Lyceum
Anna Karenina
★★★★☆ Powerful
The glowing passion of this Anna Karenina comes as much from the staging as from the characters. Written by Lesley Hart after Leo Tolstoy, and directed by Polina Kalinina, the Lyceum’s co-production with Bristol Old Vic is an urgent and thoroughly contemporary affair.
The Multiverse is Gay
★★★★☆ Weirdly wonderful
The Multiverse is Gay, at the Lyceum Rehearsal Studio until Saturday, is written for the Lyceum Young Company with great imagination by Lewis Hetherington and directed with flair by Sophie Howell.
Kidnapped
★★★★★ Rattling adventure
Isobel McArthur has excelled herself in her latest adaptation of a classic story to the stage, this time giving Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped a music-filled, comic and heartfelt makeover.
Castle Lennox
★★★★☆ Huge humanity
Originally intended to be staged at the Lyceum in 2020, Castle Lennox, playwright Linda McLean’s collaboration with Lung Ha Theatre Company proves to be well worth the wait.
You Bury Me
★★★★★ Essential
You Bury Me at the Lyceum is an utterly convincing piece of theatre – visually, emotionally and politically forceful, performed with wit, skill and humanity.
Macbeth (an undoing)
★★★☆☆ Intriguing
Macbeth (an undoing), by Zinnie Harris after William Shakespeare at the Lyceum, is the latest in a long line of rewritings of Macbeth. While it is undoubtedly thought-provoking, it ends up more perplexing than engrossing.
An Edinburgh Christmas Carol
★★★★☆ Timely
There is so much to commend in the return of An Edinburgh Christmas Carol to the Lyceum, where it runs through until December 31.
Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of)
★★★★★ Spectacular comedy feast
Pride and Prejudice* (*sort of) returns to Edinburgh in spectacular style. The retelling of Jane Austen’s classic highlights a time when, for a woman, finding financial security in the shape of a man took priority, while featuring a strong all-female cast who prove that women really can do it all.
Laurel & Hardy
★★★★☆ Skilfully hilarious
There is a deeply felt element to Laurel & Hardy at the Lyceum, that enhances the hilarity on display in note-perfect recreations of classic comedy.
Red Ellen
★★★☆☆ Diffuse
Red Ellen, at the Lyceum, co-produced with the Nottingham Playhouse and Northern Stage, suffers from many of the faults that affect biographical drama, and is far too long for its own good. Nevertheless, it has an abundance of compassion, and an excellent central performance from Bettrys Jones.
