Charlie West
Battery Park
★★★★☆ Musically convincing
Battery Park, the touring production from Sleeping Warrior and the Beacon Arts Centre at the Traverse for two nights only, is a gripping and tuneful piece of theatre.
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.
Sweet FA
★★★★★ Sparkling
Sweet FA, This Is My Story’s tuneful evocation of women’s football during World War I, is back for a rematch at Tynecastle Park. It remains an inspiring and beautifully performed piece, which seems even more impressive and important at a second viewing.
A War of Two Halves
★★★★★ Resonant
This Is My Story Productions’ storied A War of Two Halves remains essential viewing.
Orphans
★★★☆☆ Raucous
Full of comic bravado, the National Theatre of Scotland’s long-delayed musical adaptation of Orphans at the King’s is an attractive but unwieldy beast.
Sister Act
★★★★★ Nun better:
Tuneful, wonderfully acted and with the comic momentum of a juggernaut, Forth Children’s Theatre’s Sister Act at the Edinburgh Tabernacle is almost unimaginably entertaining.
The Threepenny Opera
★★★★☆ Explosive:
The Threepenny Opera continues the verve and vitality of the Attic Collective’s previous outings, adding a musical dimension that makes for an explosive extravaganza.
Stories of the Sea
★★★★☆ Factual:
There’s a braw bundle of insight to be had in Citadel Arts Group’s double bill of plays that explore some of the varying aspects of the women of Leith’s relationships with the sea.
War in America
★★★★☆ Timely:
The Attic Collective’s War in America is passionate, emotional and committed – but not over-earnest, and certainly not polite.
Lysistrata
★★★★☆ Ebullient energy:
Fizzing with righteous anger and frothing with near-the-knuckle humour, the Attic Collective’s Lysistrata at the King’s is a breath of fresh air and an undeniable statement of intent.
