Review - Picnic at hanging Rock - People's Theatre

Picnic at Hanging Rock 

People's Theatre

12th Oct 2026

Adapted by Tom Wright from the novel by Joan Lindsay

Directed by Matthew Hope and Erin Robinson

Cast: Ashleigh Gloyne, Oryssa Sahota, Ashton Matthews, Abii Smith, Lauren Urmson

Picnic at Hanging Rock is a strange tale. A group of students from a girls academy are taken on an outing to Hanging Rock in the Australian Bush. Before they leave the headmistress warns them to behave in a seemly manner as befits them as young ladies and students of the Appleyard Academy: they are not to explore the rocks. It's Valentine's Day and the girls heads are full of romance.  The weather is hot and oppressive. At the picnic the girls decide to investigate the rock - walking through the heat of the bush and climbing the rock. Strange things begin to happen - the girls are overcome by the vastness of the country and the rock, the strangeness of their surroundings. The heat becomes unbearable and the girls begin to experience strange feelings and sensations - they squabble amongst themselves, daring themselves to go further than is sensible. Afraid of what seems to be happening one girl goes back to the picnic area while the others continue to climb. Something mystical in the atmosphere of the rock overtakes them. A search ensues, and others experience the mystery of the rock but apart from one, the girls are never seen again. 

The set is minimal - packing crates, moved around by the cast members, serve as a horse-drawn carriage, seats in the school, a fallen log, and the ominous rock itself. A soundscape of bird calls - kuckaburras? - creates the atmosphere of the Australian bush. 

The play takes the form a dramatic storytelling - with each of the cast narrating sections of the story.  Each actor in this all female cast plays dual parts, including the male characters. They slip from one character to another almost imperceptibly. It is confusing and perhaps that is the intention - the events at Hanging Rock can't be explained, the characters themselves don't understand what is happening to them as they are overcome by the eerie, otherness of the landscape. Has something supernatural happened or have these impressionable young women simply been over come by heat and fanciful imaginings? 

The audience is left to draw its own conclusions. 

Picnic at Hanging Rock is an intense, challenging play - it put me in mind of Conrad's Heart of Darkness or Theroux's Mosquito Coast - questioning perceptions of the natural world and the idea of our own civilisation. We seek to control the things we do not understand, and in doing so simply create a different kind of wildness. 

This production will leave you with more questions than answers. It runs until 17th October. 

Denise Sparrowhawk

*images by Paul Hood

Preview - Spooky Season at the People's Theatre

This October, the People’s Theatre in Heaton are bringing two gripping tales of mystery, disappearance and the supernatural.

From the eerie beauty of PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK to the chilling suspense of 2:22 – A GHOST STORY, spooky season has never looked so good!

On a summer’s day in 1900, a school picnic at Hanging Rock, the volcanic beauty spot in rural Australia, takes a terrifying turn when three girls and a teacher disappear without trace.

Tom Wright’s haunting stage adaptation of Joan Lindsay’s celebrated novel brings this enduring mystery to life in a compelling theatrical exploration of memory, myth and the unknowable.

Five performers conjure the world of Appleyard College and the events surrounding that fateful picnic, shifting between characters, recollections and competing versions of what might have happened. As the boundaries between fact and imagination begin to blur, the search for answers becomes increasingly unsettling.

Beautiful, strange and deeply atmospheric, PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK is a story about the things we cannot explain, and the stories we create to make sense of them.

Then later in October, the People’s are bringing award-winning stage phenomenon 2:22 – A GHOST STORY to their stage!

New parents Jenny and Sam are settling into their new home. But every night at exactly 2:22am, Jenny hears footsteps on the baby monitor circling their daughter’s cot. Is the house haunted?

When friends arrive for a housewarming, a late-night debate about ghosts, belief and scepticism takes a sinister turn. They decide to stay awake until 2:22am, then they’ll know …

This gripping supernatural thriller is written by former People’s Theatre member Danny Robins, and directed by Anna Dobson.

Anna and Danny have been friends since they were in Youth Theatre together, and Anna comments: “Danny was always incredibly creative and loved making theatre, so it came as no surprise to me that he went on to build such a successful career. I’m immensely proud of everything he has achieved, and it feels very special to stage his play in the place where his own love of theatre began.”

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Review - Outside Edge - Royalty Theatre

Outside Edge

Royalty Theatre 

22nd Sept  2026  

The Royalty Theatre launched the new season with a very English comedy - Outside Edge - set in the club house of the local cricket club on the day they play their bitter rivals. Under the pressure to beat the visiting team, cracks begin to appear and all is not quite so gentlemanly on the pitch or in the clubhouse. Personalities clash and secrets are hinted at and then unveiled. Relationships crumble under the pressure to win - at life as well as cricket. 

The characters are all a little bit larger than life - from Roger, the bombastic team captain, full of his own importance, cajoling and bullying his team (and his wife) into submission to Miriam, his wife, somewhat self effacing, but taking full pride in the quality of her teas, who knows that she is the only one keeping the club running smoothly and efficiently. 

