All stories by Brian Logan on BroadwayStars

Wednesday, March 13, 2024

Robby Hoffman review – New Yorker unleashes her nerd-jock shtick by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonSnarling at the audience and cracking cynical jokes, Hoffman’s intriguing faux-boorish persona wears thin, undermining her subversively funny riffs Robby Hoffman recent…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:18AM
Monday, March 11, 2024

Leigh Francis: My First Time review – cacophonously unfunny with the emphasis on cack by Brian Logan

London PalladiumThe comic revives Avid Merrion, Keith Lemon and others in a scatological set of unimaginative jokes Is he funny, or is his comedy the nadir of western civilisation? Not being…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:12AM
Friday, March 8, 2024

Jerrod Carmichael is a superb standup – if only he’d stop checking his phone on stage by Brian Logan

The US comedian, who won an Emmy for the remarkable 2022 special Rothaniel, makes a bemusing visit to London When Sarah Silverman took to the stage at Hammersmith Apollo one night in 2008, …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:54AM
Thursday, March 7, 2024

Catherine Bohart: Again, With Feelings review – firecracker of an hour is her best yet by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe Irish comedian refines gossip to a high art in a big-hitting show packed with whipsmart jokes about the panic of settling down in your 30s The dates on Catherine Boha…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:42AM
Thursday, February 29, 2024

Sarah Keyworth: My Eyes Are Up Here review – top surgery becomes a family affair by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonWith fine one-liners, the crowd-pleasing east Midlander traces their relationship with their parents in a touching show Sarah Keyworth launched their standup career with …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:42PM
Monday, February 26, 2024

Miles Jupp: On I Bang review – elegantly funny, terribly English account of a tumour by Brian Logan

Brighton DomeThe comedian guides us through this life-and-death tale of seizure, diagnosis and treatment with his usual brand of self-deprecation We have all seen comedians die on stage. Is …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:18AM

Bill Hicks: the scorching standup who thought comedy could change the world by Brian Logan

Thirty years after his death, the Texan who set out to ‘topple idols’ remains an outlaw truth-teller for many but his raging material can land with a clunk I could mark out my comedy cri…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:48AM
Sunday, February 25, 2024

Lara Ricote review – endearingly offbeat comedy of self-exploration by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThe fringe award-winner compares her romantic relationship to how she feels about her audience in this mildly evasive investigation of inner knottiness There’s a formul…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AM
Friday, February 23, 2024

Steve Brown obituary by Brian Logan

Composer and lyricist who was a long-time collaborator of Steve Coogan and Harry Hill, and co-created the award-winning musical Spend, Spend, Spend The composer and lyricist Steve Brown, who…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:32PM
Thursday, February 22, 2024

Bill Bailey: a comic maestro of bits, bobs and barbs at the Tories by Brian Logan

Thoughtifier, a new European tour, brings familiar whimsy from the Strictly Come Dancing champ. But does the mirth cramp his musical stylings? Forty years into his performing career, you kno…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:24PM
Tuesday, February 13, 2024

Leicester comedy festival – post-natal distress, a Trumpian dictator and Robo Bingo by Brian Logan

Various venuesSets from Lily Phillips, President Obonjo and Foxdog Studios may not rival the Edinburgh fringe, but give a bracing sense of the diversity of the comedy scene We need a new ki…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:02AM
Monday, February 12, 2024

Jessica Fostekew review – accelerated age triggers volcanic rage by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, London New show Mettle finds the comic annoyed about flirting, litter, the climate crisis and more, following a milestone birthday There are few more familiar standup comedy at…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:12AM
Friday, February 9, 2024

No sets, less fuss, a cast of one: can standups save the UK’s cash-strapped theatres? by Brian Logan

For the Royal Court and Park theatres, putting on comedy acts is a moneyspinning way to find new audiences. But are playhouses set to stage fewer plays? Caryl Churchill. Sarah Kane. Chris Ra…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:12AM
Monday, February 5, 2024

Don’t mention the war … and the rest: the trouble with bringing back Fawlty Towers by Brian Logan

Stage revivals of the 70s sitcom and The Fast Show have enough nostalgia value to delight fans. Less certain is what will happen to their more problematic material The essence of humour is s…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:54AM
Sunday, February 4, 2024

Gwyneth Goes Skiing review – camp cartoonish courtroom drama revels in all the razzmatazz and idiocy by Brian Logan

Pleasance theatre, LondonWith Linus Karp as Paltrow, Joseph Martin as the optometrist and a muppet as his lawyer, Awkward Productions delight in the shallowness, star-worship and bad faith O…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:54AM
Thursday, January 25, 2024

Guz Khan review – Man Like Mobeen star relishes the outrageous by Brian Logan

Hammersmith Apollo, LondonThe Coventry comic’s new show centres more on storytelling than polished quips but this is still a boisterous set In a world where big-name comics prep their tour…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:42AM
Sunday, January 21, 2024

Connor Burns review – unoriginal prejudices dressed up in new clothes by Brian Logan

Leicester Square theatre, LondonThe up-and-coming Scottish standup’s first UK tour finds him in Gervais-ish territory, and his performing flair can’t disguise the tired old chauvinism of…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:36AM
Friday, January 19, 2024

