Review: Measure for Measure, Donmar Warehouse

While others strive for power, one Duke appears to be giving it away. Relinquishing his judicial power and assigning it to his deputy, he dons a monk's habit and steps back, to see what will unfold in his absence...

What does unfold is a staging of Measure for Measure quite unlike any that has been envisaged before. Though it is performed far less frequently than some of Shakespeare's other plays, Measure showcases an array of human vices which have become ever more important to address. Abuse of power, blackmail and hypocrisy, gender inequality and sexual violation - one instance of many in which a 16th century playwright appears to be speaking directly to us in the 21st century.

Review: Apollo Theatre, Everybody's Talking About Jamie

Out of the darkness and over the wall, Jamie's stepping out into the spotlight - in a glamorous pair of glossy red high heels...

Jamie New steps into the spotlight at an exciting time for theatre - a time which sees an inspiring array of representation, from race to sexuality to gender. At the live screening of Everybody's Talking About Jamie, my expectations of this award-winning production were met, and surpassed. Seeing it live at the Apollo Theatre on London's West End had me falling for it all over again. This is a joyous production filled to the brim with humour, emotion, and strong moral messages. Here's my thoughts.

Review: The Merry Wives of Windsor, RSC

There's a knock at the door. A letter has arrived for a certain 'Mr Shakespeare', and it's from the Queen of England...

It feels like a long time since the Royal Shakespeare Company have performed a Shakespearean comedy, and so the current production of The Merry Wives of Windsor was a much needed breather from the darkness of Scottish moors and the tombs of ill-fated lovers. As with their recent productions of Macbeth and Romeo and Juliet, the play, its set and costumes, were modernised to add a 21st century relevance, but here, the worlds of Elizabethan bawdiness and Essex gaudiness came together in a fantastically farcical blend. Here's my thoughts. 

Review: National Theatre, Translations

In the midst of a clash between languages, Sarah has yet to conquer the power of speech...

Fascinated with traditional languages and cultures, I was drawn to see Brian Friel's Translations at the National Theatre. The play begins in a 'hedge-school' in County Donegal, where tutor Manus is encouraging Sarah, a mute, to pronounce her own name. This is a poignant starting place for a play which sees the native Irish tongue being displaced by English, an operation which threats the language and identity of its central characters. Yet despite this, Sarah is not the focus of the play, and is swiftly pushed to the peripheries as a detachment of English soldiers barge onto the scene. From the very beginning, things begin to slip away, an erosion which continues until the final scene. Here's my thoughts. 

Bella is here!

I'm really thrilled to announce that my debut poetry pamphlet, Bella, was published by Offa's Press a week or so ago (August 2018). The collection is a poetic sequence which explores the Worcestershire murder mystery 'Who put Bella in the Wych Elm?' You can buy a copy for just £5.95 here!

A few lovely words from poets I greatly admire:

'Every now and then a collection comes along which revitalises my belief in poetic form, [a work] with a consistent vision and force. Nellie Cole’s Bella is all of this and more. [With] a mature and compassionate sensibility and an enviable gift for language, Bella announces the arrival of a major new talent.'
Luke Kennard

‘Nellie Cole’s pamphlet Bella explores the story through historical record and imaginative speculation. I was thrilled to read this debut; it is formally adventurous and her precise language is richly detailed [...]. This is work which shows maturity and care.'
Angela France

Review: New Alexandra Theatre, Birdsong

As the chaplain delivers his final sermon, men of all ranks and stations take their positions: line-abreast; to ladders, to death...

I first saw the stage adaptation of Sebastian Faulks' novel Birdsong in 2013. Five years ago: before I had studied much about the First World War, or war literature; before the 100 years centenary had begun, with all its acts of remembrance. Seeing Birdsong again in 2018 offered not only a chance to see how the production had evolved, but how my perception of it had altered with all that I had learned and experienced over the past years - these poignant years of memorial. Here's my thoughts.

Shakespeare Sunday: The Merchant of Venice

Welcome to 'Shakespeare Sunday', where I take an extract from one of the plays and write my thoughts.

'All that glitters is not gold' - The Merchant of Venice, Act 2 Scene 7
External versus Internal: Tolkien & Shakespeare