SIMON PARSONS is discomfited by an unflichingly negative portrait of motherhood and its trials
Transgender diva
WILL STONE marvels at the vocal range and vulnerabilty of a remarkable virtuoso
PAUL FOLEY recommends an extraordinary double bill that packs a punch and leaves you reeling
MARY CONWAY is disappointed by a play about AI that results in a deadening disconnect for its audience
SIMON PARSONS applauds an insightful state-of-the-nation play that explores the growing class divide in South Africa
MATTHEW HAWKINS pays tribute to the performance artist and costumier, Leigh Bowery
SIMON DUFF reviews a new composition by German composer and pianist Florian Weber that blurs the line between where improvisation ends and composition begins
New releases from The Jim Mullen Quartet, Caroline Kraabel/John Edwards, and Matthew Muneses/Riza Printup
Anohni And The Johnsons
Barbican, London
ANOHNI is finally back following the release of last year’s acclaimed My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross, marking her first album and live tour in eight years.
The album, which features the deceased LGBTQ rights activist Marsha P Johnson on the cover, is a soul-inspired classic in the school of Marvin Gaye — dealing with oppression and loss in a way reminiscent of Nina Simone — following the eco-electronic sucker punch of 2016’s Hopelessness.
More from this author
The phrase “cruel to be kind” comes from Hamlet, but Shakespeare’s Prince didn’t go in for kidnap, explosive punches, and cigarette deprivation. Tam is different.
ANGUS REID deconstructs a popular contemporary novel aimed at a ‘queer’ young adult readership
A landmark work of gay ethnography, an avant-garde fusion of folk and modernity, and a chance comment in a great interview
ANGUS REID applauds the inventive stagecraft with which the Lyceum serve up Stevenson’s classic, but misses the deeper themes
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