The Sound of Music - Altrincham Garrick


Musical magic at Altrincham Garrick.

DIRECTOR Joe Meighan must have thought all his birthdays had come at once when he heard Natalie Hayes sing for the first time.

Hayes treats us to a flawless and engaging and highly likeable Maria in this Rodgers and Hammerstein classic The Sound of Music and she’s blessed with one of the purest voices I’ve ever heard in more than 30 years reviewing productions on the amateur stage.

There’s also an effortless chemistry between her and Steven Finney. Finney cuts a commanding figure - no pun intended - as the disarmingly decent Captain Von Trapp. He is a man of principle, a man brave enough not to cow tow to the Nazis as the evil regime encroaches further and further into his beloved Austria.

If the two leads are outstanding - Hayes is making her Garrick debut here - the Von Trapp children are a delight from start to finish, full of life, full of gentle mischief and full of love for their father.

I also liked Helen Swain as Baroness Elsa Schrader, Maria’s more worldly rival, initially at least, for the affections of Von Trapp.

The Sound of Music is a great way to introduce children to the theatre even though it’s set against the backdrop of a looming Second World War.

We also have Rodgers and Hammerstein’s wonderful score to enjoy, packed with musical delights like the rousing Climb Every Mountain to the soothing and sensual Edelweiss.

I also loved the playful So Long, Farwell perfectly sung by the Von Trapp children.

They don’t write them like this anymore - do not miss this dose of musical magic. It’s just what we need in these gloomy times.

Until October 30. The box offoce is on 0161 928 1677 or visit www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk

Star rating - *****

Blue Stockings - Altrincham Garrick


Blue Stockings.

IT’S hard to believe it nowadays, but it wasn’t until 1948 that Cambridge University finally allowed female students to graduate.

And this in a country that likes to set itself up as a bastion of decency and fair play.

This compelling subject forms the basis of Jessica Swale’s brilliant piece of work - the best production to grace the Garrick stage in 2022.

I really liked the way Swale tells the compelling story of four women, academically as able as their male peers, battle against the dismissive attitudes of their male peers and academics who wield all the power at the famous university.

An evening of man bashing this most definitely is not but there were occasions when I felt ashamed of my gender.

Blue Stockings is set in 1896, more than a century before terms like ‘sexism’ had become part of the vernacular and I really like the way in which Pippa Lane, Bronte James, Madeleine Healey and Olivia Brindley bring their characters so vividly and engagingly to life.

You’ll find yourself quietly rooting for their characters, Tess, Celia, Carolyn and Maeve, a tribute to their considerable acting ability and the skills of Sue Mowat, who makes her debut at Altrincham Garrick as director of a production packed with performances of a professional standard.

It feels wrong to single out individual performances because there aren’t any weak links in this cast. But I did really enjoy Nick Sample as Banks and Sam Evans as the disarmingly decent Ralph Mayhew.

Add some gentle and captivating original music by Mark Goggins and you have a perfect evening’s theatre that’s simply far too good too miss.

As for me. I would quite willingly, watch this again. Highly recommended.

Until October 8. Star rating - *****

For tickets, call 0161 928 1677. For tickets, call 0161 928 1677 or visit www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk.

Photo - Martin Ogden

The Habit of Art - Altrincham Garrick


The Habit of Art - plenty to ponder in Bennett play.

BILL Platt and Jonathan Black deserves nothing but praise for their performances as the poet WH Auden and the composer Benjamin Britten in this play, which sees the Garrick embark on another memorable outing with Alan Bennett.

It centres around a meeting between the two cultural icons, a meeting which took place only in Bennett’s ridiculously fertile imagination and offers a thought provoking take on a range of issues, including culture and sexuality.

It’s fair to say the brilliant writer doesn’t spare the audience’s blushes when it comes to the pleasures of the flesh and the sex references were too much for a couple who voted with their feet and left after 20 minutes or so.

But regular readers of my reviews will know I think theatre is at its best when it challenges our way of thinking and while some of the dialogue may strike Bennett followers as a little fruity in places, it is counteracted by his trademark wit and wisdom.

Bill and Jonathan give what is for me, their finest performances to date on the Garrick stage, with both actors exuding a poise and a presence that made it impossible for me not to hang on their every word.

They play actors playing Auden and Britten in a play which begins with a classic case of mistaken identity, with Auden mistaking the man who has come to interview him for a rent boy he’s ordered.

As Humphrey Carpenter, Stuart Mathers is exemplary and his timing exceptional.

The Garrick’s designer par excellence Barry Purves has devised a set that perfect captures the clutter of Auden’s living quarters, rooms so disgusting they make Steptoe’s backyard look positively luxurious,

It’s fair to say that while The Habit of Art might not have the instant appeal of some of Bennett’s other hits, it is an important and engaging piece that’s well worth seeing.

Just make sure you go with your concentrating head on.

