Wendy Mathison
And Then There Were None
★★☆☆☆ Patchy
Agatha Christie’s evergreen And Then There Were None is presented by Strawmoddie at the Central Hall, Tollcross, with delicacy and no little effort. Unfortunately, choices with staging – and problems seemingly inherent in the venue – make for an awkward experience.
Vanity Fair
★★★☆☆ Jam packed
Leitheatre’s Vanity Fair at the Church Hill Theatre is a well directed, well acted production that falls victim to many of the problems inherent in putting a sprawling novel on the stage.
Bloody Wimmin
★★★★☆ Connecting
Strong individual performances ensure that EGTG’s production of Lucy Kirkwood’s Bloody Wimmin, at the Royal Scots Club for one week only, gives real life to the connection between two protest movements, twenty years apart.
The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-In-The-Moon Marigolds
★★★☆☆ Inexact science:
Arkle’s production of Paul Zindel’s The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-In-The-Moon Marigolds at the Hill Street Theatre is an uneven but ultimately fulfilling exploration of angry insecurities and brittle dreams.
Reckless
★★☆☆☆ Manic:
Despite inventive direction and committed performances, The Grads struggle to navigate the tonal quagmire of Craig Lucas’ bizarre Christmas caper, Reckless.
The Ladykillers
★★★★☆ Dead funny:
Assured comedy performances and ambitious staging combine to make a success of The Ladykillers for the Grads, at the Assembly Roxy to Saturday.
Grads in a comedy killing
It’s time for the Ladykillers:
When Graham Linehan’s comedy The Ladykillers toured to the King’s in 2012, the set was so convoluted and clever that Æ pictured its design model as the review illustration.
The Witch of Edmonton
★★☆☆☆ Tragically complex:
Based on a Jacobean play written by William Rowley, Thomas Dekker and John Ford in 1621, the Edinburgh Graduate Theatre Group’s production of The Witch of Edmonton is a curious and intense tragi-comedy that confuses as much as it entertains.
August: Osage County
★★★☆☆ Brave attempt
Some excellent performances and high production values give The Grads’ production of August: Osage County interest and a degree of merit, but overall it can only be seen as a qualified success.
