Chris Omaweng
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comaweng.bsky.social
Chris Omaweng
@comaweng.bsky.social
Reviewer for LondonTheatre1 since 2014. Office manager at American International Church rehearsal rooms. Loves wine.
Pinned
Week beginning 30 November 2025
- Below the Treeline @thespacetheatre.bsky.social
- The Linbury Prize for Stage Design Exhibition 2025 @nationaltheatre.org.uk
- Q. E. D. - Drayton Arms Theatre
- Ebony Scrooge @sadlerswells.bsky.social
- A Christmas Carol @sheffieldtheatres.bsky.social
Paddington the Musical - Savoy Theatre | Review

"Suspension of disbelief, then, is remarkably easy in a thoroughly engaging and heartwarming production. More joyous than sentimental, it’s a show well worth seeing."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/padd...
Paddington The Musical - Savoy Theatre | Review
At a time of polarising political rhetoric about those who come to Britain from elsewhere, the arrival of Paddington the Musical in the West End could not have
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:12 PM
My Fair Lady - The Mill at Sonning | Review

"It held my attention throughout – which old-school musicals don’t always do, but this production was well-paced – and this heartwarming and captivating show was a pleasure to witness from start to finish."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/my-f...
My Fair Lady - The Mill at Sonning | Review
My Fair Lady premiered on Broadway in 1956 and is set at the turn of the twentieth century, when there were still plenty of people employed in domestic service.
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Ring Ring - White Bear Theatre | Review

"Ring Ring feels rather tame, playing it safe rather than providing the kind of dramatic tension needed to make the sum of the parts greater than the whole."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/ring...
Ring Ring - White Bear Theatre | Review
Mobile telephones are far from ubiquitous in this play, despite it being called Ring Ring, and a pivotal moment in one of the ten scenes comes as a result of a
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Lovers Actually - The Other Palace | Review

"Chaos is abound in this energetic and boisterous production."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/love...
Lovers Actually - The Other Palace | Review
This seasonal offering is a barrel of laughs – on one condition: you will need to know enough about the 2003 motion picture Love Actually to properly understa
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:03 PM
David Copperfield - Jermyn Street Theatre | Review

"What proved entertaining in its own right was watching the cast attempt to keep up with the pace of the production..."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/davi...
David Copperfield - Jermyn Street Theatre | Review
Nineteen characters are shared between three actors, or to be more precise, eighteen are shared between two, and the third is the title character and narrator.
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:02 PM
Petty Men - Arcola Theatre | Review

"I came away with more questions than answers thanks to this intriguing but baffling show."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/pett...
Petty Men - Arcola Theatre | Review
I suspect that if you know the script of Julius Caesar as well as actors in a production of it do, there’s much to be gleaned from long recitations of scenes
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:02 PM
A Fairytale for Christmas - Dominion Theatre | Review

"A loud, delightful and enjoyable night out."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/a-fa...
A Fairytale for Christmas - Dominion Theatre | Review
As the company of A Fairytale for Christmas broke into a rendering of ‘Feliz Navidad’, a song partly in Spanish recorded by singer-songwriter José Felician
www.londontheatre1.com
December 1, 2025 at 12:01 PM
Week beginning 30 November 2025
- Below the Treeline @thespacetheatre.bsky.social
- The Linbury Prize for Stage Design Exhibition 2025 @nationaltheatre.org.uk
- Q. E. D. - Drayton Arms Theatre
- Ebony Scrooge @sadlerswells.bsky.social
- A Christmas Carol @sheffieldtheatres.bsky.social
December 1, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Jack and the Beanstalk - Lyric Hammersmith Theatre | Review

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

"Contemporary, relevant and above all, a lot of fun."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/jack...
Jack and the Beanstalk - Lyric Hammersmith Theatre | Review
I wouldn’t have thought there are very many people who go to the panto for the narrative, and it’s almost always possible to forgive a thin storyline if the
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:10 PM
Jobsworth - Park Theatre | Review