Then there is Bob, probably the best cricketer in the club but with a complicated personal life - juggling his ex-wife and his new wife, and bowing under the weight of trying to keep both wives and the club captain happy. Dennis is the lecherous womanizer, trying his luck with everyone's wife and girlfriend, while ignoring his own - though we never see his wife, she gets her revenge off stage. The men are all out to prove themselves to each other - better at cricket, better at their jobs, better cars, better houses, better wives...yet it is the women who re the winners - mostly - in this club, with the exception of Sharon, the wives tend to come out on top. 

There are some laugh out loud moments in this play, and some cringeworthy moments too - it was first staged in 1979 so this is probably to be expected! Andrew Barella as Roger, and Lee Wilkins as Bob give commanding peformances and keep the comedy flowing. Lee and Kori Johnson (Miriam) also give excellent, performances of drunkenness....Bob's three small whiskies having a dramatic drunken effect, while Miriam slowly imbibes and entire bottle of wine and descends into a gentle inebriation - both upholding a tradition in local theatre for convincing drunken acting! 

Overall this was an entertaining evening - (even if some of the entertainment came from the wobbly set  - I'd recommend moving the chairs away from the wall a couple of inches!) very English, farcical, and funny yet truly identifiable characters - am sure anyone who has been a member of a sports club will recognise the types - and this is perhaps where the best humour is found - in recognising the truth in the people we see on stage.

Outside Edge runs until 26th September. Tickets are available online at www.royaltytheatre.co.uk or on the door.

Denise Sparrowhawk 

Review - The Girl on the Train - People's Theatre

The Girl on the Train 

People's Theatre

14th July 2026

Adapted for the stage by

Rachel Wagstaff and Duncan Abel

Directed by Sam Sanford

If you need a distraction from the football you could do worse than pay a visit to The People's Theatre in Newcastle this week for their production of  The Girl on the Train. 

Adapted from the novel by Paula Hawkins this dark, psychological thriller presents some challenges for a theatre production. The story involves train journeys (always a challenge to reproduce on stage),  flashbacks involving multiple characters, and potentially several scene changes. 

All this before we even get to the characters themselves, with their many layers of self deception. In particular Rachel Watson, the lead character, who searches for solace from her fractured world in alcohol. Her perception of reality is blurred by drink and fantasy. Director Sam Sanford manages to pull all of this together and create a production which is taut and atmospheric. The set is minimal - a mattress on the floor to represent Rachel's home, a sofa and drinks cabinet for Scott Hipwell's apartment, and rug and a baby's rocker for Anna and Tom's home. Chairs are brought on to represent the interview room at the police station, or the psychiatrist's office. While centre stage a cleverly lit tunnel represents the train, and the subway - almost a character in itself, this tunnel lights up, pulsates, and darkens as each aspect of the characters' stories is revealed. The flashbacks are created with a series of  screens that are lit to show each scenario as Rachel remembers and gradually pieces together the events of the fateful night. A pulsating sound track adds to the atmosphere and drama with the lighting and sound every bit as important in this play as the actors playing the parts. 

The cast all give excellent performances but Kate Plass as Rachel is superb - we see a broken woman gradually find herself, disentngling her own fantasies and the nightmare that inspired them, she solves a murder and finds redemption for herself and closure for the other characters. 

Even if you have read the book, or seen the film, you will be enthralled by this cleverly staged, tense thriller.  

*images by Paul Hood

Denise Sparrowhawk

Review - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - People's Theatre

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time

People's Theatre

9th June, 2026

This play by Simon Stephens, based on the novel by Mark Haddon is something of a revelation. I have tried several times to read the book and have not got past the first few pages. I always felt something of a failure for not being able to appreciate a book that everyone else seemed to be raving about. So it was with mixed feelings I took my seat in the auditorium. 

The scene that greeted us was intriguing...maths equations adorned large blackboards on either side of the stage and glowed from a screen at the back. Another source of concern for me - maths was never my strong suit (I have a glorious "unclassified O-Level, for those of you old enough to know what O-levels are/were). And a dead dog lay front and centre, impaled with a garden fork (obviously not an actual dead dog, just a prop - no dogs - or later rats - were harmed in the making of this production!) - the dead dog of the title. This being the People's Theatre,  I was pretty certain, despite my misgivings about the book and maths, that though whatever was coming might be challenging, it would also certainly be interesting and entertaining. 

 

 I don't want to give away any spoilers for anyone who, like me, has not read the book, and doesn't know who killed Wellington (the dead dog) so I am going to concentrate on the characters and actors rather than the plot. Firstly Zachary Douglas creates a character in Christopher who is completely credible and endearing. - a young man  negotiating his way through a world that doesn't really understand him, using numbers, and facts, and truth, as his touchstones.  His forthright observations on people are brutally honest and this creates unexpected humour in the play.

Alison Carr brings the practical and empathetic teacher Siobhan to life, providing the stable, matter of fact grounding for Christopher, her presence becomes one of his touchstones, she providing the support and constancy he needs, especially when things begin to unravel for him. She is the voice of reason. 

