The UN Inspector - an updated version, of sorts, of Gogol's classic 1836 play The Government Inspector - opened last night at the Olivier theatre. Michael Billington wasn't convinced - 'it felt like a suit that doesn't quite fit'.
"By updating it," his review continues, "Farr dilutes both its realism and its myth... while he pins down post-communist mayhem, his adapted plot doesn't really fit." There were, however, some 'bravura passages' of text, and a couple of 'outstanding performances' to enjoy.
Also in today's reviews,
Alexis Petridis finds 'thirtysomethings as far as the eye can see' at St Etienne's Brighton gig. Their new album is a 'career high', but "an hour of unfamiliar material is a lot to wade through." Even if St Etienne have no need for nostalgia, its audience does.
Meanwhile Dave Simpson was checking out the 'pre-Darkness LA-hair metal' of rawk legends Motley Crue. And yes, the tittie-cam was there.