Stamptown review – late-night comedy cabaret is a helter-skelter delight by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonAcross 75 haywire minutes, Zach Zucker’s variety show features fire-breathing, copious nudity and superb performances from acts including Natalie Palamides ‘It’s ta…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:32AM
Thursday, January 11, 2024

A funny thing happened on the way here: comedians get personal about their backstage dramas by Brian Logan

In their new shows, anarchic theatre company Spymonkey and sketch duo Max and Ivan place the spotlight on their own lives more than ever before If you’re making comedy, or funny theatre, w…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:54AM
Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Expats review – Chicago’s improv squad riff on the ridiculous by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonThis quartet – familiar from Veep, SNL and Second City – respond well to audience suggestions but keep rebooting the process rather than delivering a full story As an…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AM
Monday, January 8, 2024

‘I wanted to be serious – but people would laugh so hard’: Julia Masli on her accidental comedy masterpiece by Brian Logan

Her midnight agony aunt clown show became the hot ticket of the fringe – despite the fact that the Estonian never regarded herself as a comic. In fact, she says, she much prefers making au…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:06AM
Tuesday, December 26, 2023

The best theatre, dance and comedy tickets to book in 2024 by Arifa Akbar, Lyndsey Winship and Brian Logan

The new year’s hottest shows include stage versions of Minority Report, Spirited Away and La Strada, performances by Keeley Hawes and Ian McKellen – plus laughs from Julia Masli, Rhod Gi…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:06AM
Thursday, December 21, 2023

The best theatre, comedy and dance of 2023 by Arifa Akbar, Brian Logan and Lyndsey Winship

Our critics’ highlights of the year include a 24-hour marathon, a standup welcoming hecklers, a reboot of The Matrix and a bus ride filled with emotion• More on the best culture of 2023 …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:18AM
Monday, December 18, 2023

The Horne Section’s Christmas Shindig review – peas and harmony from Taskmaster star by Brian Logan

Indigo at the O2, LondonAlex Horne’s musical comedy band serve up peachy and puerile puns in an endearing, occasionally festive show The Horne Section. A Christmas show. You can see the lo…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:02AM
Wednesday, December 13, 2023

Strapped, stressed, axed: is it curtains for theatre’s artistic directors? by Brian Logan

Indhu Rubasingham has been named as the National’s new head. But elsewhere, theatres are ditching this once coveted role altogether. Can a theatre really manage without one? The king is de…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:24PM
Tuesday, December 12, 2023

Pandemonium review – Armando Iannucci’s furiously funny takedown of No 10 by Brian Logan

Soho theatre, LondonBoris Johnson and his successors Less Trust and Riches Sooner are satirised in a superb political pantomime directed by Patrick Marber Keenly anticipated since its summer…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:06AM
Monday, December 11, 2023

Viggo Venn: British Comedian review – BGT champ is a clown prince enjoying his moment by Brian Logan

Shaftesbury theatre, LondonHi-vis hijinks are here aplenty as the Britain’s Got Talent winner revisits his triumphant routines It’s been quite the year for Viggo Venn. Twelve months ago,…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:36AM
Sunday, December 10, 2023

Glacier review – wild-swimming tale paddles in the shallows by Brian Logan

Old Fire Station, Oxford Alison Spittle’s story of three women who meet and reconvene annually for a Christmas Day dip is fun nonetheless There’s more to Christmas than Santa, Jesus and …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:02PM

Richard Curtis’s Christmas Actually raises the ghost of ropey light-entertainment past by Brian Logan

Festive variety show hosts Sanjeev Bhaskar and Jayde Adams are stodgier than Christmas dinner, with all the chemistry of a broken Bunsen burner To those of us of a certain age, few things a…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AM
Monday, December 4, 2023

Lucy Beaumont: The Trouble & Strife! review – bottomless brunches and butlers in the buff by Brian Logan

Bloomsbury theatre, LondonThe Hull comic continues to riff brilliantly on her home city’s quirks but you wish she’d reveal more of the ‘small angry woman’ she describes herself as H…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:18AM
Sunday, December 3, 2023

Jack and the Beanstalk review – a spirited panto with droll touches by Brian Logan

Theatre Royal Stratford East, LondonIt may not attempt anything new but there are eye-catching costumes, catchy songs, some sparkling performances and a droll script by Anna Jordan Mud, glor…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:06AM

All that Chat

2023-2024 BROADWAY SEASON
May 30, 2023: Grey House - Lyceum Theatre
Jun 26, 2023: Just For Us - Hudson Theatre
Jul 24, 2023: The Cottage - Hayes Theater
Nov 16, 2023: Spamalot - St. James Theatre
Dec 18, 2023: Appropriate - Hayes Theater
Mar 07, 2024: Doubt - Todd Haimes Theatre
Apr 14, 2024: Lempicka - Longacre Theatre
Apr 17, 2024: The Wiz - Marquis Theatre
Apr 18, 2024: Suffs - Music Box Theatre
Apr 25, 2024: Mother Play - Hayes Theater
Jun 10, 2024: The Drama Desk Awards