Sean Burnside plays Christopher's father, Ed. A man who loves his son, but is struggling to cope with his special needs while also dealing with his own demons and the anger and frustration and guilt that they bring. He swerves from calm, loving patience to volatile anger, and back again, almost losing everything when he loses Christopher's trust. 

Alongside Burnside's father figure we have Christopher's mother, Judy - played by Sarah Jo Harrison. Another volatile character she appears first as a memory from Christopher's childhood, happy and full of life, but with a strange sadness. Through letters we learn of her feelings of inadequacy as a mother as she compares her relationship with Christopher to that with his father. There is clearly a bond between father and son that she felt excluded from, which makes the loss of trust that Christopher experiences all the more poignant. But we see that there was also a bond with his mother that he was unable to express at the time.

And finally there is the ensemble who weave in and out of the story, creating the subsidiary characters, the neighbours, the policemen, the public. They stand to attention in the background, or drift into the flow of the story as needed, shedding light and sometimes doubt on the proceedings. 

This is a play about complex emotions, difficult situations, about individual needs and family ties. It's about trust, and truth and betrayal. But it is also about love, and healing and individuality. 

It s beautifully and cleverly staged - incorporating light and music - with movement and sound that is sometime soft and almost balletic, and other times harsh and jarring, mirroring the emotions and events that take place. 

Intense, inspiring and emotional, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time is cleverly staged, and beautifully performed. Well worth seeing. 

*images by Paul Hood

Denise Sparrowhawk 

Preview - The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - People's Theatre

Showing this week at the People’s Theatre in Heaton: THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME, the acclaimed stage adaptation of Mark Haddon’s bestselling novel.

“I am going to find out who killed Wellington and make it a project. Even though Father told me not to.”

At seven minutes after midnight, fifteen-year-old Christopher Boone discovers his neighbour’s dog dead in the street. Determined to uncover the truth, Christopher embarks on a detective mission that takes him far beyond the end of his road for the very first time. What begins as a mystery becomes an extraordinary journey that will change his life forever.

Funny, moving, and visually captivating, THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME invites audiences to experience the world through Christopher’s eyes in a powerful exploration of family, trust, courage, and what it means to be different.

Following worldwide acclaim and multiple award-wins (including seven Olivier Awards for the National Theatre’s 2012 premiere), this gripping adaptation brings Christopher’s unforgettable adventure from Swindon to London vividly to life on stage.

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Review to follow (assuming I can get through the Take That traffic on the A19!) 

Review - The Unfriend - People's Theatre

The Unfriend

People's Theatre

28th April, 2026

Written by Steven Moffat

Directed by Ian Willis

Cast:

Peter Lindel - Daniel Magee

Debbie Lindel - Helen Parker

Elsa J Krakowski - Ann Zunder

Alex Lindel - Jamie Cordes

Rosie Lindel - Sarah Jane Fisher

The Neighbour - Mark Buckley

PC Junkin - Steve Parry

Presenter - Simon Patrick Dowling

Peter and Debbie Lindel meet Elsa on a cruise holiday. Too polite to say no, give her their email to stay in touch after the holiday - Elsa has conveniently mislaid the cards she had especially printed to give out should she happen to meet people she wants to stay in touch with. This, perhaps, should have been the first alarm bell for Peter and Debbie. Once home she inundates them with emails until they eventually run out of polite excuses and offer to let her come visit them while she is in London.  As her arrival date draws near, Debbie decides to google their soon to be house guest and what she finds puts her in a spin. Elsa is a suspected murderer - but insufficient evidence means she has never been brought to trial. As Peter and Debbie try to summon up the gumption to email Elsa and tell her they have to cancel the trip, a surprise video call comes through. Elsa is here, outside their front door, two days early. She arrives with news that her friend from the cruise - now living in London - has died, unexpectedly. 

Faced with the unexpected early arrival of their guest, and their newly acquired knowledge of her past, Peter and Debbie must find a way past their very English politeness and ask her to leave. The main problem with this is that everyone, and especially their two teenage children, really like Elsa.

The Unfriend is a hilariously funny play about a pretty dark situation. Can you like someone who has committed murder? Would you trust them? Would you eat a sandwich made by them? 

How would you broach the subject of their past?  It is also a clash of cultures - polite English manners versus American brashness, with both the English couple and the American woman avoiding the issue while trying to deal with it. 

The cast are all brilliant at their different roles - Daniel Magee, as Peter, adept at avoiding confrontation at all costs, and Helen Parker as his highly strung wife, desperately trying to keep it together and eventually spectacularly failing! While Jamie Cordes and Sarah Jane Fisher are the epitomy of teenage surliness. Ann Zunder sails along as Elsa - the lovable, wise-cracking, suspected murderess. 

My favourite, however was the long-suffering Neighbour - Mark Buckley's almost deadpan performance is fabulous. A man destined never to understand the depth of indifference felt by his neighbours towards his most important issues!

Set almost entirely within the living room and kitchen of an English home, this situation comedy is full of the kind of humour that the Brits do so well, and at which the team at the People's excel. 

