All stories by Michael Billington on BroadwayStars

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Q is for queer theatre by Michael Billington

The gay and lesbian theatre movement has changed radically since the oppressive days of the 1950s, but could more writers rise to the challenge of contemporary issues?Queer theatre is the ac…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:09AM[SHARE]

Q is for queer theatre by Michael Billington

The gay and lesbian theatre movement has changed radically since the oppressive days of the 1950s, but could more writers rise to the challenge of contemporary issues? Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:09AM[SHARE]
Monday, April 2, 2012

A Warsaw Melody " review by Michael Billington

Arcola, LondonI can see why Leonid Zorin's Russian play, written in 1967, became a global success: it deals with that most universal of themes, a fractured love affair. But Romeo and Juliet …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:25PM[SHARE]

John Arden: a playwright ahead of his time by Michael Billington

Arden may have fallen out of favour, but the intoxicating vigour of his language set him apart. I hope his day comes againTo anyone of my generation, the death of playwright John Arden is a …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:39AM[SHARE]
Sunday, April 1, 2012

Michael Billington on actors by Michael Billington

Actors, I criticise you because I careAm I soft on actors? David Hare said so in our lively on-stage encounter during the recent Guardian Open Weekend. I've been asking myself ever since whe…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:00PM[SHARE]
Friday, March 30, 2012

Uncle Vanya " review by Michael Billington

The Print Room, LondonA Chekhov mini-season, with another Vanya opening next week in Chichester, kicks off with Lucy Bailey's fine revival of this sublime play. If I withhold greater pr…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:30PM[SHARE]
Tuesday, March 27, 2012

P is for political theatre by Michael Billington

It may not be able to topple governments, but it informs, illuminates, entertains and raises awareness " and it's impossible to imagine life without it"Does political theatre ever have any i…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:43AM[SHARE]
Friday, March 23, 2012

Filumena " review by Michael Billington

Almeida, LondonWatching Michael Attenborough's revival of Eduardo de Filippo's 1946 Neapolitan comedy is a pleasant experience: a sun-kissed garden set by Robert Jones, warm lighting by…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:31PM[SHARE]
Thursday, March 22, 2012

The Master and Margarita - review by Michael Billington

Barbican, LondonIt is not quite true to say that Mikhail Bulgakov's novel, written between 1928 and 1940, is unadaptable. I saw a famous production by Yuri Lyubimov in Moscow in 1983, and Ed…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:09PM[SHARE]

Gregory Doran is the right choice for the Royal Shakespeare Company by Michael Billington

Newly appointed RSC artistic director Greg Doran is a true Shakespearean, fit for the challenges aheadWhen Michael Boyd's departure from the Royal Shakespeare Company was first announced las…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:51PM[SHARE]
Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Sweeney Todd - review by Michael Billington

Adelphi, LondonOne test of a true work of art is that it is open to multiple possibilities. Since its premiere in 1979, I have seen Stephen Sondheim's dark masterpiece staged everywhere fro…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:07PM[SHARE]

Sweeney Todd - review by Michael Billington

Adelphi, London Continue reading...

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:07PM[SHARE]

O is for Laurence Olivier by Michael Billington

Olivier wasn't just a great actor " he was a quintessentially modern performer, who cast a powerful spell over audiencesIt's a shock to realise that few people under the age of 60 will ever …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:46PM[SHARE]
Sunday, March 18, 2012

Was Macbeth Irish? Juliet from Cornwall? by Michael Billington

If you listen to a new CD that tries to capture the original pronunciation of Shakespeare, you might think soI'm not a great fan of "authenticity" in Shakespeare: partly because tastes chang…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:00PM[SHARE]

Play House/Definitely the Bahamas " review by Michael Billington

Orange Tree, RichmondThere's something old, something new in this double bill by Martin Crimp. What is odd is that the new piece, Play House, shows the mature Crimp evoking impassioned youth…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:29PM[SHARE]
Friday, March 16, 2012

Gypsy " review by Michael Billington

Curve, LeicesterSome people argue this is the greatest Broadway musical. That's open to debate. But there is no dispute that Arthur Laurents's book, Jule Styne's music and Stephen Sondheim's…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:54PM[SHARE]
Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Faith Brook by Michael Billington

