Sarah Crompton
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Theatre critic for WhatsOnStage. Dance critic for the Observer. Co-host of the WhatsOnStage podcast. linktr.ee/thewhatsonstagepodcast?utm_source=qr_code
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Articles by Sarah Crompton
The Story with Letitia Wright at National Theatre – review
Letitia Wright in The Story, © Feruza Afewerki Tracey Scott Wilson’s play about journalists and the truth was premiered in 2003 but has never had a full production in Britain. Yet it fizzes with ideas that are still relevant about the way the news is pursued and delivered.
A Month in the Country with Sophie Okonedo at Donmar Warehouse – review
Patrick Gibson, Sophie Okonedo and Alistair Petrie in A Month in the Country, © Helen Murray The stage is surrounded by a cube of glass and a thick, dark green bay hedge. In the opening moment of Lyndsey Turner’s production of Turgenev’s classic play, Sophie Okonedo’s face suddenly appears amidst the leaves, pushing her face against the surface like a goldfish, gasping for air.
Electra/Persona with Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss at National Theatre – review
Nina Hoss and Cate Blanchett in Electra/Persona, © Monika Rittershaus A Greek tragedy, a film by Ingmar Bergman and two compelling performances from Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss are the raw ingredients of this peculiar theatrical mash-up. What it lacks in intellectual coherence, it more than makes up for with its sheer star power – which is appropriate enough since one of its multiple themes is acting itself.
ティルダ・スウィントンが語る、自由に生き、変わり続けること──「一番重要なのは人間関係です」
街角に宿るポエジー 何気ない小道に佇むティルダ。その姿は、見慣れた景色さえシネマティックな瞬間へと変える、一種独特の引力を放つ。彼女が纏うのは、シャネルが大切にしているカラーの一つ、バーガンディのジャージードレス。ウエストから豊かに広がる彫刻的なボリュームと、サイドに施された柔らかなドレープが、彼女の静謐で力強い存在感を美しく際立たせる。ドレス シューズ ともに参考商品／ともにCHANEL（シャネル カスタマー ケア センター） 「結局のところ私たちがやっているのはイメージを創ることなんです」とティルダ・スウィントンは言う。「光の力を借りて、パフォーマーとしてかたちを創る、ということですね」。この発言が指しているのは、ソウルで行われた夜の撮影についてだ。フォトグラファーのゾン・リン、そして長年タッグを組んできたスタイリストのジェリー・スタッフォードとともに、彼女は本号の『VOGUE JAPAN』のページを飾るイメージを創り上げた。 映し出される多面性...
What does the future of Game of Thrones: The Mad King look like? Plus the hottest shows from Edinburgh
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Game of Thrones: The Mad King review – a titanic display of theatre magic
Michael Shaeffer in Game of Thrones: The Mad King, © Johan Persson Five years in the making and a decade in the dreaming, Game of Thrones: The Mad King sweeps onto the stage with a rumble of drums and the courage of its convictions. It’s a triumph; a soaring, surging spectacle and a latter-day history play, both serious and popular.
Cats review – a new day has begun with Drew McOnie’s magical revival
Reviews The non-replica production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber classic runs at London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre and tours The cast of Cats, © Mark Senior Cats is without doubt the weirdest musical ever to enjoy a 21-year run in the West End and 18 years on Broadway. The combination of T S Eliot’s eccentric story about different cats coming together at the Jellicle Ball and some of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s most swooning, phantasmagorical music lends it the quality of a fever dream.
I’m Every Woman: The Chaka Khan Musical at Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre – review
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The Oresteia, the Odyssey and Lloyd Webber warns of Broadway tragedy
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The Oresteia at the Bridge Theatre – review
Reviews Simon Stone’s contemporary spin on the Greek classic runs until 19 September Mary Louise Parker and David Morrissy, photo by Johan Persson The second act of Simon Stone’s The Oresteia is one of the most gripping, visceral and biting hours of drama you are ever likely to see on stage. It is literally impossible to look away as events of heavy weight and terrifying impact unfold, each twist following inevitably from the last.
