All stories by Emma John on BroadwayStars

Tuesday, September 17, 2024

The Lightest Element review – tribute to trailblazing astronomer expected to make the tea by Emma John

Hampstead theatre, LondonCecilia Payne-Gaposchkin faced constant sexism and professional exclusion, but Stella Feehily’s play shows a woman with an iron will to succeed Cecilia Payne-Gapos…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:24AM
Wednesday, August 14, 2024

‘A 70-year-old skipping about pretending to be 20’: the new era of age-blind casting by Emma John

Though Ian McKellen gave his Hamlet at the age of 82, older women rarely get the chance to play young characters. But with Imelda Staunton in Hello Dolly and Geraldine James as Rosalind, are…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:00AM
Tuesday, July 16, 2024

Hope, hopelessness and heroism: why theatre is making a splash with sport by Emma John

From the Gareth Southgate play Dear England to Red Speedo, about a swimmer caught doping, dramatists are using sport to examine class, race, morality – and life in Britain today Will no on…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:24AM
Friday, April 19, 2024

The Ballad of Hattie and James review – a musical friendship comes back into tune by Emma John

Kiln theatre, LondonSophie Thompson and Charles Edwards are delightful as the unlikely pair thrown together by a school production as teenagers and reunited late in life Music, says Hattie, …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:48AM
Friday, March 1, 2024

The Duchess of Malfi review – revenge tragedy goes hard on the humour by Emma John

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, LondonToxic masculinity rears its head in Rachel Bagshaw’s Globe debut which proves less interested in horror effects than the characters’ emotional journeys Joh…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:12AM
Wednesday, August 23, 2023

Next to Normal review – fizzing musical about mental illness by Emma John

Donmar Warehouse, LondonThe performances are superb in this tale of a family dealing with bipolar disorder but the storyline is thin Given that Next to Normal is about a woman with bipolar d…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:07AM
Friday, June 30, 2023

Duck review – young cricketer faces racist abuse in timely one-man play by Emma John

Arcola theatre, LondonIn a week when English cricket was found guilty of deep-rooted racism, an affecting tale of discrimination dismissed as banter feels particularly profound This one-man …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:13AM
Wednesday, June 21, 2023

Roman Holiday review – movie magic gets lost in translation by Emma John

Theatre Royal BathDespite charismatic performances and real chemistry, the classic Audrey Hepburn romcom falters in its transition into a Cole Porter jukebox musical Jeremy Sams’ productio…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:13AM
Sunday, June 11, 2023

Hope Has a Happy Meal review – dystopian comedy balances wit and nightmares by Emma John

Royal Court, LondonSet in a future police state, Tom Fowler’s play sees two women go on the run in a feverish reimagining of Thelma and Louise The winning scene that opens Tom Fowler’s n…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:33AM
Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Operation Mincemeat review – irrepressible wartime musical is a West End triumph by Emma John

Fortune theatre, LondonWith gag-packed songs and gender-swapped roles, this fringe show about a secret service plot is a joyful success on the big stage SpitLip’s anarchic adaptation of on…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:32AM
Friday, May 5, 2023

The Vortex review – Noël Coward’s swirling jazz age psychodrama by Emma John

Chichester Festival theatreLia Williams and her son Joshua James make a scintillating double act in a resonant revival of the 1924 hit There’s a tableau in this production of The Vortex wh…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:48AM
Thursday, April 13, 2023

Worth review – darkly comic inheritance drama by Emma John

Arcola, LondonWhat starts as a comedy of sibling manners ends in a soap opera-like recital of childhood abuses and family grievances The question of what we inherit from our parents has been…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:32PM
Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Oh what a gun-totin’ morning: raw Oklahoma! swaps folksiness for firearms by Emma John

Daniel Fish’s restaging of the Rodgers and Hammerstein classic is no Kansas City cornbread caper. The director explains why he ratcheted up the racial tension and gun violence In the Oklah…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:54AM
Wednesday, April 13, 2022

Zorro: The Musical review – swordplay, seduction and castanets by Emma John

Charing Cross theatre, LondonThe whiff of hamminess is never absent from the Zorro story and here both script and performances are endearingly alive to a sense of the ridiculous Swipe right!…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:06AM
Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Our Generation review – magnificent verbatim account of teenage life will steal your heart by Emma John

Dorfman, LondonAlecky Blythe’s masterful play – which features a brilliantly charismatic cast – follows real youngsters across five years of their lives Ali, 14, wants to be a criminal…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:03AM
Tuesday, February 22, 2022

