Free Your Mind: The Matrix Now
As Keanu Reeves’ Neo might say: whoa! Danny Boyle’s mind-scrambling, hip-hop remix of The Matrix at Manchester’s new Aviva Studios was one of 2023’s buzziest shows. It’s on BBC iPlayer all year and one of the delights is getting a closer view of Gareth Pugh’s superb costumes for the dancers.
Romeo & Juliet
Ipswich’s New Wolsey is one of the venues left reeling by Suffolk county council’s arts funding cuts. Here’s a prime example of its essential role: a punchy Shakespearean production “for students, teachers and anyone new to the play”. It’s at the New Wolsey until 8 February, when there are live streams at 1.30pm and 7pm.
Harry Clarke
Billy Crudup will make his West End debut in March in this solo show about a US conman posing as a Brit. But you can hear him play the role – all 19 roles, in fact – in an Audible version of David Cale’s monologue which comes with a bonus play, Lillian, written and performed by Cale.
Hamilton
Lin-Manuel Miranda’s groundbreaking musical is winning over new audiences on its first UK tour while leaving non-stop Hamilfans in rapture too. Miranda’s compositions are so rich, his Broadway cast so accomplished, that the 2020 film on Disney+ repays every repeat viewing.
The Crucible
Arthur Miller’s indelible parable, directed by Lyndsey Turner at the National Theatre, has newly arrived on NT at Home. The Crown’s Erin Doherty and Game of Thrones’ Brendan Cowell lead a first-rate cast that includes rising star Rachelle Diedericks, who was superb in Headlong’s subsequent production of Miller’s A View from the Bridge.
American Tap
Marquee TV offers a range of dance documentaries including profiles of Alvin Ailey and Merce Cunningham. This one is a celebration of tap dance, from streets to the stage, and features interviews with masters such as Gregory Hines and Savion Glover, who sealed its success on screen with Tap and Happy Feet respectively.
Russell Maliphant’s Vortex
Jackson Pollock is the inspiration for this new hour of dance from Russell Maliphant’s company which opens with a mesmerising scene in which the performers seem to paint with light thanks to a stunning design by Ryan Joseph Stafford. Filmed at Sadler’s Wells, it’s on BBC iPlayer.
The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk
“There can be few more vivid evocations in art of how it feels to be in love.” So wrote Daniel Jamieson of the paintings Marc Chagall made imagining him flying with his wife, Bella. Jamieson told the pair’s story in this nimble musical show, filmed at Bristol Old Vic in 2020 and directed by Emma Rice. From Digital Theatre.
Elements
Arte.TV continues to deliver an impressive array of international productions, such as this triple bill by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui comprising the hourlong Noetic and the shorter pieces Faun and Boléro, the latter co-choreographed with Damien Jalet. A 2023 production directed by Marina Abramović with some dazzling aerial camerawork.
U.Me: The Complete Musical
Anoushka Lucas and Martin Sarreal play a couple who fall in love during the Covid lockdowns in this musical by Simon Pitts and Theo Jamieson, performed by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra. It’s available as a film animation on the BBC World Service YouTube channel from 21 February and as a podcast series.
