Reviews
A Private War review - Rosamund Pike burns with passion in well-meaning biopic
Saturday, 16 February 2019
The Sunday Times war correspondent Marie Colvin lived such a fearless life that it's a shame this celluloid biopic isn't correspondingly brave.
Montero, Scottish Ensemble, Kings Place review - new music with a political edge
Saturday, 16 February 2019
The Venezuelan pianist and composer Gabriela Montero is an outspoken advocate for political change in her country, using her musical standing as a platform from which to highlight Venezuela’s "hijacking" by "forces of crimi
Mektoub, My Love: Canto Uno review - cold carnal...
Saturday, 16 February 2019
Abdellatif Kechiche, the Tunisian-French director, is perhaps best known for the lengthy and explicit sex scenes in La vie d’Adèle (Blue is the...
The Magic Flute, Welsh National Opera review -...
Saturday, 16 February 2019
I last saw this Magic Flute, directed by Dominic Cooke, when it was new, some 14 years ago, and I remember it mainly, I’m afraid, for its lack of...
Berberian Sound Studio, Donmar Warehouse review...
Friday, 15 February 2019
Two men called "Massimo" face the audience, one very tall, one very, well, minimo. The tall Massimo (Tom Espiner, pictured below) sports wavy...
The Kid Who Would Be King review - a timeless charmer
Old-fashioned values animate Joe Cornish's yearning Arthurian parable |
The American Clock, Old Vic review - Arthur Miller's musical history lesson drags
Rachel Chavkin's creative revival can't quite tame this sprawling epic |
Sarah Chang, Ashley Wass, Cadogan Hall review – a virtuoso's disturbing 'inner game'
A short yet uneven concert |
All About Eve, Noel Coward Theatre review - less a bumpy night than an erratically arresting one
Gillian Anderson and a superb Lily James headline Ivo van Hove's latest celluloid deconstruction |
Monteverdi Vespers, The Sixteen, Christophers, Cadogan Hall review – majesty on a modest scale
Well-established team brings a passion for clarity and colour |
Catastrophe, Channel 4, series 4 finale review - sitcom saves the best till last
Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney go out on a grief-stricken, hope-filled cliffhanger |
Shetland, Series 5, BBC One review - uneven start to new season
Dismembered bodies, drugs and sex-trafficking... in Shetland? |
Jellyfish review - life on the edge in Margate
Powerful character work makes this British indie worth watching |
theartsdesk on Vinyl 47: The Beta Band, Ry Cooder, The Cardigans, Sgt. Pepper goes jazz and more
The most wide-ranging monthly record reviews on Planet Earth |
The Price, Wyndham's Theatre review - David Suchet stands supreme
Powerful production of Arthur Miller's play of fraternal discord, past pain |
Akhnaten, English National Opera review - still a mesmerising spectacle
ENO's most successful contemporary opera ever makes a triumphant return |
Grosvenor, Doric String Quartet, Milton Court review – a night to remember
Pianist and strings shine in extraordinarily atmospheric Chopin and Fauré |
Endeavour, Series 6, ITV review - reassuringly accomplished return of the brainy copper
Dexterous detection and psychological insights in satisfying season opener |
Schumann Series 3 & 4, LSO, Gardiner, Barbican review - upstanding brilliance
Energetic symphonies cycle concludes, with top soloists in Mendelssohn and Beethoven |
Don McCullin, Tate Britain review - beastliness made beautiful
The darkest, most compelling exhibition you are ever likely to see |
Un ballo in maschera, Welsh National Opera review - opera as brilliant self-parody
Middle-period Verdi watchable, listenable and sometimes laughable |
The Good Person of Szechwan, Pushkin Drama Theatre, Barbican review - slick Russian Brecht
Musically strong, if persistent, this production has a star protagonist |
La Damnation de Faust, Hallé, Elder, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - 'concert opera' indeed
Vivid choral and orchestral sounds in a thrilling account of Berlioz masterpiece |
David Bowie: Finding Fame, BBC Two review - the most touching instalment of Francis Whately's trilogy
Bowie’s long and slow climb to the top gets the documentary it deserves |
Safe Harbour, Series Finale, BBC Four review - too much message, not enough drama
Australian refugee saga reaches a soggy climax |
Reissue CDs Weekly: Kankyō Ongaku
Delightful and illuminating dive into Japanese ambient, environmental and new age music |
All Is True review - all's well doesn't end well in limp Shakespeare biopic
Kenneth Branagh leads a celluloid lesson in hagiography |
Rachvelishvili, ROH Orchestra, Pappano, Royal Opera House review - perfect night and day
Georgian diva is the diamond in a Russian imperial crown |
The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part review - everything's still awesome
Clever scriptwriting, jam-packed gags and top-notch animation wins the day one more time |
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