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Arifa Akbar

Arifa Akbar is the Guardian's chief theatre critic

July 2024

  • Olisa Odele, Kadiff Kirwan and Kaireece Denton in The Hot Wing King.

    The Hot Wing King review – Katori Hall’s comedy sizzles with joy

  • Imelda Staunton in Hello, Dolly! at the Palladium.

    Hello, Dolly! review – Imelda Staunton plays the matchmaker with stunning results

  • Natalie Simpson and James Corrigan as Marianne and Stefan in Visit from an Unknown Woman.

    Visit from an Unknown Woman review – gripping study of obsession and fantasy

  • Always lovable … the cast in Barnum, Watermill Theatre, 2024.

    Barnum review – roll up for some old-world big top magic

  • Slave Play review – Jeremy O Harris’s intense study of sex and race demands debate

  • The School for Scandal review – gen Z glow up is all style and no snap

  • Skeleton Crew review – America’s precariat show grit in the face of crisis

  • Your Lie in April review – high-school musical mixes manga aesthetics with Broadway sound

  • Mnemonic review – Complicité’s brainteaser goes back to the future

June 2024

  • Keep on truckin’ … Jade Marvin as Momma in Starlight Express.

    Starlight Express review – Lloyd Webber’s bizarre juggernaut is bigger, camper and more OTT than ever

  • The Secret Garden at Regent’s Park Open theatre.

    The Secret Garden review – inspired reimagining of children’s classic

  • Sascha Shinder in My Name Is Rachel Corrie at the Old Red Lion theatre, London, 2024.

    If you want to know how free a society is, look at what’s happening in its theatres

    Arifa Akbar
  • Hollywood homage … Genevieve Gaunt as Marilyn Monroe in The Marilyn Conspiracy.

    The Marilyn Conspiracy review – suspects and detectives convene for Monroe mystery

  • The Constituent review – timely Joe Penhall political drama makes the specific universal

  • L’Amore Del Cuore (Heart’s Desire) review – enticing Italian take on Caryl Churchill

  • The Merry Wives of Windsor review – belting revenge comedy in modern middle England

  • Being Mr Wickham review – Jane Austen’s cad meanders into old age

  • Marie Curie review – musical dash through the scientist’s life leaves your head spinning

  • Wedding Band: A Love Hate Story in Black and White review – high-stakes passion in the segregated south

  • Suite in Three Keys review – Noël Coward hotel trilogy stares stylishly into the abyss

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