christmas – A Young(ish) Perspective

REVIEW: Spirit of Christmas

Published on December 18, 2023December 18, 2023 by Heather DoquiatanLeave a comment

Cheery and heart-warming, the rafters were raised by voices and instruments coming together

I arrived a bit too early for the Spirit of Christmas concert at the Liverpool Philharmonic. Halfway down Hope St. just before 7pm, I noticed, with delight, the faint strains of a trombone floating down the road. Outside the Phil, we were greeted by the Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Brass Band doing a fantastic job – many while wearing gloves, no mean feat – of entertaining passersby, and priming early audience members for an evening of festive fun.

Inside, the auditorium was packed, which made for some rousing levels of audience participation as the evening went on. The audience age demographic ranged widely, with very well-behaved children dressed in their seasonal best. The two Christmas trees that bookended the stage glowed gently, and the big screen along the back of the stage, later to be used to project lyrics for the singalongs, displayed a crackling pre-show fire.

At a pleasant hour or so per act with a 15 minute interval, the show never dragged, and indeed felt to me to be over too soon. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir and Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Choir, accompanied by the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, set the mood with their opening number, before the conductor (Ian Tracey) turned to the audience with open arms and a smile to sweep us all up in a singalong (the first of many), the classic Hark! the Herald Angels Sing. The aforementioned projected lyrics were very useful for all the singalongs, as after the first two verses I invariably found myself all at sea.

The programme had something for everyone, from modernised versions of carols such as In Dulci Jubilo to newer Christmas classics by the likes of John Rutter, plus some real crowd-pleasers for the singalongs, including O Come All Ye Faithful and Good King Wenceslas.

Our presenter for the evening was Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason, charming and at ease onstage – she had performed the same role in this show last year, and seemed very glad to be back. Her programme notes throughout the show were peppered with interesting tidbits – did you know, for example, that Mel Tormé wrote The Christmas Song on a boiling hot L.A. summer’s day? – and at one point performed a poem about the trials and tribulations of assembling an artificial Christmas tree, with which, judging by their reactions, a large portion of the audience empathised.

The show’s soloist was mezzo-soprano Kathryn Rudge, a Liverpudlian powerhouse whose voice was a rich and vibrato-heavy accompaniment to the orchestra and choirs, and whose passion for performance was evident in her accompanying expressions and actions to such classics as The Christmas Song, I Could Have Danced All Night and Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

Amidst certainly no lack of talent, the stars of the show to me were the youth choir – ably conducted by Simon Emery, resplendent in a velvet suit jacket – whose harmonies were consistently clear and perfectly-pitched, and the brass section, the warm tones of which came across particularly well in their proud and jaunty Le Chocolat from The Nutcracker, and the jazzy It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas.

Towards the end of the concert, our presenter noted that the conclusions of these shows were famed for their reflective endings, which were a time to think of Christmases past and to consider the generations to come. This beautifully set the stage for Silent Night, begun by Kathryn Rudge and then taken up in the original German by the choir. The finale was a hearty and heart-warming audience singalong to O Come All Ye Faithful – encouraged to all stand by the conductor, it really did feel as though the rafters were raised by way of the voices and instruments all soaring together. Spirit of Christmas was a wonderful way to spend a December evening, and you’d be hard pressed to leave the venue without feeling very much in the festive spirit (particularly after the encore of Last Christmas, during which the stage was a blaze of tinsel and Santa hats).

REVIEW: Carols at the Royal Albert Hall

Published on December 18, 2023December 17, 2023 by Sophia BorkenhagenLeave a comment

An evening of Christmas splendour that even Scrooge would find hard not to enjoy

Walking up to the Royal Albert Hall on a cold December night is, in and of itself, an experience that will make anyone feel the spirit of Christmas. So, the evening is already off to a good start as the audience, dressed in Christmas jumpers, sips and snacks on mulled wine and mince pies, take their seats in the iconic venue decorated in full Christmas splendour. The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra starts tuning their instruments, the National Youth Choir and the Royal Choral Society take their places. The conductor takes his place at the front of the orchestra, and the music begins. Christmassy music fills the air, and one starts to feel the mixture of nostalgia, longing, and happiness that only occurs during this time of year.