The Jonathan Larson Project at Southwark Playhouse Borough – review
Max Harwood in The Jonathan Larson Project, © Danny Kaan The cult of adoration that has grown up around Jonathan Larson, revolutionary American composer of Rent, is understandable. Here’s a man who, after years of struggle, of honing his songwriting craft, died at the age of 35 on the eve of the 1996 premiere of a masterpiece. He won a posthumous Pulitzer for the show, plus three Tonys.
Jesus Christ Supersized – and why Pride is better as a musical than a film
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Jesus Christ Superstar with Sam Ryder – review
Sam Ryder in Jesus Christ Superstar, © Johan Persson Tim Sheader’s initial production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s rock masterpiece Jesus Christ Superstar has been on a long journey since it was first unveiled in 2016 at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre. It’s got bigger and more sophisticated with time.
The Guilty with Russell Tovey at Donmar Warehouse – review
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Springwood at Hampstead Theatre – review
The cast of Springwood, © Manuel Harlan Richard Nelson is the most humane of playwrights. In an interview in the programme of his new play Springwood, he says: “The art of theatre is the art of the human being… strip away everything but what is essential and what you have left is the actor and the audience.
Archduke at the Royal Court – review
Stanley Morgan, Marc Woolton and Christopher Walley in Archduke, © Helen Murray “Unification and a sandwich and being with a woman. All three interest me in different ways.” These are the words of the young Nedeljko, the man who threw a bomb at a car he thought was carrying Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne. He hit the wrong target, but his friend Gavrilo didn’t, and everyone knows what happened next.
The Misanthrope with Sandra Oh at the National Theatre – review
Sandra Oh in The Misanthrope, © Marc Brenner Martin Crimp clearly loves Molière’s The Misanthrope.
Much Ado About Nothing at Shakespeare’s Globe – review
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Under the Shadow at the Almeida Theatre – review
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Were 2008 and 2009 the best years for playwriting this century?
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Alexander Zeldin’s Care at the Young Vic – review
Linda Bassett and Hayley Carmichael in Care, © Johan Persson The plays of Alexander Zeldin reach parts that other plays do not reach. With an unstinting gaze, he turns his attention to subjects and people that society would prefer to turn away from. He insists we look. He asks we care.
Mother Courage at Shakespeare’s Globe – review
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Fourteen Again at the Victoria Wood Theatre in Bowness-on-Windermere – review
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Grace Pervades with Ralph Fiennes and Miranda Raison – West End review
Reviews Jeremy Herrin’s production of the David Hare play runs at Theatre Royal Haymarket until 11 July Ralph Fiennes and Miranda Raison in Grace Pervades, © Marc Brenner “All divine things run on light feet,” according to Nietzsche. That line is quoted by Ellen Terry, once regarded as Britain’s greatest actress, in David Hare’s sprightly-footed play about her life and times. It covers a lot of ground, but it does so with its own affectionate grace.
Mass stage adaptation at Donmar Warehouse – review
Reviews Fran Kranz’s debut play, based on his 2021 film, runs until 6 June Adeel Akhtar, Lyndsey Marshal, Monica Dolan and Paul Hilton in Mass, © Richard Hubert Smith Four people sit around a table and talk. Franz Kranz’s lacerating play Mass is built from the simplest and least theatrical of ingredients. Yet in this production, thanks to the skill of director Carrie Cracknell and the intense naturalism of its cast, it becomes something very special.
Please Please Me at the Kiln Theatre – review
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Between the River and the Sea at the Royal Court – review
Reviews Yousef Sweid’s one-man show continues in the Theatre Upstairs until 9 May Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Yousef Sweid in Between the River and the Sea (photo provided by venue) Yousef Sweid is absolutely clear of the difficulties. “I am sure you came with doubts. Maybe even with a bit of fear. What am I going to say?
Are retooled classics muscling out new plays?
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Inter Alia West End review – Rosamund Pike is supreme in a well-judged performance
Reviews The hit National Theatre production is now running at Wyndham’s Theatre until 20 June Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Rosamund Pike in Inter Alia, © Manuel Harlan The transfer of Suzie Miller’s Inter Alia from the National Theatre to the West End gives a larger audience a chance to witness Rosamund Pike’s exhilarating performance as Jessica Parks, a judge and a juggler, a woman who has reached the top of her profession while spinning the plates of her domestic life.