Actor of poise and beauty who enjoyed a rich and productive career on both sides of the AtlanticFaith Brook, who has died aged 90, was an actor of remarkable elegance, poise and beauty. She …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:56AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Can We Talk About This? " review by Michael Billington

Lyttelton, London"This is Islamophobic shit," cried an angry spectator two-thirds of the way through DV8's investigation of multiculturalism. I was later told that the intervention was a "st…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:15PM[SHARE]

N is for national theatres by Michael Billington

The dream of a national theatre has happily come to pass, not only in England but in Wales and Scotland, too. But is regional theatre under threat as a result?I was very struck by something …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:34AM[SHARE]
Monday, March 12, 2012

The London Spring " review by Michael Billington

Etcetera, LondonWhat kind of future London do we see? Francis Beckett, a political journalist and periodic playwright, has devised one in which policing is privatised, hospitals are reserved…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:26PM[SHARE]
Sunday, March 11, 2012

Going Dark " review by Michael Billington

Young Vic, LondonSound and Fury are a rare company in that they combine an experimental process with rich content. In their last show, Kursk, they took us inside the bowels of a nuclear subm…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:00PM[SHARE]
Friday, March 9, 2012

Abigail's Party " review by Michael Billington

Menier Chocolate Factory, LondonMike Leigh has often been accused of condescension towards his characters. Lindsay Posner's perceptive revival of this 1977 landmark reminds us that we are no…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:30PM[SHARE]
Thursday, March 8, 2012

Farewell to the Theatre " review by Michael Billington

Hampstead theatre, LondonI am normally wary of any new play that could be called "Chekhovian": it implies something fragile and wispily atmospheric. But Richard Nelson's extraordinary p…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:15PM[SHARE]
Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Benefactors/Copenhagen " review by Michael Billington

Crucible/Lyceum, SheffieldSheffield is one of the few theatres to devote seasons to living writers. Now it is the turn of Michael Frayn. With Democracy still to come, it is already possible …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:11PM[SHARE]
Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Autumn Fire " review by Michael Billington

Finborough, LondonLast year this venturesome venue gave us a riveting portrait of Belfast's Protestant culture in St John Ervine's Mixed Marriage (1911). Now it crosses the border to sh…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:30PM[SHARE]

M is for musicals | Michael Billington's A-Z of modern drama by Michael Billington

Long gone are the happy days when the musical was a source of innocent pleasure. They have become cultural juggernauts, devoid of risk-taking and, like the banks, too big to failMusicals are…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:30AM[SHARE]
Thursday, March 1, 2012

The Leisure Society - review by Michael Billington

Trafalgar Studios, LondonAn air of glamour surrounds this French-Canadian import by François Archambault. The cast, including ex-supermodel Agyness Deyn, is glamorous. The audience is gla…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:57PM[SHARE]

Goodbye to All That - review by Michael Billington

Royal Court, LondonOne thing intrigues me about this fine play, presented as part of the Young Writers festival: how come its 26-year-old author, Luke Norris, knows so much about senior citi…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:00PM[SHARE]

Snookered - review by Michael Billington

Bush, LondonThis is a first full-length play by a former Middlesbrough cab-driver, Ishy Din. Even if its plot is formulaic, it has plenty fresh to say about the aspirations of young Pakistan…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:30PM[SHARE]

Full English, please: will Broadway gobble up One Man, Two Guvnors? by Michael Billington

Richard Bean's West End hit is transferring to New York. Let's hope American audiences get served the full English version in all its improvisatory gloryRichard Bean's One Man, Two Guvnors t…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:03AM[SHARE]
Tuesday, February 28, 2012

The Lady From The Sea " review by Michael Billington

Rose theatre, Kingston-upon-ThamesJoely Richardson is very brave. In playing Ellida, the mysterious heroine of Ibsen's 1889 drama, she takes on a role already made famous by her mother and l…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:55PM[SHARE]

All that Chat

2025-2026 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 12, 2025: Call Me Izzy - Studio 54
Sep 16, 2025: Art - Music Box Theatre
Oct 08, 2025: Beetlejuice - Palace Theatre
Nov 13, 2025: Oedipus - Studio 54
Nov 16, 2025: Chess - Imperial Theatre
Mar 23, 2026: Giant - Music Box Theatre
Apr 06, 2026: Becky Shaw - Hayes Theater
Apr 16, 2026: Proof - Booth Theatre
Apr 26, 2026: Drama Desk Cut-Off