21st Apr 2023 | London, Playwriting, Review, Theatre and Gender, United Kingdom
The popularity of plays that feature trauma is certainly a trend in British theatre today. But is...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 13th Apr 2023 | London, Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom
Some plays are instantly forgettable, others leave a tender fold in the memory. I well remember...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 13th Mar 2023 | London, Norway, Playwriting, Review, Translation, United Kingdom
Bjørg Vik’s The Journey to Venice at the Finborough Theatre: Norwegian memory play is tender if slight
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 6th Mar 2023 | London, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom
Is anyone still nostalgic about their teen years? The coming-of-age drama is a staple of...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 1st Mar 2023 | Review, Theatre and Politics, United Kingdom
With the fast-approaching anniversary of the latest war in Europe, our culture’s continued...
Read MorePosted by Aleks Sierz | 16th Feb 2023 | LGBTQ+ Theatre, London, Playwriting, Review, United Kingdom
The female monologue is a well-established contemporary theatre form, but often the content is...
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