Romeo and Juliet with Sadie Sink and Noah Jupe – review
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Summerfolk at the National Theatre – review
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At the 2026 Oscars, a Night of Satisfying Firsts
The 2026 Oscars ceremony was a night of satisfying firsts. Jessie Buckley became the first Irish woman to win the best actress Oscar, taking home a long-predicted award for her searing performance as Shakespeare’s bereaved wife Agnes Hathaway in Hamnet. Meanwhile, Autumn Durald Arkapaw became the first woman and the first Black person to win for cinematography for her work on the Depression-era vampire blockbuster Sinners.
Timothée Chalamet, awards races and the importance of momentum
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The Holy Rosenbergs at Menier Chocolate Factory – review
Tracy-Ann Oberman and Dorothea Myer-Bennett in The Holy Rosenbergs, © Manuel Harlan Timing is everything. In 2011, Ryan Craig wrote this play about a north London Jewish family being pulled apart by politics against the background of the first Gaza war, the three weeks at the turn of 2009 in which Hamas and the Israel Defence Forces battled in a conflict that left between 1,166 and 1,417 Palestinians and 13 Israelis dead.
Jordan Fein talks Into the Woods, Fiddler on the Roof and Broken Glass
Jo Foster, Katie Brayben, Gracie McGonigal, Chumisa Dornford-May and Jamie Parker, © Johan Persson Welcome to this episode of the WhatsOnStage Podcast! With Alex Wood in the final days of WhatsOnStage Awards planning, Sarah Crompton talks to hit director Jordan Fein about the importance of community, making audiences feel involved and the difference between making theatre here and in the US.
Broken Glass at the Young Vic - review
Reviews Jordan Fein’s revival of the Arthur Miller classic runs until 18 April Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Pearl Chanda in Broken Glass, © Tristram Kenton Broken Glass was written in 1994, when its author, Arthur Miller, was 79. His great playwriting days between 1947 and 1955, when he produced All My Sons, Death of a Salesman, The Crucible and A View from the Bridge in quick succession, were long behind him.
Evening All Afternoon with Anastasia Hille and Erin Kellyman at Donmar Warehouse - review
Anastasia Hille and Erin Kellyman in Evening All Afternoon, © Marc Brenner It begins hesitantly, with an awkward joke about joining a step class as a stepmother and stepdaughter. But as Anna Ziegler’s play unfolds, it becomes something else – a surprising and quietly powerful study of grief and families.
John Lithgow Takes on a Very Big Role in Broadway’s Giant
On a bright, crisp London morning, John Lithgow is standing on a street in Hampstead, amiably waving passersby along as he waits for the photographer to set up. You can see the flash of recognition as they spot this tall, imposing man in a dark hat, smiling in their direction. The question is, how do they know him? He could be the suburban serial killer from Dexter, the conniving Cardinal Tremblay in Conclave, Churchill from The Crown, or the alien in 3rd Rock From the Sun.
Chadwick Boseman’s Deep Azure at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at Shakespeare’s Globe - review
Selina Jones and Jayden Elijah in Deep Azure, © Sam Taylor Long before he became a worldwide star redefining the notion of heroism in Black Panther, Chadwick Boseman made a different kind of impact with this extraordinary play. Written in 2005, it blends hip-hop, Shakespeare and the revenge tradition of Jacobean theatre, to explore Black aspiration, police brutality, eating disorders and even God. It is astonishingly ambitious and constantly intriguing.
Dracula in the West End review - Cynthia Erivo gives the show some much-needed bite
Cynthia Erivo in Dracula, © Daniel Boud Cynthia Erivo is the beating heart of Dracula. Whatever your opinion of the rest of the production, it’s impossible to fault her consummate commitment as she swoops and soars between 23 characters on stage and screen, barely pausing as she adopts a series of increasingly ludicrous wigs, elegantly tailored coats and multiple accents.
Maggots at the Bush Theatre - review
Safiyya Ingar, Sam Baker Jones, and Marcia Lecky in Maggots, © Ross Kernahan Farah Najib is a writer who can make words dance. Her play Dirty Dogs was longlisted for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize for playwrighting; this new piece continues to reveal her talent.
