John Shand Posts

December 14, 2025 / Theatre Reviews

Theatre Royal, December 4 6/10 I wracked my remaining brains on the way home, wondering what other musical made the songs its dull parts. Usually, of course, they’re the main event. Not in Pretty Woman: The Musical. Here, the show’s humming along rather enjoyably, and then when they start to…

December 12, 2025 / Theatre Reviews

Ensemble Theatre, December 3 7/10 Without the sharp editing available to a film-maker, on-stage thrillers tend to gurgle down the drain of melodrama. The wonder of this production of Dial M for Murder is that avoids that grisly end. Just. Alfred Hitchcock took Frederick Knott’s original play, and turned it…

December 10, 2025 / Album Reviews

Khmer Live in Bergen (Edition) 7.5/10 The material revisited on this live album was a mini-tornado tearing through the music world in 1997. Who knew you could use loops, beats and samples and still make something called jazz? The influence of Khmer was and remains immense. Wander past the Opera…