You have two more chances to catch it -  book a ticket and get there! 

Denise Sparrowhawk

Preview - The Unfriend - People's Theatre

Hilarious hit comedy THE UNFRIEND at the People’s Theatre in Heaton next week.

When good manners might just be the death of you ...!

This comedy by acclaimed writer Steven Moffat (Doctor Who, Sherlock) is full of laughs, fast-paced dialogue, and outrageous misunderstandings!

When Peter and Debbie meet the eccentric Elsa during a cruise, they never imagine she’ll take up their casual invitation to visit them. But months later, Elsa arrives on their doorstep, turning their orderly lives upside down.

As her unsettling stories (as well as an alarming Google search!) begin to raise suspicions, one question becomes impossible to ignore … what if Elsa is a murderer?

Caught between growing panic and their desperate need to remain polite, Peter and Debbie find themselves trapped in a spiralling farce. After all, how do you uninvite someone without being rude?

Packed with laugh-out-loud comedy and ever escalating chaos, THE UNFRIEND proves good manners can be absolutely murderous!

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Review - The Thrill of Love - People's Theatre

The Thrill of Love

People's Theatre

13th April, 2026

Written by Amanda Whittington

Directed by Tony Childs

Cast

Ruth Ellis - Emma Robson

Inspector Gale - Steve Hewitt

Sylvia - Moira Valentine

Vickie - Hattie Easton

Doris - Emily Jeffrey

The Thrill of Love tells a story of ambition, passion and murder. The story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain. The mystery here is not who committed murder, Ruth Ellis confessed and there were witnesses who saw her fire the gun at David Blakely. The mystery is more complex; what drove her to commit such a crime? Who, if anyone, helped her? But also why did her trial and execution happen with such speed and against such a surge of public protest? 

Amanda Whittington's play reveals the very human woman behind the murderer. She peels back the curtain to show us two sides of Ruth's world. The world of the gentleman's club, a world of entitlement and glamour with a mean and sordid underbelly. 

Against a sparse set, and a Billie Halliday sound track, the five members of the cast bring this tale to life, and death. We watch as the Ruth's life disintegrates, as the dream she has chased turns to nightmare. The brittle gaiety of Ruth and Vicky hides a desperate ambition - to be someone, to be rich, to be loved. Against Emma Robson's passionate performance we have Moira Valentine's understated portrayal of the practical but jaded Sylvia - keeping an eye out for the girls but always watching her own back, and Emily Jeffrey's Dora - full of compassion and good sense - fights to keep Ruth safe.

The women's performances are impassioned and emotional and heartbreaking glimpses into a life we can barely imagine, while Steve Hewitt give a quietly compelling performance as Inspector Gale, as he tries to unpick the crime to find the elusive truth and some redemption for Ruth. 

It's a tough story but it has moments of humour - a dark humour that I think is peculiarly British that serves to highlight the tragedy. 

There is no tidy ending to this story - Ruth Ellis committed a murder and was hanged for it and the ripples spread far beyond her death. 

The Thrill of Love plays until Saturday in the studio.

Denise Sparrowhawk

Preview - The Thrill of Love - People's Theatre

Love, betrayal, and murder...

Coming next at the People’s Theatre in Heaton: Amanda Whittington’s THE THRILL OF LOVE which brings to life the gripping and tragic story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain.

Set against the seedy glamour of 1950s London, this compelling drama delves beneath the sensational headlines to reveal the complex woman at its heart.

Blending known facts with imagined scenarios, Whittington’s acclaimed play offers a fresh perspective on a story that captivated the country and explores the events that led Ellis to commit murder.

Part noir thriller, part intimate character study, THE THRILL OF LOVE paints a vivid portrait of a world of smoky nightclubs, dangerous liaisons, and fragile dreams. At its core lies a deeply human story of love, betrayal, and the devastating consequences of both. 

Director Tony Childs comments: “This is a great piece of drama.  People might know the name Ruth Ellis, without perhaps knowing much about Ruth herself.  The play focuses on her character, rather than her guilt.  We see her nature, and the way she disintegrates.”

 THE THRILL OF LOVE is a haunting and poignant exploration of passion and power, shining a light on the personal tragedy behind one of Britain’s most infamous cases.

 Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Preview - A Very Expensive Poison - People's Theatre

 

“The second you start telling a story, you start telling a lie”

 

London, 2006. A former Russian spy drinks a cup of tea in a luxury Mayfair hotel. Hours later, he becomes the victim of one of the most shocking assassinations in modern British history, poisoned with radioactive polonium in an act that stunned the world.

 

A VERY EXPENSIVE POISON at the People’s Theatre in Heaton this week plunges audiences into the shadowy world of international espionage, where power, propaganda, and political intrigue collide.

 

Adapted by acclaimed Succession writer and co-executive producer Lucy Prebble from journalist Luke Harding’s gripping book, the production transforms the real-life assassination of Alexander Litvinenko into a wildly theatrical spectacle.

 

Blending vaudeville, political thriller, and dark satire, the play presents a surreal and electrifying retelling of this extraordinary true story.  

