Category Archives: Behind the Arras Reviews

Legally Blonde- Wolverhampton Grand Theatre

Posted on November 9, 2017 by garylongden

  **** This story is now in its third incarnation. First came the book by Amanda Brown, daughter of a lawyer, and Stanford Law student herself. Brown drew upon her own experiences for inspiration. The 2001 film starring Reese Witherpsoon … Continue reading →

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Around the World in 80 Days- Derby Theatre

Posted on November 7, 2017 by garylongden

***** Jules Verne’s classic story has obvious cinematic possibilities, and equally obvious drawbacks as the basis for a stage adaptation. How do you portray a worldwide journey on a theatre stage? Yet that conundrum is also the basis for this … Continue reading →

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“Our House”, Sutton Coldfield Musical Theatre, Lichfield Garrick

Posted on October 18, 2017 by garylongden

I saw Madness play live twice. They were fabulous, raucous, and with a touch of Music Hall about them. I am also a veteran of the era when they formed. Their incubation was not seamless. They morphed from what might … Continue reading →

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Hairspray – Birmingham Hippodrome

Posted on October 9, 2017 by garylongden

***** This show is beguilingly deceptive. Its title implies froth and artificial glamour, yet when heated, hairspray can be explosive. Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman’s adaptation of John Waters’ 1988 film for stage was itself based on the book by … Continue reading →

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Great Expectations – Derby Theatre

Posted on October 4, 2017 by garylongden

One of Dickens’ latter works, his thirteenth novel, “Great Expectations” lends itself to a dramatic stage presentation. An atmospheric opening triggers a chain of events that will bring a young man riches, break his troubled heart, and lead him deep … Continue reading →

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‘Allo ‘Allo – Trinity Players, Sutton Arts Theatre

Posted on September 20, 2017 by garylongden

  As a television situation comedy series, ‘Allo ‘Allo was a steamroller success for a decade from 1982. Written by David Croft and Jeremy Lloyd, it was a mix of cultural stereotypes, physical comedy, farce, sexual innuendo and sauce. The … Continue reading →

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Miss Saigon – Birmingham Hippodrome

Posted on August 26, 2017 by garylongden

***** Invariably, this show is identified as the one with the helicopter . Just in case anyone was in any doubt about this, the lights go down to the sound of a helicopter swooping overhead. I had seen the show … Continue reading →

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Lilies on the Land – Highbury Theatre

Posted on June 21, 2017 by garylongden

This play was being performed for the first time ever at the Highbury Theatre. A story that will probably be more familiar to many in the guise of the 1998 film “Land Girls” starring Rachel Weiss, and the 1994 novel … Continue reading →

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The Crucible – New Alexandra Theatre, Birmingham

Posted on June 6, 2017 by garylongden

*** I first, and last, saw Arthur Miller’s “The Crucible” in 1974, twenty- one years after its premiere, as part of my “O” level school studies. It made an enduring impact. Although the McCarthyite purges had long since gone, the … Continue reading →

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Cyrano de Bergarac – Derby Theatre

Posted on May 16, 2017 by garylongden

Cyrano – Derby Theatre Written one hundred and twenty years ago, this French play,  in rhyming verse by Edmond Rostand, has endured for a very good reason. Everyone enjoys a joke about a big nose, and in Cyrano de Bergerac, … Continue reading →

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