Wales Arts Review Weekly Update (25/03/2023)
"This is a fine piece of theatre. It just isn’t about what it’s supposed to be about."
Joseph K and the Cost of Living: National Theatre Wales
Mark Blayney shines a light on National Theatre Wales' latest production, Joseph K and the Cost of Living, the drama which lies at the the centre of a three-part experience in Swansea Grand Theatre which claims to take a two-fingered swipe at the cost of living crisis.
“Emily White’s adaptation of Kafka’s novel The Trial is nimble and has considerable contemporary resonance, its lines ‘everyone must have their say and truth is a relative concept’ echoing round the building on the very day Boris Johnson swears on the Bible that he did not lie to Parliament.”
Top Picks
Blood, Glorious Blood | Review
Sally Hales was at the Wales Millennium Centre’s new Cabaret space to see Belszki’s taboo busting one woman show, Blood, Glorious Blood.
Read the full piece here.
A Nation of Shopkeepers by Dan Evans | Review
Sam Young reviews A Nation of Shopkeepers: The Unstoppable Rise of the Petty Bourgeoisie, a fascinating new study by Dan Evans.
Read the full review, here.
Reviews
It’s seven years since their debut album was released, but Gary Raymond finds it was well worth the wait for Dos Bebés, the second album from Cardiff-based duo Rogue Jones.
Read the full review here.
As Welsh National Opera takes its production of Mozart’s The Magic Flute on the road, Jamie Davis reviews this new version of a fairy tale opera, with a modern twist.
Read the full review here.
Video of the Week: ‘Left Behind’ by Ritual Cloak
This is Video of the Week from Wales Arts Review. We’ll be showcasing some of the best art in Wales with a new video shared every week. From music to drama and everything in between, videos will not be limited by medium. Today we’re featuring the surreal video for the new single from Ritual Cloak, ‘Left Behind’.
In case you missed it…
Off the Track By Dai Smith
Huw Lawrence walks us through Off the Track, a weighty autobiography from the pen of Welsh academic, historian and literary stalwart, Dai Smith.
“The autobiography portrays a character who doesn't like constraint, who believes that art should be for its community. A character who applied himself to that out-of-fashion ideal called ‘the common good’.”