Our team of reviewers has each chosen the show that he or she liked best over the past twelve months. They are, in no particular order:-

Little One                                           

BalletBoyz – The Talent 2015        

Mat Ricardo                                      

Mrs Henderson Presents                

Arcadia                                              

Queen Anne

As You Like It                                    

Outside Mullingar

The King’s Speech

Fat Man

 

Clicking on the title will take you to the original review

 

Mike WHITTON    Little One at the Brewery, Bristol

For sheer spectacle, pizzazz and high-end production values Mary Poppins at the Bristol Hippodrome took some beating, but in essence this was a show that first saw the light of day back in 2004, so I’m disqualifying it as a repeat. A very different affair was Dominic Lindesay’s Chasing the Dream in the Least Harmful Way at The Alma Tavern. This was a thoughtful and skillfully performed one-man show with great originality, depth and humour, though perhaps not quite the finished article. So my vote for best show has to go to Little One by Hannah Moscovich, the first of this year’s Bristol Old Vic Theatre School’s Directors’ Cuts season at the Brewery Theatre. In this dark two-hander Sam Woolf gave an extraordinarily assured performance as a boy driven to extremes by his mentally unbalanced sister, and Kate Kavendish was equally convincing as a girl with no awareness of his despair and desperation. Gripping and memorable.

 

Michael HASTED   BalletBoyz – The Talent 2015 at the Everyman, Cheltenham

Quite a tricky choice. I really enjoyed Handbagged for its wit and clever performances and The Shawshank Redemption for its truthful adaptation and bold, atmospheric staging. Two Kneehigh productions, Rebecca and Dead Dog in a Suitcase, were both excellent and innovative with healthy dollops of the wow factor. Possibly the best individual performance of the year came from Krissi Bohn in Kay Adshead’s outstanding and though-provoking and timely single-hander, The Bogus Woman. However, if I had to choose now which show I would like to see again it would have to be BalletBoyz which was the only show to cause my jaw to drop and my breath to be held.

 

Will AMOTT   Mat Ricardo at the Old Joint Stock, Birmingham

I considered two shows at the Birmingham Rep that I really enjoyed – Rambert’s Rooster and the one-man Paterson Joseph vehicle, Sancho. However, I’ll have to go with Mat Ricardo as my favourite show of 2015. It’s the production that I would most happily return to watch again tonight, tomorrow night, and possibly once more this week. While his talent as both juggler and showman are considerable, it is Ricardo’s persona that sells the show so victoriously. I wrote at the time that he “has a touch of rock star about him, by way of Bublé, by way of Rastelli, via variety and Vaudeville,” which remains an obviously tempting fusion of trademarks. The show is a rare find. Why let the lion-tamer and the ringleader hog the spotlight? It’s the juggler’s turn.

 

Graham WYLES   Mrs Henderson Presents at the Theatre Royal, Bath

It’s a close run thing this year with nothing standing head and shoulders over some stiff competition. Talking of which, both Fanny Hill and Mrs Henderson Presents are in the frame along with Knee High’s, Dead Dog in a Suitcase, with Mrs Henderson just shading it for the breadth and pertinence of its themes and some sharp and entertaining songs all of which were presented by some excellent performances. I can’t let the season go without mention of the performances of Gina McKee in The Mother and Caroline Quentin in Fanny Hill. Both actresses showed depth, subtlety, range of emotion and commanding stage presence.

 

Philip SMITH   Arcadia at the Oxford Playhouse

Standing proud above all the other plays this year was the touring revival of Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia. Lauded by critics and often cited as on one of the nation’s favour plays it has stood the test of time and easy to see why. It was beautifully crafted and powerful, filled with guffaws of laughter as well as grief covering all the emotions. It was a delight to watch.

 

Derek BRIGGS   Queen Anne at The Swan, Stratford upon Avon

New period drama can be grossly inappropriate. Not so Helen Edmondson’s Queen Anne. It leaps every hurdle and is set fair to become a classic. The dialogue is right for then: right for now. Great 18th century issues drive great historical figures, but also reveal their inner anxieties and self-doubt, With two captivating central performances: Emma Cunniffee as the queen and Natascha McElhone as her very close friend and arch enemy,The Duchess of Marlborough

 

@BookingAround   As You Like It at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford

Easily my favourite show of the year (and the one I’ve mentioned all year to anyone who would listen) was Creation Theatre’s summer production of As You Like It. I loved everything about it – the exuberant acting, the gorgeous location of Lady Margaret Hall’s sprawling gardens, and particularly the creative decision to set it in Nazi-occupied France, which was one of the most original settings of Shakespeare I’ve seen. I’ll be rushing to get tickets for Creation’s production of King Lear in the Spring!

 

Simon BISHOP   Outside Mullingar at the Ustinov Studio, Bath

A sensitively observed tale of family feuding and personal redemption, this production of John Patrick Shanley’s play was blessed with a wonderful cast led by Deirdre O’Kane as the fiery and frustrated Rosemary Muldoon and Owen McDonnell as the brooding and self-effacing Anthony Reilly – Rosemary’s potential ticket out of barrenness and disinheritance. Set, sound and lighting combined to present Shanley’s exquisite scrutiny of Irish country life as a theatrical gem. Owen Sheers’ Pink Mist, and David Hare’s The Absence of War, both at the Bristol Old Vic, were also strong contenders.

 

Sam CHIPMAN   The King’s Speech at Birmingham Rep

Jubilant and utterly engaging – gripping from start to finish. With strong performances it’s nation-defining historical content it was a real treat for lovers of history and good drama.

 

Deborah SIMS   Fat Man at The North Wall, Oxford

For me, 2015 has been the year of the one-man show. I loved Fat Man, with Martin Bonger retelling the Orpheus myth as a washed-up stand-up comedian, and I also loved Ben Duke’s interpretive-dance adaptation of Paradise Lost (lies unopened beside me). Both were heart-breaking whilst also managing to be completely loopy. An unbeatable combination!