Reviews by Chloe Jeffries
Mess
Chloe Jeffries
Anorexia is a serious issue. It can be discussed in weighty articles and medical reports and… musicals. Or at least this is what Caroline Horton wants to convince the audience tonight. Mess comes ...
10 years ago
Mess
Confirmation
Chloe Jeffries
When was the last time you changed your mind? Really changed your mind? Some time ago, suggests Chris Thorpe. His explosive one-man piece toys with the theory of confirmation bias: the idea that we ...
10 years ago
Confirmation
Inspired by Blake Festival
Chloe Jeffries
A poetry reading requires poise and concentration. But to recite a writer’s whole oeuvre is a tour de force. This is the task Ruth Rosen has set – to read an extract from every one of Blake’s ...
10 years ago
Inspired by Blake Festival
Chris Wood: None The Wiser
Chloe Jeffries
A teacher once told Chris Wood that he was ‘obsessed with trivia’. The comment was intended as criticism. Yet attention to small details becomes a gift in the hands of a folk songwriter. Chris ...
10 years ago
Chris Wood: None The Wiser
Regeneration
Chloe Jeffries
There is no more apt time to adapt Pat Barker’s Regeneration trilogy for the stage. The centenary of World War I has not just arrived, but been stoked by countless documentaries; the Tower of ...
10 years ago
Regeneration
The Kite Runner
Chloe Jeffries
Epic novels are notoriously hard to adapt for the stage. Bestsellers routinely disappoint their fans when performed. But lovers of Khaled Hosseini’s story of two boys in a divided Afghanistan ...
10 years ago
The Kite Runner
The Epic Adventure of Nhamo the Manyika Warrior and His Sexy Wife Chipo
Chloe Jeffries
This anarchic comic romp turns storytelling on its head. In 90 joyful minutes it combines African folklore, celebrity culture and Shakespeare. It's full of colour and clever references: very ...
10 years ago
The Epic Adventure of Nhamo the Manyika Warrior and His Sexy Wife Chipo
Incognito
Chloe Jeffries
Is the brain a creative force? Or is it a prison, something that traps us? We’re accustomed to the first of these ideas; Nick Payne’s clever new play forces us to consider the second, ...
11 years ago
Incognito
Visitors
Chloe Jeffries
It is rare to find a piece of theatre that handles the issue of dementia with just the right balance of comedy and gravity. More unusual still is a sensitive portrayal of septuagenarians by a ...
11 years ago
Visitors
Refugee Boy
Chloe Jeffries
14 year-old Alem Kelo does not want to be called ‘refugee boy’. For him, it is a label used to describe the unwanted, burdens and criminals. This tense yet touching drama offers a real ...
11 years ago
Refugee Boy
FT Weekend: Oxford Literary Festival
Chloe Jeffries
“This is the type of book usually written by a lunatic” admits Graham Robb to the literary festival audience. His latest work, The Ancient Paths, chronicles an unorthodox journey across ...
11 years ago
FT Weekend: Oxford Literary Festival
Moon on a Rainbow Shawl
Chloe Jeffries
Moon on a Rainbow Shawl is often dubbed a ‘forgotten play’. After winning a slew of awards when it first appeared in 1958, Errol John’s piece faded into obscurity, indeed it was not ...
11 years ago
Moon on a Rainbow Shawl
Tavaziva Ten
Chloe Jeffries
The concept of 'greatest hits' is familiar in music, with a whole section of the industry dedicated to reissues and compilations. In contemporary dance, it's rare - and risky. Yet ...
11 years ago
Tavaziva Ten
Ballad of the Burning Star
Chloe Jeffries
This, sweetie, is a fabulous little show about the Israel-Palestinian conflict. Because you see, sweetie, though there has been SOOOO much talk about the Middle East, it sometimes lacks a bit of ...
11 years ago
Ballad of the Burning Star
Blink
Chloe Jeffries
Blink begins with the announcement that it is ‘a true story… and a love story’. Neither of these statements is entirely accurate. What follows is some ‘rom’, some ...
11 years ago
Blink
Time of My Life
Chloe Jeffries
Time of My Life is a lively, witty Ayckbourn play, but it is hardly his most widely known. First performed in 1992, the piece faded into obscurity for many years. This revival is much-needed; the ...
11 years ago
Time of My Life
Blonde Poison
Chloe Jeffries
Blonde Poison is a short shocking one-woman play. Its title was the name given to its protagonist, Stella Goldschlag, by the Gestapo, when she became a ‘catcher’ – a Jew who turned ...
11 years ago
Blonde Poison
Beats
Chloe Jeffries
Beats is the closest you’ll get to a mid-week rave in North Oxford. Strobing lights, thumping music and, in particular, a beautifully crafted script help the seated audience feel that they are ...
11 years ago
Beats
Villagers, We Were Evergreen
Chloe Jeffries
Villagers arrive in Oxford after a period of considerable success. Conor O’Brien’s Irish indie folk band have been nominated twice for the Mercury Prize – in 2010 for their first ...
11 years ago
Villagers, We Were Evergreen
After The Rainfall
Chloe Jeffries
What connects a book about ant colonies, an air crash near Suez, a Cumbrian mining accident and a young Egyptian woman touring the museums of Europe? This is the question posed by After The Rainfall ...
11 years ago
After The Rainfall
Moon Project
Chloe Jeffries
Just as sci-fi can be set close to home, films or plays seemingly about outer space are well-placed to address human emotions. Moon Project only hints at other galaxies. Much of this moving ...
11 years ago
Moon Project
Allotment
Chloe Jeffries
Allotments occupy a cosy, homely place in the imagination. We think of them as, at worst, the site of disputes over greenfly and unkempt beans. But Allotment, a short site-specific play now being ...
11 years ago
Allotment
Blancanieves [12A]
Chloe Jeffries
The story of Snow White has been retold many times but never before with the heroine as bullfighter. The inspired move to transpose the fairy-tale to 1920s Seville sets Blancanieves apart from ...
11 years ago
Blancanieves [12A]
Rick's Diner
Chloe Jeffries
Currently the best place for coffee in East Oxford. Warm, friendly staff; excellent quality coffee at reasonable prices. I feel equally comfortable working or meeting a friend here.
13 years ago
Rick's Diner