Presenter Jess Gillam welcomes us and announces the evening’s pieces, including carols where the audience is encouraged to stand up and join in and beautiful renditions of Christmas classics by the professionals on stage, including soloist Cleopatra Rey. One of the highlights of the evening was the rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas. Every section of the audience, from the balcony to the stalls to the arena, was given a day and told to stand up as a group when their part came around. It later devolved into screaming one’s bit, but was very fun nonetheless.

Christmas is often a very challenging time of year, with familial tensions, financial stressors, and a general sense that this is a time when you are meant to be happy. If you aren’t, something is wrong with you. Many feel fatigue and malaise due to the exorbitant amount of gifts and food being purchased, as well as the old wounds that reopen when you spend too much time with your family.

But this evening at the Hall is an excellent remedy for all that; it reinvigorates the whimsy, joy, and wonder that we lose as we get older. Singing carols in a beautiful hall with a group of cheery and joyful strangers gave me a sense of peace and community I hadn’t felt in a while. I recommend anyone who needs a little pick-me-up to go and enjoy the evening’s joyful cheer, delicious mulled wine, and lovely carols.

REVIEW: Santa and The Snowman

Published on December 17, 2023 by roisinlystLeave a comment

The perfect festive event for little ones to get into the spirit of Christmas, this screening of ‘The Snowman’ with live orchestra and choir of children was a joy to attend.

The Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, dressed in various Christmas jumpers and outfits, were accompanied on stage by the Liverpool Philharmonic Children’s Choirs. It consisted of songs, jokes, and of course a screening of ‘The Snowman’ by Raymond Briggs, accompanied by the live orchestra. It was presented by a jolly Santa Clause whose enthusiasm kept the young audience engaged. While the show was clearly designed for children, as an adult I also enjoyed it thoroughly.

There was a lot of audience participation and even a number where we all got up and danced which was great fun. There had clearly been thought put into how to keep the children’s attention and it felt a perfect length; at an hour and a quarter in total, it wasn’t too long.

Watching ‘The Snowman’ with a live orchestra and choir was simply mesmerising, and the children in the choir were fantastic, even using props at times. One thing that could have been improved was the size of the screen as it was quite small compared to the huge stage and orchestra. However, it was still a great concept, put together well, conducted by Michael Sea, and presented by Alasdair Malloy, I’d recommend it to anyone looking for a festive event to take young children to. Check out other festive events at the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic here.

In Conversation with: Richard Marsh

Published on December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by Tabitha JamesLeave a comment

We sat down with Richard Marsh, writer and performer of Yippee Ki Yay, the Die-Hard parody that met rave reviews at Edinburgh Fringe 2023.

Are you a fan of Die Hard? What’s the story between you and the film? Do you have any fond memories/a personal connection to it?

I’m a HUGE Die Hard fan! I’ve loved the film since I first saw it on VHS.

Die Hard was unusual in its day as John McClane isn’t a superhuman musclebound larger-than-life Arnie / Sly-type figure. He’s fallible, he’s self-critical, he’s scared. He’s a very human hero. And he talks to himself. He has to, because he’s on his own (until the great Al Powell shows up). John literally monologues in the movie and it struck me that might lend itself to a theatrical monologue – and to poetry.

When did you first get the idea to write a parody of Die Hard and what did that process look like?

I’m not sure when the notion of telling it as a one man play came about. A while ago, though. The thought of Die Hard, that many people think of as a quintessential action movie, told via poetry, just tickled me. On top of that: what if the cool, wise-cracking tough guy John McClane was played by the bespectacled, rhyming geek Richard Marsh? That seemed fun. And it has been.

