Fringe REVIEW: Candide @Brighton College – Montague Studio The Brighton College Drama Department premiered its very first Fringe production this week, which not only exceeded my expectations but smashed them to smithereens. By Spencer Charles Smith • 2 min read
Fringe REVIEW: The Sparks Factory @Sweet Werks 1 I WAS lucky enough to catch the final night of The Spark Factory – a festival of bold and risky new work taking place within the Brighton Fringe and curated by Spun Glass Theatre. The week-long festival included a range of artistic disciplines, from puppetry to spoken word to musical cabaret, and co By Spencer Charles Smith • 3 min read
Fringe REVIEW: Gingzilla: Glamonster Vs. the World I could tell Gingzilla oozed charisma from the moment she greeted her queuing audience outside The Hat (in The Warren) with sweet and salty popcorn. By Spencer Charles Smith • 2 min read
Arts FEATURE: Why we need a ‘Queer’ Theatre (now, more than ever) Still buzzing from a jam-packed Brighton Fringe programme and clad in his retro lavender style – a look I’ve come to associate with the man behind the Marly – I sat down with Tarik Elmoutawakil to discuss the challenges and rewards that come with programming queer performance. By Spencer Charles Smith • 4 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Pelican @The Warren Studio 3 Pelican is one of the best sketch-comedies I’ve seen at the Fringe in years. Created and performed by ex-Footlights Jordan, Sam and Guy, the trio has charisma, likability and wit all rolled into one. By Spencer Charles Smith • 1 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Bourgeois & Maurice: How to Save the World Without Really Trying @Spiegeltent By far, one of the best shows I’ve seen in this year’s Fringe is Bourgeois & Maurice: How to Save the World Without Really Trying. By Spencer Charles Smith • 1 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Gypsy Queen @The Marlborough Theatre Hope Theatre Company’s latest production of Gypsy Queen isn’t a bad play; it’s everything you would expect to see in a gay play: repressed sexuality, conflicting masculinity, gay male stereotypes, jokes about tops/bottoms, a homophobic climax and full-frontal nudity. Even the show’s poster is obviou By Spencer Charles Smith • 1 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Darkroom Diaries @The Marlborough Standing in nothing but tighty-whities and a leather harness, Dutch comedian Johan Goossens is a charismatic storyteller who knows how to beak the ice before sharing (over-sharing?) quirky, awkward and sometimes sticky anecdotes about his colourful sex life. By Spencer Charles Smith • 2 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Sex addiction: The lecture @One Church I hadn’t intended on writing a review for The Queer Historian’s latest Fringe show Sex Addiction: The Lecture because I already submitted a preview piece in April’s issue of Gscene. And Tommy (The Queer Historian) has become one of my closest friends in Brighton since moving here in January, so I ac By Spencer Charles Smith • 2 min read
Arts BRIGHTON FRINGE REVIEW: Rubber Ring @The Warren Energetic and charming, just like its writer/performer, Rubber Ring is an engaging tale of adolescent uncertainty and a refreshing snapshot of growing up queer in Norfolk. Although somewhat predictable, the story was fast-paced and the script had moments of poetry and earnestness – I was genuinely h By Spencer Charles Smith • 1 min read