 

Distortion and distraction abound as characters navigate misinformation, international tension, and covert operations.

 

The result is a bold and exciting theatrical experience that examines how truth becomes blurred in a world dominated by power struggles and propaganda.

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Review - Home, I'm Darling - Progressive Players

Home, I'm Darling 

Little Theatre

9th March, 2026

Written by Laura Wade

Presented by the Progressive Players

Directed by Danny Stones   

"Home, I'm Darling", as the title suggests is a play that purports to turn things on their head. it centres around married couple Judy and Johnny who, for reasons best known to themselves, have embarked on a lifestyle project to live completely in the 50s style. Begun as a six month experiment, they have embraced not just the style of the 50s in their house decor and clothes, but have also taken on the ethos of the 50s in their daily lives. JUdy stays at home and bakes, makes marmalade, cleans the home while Johnny goes out to work to earn money and provide for them. They make do and mend - their old fridge is a temperamental 1950s original, their 1950s TV has been cleverly adapted inside to play DVDs (they only watch 1950s movies on it - Doris Day and Rock Hutson). 

Three years on and the "experiment" has become permanent. Everything they do is anchored in the past - no shopping in the modern new shopping centre, no mobile phones, no modern gadgets. Except for the laptop, of course - needed for Judy to source and buy all those lovely vintage items on ebay! 

It should be idyllic. This after all is Judy's dream. But everything is not quite as perfect as it seems. Johnny is spotted eating pizza (God forbid!) in the hated new shopping centre, with a young woman, and Judy is quietly selling clothes on ebay and hiding letters under the kitchen sink... Her mother - a women's libber who marched for women's rights and actually lived through the 50s - is horrified by her daughter's choices and feels that Johnny must be behind it all, which couldn't be further from the truth. Judy's best friend Fran finds herself constantly compared to, and falling short of this domestic goddess. 

When the modern world encroaches on her vintage lifestyle Judy's reaction is defensive and her smile seems a little brittle.  Johnny meanwhile is struggling to justify this lifestyle choice at work and feels it has cost him a promotion. It all starts to get a bit tense. 

I have to confess I struggle with this play - the concept of a modern woman willingly giving up a good job and her independence to stay at home and pander to her husband's every whim does not sit well with me. I don'tt find Judy, (Ashley Harvey) to be a convincing character - and perhaps that is intentional by the writer? I felt her backstory was so much more interesting than her perfect housewife persona. 

I had a grudging sympathy for Johnny (Lewis Connor Ryan) as he doesn't ever seem entirely comfortable with his lot and is almost manipulated into accepting it. Yet another reversal within the play - the relationships between the male and female characters are not quite what you might expect. 

What is impressive about this production is the set and the costumes. An almost perfectly reproduced 1950 home - with kitchen cabinet and huge fridge, kitsch wallpaper and vibrant colours, and Judy's dresses are to die for. The scene changes are done with humour - there's not much to change between scenes, cups and glasses are tidied away around the cast by a rather surly crew who I felt were as bemused by the whole show as I was! 

And the sound track switches cleverly from 50s crooners in act one to modern pop in act two - symbolic of the shift within the play, as the facade of the idyll begins to slide.

Home I'm Darling runs until Saturday at the Little Theatre. Billed as a dark comedy, it has moments of humour, but on the whole I found it somewhat unsettling,  and perhaps not in the way the writer intended. 

Denise Sparrowhawk

Review - Picasso at the Lapin Agile - People's Theatre

Picasso at the Lapin Agile 

People's Theatre

3rd March, 2026

A play with an intriguing title, staged in the People's Theatre studio, was always going to be something a little bit different. When you then add the writer - Steve Martin - it becomes a little bit more different.

The stage is set as a bar - with the audience on two sides. The front rows are cafe tables - and throughout the play characters come over to address members of the audience - at times acknowledging that they are, in fact,  in a play. 

Set in the Lapin Agile bar in Paris at the beginning of the 20th Century, the play centres around the meeting (as imagined by the writer) of two geniuses (genii?) Einstein and Picasso. Both at the beginning of their careers, both experts in their very different fields: Picasso the artist and Einstein the scientist. They see the world in different ways. They clash. 

As they argue and theorize about the world and the universe, other characters add their own views - sometimes relevant, sometimes not! Freddie (Ian Willis) the owner of the bar is intent on getting his customers to pay their bar bills - few do. Gaston (Jim Boylan), a regular customer bemoans the aging process and the limitations it brings to life. Suzanne (Helen Doyle) a young American besotted with and seduced by Picasso, is entranced by his charm and fame, and foolish enough to think that she is the only one. Sagot (Matthew Shepherd), Picasso's agent, drops the monetary value of art into the conversation at every opportunity. His interest is purely financial - the beauty of the art is measured by how much he can make from it. While these characters make their observations and spout their views, Germaine, (Rhiannon Wilson) the waitress cuts through them all - speaking the truth and undercutting their egocentricity - no-one escapes her attention, especially not Picasso. 

