Pretty in Neon at Theatre Royal, Glasgow
16 November 2023
Review: To many the ultimate rom-com, Pretty Woman: The Musical has arrived in Glasgow, with a dazzling production and high-calibre cast.
Performing Arts Reviews
Join us as we highlight reviews from the world of music, opera, dance theatre and film.
An Ocean of Dark Imaginings at King’s Theatre Glasgow
31 August 2023
Review: National Theatre’s critically acclaimed adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s The Ocean at the End of the Lane has arrived at Glasgow’s King’s Theatre as part of its 2023 UK tour.
Dreams and Reality Bite at the Lyceum, Edinburgh
25 August 2023
Review: Pedro Calderón de la Barca’s 1636 comedy Life Is a Dream gets a playful, surreal treatment that toys with our sense of reality in Edinburgh International Festival’s Lyceum production.
Return of the Shy Boy: Jake Bugg at The Playhouse Edinburgh
24 August 2023
Review: Unchanged, Jake Bugg’s basic approach has the Edinburgh crowds loving his set of song-nuggets in his International Festival outing at the city’s Playhouse.
The Fierce Cello: Abel Selaocoe at The Hub
23 August 2023
Review: Cellist Abel Selaocoe performs a dazzling solo showcase of the seemingly-limitless depth of his talent, and the sonic possibilities of his instrument, at Edinburgh International Festival venue The Hub.
A Concert of Our Time: RSNO’s A Child of Our Time Loses None of its Relevance
21 August 2023
Review: Premiered in 1944, Michael Tippett’s A Child of Our Time mixed musical and cultural traditions to devastating effect in an all-embracing, ambitious oratorio, now performed as part of this year’s Edinburgh International Festival by Sir Andrew Davis, RSNO and Edinburgh Festival Chorus.
You Want It Darker: Lankum at Queen’s Hall Edinburgh
18 August 2023
Review: Dublin-based band Lankum forge an atmospheric, at times near-terrifying beauty, inspired by dark folk tradition, at Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall.
Entertain, Educate, Repeat: Julia Bullock at Queen’s Hall Edinburgh
18 August 2023
Review: American soprano Julia Bullock and pianist Bretton Brown perform a range of inspiring and empowering songs at Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall.
Joint Forces: Amatis Trio with Thomas Quastoff at Queen’s Hall Edinburgh
16 August 2023
Review: Vigorous European trio Amatis join baritone Thomas Quastoff at Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall for stark vignettes from the Great War and beyond.
Old and New, East and West: Trojan Women at Festival Theatre Edinburgh
11 August 2023
Review: Edinburgh International Festival: a production of Trojan Women deftly unites the old and the new, east and west, emphasising the pain of war.
Rising to the Occasion: Ilker Arcayurek Joins Malcolm Martineau at Queen’s Hall Edinburgh
9 August 2023
Review: Tenor Ilker Arcayurek stands-in for Gunther Groissböck at short notice, but succeeds in wowing a sold-out Edinburgh International Festival Queen’s Hall audience.
A Dark Innocence: Dusk, the Lyceum, Edinburgh
9 August 2023
Review: Christiane Jatahy’s Edinburgh International Festival production at the Lyceum Theatre ‘Dusk’ attaches a disturbing contemporary relevance to the themes in Lars Von Trier’s movie ‘Dogville’.
Frenetic Energy: Stefan Jackiw at Queen’s Hall Edinburgh
7 August 2023
Review: Bracing performances from Stefan Jackiw on violin and top-flight musical friends make for an invigorating experience at Edinburgh’s Queen’s Hall.
Loving the Monster: Cécile McLorin Salvant at Festival Theatre Edinburgh
7 August 2023
Review: Edinburgh International Festival: Cécile McLorin Salvant leads us on a murderous musical journey, while posing some serious questions.
Celtic Connections’ Vibrant Night of African Talent, Home-Grown in Scotland
30 January 2023
Review: A highlight of Celtic Connections’ concert programme, Afro Celtic Connections raised the roof of St Lukes with a joyous and vibrant evening of African talent – all based here in Scotland.
Let It RSNO at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
20 December 2022
Review: The Royal Scottish National Orchestra and Children’s Classics Concerts (Scotland) joined forces to create a special Christmas family treat in The Night Before Christmas, featuring ballet dancing and a big band.
The Holiday Goes Live at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
8 December 2022
Review: A 16 year-old American romantic comedy is given a new lease of life by a concert hall tour with live orchestra playing Hans Zimmer’s score. Artmag attended the screening at Glasgow Royal Concert Hall.
Ya Beauty! King’s Theatre Glasgow Brings the Festive Laughs
6 December 2022
Review: With the time for festivities upon us, in Glasgow there’s no better way to start than with the annual King’s Theatre Christmas panto.
Performing Post-Yugoslavia in the UK – a Conversation with Natasha Stanic Mann and Jaka Škapin
3 November 2022
Review: Artmag contributor Jelena Sofronijevic talks to Natasha Stanic Mann and Jaka Škapin, who recently featured in London’s VOILA! EUROPE festival – about performing in the UK, their post-Yugoslavian background, and an ever-turbulent Europe.
Wuthering Frights – The Moors at Hope Theatre London
24 October 2022
Review: Jen Silverman’s charming, rough-and-ready, Hallowe’en-y take on Charlotte Brontë’s work at the Hope Theatre, above London’s Hope and Anchor pub.
Iphigenia Takes on the World at the Lyric Hammersmith
20 October 2022
Review: At Hammersmith’s Lyric Theatre, Sophie Melville’s one-woman turn as Iphigenia in Splott – a district of Cardiff – more darkly relevant than when it debuted seven years ago.
‘Godland’: Denmark and Iceland Share a Dark Pilgrimage
17 October 2022
Review: A darkly unbalanced relationship rises to the fore on a pilgrimage to build a church, in Hlynur Pálmason’s ‘Godland’, showing as part of the BFI London Film Festival.
Poles Apart: Dmitry at Marylebone Theatre
6 October 2022
Review: London’s newest theatre begins its new season with a resurrection, in Peter Oswald’s dramatic verse, of German writer Friedrich von Schiller’s last, unfinished play about power in Russia and Poland.
Playful: Joanne McNally at Theatre Royal, Glasgow
3 October 2022
Review: Irish comedienne Joanne McNally’s one-woman show is a playful take on being left-behind in her thirties.