Rain and Zoe Save the World review – teens on a messy eco-adventure by Emma John

Jermyn Street theatre, LondonLikable leads who act with great verve are let down by a weak story that can’t hold the weight of its themes Given the scale of the environmental challenges fa…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:36PM
Thursday, November 18, 2021

Little Women: The Musical review – a high-energy show fired with charm by Emma John

Park theatre, LondonLydia White is magnetic as the aspirational Jo in an uneven but stirring adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s classic Jo March is a heroine well suited to musical theatre.…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:54AM
Sunday, November 14, 2021

Abigail’s Party review – the original cringe comedy returns by Emma John

Park theatre, LondonMike Leigh’s 1970s masterpiece of aggressive hospitality, embarrassing silences and gauche behaviour is back in a slightly more naturalistic portrayal Mike Leigh’s co…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:18PM
Monday, November 12, 2018

Motherland's Paul Ready: 'Michelle Terry and I are very much like the Macbeths!' by Emma John

He has done politics in Bodyguard, horror in Utopia and comedy as Kevin in Motherland. Next up for Paul Ready is Shakespeare’s tragedy, alongside his wife, at the GlobePaul Ready is spooke…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:36AM
Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Emma John discovers what ballet does to a dancer's feet by Emma John

Some cover their feet in glue, others slice at them with razor blades ... Emma John discovers what performing night after night does to a dancer's feetIt should have been the best day of Jen…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:11PM

Zawe Ashton as Jaques in As You Like It: ‘All the world’s a stage’ – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Zawe Ashton speaks Jaques’s lines on the seven ages of man fro…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:36PM
Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Paterson Joseph as Shylock: 'You call me misbeliever' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Paterson Joseph speaks Shylock’s lines from The Merchant of Ve…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:11AM

Zawe Ashton as Jacques in As You Like It: ‘All the world’s a stage’ – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Zawe Ashton speaks Jacques’s lines on the seven ages of man fr…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:10AM

Damian Lewis as Antony in Julius Caesar: 'Friends, Romans, countrymen' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Damian Lewis performs Antony’s lines from act III, scene 2 of …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:10AM

Laura Carmichael as Portia: 'The quality of mercy' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Laura Carmichael speaks Portia’s lines from The Merchant of Ve…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:10AM

Riz Ahmed as Edmund in King Lear: 'Now, gods, stand up for bastards' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Emma John and Chris Wiegand

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Riz Ahmed speaks Edmund’s soliloquy from the start of Act I, S…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 08:10AM
Monday, February 29, 2016

Camille O'Sullivan as Constance in King John: 'Thou art not holy' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Chris Wiegand and Emma John

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Camille O’Sullivan plays Constance in King John, Act III, Scen…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:15AM

Joanna Lumley as Viola in Twelfth Night: 'I left no ring with her' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Chris Wiegand and Emma John

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Joanna Lumley speaks Viola’s soliloquy from Twelfth Night, Act…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:15AM

Sacha Dhawan as Shakespeare's Parolles: 'Are you meditating on virginity?' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Chris Wiegand and Emma John

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Sacha Dhawan delivers an edited version of Parolles’s lines fr…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:15AM

David Threlfall as Prospero in The Tempest: 'Our revels now are ended' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Chris Wiegand and Emma John

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, David Threlfall speaks Prospero’s lines from The Tempest, Act …

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:15AM

Daniel Mays as Macbeth: 'Is this a dagger which I see before me?' – video by Dan Susman, Jess Gormley, Pascal Wyse, Liese Spencer, Chris Wiegand and Emma John

To mark the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death, we asked leading actors to perform key speeches from his plays. Here, Daniel Mays speaks Macbeth’s lines from Act II, Scene 1. As Ma…

SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:15AM

All that Chat

2024-2025 BROADWAY SEASON
Jun 05, 2024: Home - Todd Haimes Theatre
Jul 11, 2024: Oh, Mary! - Lyceum Theatre
Jul 30, 2024: Job - Hayes Theater
Sep 12, 2024: The Roommate - Booth Theatre
Nov 14, 2024: Tammy Faye - Palace Theatre
Dec 12, 2024: Cult of Love - Hayes Theater
Dec 19, 2024: Gypsy - Majestic Theatre
Mar 15, 2025: Purpose - Hayes Theater
Apr 01, 2025: Glengarry Glen Ross
Apr 10, 2025: Smash - Imperial Theatre
TBA: Titanic