As the characters come and go, Picasso and Einstein continue to argue over the nature of beauty and the universe - who captures it best - the artist or the scientist? It would seem they may come to blows - and yet in the end, with the help of a visitor they come to see the beauty of the stars together. 

As you'd perhaps expect from Steve Martin, the humour is quirky. There are some hilarious one liners,  and some very strange juxtapositions (not least the premise that Einstein and Picasso might meet in a bar). At times it is difficult to follow - the characters philosophize and theorize one moment and tell bad jokes the next. The dialogue is fast paced and takes some concentration to keep up! 

On the surface, you could take it as an alternative comedy sketch (am I the only one to remember "alternative comedy"?) but under the surface there is so much more going on. Martin's intellect shines out asking big questions about the world and humanity and where we sit in the universe, and yet he does it with laughter and hope. 

This is a comedy that will have you laughing, but also wondering what on earth it is all about! 

*images by Paul Hood

Denise Sparrowhawk

Preview - Picasso at the Lapin Agile - People's Theatre

 Two geniuses walk into a bar … 

Next week at the People’s Theatre in Heaton: PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE by Steve Martin

What happens when the future of art and the future of science order drinks at the same Parisian bar?!

PICASSO AT THE LAPIN AGILE imagines a delightfully impossible evening in 1904 Paris, where a young Pablo Picasso (Peter Dawson) and unknown patent clerk Albert Einstein (Jamie Cordes) cross paths at the legendary Lapin Agile.

Picasso is still sketching toward Cubism, Einstein is still scribbling toward relativity, but both can feel the universe tilting in their direction.

When the two collide, sparks fly and egos flare. The result is a smart, whimsical comedy that bursts with verbal fencing, philosophical mischief, and Steve Martin’s signature blend of razor wit and gleeful absurdity.

In his first play for the stage, Steve Martin (Saturday Night Live, Only Murders in the Building) crafts an evening that is as thoughtful as it is hilarious. Smart, silly, and surprising, this is an entertaining exploration of art, science, creativity, ego, and destiny.

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

 

Review - The Mirror Crack'd - People's Theatre

The Mirror Crack'd

People's Theatre

20th January, 2026

The Mirror Crack'd transports us to a changing St Mary Mead - the quaint village has been invaded by new housing at The Development, and Hollywood stars who have taken over Gossington Hall. Each one has had an unwelcome effect on the status quo of the village. The Development has brought working class incomers, supermarkets and featureless housing, and distrust, while Hollwood has brought excitement, intrigue, brash glamour ...and, of course, murder. 

The murder victim is a local woman of no interest other than the fact that she has been murdered at the party thrown by Hollywood star Marina Gregg. 

As the investigation begins, the assumption is made that Heather Leigh has been murdered by mistake and that the obvious intended victim is none other than Marina Gregg. After all, it was Marina's fatally poisoned strawberry daiquiri that Heather drank, was it not? And what reason would anyone have to murder a nobody such as Heather Leigh? 

The suspects are identified - everyone who was at the party is questioned. Marina's husband is the key suspect; perhaps he needed money to fund his film-making and would inherit Marina's fortune? Or perhaps her staff held a grudge - she was a difficult person to work for.  Even Miss Marple's friend, Dolly, who has given up her home to these brash American's. No-one is beyond suspicion except Marina herself and Cyril Leigh, Heather's husband, a man of as little significance as his mistakenly murdered wife.  He is constantly brushed aside despite his many attempts to speak to Chief Inspector Craddock. 

The play is cleverly staged with the "off-stage" characters always visible, seated at the back of the stage and brought forward to replay their part in the events as required, and alongside them are the props and sound effects, doorbells and telephones ringing, doors banging... But watch carefully - not everyone is in view all of the time and perhaps, if the  audience is paying attention they may garner a clue or two in among the waiting props and characters? Who can tell? 

It's an interesting play. Miss Marple, hampered by a sprained ankle, is not quite at her sleuthing best and appears more affected by the train of events than is usual in previous mysteries. It almost feels as if the murder and its solution are almost secondary to the themes that are revealed.  Love and loss, parenthood, the nature of friendship, and of loyalty, are all key in this strange coming together of social classes. It is more about what appears to be true rather than what actually is true, and of the assumptions that are made based on people's social standing. The face that people show to the world is not always their true self, and sometimes the truly real people are barely seen at all. 

There are many red herrings, and of course a twist that you (hopefully) won't see coming at all. But Miss Marple, despite her distraction, eventually knits it all together. Sterling performances by all the cast who kept us guessing to the end in this clever and imaginatively produced play. 

The Mirror Crack'd runs until Saturday 24th January and is an excellent start to the People's new season. 

*images by Paul Hood

Denise Sparrowhawk

Preview - The Mirror Cracke'd - People's Theatre

Coming to the People's Theatre next week...

A movie star, a cocktail party, and a puzzle only Miss Marple can solve!

A thrilling tale of scandal, lies, and murder comes alive at the People’s Theatre in Agatha Christie’s iconic mystery THE MIRROR CRACK’D.

Hollywood comes to St Mary Mead when a glamorous American film star moves into the village, only for a deadly poisoning to shatter the calm.