Until September 24. The box office is on 0161 928 1677 or you can book by visiting www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk

Star rating - 3.5 out of 5.

Photo - Martin Ogden.

The Glass Menagerie - Royal Exchange Theatre


Joshua Jonas and Rhiannon Clements as Tom and Laura - photo by Marc Brenner

THEY say good things come to those who wait and that old saying certainly rings true for this production, originally planned for the Spring of 2020 when the country was plunged into lockdown for the first time.

From the pen of Tennessee Williams, this is American classic that’s given actors a verbal feast through the generations by putting some of the most exquisite lines ever written and the characters are strong and believable too.

This play first saw the light of day in the mid 40’s today and while the rules of social etiquette have invariably changed, domestic strife still forms a large part of our dramatic diet and from the soaps to the stage, we jjust can’t get enough of it.

Laura, young, pretty and hopelessly insecure as a result of disability, looks after her collection of miniature glass animals with a devotion that verges on that usually reserved for religious artefacts. She’s pining away, aching to find true love and Rhiannon Clements ensures by her fine performance we never feel sorry for Laura. We just ache for her to be happy.

Geraldine Sommerville is perfect as her mother, Amanda, trying to run Laura’s life and that of her other sibling Tom. Joshua Jonas is tailor made for this part and the spats between him and his stage mom Amanda are both heated and memorable.

We the audience feel empathy for Tom too, as he tries to plot his escape from the family’s purgatorial home.

But has Laura’s luck finally turned with the arrival of the silver tongued dinner guest Jim, played by Eloka Ivo? Ivo is wonderful as Jim, a character with an ego as big as the Eifel Tower and he and Clements treat us to a very memorable scene in the second act which had echoes of Hollywood in it. But I won’t spoil it for you.

Director Atri Bannerjee gives us a production that’s as engrossing as it is entertaining and so thoughtfully staged.

Highly recommended.

Until October 8. The box office is on 0161 833 9833. Star rating - ****

Devastating new take on classic launches new Exchange season

FOLLOWING on from his hugely popular production of the Lancashire classic Hobson’s Choice, director Atri Banerjee returns to the Royal Exchange with a devastating new take on The Glass Menagerie.

Tennessee Williams’ semi-autobiographical masterpiece launches the RET’s new season and runs from September 2 to October 8 at 7.30pm.

Matinees are also included in the run and tickets are available from 0161 833 9833 and the box office is open 11am to 5pm, Monday to Saturday or you can contact tickets@royalexchange.co.uk.


IF you thought the WI was all jam and Jerusalem, Calendar Girls – The Musical is sure to shatter that particular misconception.

The production, currently playing at Altrincham Garrick, also provides a much needed antidote to these gloomy times. Even Victor Meldrew’s grumpier twin brother would enjoy this. If he had one of course.

When one of their group loses a husband to cancer, her best friend and fellow WI member comes up with an idea to raise funds for research into this appalling illness and it’s a fundraising idea that can be summed up in one word – unique.

She persuades the women, many of whom are embarrassed by the bodies, to pose for a nude calendar.

But it’s all done in the best possible taste, to pinch a catchphrase from the late, great comedy genius Kenny Everett.

There’s nothing seedy about this show at all. It’s an uplifting tale of love, friendship and the most unlikely camaraderie. All of human life can be found at the WI.

Created by Take That’s Gary Barlow and Tim Firth, it’s also about women of a certain age re-discovering their sex appeal. You don’t have to be a stick insect to be sexy.

Musically, the score is a mixed bag, with the best numbers saved for the second half. But the acting here is exemplary and you the audience member, will find warming to the characters requires very little effort.

You’ll want to live in the picture postcard Yorkshire Dales among warm and friendly people like this and experience at first hand the extra dry wit for which the inhabitants of this fabulous county are famous.

By far the best performances come from Sarah Kirk as Annie, grieving the death of her husband John and Dawn Flint as her friend of 40 years, Chris. You’ll laugh and cry with them and feel like you’re watching two real pals, so engaging they are together.

But I also like Charlie Tomlinson as Chris’s husband Rod and it’s impossible not to warm to Adam Byrne’s Danny, drawn to the rebellious new girl at his school.

Celia Bonner is quite brilliant as the retired schoolteacher Jessie, putting people in their place with classic put downs.

It somehow feels wrong to single out individual performances as all the actors excel here, even those with relatively small parts.

A tribute then, to director Joseph Meighan and musical director Mark Goggins who ensure the exciting season at the Garrick ends on a spectacular high.

You couldn’t make it up is the only way to describe the true story that inspired Barlow and Firth’s show.

Trafford has a long and proud tradition when it comes to producing top quality musicals and this raises the bar even higher.

Not to be missed.

Tickets are available from 0161 928 1677 or www.altrinchamgarrick.co.uk. Star rating - *****