Theatre review: Gently Down the Stream

Martin Sherman, who turns 80 this year, has a long list of theatre and movie writing credits but is still best remembered for Bent - which itself has its 40th anniversary this year - a play that reminded people of the oft-forgotten persecution of LGBT people by the Nazis. Having long wanted to write a more general "gay history" play he finally struck on the way to do it by following 13 years of a relationship with a 35-year age gap, in Gently Down the Stream. And "gently" is the right word for a play that covers some of the same ground, and has some of the same concerns as, The Inheritance, but in a much more intimate way. The concerns are those of Beau (Jonathan Hyde,) originally from New Orleans but, having travelled the world accompanying torch song singers on the piano, now long since settled in London where he works as a lounge pianist in a restaurant.

Theatre review: Mrs Henderson Presents

The latest screen-to-stage musical sees Terry Johnson (writing and directing) take inspiration from Stephen Frears' 2005 film Mrs Henderson Presents, that starred Judi Dench as a real-life, unlikely pioneer of onstage frontal nudity. With music by George Fenton & Simon Chamberlain and lyrics by Don Black, this stage version sees Tracie Bennett take on the role of Laura Henderson, the wealthy widow who, more or less on a whim, decides to spend her late husband's money on the Windmill Theatre. She gets struggling impresario Vivian Van Damm (Ian Bartholomew) to run it for her, but "revudeville" is a flop. Mrs Henderson isn't ready to give up just yet though, and she finds a loophole in the censorship laws that will allow her Windmill Girls to appear nude on stage, as long as they stand still, recreating famous artworks. Unsurprisingly, she soon finds an audience of men interested in the rechristened "renudeville."

Theatre review: Passing By

PREVIEW DISCLAIMER: This review is of the first public performance (of only eight in total) with the press being invited tomorrow.

Paired with Hindle Wakes in the Sunday-Tuesday slot at the Finborough is another play whose initial impact was probably a lot more radical than it seems in 2012. Best known for Bent, Martin Sherman tells a very different kind of gay story in Passing By, an unconventional romantic comedy-drama whose protagonists spend most of their time in bed together, but not in quite the way that might sound. It's 1972 and Toby (Steven Webb) is an unfit, neurotic New York artist enjoying less than stellar success in his career. He meets Simon (Alex Felton) at a cinema, and they have a one-night stand. Giving the show a bit of a belated Olympic tie-in, Simon is a bronze medal-winning diver, physically fit and, in contrast with Toby, on the surface at least appears to be pretty untroubled. But having only recently come to New York he finds his hotel room lonely and seeks out Toby for company, not realising that a less-than welcome reason will soon have them spending even more time together.