reviews

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The Cunning Little Vixen, Irish National Opera - chamber Janáček works where it matters

David Nice |

Janáček's Vixen Sharpears has been making streamlined runs between eight Irish cities and towns, no doubt winning new admirers for this singular take on man, nature and the cycle of life.

theartsdesk on Vinyl 95: Pink Floyd, Naz Nomad, Madonna, Doves, Link Wray, Goldfrapp and more

Thomas H. Green
VINYL OF THE MONTHWest Virginia Snake Handler Revival They Shall Take Up the Serpents (Sublime Frequencies) Image…

Power, BBC Philharmonic, Morlot, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - the music of love

Robert Beale
Valentine’s Day was only a week gone when the BBC Philharmonic gave us a programme on the theme of love. And the most haunting memory of it all was…

Dear Liar, Jermyn Street Theatre review - Shaw on a sure thing?

Gary Naylor
Settling into my seat in this most intimate of houses, I realised that I had never seen a play written by Nobel Laureate and Academy Award winner,…

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Music Reissues Weekly: Public Image Ltd. - Public Image (First Issue) US Mix

Kieron Tyler
Stunning, originally shelved, American version of Pil’s first album resurfaces

The Tony Blair Story, Channel 4 review - vote for me

Adam Sweeting
Phony Tony or saviour of the world?

Deep Azure, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review - exuberant, lyrically inventive script bears testimony to a talent cut short

Rachel Halliburton
Chadwick Boseman's play is a feast of visual and sonic invention

The Great Wave, Scottish Opera review - a bit too broad brush

Miranda Heggie
Biopic opera of the great Japanese artist Hokusai slightly misses its mark

White, Brodsky Quartet, Kings Place review - legendary singer still at the top of his game

Bernard Hughes
Long-time collaborators offer great singing but some wobbly playing

Jeremy Cooper: Discord review - counterpoints

Hugh Barnes
Cooper turns a fine ear to music for an exploration of creative life

Mermaid Chunky, Hare & Hounds, Birmingham review - a weird but cheerful sound to welcome Spring

Guy Oddy
Playful West Country duo revel in fun and silliness

The Story of Peer Gynt, The Coronet Theatre review - the magic of tall tale telling

David Nice
Kåre Konradi distils Ibsen's great epic in a very personal mix of English and Norwegian

The Beaches, Barrowland, Glasgow review - a girl gang who've got your back

Jonathan Geddes
The band have embraced a slick, poppier sound

If I Had Legs I'd Kick You review - Rose Byrne's ferocious performance anchors this grueling drama

Justine Elias
Mary Bronstein's second feature closes the gap between motherhood and madness

George Saunders: Vigil review - afterlife in oil

Claudia Bull
Booker-winner returns with a fable full of warnings, petrochemicals, ghosts – but is it too little too late?

Saul, Arcangelo, Cohen, Smith Square Hall review - high drama, not high concept

Boyd Tonkin
Handel's Biblical tragedy strikes hard without stage trickery

Dracula, Noël Coward Theatre review - virtuoso performance confirms Cynthia Erivo's star-power

Rachel Halliburton
This one-woman show is a testament to the star's commanding versatility

Small Prophets, BBC Two review - magic in miniature from Mackenzie Crook, a true original

Helen Hawkins
The writing and directing in this drama series is another quiet piece of genius

Lucian Freud: Drawing into Painting, National Portrait Gallery review - from nuanced lucidity to dense opacity

Sarah Kent
A painter’s journey in the wrong direction

Bridget Christie, Marlowe Theatre Canterbury review - friendship, family and farting at bus stops

Veronica Lee
Comic delves into observational material

Northern Winter Beat 2026, Aalborg review - Duo Ruut, Jim Ghedi and Motorpsycho unite under the umbrella of musical exploration

Kieron Tyler
Never mind the snow, this Danish city festival celebrates unfettered internationalism

Rise and Fall of the City of Mahagonny, English National Opera review - patchily focused pachyderm

David Nice
The production sags, but boasts a tireless protagonist in heroic tenor Simon O'Neill

Sweetmeats, Bush Theatre review - heartwarming and gently beautiful

aleks.sierz
New South-Asian play about old age tenderly explores love and health

Looney Tunes: The Day the Earth Blew Up review - Daffy and Porky all gummed up

Justine Elias
The revived cartoon franchise gets off to a big bang

Shadowlands review - more a comedy of manners than a tearjerker

Helen Hawkins
The pathos of CS Lewis’s short-lived marriage is muted at the Aldwych

Seurat and the Sea, Courtauld Gallery review - sublime obsession

Sarah Kent
Seascapes in which everything is stilled into a sense of harmony

The Shitheads, Royal Court review - original idea, but incoherent and disjointed

aleks.sierz
New play about the prehistoric past searches for relevance, but fails to find it

My Father's Shadow review - a life-changing Lagos adventure

Nick Hasted
Wondrous Nigerian child's view of paternal love and political upheaval

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latest in today

'We are bowled over!' Thank you for your messages of love and support
We are bowled over! We knew that theartsdesk.com had plenty of supporters out there – we’ve always had a loyal readership of arts…
The Cunning Little Vixen, Irish National Opera - chamber Janáček works where it matters
Janáček's Vixen Sharpears has been making streamlined runs between eight Irish cities and towns, no doubt winning new admirers for this…
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Settling into my seat in this most intimate of houses, I realised that I had never seen a play written by Nobel Laureate and Academy Award…
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