As suspicion spreads and secrets surface, Miss Marple must use all of her wits to piece together the truth behind a crime rooted in jealousy, obsession, and tragedy. Can she get to the truth before it’s too late?

 

Full of mounting suspense and Christie’s trademark twists, this fresh adaptation of the classic whodunnit is guaranteed to keep you on the edge of your seats!

 

Tickets are available from the People’s Theatre Box Office on 0191 265 5020 (option 2) and online at www.peoplestheatre.co.uk

Review - Wizard of Oz - People's Theatre

The Wizard of Oz

People's Theatre

13th December 2025

This year's Panto at The People's Theatre is The Wizard of Oz. It's a move away from the more traditional fairy tale pantomime, that is to say it is not the usual handsome prince falls in love and saves his heart's desire from an evil witch/queen/wizard and they get married and live happily ever after...

There are witches and wizards, some good, some not so good, and one is a sort of fairy godmother, or witchy godmother if we're being fair. And there is plenty of danger and enchantment. 

The panto follows the original story of Dorothy's adventures in the land of Oz pretty accurately, with the addition of Hickory, Dickory and Dock as the farm hand characters who transform into the Scarecrow, the Tin Man and the Cowardly Lion and who provide the panto characters who engage with the audience most - the "Buttons" type character. The main one being the Scarecrow who initiates the call and response with the audience each time he comes on stage. Jess Chapman plays this really well, creating a good rapport with the audience and delivering some great jokes and puns along the way, supported by Alison Carr as the Tin Man, whose comic delivery shines throughout the show, and Joe Moore is engaging as the loveable scaredycat Lion. 

Ian Willis as Aunty Em/Glinda the Good provides both the "fairy godmother" and the "panto dame" 
roles. His sparkly pink Glinda frock is a sight to behold. She pops up when needed to sprinkle a little good magic to help the story on its way.  The evil element is provided by Hattie Eason as Miss Gulch/Wicked Witch of the West, with her minion Winkie, the flying monkey (Rachel Potts). Her shrill laughter is enough to scar the bravest of children in the audience! 

Uncle Henry/the Mighty Oz is played by Steve Parry - the gentle Uncle a contrast to the bumptious Wizard, though his kinder side does show once Toto reveals his true identity! Erin Hattrick is a competent Dorothy,  and last but not least, Toto the dog is an endearing puppet operated by Rosa Cole - which is definitely more reliable than having a real dog and handler on stage! 

There is plenty of music with the show starting with a boot stomping line dance number to Steps 5-6-7-8. And the refrain throughout the show of Is This the Way to the Emerald City (amarillo).  (Though considering Glinda's Scottish accent I was a little disappointed not to have a Proclaimers' number in there - walking 500 miles surely was a dead cert?)  

The costumes are fabulous - from the gingham and denim farm wear to the rainbow sparkles and poppy petals of the dancers,. The sets are well presented from The mundane farm in Kansa....erm...Heaton, to the enchanted land of Oz. I loved the twister scene with the cacophony of music and weather as stage hands spun the scenery around creating the tornado that transports Dorothy to Oz and lands her house on the Wicked witch of the East, and the beautiful poppy field scene with dancers providing the soporific poppies to enchant Dorothy and her friends, and then snow floating from the skies to save them. 

Finally the Wizard's Head is an impressive piece of giant puppetry  and a credit to the set designers. 

This is quite different for a pantomime. there is a definite story to be told though it does still have the good versus evil, and audience participation but it feels less structured than the traditional format, and at times it felt that the "panto" elements were being shoehorned in. There are still lots of jokes and innuendo but it's all a bit more subtle and sometimes the jokes were missed by the audience which is a shame because this is more sophisticated humour than you'd normally see in panto. 

That said, the audience on opening night was fully engaged - with plenty of booing for the wicked witch and clearly the supporters clubs for the dance troups were all present in the audience, which definitely added to the atmosphere! 

If you want something a little bit different to the usual panto fayre then the People's Panto might be just the show you need to see! 

It runs until 21st December - and you will need to book in advance to be sure of a seat! 

Book online here.   

*images by Paul Hood

Denise Sparrowhawk

 

Review - Goldilocks and the Three Bears - Little Theatre

Goldilocks and the Three Bears
Little Theatre

11th December, 2025

Presented by Lee Brannigan Productions

Written by Philip Meeks and Lee Brannigan

Directed by Lee Brannigan

Musical Director John Hudson

Choreography Chantal McCartney

Well, here we are at panto time of year again! Oh yes we are! And doesn't it seem to come round faster and faster each year? Feels like we've barely had time to sweep up the fairy dust from last season before we're back again...bit less glamorous this year, we'll likely be mopping up elephant pee...(more of that later!) 