For a long time it was an ‘I must do that when I have the time’ idea. Then, during the second lockdown, I was working on another play, which was decent but quite hard going, and I realised it was the wrong thing to be doing at that time. I wanted to make a show that would be a lot of fun to do and hopefully a lot of fun to watch. The reaction we’re getting makes me hopeful we might have succeeded.

How did you find it writing the show? Were there any last-minute changes/huge edits?

I loved writing it! Writing the Die Hard part of the show was a very enjoyable process. The biggest difficulty was having too much material and deciding what to cut.

The hardest part was writing the personal story we tell alongside the Die Hard side. I kept writing this much longer than we have time for in the show. So I’d cut it back and somehow, although each individual cut made sense, something would always be lost in the process, so I’d rewrite, and it would get too long again… It took talking it over with an old friend (kind of my dramaturgical Al Powell) to find a structural change that allowed the personal story to come to life in the show. This was during previews, so it was fairly last-minute, yes!

Could you give us a brief overview of the show? The sheer scale aside, what are the differences from the film?

Audiences get all of Die Hard – all the iconic moments and characters and action – but also a more intimate, personal story alongside it. In terms of differences… there’s a slightly different cast! I tell the entire story myself. All my favourite characters have made it into the show, but I had to cut some smaller roles. My rule of thumb was if John doesn’t talk to someone directly, they probably need to go.

Do you stay true to the film plot?

You tell me. I think so!

What do you hope the audience take from the show?

I’ve tried to make a play that is a joy to watch. I hope the audience have a really good time, laugh themselves silly but find themselves moved, too.

And the most important question of all…Die hard…Christmas film or not?

It absolutely *is* a Christmas film, but one I like watching all year round.

To me, the Christmas film question comes from people, perhaps unconsciously, defining a Christmas film as one you can watch with children. I haven’t shown Die Hard to my kids. But other than that, it has all the classic Christmas film ingredients. Except maybe snow. That doesn’t appear until Die Hard 2.

Yippee Ki Yay is showing at Oxford Playhouse on Sunday 14th Jan. Get tickets here.

REVIEW: Christmas with the Royal Choral Society

Published on December 14, 2023 by Jasmine PLeave a comment

A fun family-friendly Christmas sing-along in a spell-binding venue

The Royal Choral Society was first formed as part of the Royal Albert Hall’s official opening in 1871, which was attended by Queen Victoria, and first sang at Christmas at the Royal Albert Hall in 1872. While I can’t personally attest to the standard of the choir then, they were absolutely excellent this year, and the spell-binding venue is fit to make all the audience feel like royalty.

With traditional festive choral repertoire including Stille Nacht and The Little Road to Bethlehem alongside some familiar favourites The First Nowell and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing, the programme was well-balanced and well-paced.

Conductor Richard Cooke was lively and enthusiastic, keeping the audience engaged and singing at the appropriate moments with gusto, although the thousands of voices in the crowd were still rather paltry in comparison to the 150-strong choir!

Soprano Jennifer France had a number of solo pieces, which were sung very competently, however her talents were best displayed with the Puccini, which was utterly enchanting, suggesting she may be more suited to opera than a choral repertoire.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra were perhaps not at their best – likely due to the absence of their usual conductor – but this was still disappointing from one of the most prestigious orchestras in the UK. There were some particularly jarring moments during Tchaikovsky’s Waltz of the Flowers, with a badly out of tune French Horn sounding a discordant beginning to the piece. Otherwise, the brass were generally excellent, drowning out the choir at times, but you won’t hear any complaints from me: nothing feels more Christmassy than a big brash brass section.

There were readings by Bridgerton star Adjoa Andoh interspersing the musical programme, and while I applaud the efforts to include different material in this event, I’m not sure how Benjamin Zephaniah would have felt about being read aloud at a performance which began with the National Anthem, and took place in the Royal Albert Hall. It made for an uncomfortable and incongruous contrast.

