STEPHANIE DENNISON and ALFREDO LUIZ DE OLIVEIRA SUPPIA explain the political context of The Secret Agent, a gripping thriller that reminds us why academic freedom needs protecting
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A shout from without
LYNNE WALSH regrets that unity is denied to a fine cast let down by the baffling spectacle of a poor lead performance
WILL YE STOP OVER-ACTING? Paul Hilton (Joxer Daly) and Mark Rylance ('Captain' Jack Boyle) in Juno And The Paycock
[Manuel Harlan]
TONY BURKE speaks to producer and broadcaster LUCY DURAN about her new project — Guitari Baro
JONATHAN TAYLOR is intrigued how good storytelling can make a hobby as obsessional as metal detecting seem fascinating
ROB HARGREAVES is moved by the way that memories of the Spanish civil war still stir our passions
RON JACOBS sees similarities between the personality of the the Spanish Dictator Francisco Franco, and Donald Trump
RUTH AYLETT recommends this book if you want to learn how AI’s large language models work
Juno and the Paycock
Gielgud Theatre, London
CAN you hear that spinning sound, ma chara? That’ll be the genius playwright Sean O’Casey rolling in his imagined grave.
The cause lies in this latest iteration of his trailblazing work, first performed a century ago.
It should be said that there are some four and five-star performances in this production. Unfortunately, its biggest name, the much-lauded Mark Rylance does not deliver one. Instead, his is a baffling spectacle, a mumbling, eye-rolling extravaganza, manifesting the alcoholic bully “Captain” Jack Boyle as a rather exhausting caricature.
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