We love an Eastern Angles Theare Production: they excel at regional stories bringing them to life with creative, expressive theatre, work with community groups and tour their productions around East Anglia for all to enjoy.
‘The Go-Between’ is this summer’s touring production and it kicked off with an open-air performance at the Food Museum (https://foodmuseum.org.uk/) in Stowmarket. A first-time visit to the Food Museum for me and I didn’t realise the size and offerings – I definitely plan to visit during opening hours to have a look around their 84 acres.
The outdoor space was a remarkably fitting backdrop for staging of ‘The Go-Between.’ L.P. Hartley’s haunting 1953 novel opens with the iconic line, “The past is a foreign country”, and sitting, watching the sky shift into dusk, you couldn’t help but feel transported to that stifling, fateful Norfolk summer of 1900.
Ben Musgrave’s brilliant new adaptation captures the heat, tension, and quiet heartbreak of Hartley’s classic, and with our recent run of heatwaves it wasn’t difficult to imagine.
The story centres on Leo Colston as he finds his diary from when he was 13 years old and pieces together his long-buried memory. A memory which he had shut down as it changed the direction of his life.
Photo Credits – Mike Kwasniak.
At thirteen, he was guest at the grand Brandham Hall, and finds himself recruited to carry secret love letters between the upper-class Marian Maudsley and Ted Burgess, a local tenant farmer. What starts as a naïve, exciting summer adventure for a boy desperate to impress his wealthy hosts slowly unspools into a devastating web of class conflict, deceit, and lost innocence and ultimately tragic consequences.
The scenes drifts between Leo as an adult trying to remember and process what happened, offering reflective commentary on his past naivety and explaining how his younger self misinterpreted adult behaviour, and the real events of that long hot summer.
It’s always difficult to jump timelines in a play without confusing the audience, however this performance did not blur these boundaries for two main reasons: the reflective commentary scenes gave a dreamlike, enchanted feel with a more physical performance from the cast, clearly defining Leo’s conversations with his mind as he deals with his past trauma. Secondly, the outstanding performance from Howard Saddler from an old man into a boy. Howard delivers a deeply moving performance as the older Leo looking back on his youth, and a young innocent care free boy. Howard’s facial features and physicality went from young to old and back again without fault. It was wonderful to watch.
To be fair however, all the cast were excellent, the dynamic between them is wonderful, their character portrayals were fabulous and completely drew you into the story. I had almost forgotten we were outside with a simple stage setting with only a few props and sound effects – everything had me absorbed, I was completely captivated and absorbed by the performance. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
This is one I was looking forward to and she didn’t disappoint.
After a few failed flutters on the horses, I sat to absorb the atmosphere and people watch – always a delight in such a setting where people are dressed up and looking glamourous in the sunshine.
Once the final race concluded everyone jostled into position to get a good view of the stage, eager for it all to begin.
Jessie J came out with a thumping version of ‘California’ to get the energy pumping through the crowd and it was received with loud cheers.
The setlist was as we wanted it to be, with high-octane anthems like ‘Do It Like a Dude’, Domino’ and ‘Bang Bang’ had the entire crowd jumping and shouting every word back at her, creating an arena-level rumble. Mid-way through, she stripped things back for a soulful, stripped-down rendition of ‘Who You Are’, and ‘I’ll Never Know Why’ a vulnerable moment that felt emotional as thousands of phone lights came out through the crowd.
Jessie told us from the beginning that ‘Price Tag’ would be at the end so that we all had too hang around, but we were happy to as it was all such a good night.
What truly made the night special for me was her natural charisma and genuine connection with the audience. Between the songs she spoke to the crowd with her trademark no-nonsense Essex warmth, joking about the racing results and encouraging everyone to let go of their daily worries. The audience ‘chat’ wasn’t rushed or fake, it was truly genuine, to the point a conversation was had to a couple on the side of the stage celebrating their new baby. That personal rapport turned a racecourse venue into an intimate, shared celebration.
Jessie J was completely her authentic self with her banter, warmth, heartfelt stories with her heart on her sleeve made me like her all the more.
Norwich Theatre Royal’s family show for the summer is Matilda The Musical and what a show! I couldn’t quite believe how impressive it all was.
An incredible set design: a towering jumble of alphabet blocks and book transforms the stage into a brilliant physical representation of a young child’s sprawling, curious, imaginative mind. It had many moving parts and with the cast bringing props on and off the stage within the flow of the performance it managed to provide multiple seamless scene changes which were integral to the story. It’s a dark comedy with lots of heart and a full deep story-line which truly comes to life on stage.
Matilda is a young, bright girl who loves books, tells stories with her vivid imagination and can move things with her mind. She is mocked and unloved by her crude parents and her school is ruled by the tyrannical, child-hating headmistress Miss Trunchbull. However there is the sweet Miss Honey, a teacher who recognises Matilda’s smart mind and tries to help.
It is a big cast with lots of characters and half the cast are children. The adult cast provide a brilliantly grotesque foundation of comedy. Matilda’s parents (Rebecca Thornhill and Adam Stafford) are delightfully insufferable, a glorious, neon-clad parade of absurd vanity and casual neglect. Meanwhile, the towering, terrifying presence of Miss Trunchbull (Richard Hurst) dominates the stage. Played with pitch-perfect villainy and exquisite comic timing, Trunchbull manages to be genuinely intimidating while sending the whole room into fits of laughter
The stars of the show are the young cast. They were truly marvellously talented. They were not token roles, they were fully part of the cast performing routines, singing, dancing, acting – everything – their character work was excellent.
The young actor playing Matilda (Felicity Brown) carried the weight of the entire narrative on her small shoulders with staggering poise, delivering hit numbers like “Quiet” with a captivating, still intensity that had the entire theatre leaning in.