This year's panto from Lee Brannigan Productions is Goldilocks and the Three Bears. I've never seen a Goldilocks panto before and I did wonder about the storyline - there's no handsome prince to sweep a girl off her feet in the story of Goldilocks and the three bears and the story I remember as a kid was pretty brief, Goldilocks was a bit of a naughty girl who never did as she was told, always getting into trouble, doing stuff she wasn't supposed to do - like wandering off into the woods and eating other people's porridge! So how would that translate into a good versus evil, good overcomes evil, fairy godmother saves the day kind of show? Well, it doesn't exactly but when has sticking to the plot ever been the most important thing in a panto?

 

So how do we get a girl with Golden curls and three bears into a panto plot? Easy - we all run away to a circus!  

Dame Bella has inherited her husband's circus and his fortune. Unfortunately the once fabulously popular circus has fallen on hard times, audiences are sparse, and the takings are slim, but there is still money in the honeypot so things are not too grim just yet. But, (and isn't there always a but?) a rival circus comes to town, with an evil ringmaster who wants to be the only circus in town! He tries bribery and threats to convince Bella to sell up, but she's having none of his shenanigans! But (oh, there's another one!) with ticket sales non-existant and the honey pot of money stolen (I wonder how that happened?) Bella now needs to find a new act to save the circus. Enter stage left, three talented bears to save the day. They're a sensation and the Circus is saved! Hurrah for the circus! (I squeezed in a little Enid Blyton reference there, those of you of a certain age might have spotted it!) But no! Not hurrah! Because you all forgot about the evil rival ringmaster, didn't you? (oh yes, you did!) He plots a devious plan to kidnap baby bear, lure her parents away from Bella and force them to work in his own circus, which means, of course, that Bella and her crew have to plot a rescue mission so that evil is defeated and everyone can live happily ever after! ( You see, we got the gist of a panto plot in there after all!) 

Obviously all this doesn't happen without some magic, some singing and dancing, some jokes (really, really bad jokes!) and a lot of silliness - a bit of shouting, a bit of screaming, and a lot of laughing and booing. Audience participation is key in a panto and I have to say, the cast had their work cut out on Thursday night. I think there were probably more adults than children in the house that night and it took some encouragement for the grown ups to find their inner child! You can't not join in at the Little Theatre Panto - it's too small, there's nowhere to hide, and Bella and the cast are very, very good at breaking the fourth wall and engaging the audience. 

Which brings me nicely to the characters - 

Ringmaster Schnizzlehouser (not easy to say, and even harder to type!) played by Chris McCreery is a fabulously evil bad guy. He oozes onto the stage, full of charm and smooth talk, and yet instantly recognisable as the baddy, eliciting a cacophony of boos and hisses from the audience! He gives a blinding performance - particularly in the opening number in act two which got him a rousing round of applause, despite the fact that he is the bad guy and we really should have been booing! Showing that not only can he do a fabulously awful evil accent, but he can also sing like an angel! 

Fannie the Fortuneteller is the alternative good fairy/fairy godmother in the tale. She brings the magic, that doesn't always go as planned, down to earth, outspoken, Fannie is the glue that binds the Cannyville circus together. Melissa Cavanagh brings such a warmth to the role and her physical humour is  hilarious. 

Goldilocks is played by Laura Fulgenzi. I've seen Laura in other shows and I know how good she is, but I think she has a tough gig with this one, because she's fighting that old chestnut of the leading female role in panto not being very demanding - you mostly just need to look pretty and be rescued. Goldilocks makes a valiant attempt to break out of this but it's a tough gig! That said Laura's performance is solid - she sings and dances her way into danger and back out again with flair! 

The Three Bears are cute and just what you'd expect - a slightly spoilt Baby Bear (Megan Laing) sways from cute to brattish and back again, Mammy Bear (Dawn Wolfe) is kind and reassuring, and super protective of her family, Daddy Bear ( Justin Alistair Ward) is rather grumpy, tries to be a bit authoritarian but mostly get over-ruled in the nicest way by Mammy Bear, and he has the most beautiful singing voice! 

Silly Willy provides most of the slapstick and silliness throughout - alongside his baby elephant Peanut. Don't ask what he feeds him on! Especially, if you're in the front rows. (see earlier mention of mopping up Elephant pee...that's all I am saying!) Rhodri James brings a lovely gentle sense of fun to the show, with his terrible jokes and slapstick humour. 

Dame Bella Big Topp - still the most glamorous Dame of all no matter what the panto might be, keeps the show zinging along with quips and innuendo that could make your hair curl, dressed in an array of costumes that sparkle and wigs that defy gravity at times (at least one wig that succumbs to the gravitational pull!).

Supporting through out are the dancers, choreographed by Chantal McCartney who bring a little bit of sparkle and in Act Two a bit of scary! If you don't like clowns, beware! 

The sets and scenery are great - I especially loved the minibus ride to Sunderland, comic genius from the set designers!  (And being from Sunderland I love all the Wear wolf jokes!)  

As always this company have produced a show with big heart in a little theatre. the cast give 100% throughout and they will have you screaming with laughter, (and occasionally gasping with surprise at the jokes). 

Don't forget, if you have seats in the front half, take a raincoat! 

You might be lucky and find some tickets available but it's a sell out pretty much every year so get booked for next year now to avoid disappointment! 

Denise Sparrowhawk