Mark Brown

Alan Cumming and Shirley Henderson give compelling performances as Glasgow neighbours who become lovers in Oliver Emanuel and Gareth Williams’s tragicomic play-with-songs. The production’s songs and emotional performances make it a deeply moving revival, while Cumming’s star appeal strengthens Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s ambitious season. However, the theatre’s large main stage and monumental set overwhelm the intimate chamber piece, which would be better suited to a smaller venue. The production runs at Pitlochry until September 12 before transferring to Dundee Rep.

The Crucible Theatre’s production of Summer Holiday adapts the 1963 Cliff Richard film into a colourful, feel-good musical set partly in Sheffield. The road-trip story follows a group of young mechanics and performers across Europe, supported by well-known songs including “Bachelor Boy,” “The Young Ones” and “On the Beach.” George Jones is singled out for his charismatic performance as Don, while Jane McCarry is praised for her comic portrayal of Barbara’s overbearing mother. Despite uneven singing across the ensemble, the production’s inventive staging, lively cast and nostalgic score make it an appealing show.

Rory Mullarkey’s three-part play at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre explores the city’s complicated relationship with Ireland before, during and after the 1996 Provisional IRA bombing. Elaine Cassidy’s darkly comic monologue set in 1846 is singled out for exceptional writing and performance, while the bombing sequence is criticized as melodramatic and sentimental. The contemporary final section thoughtfully addresses Irish identity, belonging, miscarriage and the legacy of the attack, but the production is ultimately overshadowed by its powerful opening.

Alan Cumming, Forbes Masson, Siobhan Redmond and Patrick Ryecart reprise their roles in a musical adaptation of the 1990s BBC sitcom The High Life. Co-written by Cumming, Masson and Johnny McKnight, the production combines rapid-fire adult comedy, songs ranging from traditional Scottish music to West End ballads, and extravagant designs. Its plot follows threats to the fictional Air Scotia before moving into the surreal Lower Largo Triangle, and the touring production has received an enthusiastic response in Tayside.

The Royal Exchange’s new production of Noël Coward’s Private Lives is praised for its finely judged blend of frivolity and darker themes, especially the violence beneath Amanda and Elyot’s enduring attraction. Jill Halfpenny and Steve John Shepherd lead a strong cast, with notable support from Shazia Nicholls, Daniel Millar and Sara Lessore. However, the in-the-round staging is seriously undermined by a constantly rotating set and black reflective surfaces that unsettle viewers and draw attention away from the drama. The production runs in Manchester until 2 May.

The Royal Exchange Theatre’s 40th-anniversary production of Jim Cartwright’s Road revisits a working-class Lancashire community devastated by unemployment during Thatcher’s Britain. Mark Brown praises Johnny Vegas as narrator Scullery, alongside the large cast, immersive design and Selina Cartmell’s ambitious staging. Although some scenes approach caricature, the production captures the play’s bleak humour, desperation and resilience, with notable performances from Lucy Beaumont and Tom Courtenay. The review concludes that the poignant and entertaining production is ultimately redeemed by a moving finale set to Otis Redding’s music.

Raz Shaw’s Royal Exchange Theatre staging of Singin’ in the Rain in Manchester is praised as a faithful, energetic and highly accomplished musical. Louis Gaunt stands out as Don Lockwood, particularly during the rain-soaked title number, while Carly Mercedes Dyer brings strong vocals and Laura Baldwin provides comic flair as Lina Lamont. The in-the-round design, choreography and inventive staging create an exuberant crowd-pleaser, with nostalgic British humour adding occasional innuendo. The production runs until January 25 and is recommended as a festive theatrical treat.

Aisha Khan and Elin Schofield’s Sheffield Crucible adaptation of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is praised for revitalising the classic without betraying its spirit. Sheffield and South Yorkshire carols give the production local resonance, while new material deepens Isobel’s reasons for leaving Scrooge and exposes the consequences of his pursuit of debtors through the law. Ian Midlane’s self-doubting Scrooge, Mel Lowe’s narration as Jack, a versatile cast and an inventive dual-purpose set contribute to a moving and ultimately joyous production running at Sheffield Crucible until 10 January.