The highlight of the performance had to be The Little Road to Bethlehem, by Michael Head, which was sung beautifully by the choir – soft, dreamlike, and the best performance of the piece I have heard in years. However I think the crowd was at its most festive and jubilant during the encore, featuring Jingle Bells, which had everyone laughing and singing along.

REVIEW: 21 Round For Christmas

Published on December 13, 2023December 13, 2023 by Ben BreenLeave a comment

A sharp, tightly-paced, and very human comedy well worth your time

It’s Christmas Day for Tracy, and “an hour to turkey o’clock”, slaving over the oven as her family and friends play parlour games in an adjoining room. As an audience, we are as chained to the kitchen as Tracy is, only catching snippets of festive cheer as another bowl of crisps is delivered to the waiting crowd.

Meanwhile, with the Turkey browning in the oven, Tracy monologues about events from her past – playing pranks at a séance, conning free drinks from men at the bar, falling head-over-heels for a rich American – pausing intermittently to perfect her gravy recipe. Fundamentally a comedy, there is a spectre at this feast in the form of Tracy’s missing best friend, introducing a tension as the reasons for her absence slowly unfurl. Cathy Conneff is effervescent as Tracy, bringing an energy and pathos that makes you glad to be in the kitchen alongside her, rather than with the rest of the guests.

The kitchen itself sketches out a working-class family trying to push the boat out, which I found evocative of my own childhood Christmases. The unopened bag of Mini Cheddars in a bowl on the side, mismatched pots on the stove, and wonky ‘Home Sweet Home’ above the cooker mean the audience already have an idea of Tracy before she hits the stage.

This is an intimate space that Conneff makes the most of, searching for eye-contact with audience members and even drawing some into roleplays which are rewarded with a mince pie (“Lidl Deluxe!”). Far from awkward, these interactions bring a warmth and authenticity to proceedings, helped by a snappy script and Conneff’s charisma – by the end of the evening, Tracy really does feel like a friend you’ve known for years.

Jeopardy is injected into the mix not just by the possibility of some overcooked sprouts, but also Tracy’s AWOL best friend Jackie. And whilst she never appears on stage, you get a crisp picture of the type of woman she is and what she means to Tracy. Several other characters are equally well captured, particularly the American lover Gregory and Tracy’s vegan-on-the-warpath mother-in-law. Although Coffey is the only actress on stage, you leave the show feeling like you have got to know a whole cast of characters.

A one-hander ultimately lives and dies by its main character, and an intelligent script rich with laugh-out-loud moments combines with Coffey’s dynamism to pull this off with aplomb. There are also moments of real humanity in the show’s more serious moments, and a satisfying payoff towards its conclusion. Most importantly, whether bouncing around the stage as a boxing ring announcer, throwing cocked eyebrows left-and-right, or slumped in a chair after a fit of rage, Tracey is hard to take your eyes off of, imbuing the show with a keen sense of momentum.

Whilst it may not be all that festive beyond its setting, 21 Round For Christmas is a warm, intimate and cosy 70 minutes well worth taking the time to experience. Perfect for a Christmas outing that’s just a little bit different.

21 Round For Christmas plays at the Park Theatre Mondays to Saturdays until 23^rd December, with Thursday and Saturday matinees.

REVIEW: Stocking Fillers at the Royal Court Studio

Published on December 13, 2023 by williammarsden2002Leave a comment

A collection of 10 minute ‘stocking filler’ short plays demonstrate the best of Christmas theatre. The four strong cast brought laughter and thought provoking reflection to the Royal Court Studio

Each of the seven performances approached the season from a different angle, freeing the exceptional cast to bring to life stories from the ridiculous to the deeply familiar. One of the stories in particular was an emotional one-two, garlanding comedy around a scene of profound sadness. Within that story credit must go to Charlie De’Ath who played his role so superbly that a reminder that he is an actor playing a role (via a sign reminiscent of Love Actually) was well needed. Jamie Peacock brought an enthusiastic energy to each scene, from a jaded victim of the Christmas blues all the way to an angel earning his wings. As a recent graduate of Liverpool’s own performing arts school, Jamie brought plenty of LFC knowledge delivered with the proper resonance and respect.