Shadowlands with Hugh Bonneville and Maggie Siff in the West End - review
Hugh Bonneville (as C S Lewis) and Maggie Siff (as Joy Davidman) in Shadowlands, © Johan Persson There’s comfort in an old-fashioned, well-made play and when Hugh Bonneville steps forward at the beginning of Shadowlands and starts to speak, there’s a sense of reassurance, of a good story about to be told.
We pick the best plays of the century
top plays 2 Welcome to the WhatsOnStage Podcast! In part two of the brand new series exploring the best plays of the 21st century, chief critic Sarah Crompton and editor-in-chief Alex Wood have landed in 2002 and 2003. There, they weigh up the merits of new work from Caryl Churchill, Roy Williams and Kwame Kwei-Armah. Plus new writing from Lucy Prebble and Lynn Nottage. Who will take the crown in each year? Crompton and Wood host a weekly series on all things theatrical.
The Sh*theads at the Royal Court - review
Reviews Jack Nicholls’ play about prehistoric cannibalism runs in the Jerwood Theatre Upstairs until 14 March Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Jacoba Williams and Jonny Khan in The Sh*theads, © Camilla Greenwell When artistic director David Byrne announced this play as the starting point of an ambitious 70th anniversary season upstairs at the Royal Court, he said he had never read anything like it. That’s for sure.
Man and Boy at the National Theatre - review
Reviews Anthony Lau’s revival of the Terence Rattigan drama runs in the Dorfman Theatre until 14 March Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Ben Daniels and Laurie Kynaston in Man and Boy, © Manuel Harlan In 1963, when Man and Boy premiered, Terence Rattigan’s name was mud. Once the most feted playwright of his age, he had fallen completely from favour in the wake of the theatrical revolution of the 1950s, which swept playwrights such as John Osborne to relevance and popularity.
Dance of Death at the Orange Tree Theatre - review
Reviews Richard Eyre’s adaptation of the August Strindberg classic runs until 7 March Loading Audio Player By Instaread, Please Wait... Company of Dance of Death, © Nobby Clark In the list of most depressing plays ever written, August Strindberg’s Dance of Death has to be in the top ten. It might even make the top three. There is little grimmer than this portrait of two people locked in a loveless marriage, condemned to a hell of their own making.
Waiting for Godot, Slow Horses and why all TV actors should work on stage
Lucian Msamati, photo by Marc Brenner Welcome to the WhatsOnStage Podcast! As he launches his new book about starring in Samuel Beckett’s Godot opposite Ben Whishaw, Lucian Msamati sits down with chief critic Sarah Crompton and editor-in-chief Alex Wood to lift the lid on the mood behind the scenes, the behaviour of audiences and why theatre is still like gym for young actors. Crompton and Wood host a weekly series on all things theatrical.
Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia at the Old Vic - review
Isis Hainsworth in Arcadia, © Manuel Harlan Tom Stoppard’s Arcadia is a truly marvellous play, full of wit, wisdom and a rare warmth. Seeing it revived so soon after his death at the age of 88 in November is a reminder of just what great writing looks and feels like. It has a timeless quality that is entirely appropriate to its many themes. Perhaps it is the consciousness of posthumous responsibility that makes Carrie Cracknell’s production feel slightly reverential, at least on press night.
Maggots at the Park Theatre - review
Safiyya Ingar, Sam Baker Jones, and Marcia Lecky in Maggots, © Ross Kernahan Farah Najib is a writer who can make words dance. Her play Dirty Dogs was longlisted for the 2022 Bruntwood Prize for playwrighting; this new piece continues to reveal her talent.
The worlds of theatre and TV are colliding faster than ever
Stephen from The Traitors, Sandra Oh at the National Theatre and Russell Tovey at the Donmar, © BBC, National Theatre and Helen Murray Welcome to the WhatsOnStage Podcast! Phew – with new seasons at the National, Donmar Warehouse, Shakespeare’s Globe and more, there’s a lot for editor-in-chief Alex Wood and chief critic Sarah Crompton to unpack as they examine the latest announcements. That’s before they even mull over the news about The Traitors getting its own stage adaptation.
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