Yaron Lifschitz’s circus-themed production of Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice, staged by Opera Queensland with acrobats from Circa, receives a sharply negative review. Although the singers, Scottish Opera chorus, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and circus performers are praised, the white minimalist asylum setting, greenhouse imagery, graphics and aerialism are criticized for overshadowing Gluck’s music and weakening the opera’s emotional and mythic force. The final image of “The triumph of love” written in blood is deemed self-parodic, despite the production receiving enthusiastic applause from some Edinburgh International Festival audience members.

Scottish Opera’s new English-language production of Franz Lehár’s The Merry Widow relocates the operetta to the mid-20th-century Italian-American mafia world of New York. The adaptation by John Savournin and David Eaton combines commedia dell’arte farce with The Sopranos-style comic violence, while retaining the work’s romantic core. Henry Waddington, Paula Sides and Alex Otterburn receive particular praise, as do Lehár’s score, the orchestra and designer takis’s three sets. The production tours Scotland through June 28 before moving to Opera Holland Park in London.

Peter Mullan delivers a commanding, witty performance as Liverpool FC manager Bill Shankly in Phillip Breen’s stage adaptation of David Peace’s novel. The large cast, songs, community chorus and affectionate football references make the production an appealing celebration for Liverpool supporters, with strong contributions from Allison McKenzie, Jhanaica Van Mook and Les Dennis. Although Breen’s inventive use of multiple narrative voices helps solve the challenge of adapting a detailed novel, the two-and-a-half-hour play sometimes lacks theatrical rhythm. Its sentimentality and fan-focused approach are nevertheless likely to make it a crowd-pleaser at Liverpool’s Royal Court through April 19.

The 2025 Strictly Come Dancing Live tour opened at Birmingham's near-capacity Utilita Arena with a polished, tightly choreographed production that closely follows the show's familiar formula. Despite the absence of Chris McCausland and the indisposition of Vito Coppola, the performances impressed, with notable routines from Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas. Sarah Hadland and stand-in Nikita Kuzmin emerged as the evening's winners, while the show's carefully maintained predictability remains central to its enduring appeal.

A highly praised production of Cinderella at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre showcases Scotland’s distinctive pantomime tradition. Allan Stewart leads the cast as the Fairy Godmother, alongside Grant Stott’s football-themed comic villain and Jordan Young’s energetic Buttons. The production combines lavish spectacle, including flying mechanised horses, with local Edinburgh humour and improvised comedy, while Clare Gray, Gail Watson, Amber Sylvia Edwards and Will Callan deliver strong performances. The show runs until December 31, with the Festival Theatre serving as its temporary venue while the King’s Theatre undergoes redevelopment.

Shakespeare North Playhouse’s adaptation recasts Alice as a middle-aged working-class mother in contemporary Prescot, replacing the child heroine and much of Carroll’s original magic with class politics, right-wing political allusions and forced references to modern culture. The production’s blend of family theatre, musical and pantomime is criticized as incoherent, while its songs, costumes, audience participation and narrative are judged weak. Despite energetic performances, the review concludes that the production is misconceived and lacks conviction, coherence and charm.

Jack Holden’s one-man play Kenrex, co-written with Ed Stambollouian and premiered at Sheffield Playhouse, dramatises the true story of Ken Rex McElroy’s 1981 reign of terror in Skidmore, Missouri. Holden performs 11 characters on Anisha Fields’s minimalist set, supported by John Patrick Elliott’s country, western and post-punk soundtrack. The production is praised for its inventive staging, vivid characterisation, dark humour and sustained intensity, while raising unsettling questions about justice and collective action.

Les Misérables: The Arena Spectacular combines concert performance with theatrical staging to make the musical suitable for vast arenas. The production benefits from an excellent orchestra, lavish costumes and strong performances, especially from Alfie Boe, Michael Ball, Channah Hewitt, Gavin Lee and Bonnie Langford. However, screens and light effects only partly solve the challenge of presenting the drama to distant audiences, with the battle scenes becoming unintentionally comic. Despite its scale and popularity, the review concludes that Les Misérables remains best suited to a conventional theatre.