I cannot praise enough the skill of the writers; each play was brilliantly complete. All of the seven plays felt fully formed, made all the more impressive as each had to be delivered in less time than it takes to get up from the couch after the 5^th round of Quality Streets! I also want to round out this review with praising the rest of the cast. Charity Bedu-Addo performed some of the funniest physical comedy I have ever seen, playing an understandably furious Mary in Jacqui Dunn’s modern twist on the nativity. Angela Simms’s performance of an elf with some negative (putting it mildly) attitudes to the workplace was met with resounding laughter, especially amongst those of us who have worked in the retail industry in December!

If you will briefly follow me along with a festive metaphor, whilst a Christmas dinner is built on roast potatoes and whatever choice of centrepiece you desire, it needs complimenting with gravy and controversially sprouts. The use of projected images and performing in the intimate Studio space really complimented the performances. The space perfectly matched the atmosphere, giving the cast room to work but also keeping a cosy family feeling befitting the season. Of note, at the end of the performances the cast returned to stage and led the audience in a rousing song which covered the seven themes. This really made it feel as festive as possible despite the rain and general gloom which has settled over Liverpool recently.

This collection of plays follows in a proud Dickensian legacy of short stories, this ‘stocking filler’ format was brought back from last year and I will be vocally campaigning for it to be added to the selection box of Christmas traditions. Personally Christmas can at times feel like a sensory overload, these performances are perfect for those who fancy a break to sit back, have a laugh and witness some fantastic talent; both in terms of actor talent and writing skill. I hope you will take this review as an encouragement to try something new, as an addition to the usual pantomime fare. As a parting note, there’s still time to catch this run, the Royal Court Stocking Fillers concludes on the 30^th.

REVIEW: Fairytale On Church Street

Published on December 12, 2023December 12, 2023 by Natalie GoringLeave a comment

A cute reimagining of your favourite Christmas stories

I love The Cockpit – it’s such an under-utilised space, and it’s a space where lots of stories and companies start their journeys and that importance cannot be understated. So this being their first ‘homegrown’ show in 35 years is a lovely celebration of the importance of the theatre in its community.

The walls around the audience hold the names of shops within the heart of Church Street and the show itself focuses on the Big Bad Wolf of Corporations trying to evict smaller businesses to build flats – a sad tale if ever there was one.

The cast are a talented bunch of actor-muso’s each creating their own take on a fairytale classic – Robin Hood, Little Red Riding Hood, Big Bad Wolf, Goldilocks…..oh and Mother Hood, played by Glitzy Von Jagger, our Drag Dame for the show. I am a little confused as to why this isn’t being marketed as a pantomime? Oh yes it is.

As we journey through a thinly veiled plot to discover our true selves the script seems stilted in places – sometimes through cast delivery and sometimes just awkwardly placed dialogue. Many times the audience were confused if they were meant to interact or not – which would be cleared up with a stronger prologue.

Goldilocks played by Emilia Harrild, however steals the show, with a ground truthful show of turmoil with a cool edge she really highlights what the team are trying to do, bringing the show to a modern audience. Artie Godden’s cowardly Robin Hood is also endearingly well performed.

What is hard with such a sparse space is it lacks the pizazz of your traditional shows, holding the attention of children without the glamorous production values of big is hard and there were definitely moments in the show where that was missed.

Another issue with the show is sadly the musical arrangements. Although all of the performers are incredibly talented the array of instruments often leads to quite durgy/lacklustre versions of songs which should be taking the roof off – the only song that really gets the crowd going in the whole show is Let Me Entertain You, which earned rapturous applause. For a fairytale trying to update itself starting with Red Red Robin seems to be a misstep.

Overall the show just falls a little flat of the big bombastic pantomimes and children’s shows we as adults want to be swept up in, but will the kids love it? Yes! It’s also very affordable for families – which is the point after all.