Photo credits: Matt Crockatt
The ensemble numbers are where the production truly explodes with energy. “The School Song,” with its mind-bendingly precise alphabet-block choreography, is a breathtaking triumph of staging. Later in Act Two, “When I Grow Up” brings a collective lump to the throat as giant swings soar out over the stage, capturing the bittersweet longing of childhood with simple, pure theatre magic. By the time the full company launched into the defiant, anthem-like “Revolting Children,” the energy was practically off the scale, driving the audience to their feet for a well-deserved standing ovation.
Matilda is a treat: a show that doesn’t talk down to its youngest audience members, nor rely on cheap nostalgia for the adults. It is fierce, funny, deeply moving, and a testament to the power of stories (and being a little bit naughty).
The role of Matilda in the RSC’s production of MATILDA THE MUSICAL is shared equally by five young performers and the role of Bruce by four young performers.
Felicity Brown, Petra Hutchings, Mollie Hutton, Sanna Kurihara and Caroline Ravansari perform the role of Matilda in rotation and Jett Austin-Richards, Isaac Cruickshank, John Johnson and Kobi Lau share the role of Bruce.
The first Sunday of July has been home to Ipswich Music Day for the last 30-odd years and IMD 2026 was one to be remembered. After the last few years which have included the typical inclement weather which has kept a few of the crowds back, this year the weather was perfect and the people came.
The buzz this year was brilliant, was it because there was zero chance of rain, or was it because England were playing the next round of the World Cup and IMD was being used as a pre-game party, or was it because there were over 50 fantastic music acts over 5 stages?
Of course, it was the musical line-up! It was a complete festival vibe with people either discussing which acts to watch and how to be in two places at once or just going with the flow wanting to spontaneously discover their new favourite regional band. Some families came early, found their spot and made camp, where others were travelling light in order to see as much as possible and have time to look at the stalls, enjoy the funfair, learn circus skills, and savour all the food & drink which was on offer.
True to the core values of IMD, the mix of acts was varied from solo acts, duos, trios and bands with up to 11 members whom happen to be the Brawlers who opened the day on the green in front of the Grapevine Mansion Stage – they were too many of them to go on the stage.
The radio stations were in their full capacity: BBC Radio Suffolk, Suffolk Sound and ICR were there broadcasting live, chatting to punters and interviewing the acts – a busy day for all the crew.
Including the Indian Summer Mela Stage and the Ipswich Arts Association run indoor venues, there was almost every genre covered by regional acts. We had rock, ska, jazz, choirs, bhangra, pop, folk, hip hop, rap, country, indie and more…. a range that emphasises the community Ipswich Music Day is hoping to serve.
The crowds came out and all the stages had lots of people enjoying themselves, dancing, cheering and smiling.
It was a fantastic day from start to finish – well done to all the tech staff, volunteers, stage managers, catering staff, everyone involved who make this day come together, and a special mention to Ipswich Borough Council and their Events Team.
Ipswich Music Day 2026 was a complete success and 2027 has big shoes to fill!
You know you’re in for a good night when half the audience at the Norwich Theatre Royal is already buzzing before the curtain even goes up. After what feels like weeks of wonderful weather, stepping into the theatre for the opening night of Mamma Mia! felt like we were already on a sun-drenched Greek island.
The atmosphere around the theatre was absolutely electric. Looking around, there were multi-generational families, groups of friends out for a laugh, and a fair few people proudly sporting sequins and neon. It’s a testament to the timelessness of ABBA’s music that the crowd was such a brilliant, diverse mix of ages, all united by a craving for some serious feel-good energy.
From the second Lydia Hunt stepped out as Sophie, clutching her mother’s diary, she had the entire room in the palm of her hand. Her voice was beautiful and clear – absolutely nailing those opening notes of ‘I Have a Dream’. But for me, the real heart of the show is the dynamic between the three generation-defining dynamos: Donna, Tanya, and Rosie. Jenn Griffin’s performance as Donna was a masterclass in balancing comedy with raw emotion. When she belted out ‘The Winner Takes It All’ in the second act, you could have heard a pin drop. It was an incredible performance.
Of course, it wouldn’t be Mamma Mia! without the laughs, and Sarah Earnshaw (Tanya) and Rosie Glossop (Rosie) delivered them in spades. Tanya’s cheeky, energetic rendition of ‘Does Your Mother Know’ had the front rows in stitches, and Rosie’s frantic, hilarious pursuit of Bill during ‘Take a Chance on Me’ was easily one of the funniest parts of the show. The three potential dads – Sam, Harry, and Bill – had comedic chemistry, bounding off each other perfectly and leaning into all the ridiculousness of the plot.
What blew me away the most, though, was the sheer energy of the ensemble. The choreography in the bigger numbers like ‘Voulez-Vous’ and ‘Lay All Your Love on Me’ (complete with flippers!) was incredibly sharp, powerful, and flat-out fun. There was a big cast, however they were all brilliant and special mention for Joe Grundy who played Sky, who has a smile you can see at the back of the circle.
The clever, rotating set moved seamlessly from a rustic tavern to a moonlit beach in seconds, letting the music drive the show forward without a single clunky pause.
By the time the mega-mix finale came around, the Theatre Royal quite literally erupted. Nobody was sitting down. We were all up on our feet, singing at the top of our lungs, and dancing alongside the cast, who were decked out in the most wonderfully outrageous, ruffled, neon-shiny flare suits you’ve ever seen.
If you are looking for deep, high-brow drama, this isn’t it. But you know exactly what you are getting and it totally fulfils the brief: an absolute escape packed with joy, laughter, and songs that will stay stuck in your head for days. It is absolutely a fun night out!