REVIEW: Glacier

Published on December 9, 2023December 8, 2023 by ljbintLeave a comment

Absolute must see Christmas comedy with a twist. This show is something special.

Glacier is a festive comedy with a twist, written by Alison Spittle. Its premise is simple with a story driven forward by cleverly unique characters; three women meet, every Christmas day, to swim at a lake, an unofficial tradition they’ve created. All three characters, Dawn (played by Debra Baker), Lucy (Emma Lau), and Jools (Sophie Steer), are completely their own and distinctive in personality without becoming a stereotype or a caricature of themselves. All three were a joy to watch, and entirely engaging.

The show is made up of a scenes depicting the same day, Christmas Day, in the same place, the lake, every year over a number of years. This resulted in watching the cast enter and exit the stage many times, and yet, at no point did this create a feeling of being adrift or bored. Each time the lights went down some music would play, with news headlines or speeches as well, to help you get a sense of which year was being portrayed next which worked brilliantly.

The costumes were simple, everyday, and effective – they fit well with the realism that the deeply three-dimensional characters created. The set design was clever and also simple, so it felt complimentary to the cast and fit well within the space. Specific lighting was used to indicate when the cast were swimming underwater. Not only the lighting indicated this, but so did office swivel chairs! The cast would sit on them and push off with their legs, in various positions, to get to one side of the space to the other. The various positions were used to indicate the stroke being swum, there was even a butterfly stroke!

The humour felt incredibly British, in a deadpan way, and was packed in at exactly the right moments with the necessary subtlety for some moments of the show. The topics, even the difficult ones, were handled incredibly sensitively and appropriately for the show without feeling as though anything was dwelled on.

At its heart, Glacier is a story about the complexity of human relationships, and this is at the forefront of our minds particularly during the festive period. Over the course of the performance, you watch a beautiful friendship develop between the three women and explore those certain emotions which come with Christmas time. You see how life often takes dramatic and unexpected turns, that can’t always be explained.

This show was truly something special, I laughed, I was shocked, I was deeply saddened, and I was touched. Glacier is a gorgeous Christmas story about love, family, and loss, not just a story set on Christmas Day. Glacier is showing at the Old Fire Station in Oxford. Get your tickets here.

REVIEW: Shit-Faced Showtime: A Pissedmas Carol

Published on December 2, 2023 by carlamcphersonLeave a comment

An extravaganza of Christmas spirit (in more ways than one!)

Shitfaced Showtime…wow. Where to begin? From the second the mayhem began, the cacophony of Christmas spirit achieved by a mulled wine and a minced pie upon entry, was well received by the audience. We were welcomed by Charles Dickens, who exceptionally dropped the audience into what they were about to witness. His use of humour, wit and trying to keep a lid on the chaos was admirable and highly entertaining. We were well and truly strapped in and ready for what was to enfold.

This troupe are masters of their craft in terms of improvisational skills. Scrooge then graced the stage with his drunken antics, which was a witness to behold, and was a true hilarity. The real humour came from Dickens trying to babysit the actor of Scrooge and his attempt through the traditional story. Audience participation took its form in the way of jingle bells and a bucket (incase of any accidents from the drunken actor!).

The dynamics between the actors were fantastic. A Christmas Carol is a very good conduit for this format, and with the legacy of Shit-faced Shakespeare at the Edinburgh Fringe, it was a fantastic addition to their repertoire. It was peppered with the classic Christmas songs, which spread the Christmas cheer. The audience interaction was very interesting, and commanding and a testament to their classical training.

The singing from the sober cast was a treat to the ear, and the contrast of the true musical talent with the drunken antics made it for a brilliant Christmas extravaganza. Tinsel, fairy lights, George Michael Christmas tunes and plenty of festive spirit… this is a must see this festive period.

You can see this performance until 6th January at Leicester Square Theatre. You won’t regret it! Get tickets here.