"The hustle and struggle is real in this comprehensive and focused performance."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/jobs...
Jobsworth - Park Theatre | Review
Watching this narrative unfold, I was reminded of a recent tribunal claim for unfair dismissal brought by Mulikat Ogumodede, who worked 17 hours per day as a cl
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:08 PM
End - National Theatre (Dorfman) | Review

"Overall, a thoughtful and poignant experience."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/end-...
End - National Theatre | Review
Set in north London in 2016 – the year of ‘that’ referendum, this deeply personal play’s two on-stage characters have other things on the forefront of t
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:07 PM
Ride the Cyclone - Southwark Playhouse Elephant | Review

"Strangely delightful and beautifully devoid of sentimentality, it’s a baffling yet boisterous production."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/ride...
Ride the Cyclone - Southwark Playhouse Elephant | Review
The critical incident in Ride the Cyclone has already happened before the narrative kicks in: The Cyclone is a rollercoaster ride. Or at least, it was, until a
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:06 PM
Drifting - Southwark Playhouse Borough | Review

"A nuanced and intriguing production that underlines how we are, in the end, masters of our own destiny, and not merely victims or survivors of circumstances."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/drif...
Drifting - Southwark Playhouse Borough | Review
This play is a wonderful example of how telling a story in forward chronological order works, and works well. Having been hit by a bout of fatigue in the twelve
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:05 PM
Precipice - New Diorama Theatre | Review

Timehopping between centuries, badly. Didn't work for me.

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/prec...
Precipice - New Diorama Theatre | Review
It’s bad enough when a show insists on timehopping between decades. This production goes to what is naturally the next level up from that, timehopping between
www.londontheatre1.com
November 23, 2025 at 11:04 PM
Week beginning 23 November 2025
- A Fairytale for Christmas @dominiontheatre.bsky.social
- Petty Men @arcolatheatre.bsky.social
- David Copperfield @jstheatre.bsky.social
- Lovers Actually @theotherpalace.bsky.social
- Ring Ring - White Bear Theatre
- My Fair Lady - The Mill at Sonning
November 23, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Possum Trot - Theatre at the Tabard | Review

"...there were moments of humour in amongst the despair and bad news that restore one’s faith in humanity. A thoughtful and engaging production."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/poss...
Possum Trot - Theatre at the Tabard | Review
Some people have concerns about the number of people moving into their area, or to be more specific, the lack of new housing and infrastructure being built to a
www.londontheatre1.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:26 PM
The Gardening Club - New Wimbledon Theatre | Review

"In a world that seems overly slanted towards anger and aggression, this story, told with sensitivity and compassion, deserves a wider audience."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/the-...
The Gardening Club - New Wimbledon Theatre | Review
Roe v. Wade was an important case in American history: in January 1973, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that the Constitution of the United States
www.londontheatre1.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:16 PM
After Sunday - Bush Theatre | Review

"A gritty and heartfelt portrayal of a world which relatively few people, by default, know very much about."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/afte...
After Sunday - Bush Theatre | Review
Wowsers. There’s a new play out there that tells its story in forward chronological order, and doesn’t confusingly bounce back and forth between years or ev
www.londontheatre1.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:15 PM
Coven - Kiln Theatre | Review

"...the ‘happy ending’, inverted commas mine, doesn’t ultimately feel entirely earned, given that there were no winners in this dark chapter of England’s past."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/cove...
Coven - Kiln Theatre | Review
For a show set in Lancashire, far too many characters’ accents were from somewhere significantly further south. Accordingly, this isn’t a show that even att
www.londontheatre1.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:12 PM
The Talented Mr Ripley - Richmond Theatre | Review

"Atmospheric tension and all that were there, but not nearly as strongly as I would have expected a psychological thriller on stage to be."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/the-...
The Talented Mr Ripley - Richmond Theatre | Review
I struggled to connect with what is essentially a story of sheer self-indulgence, with Tom Ripley (Ed McVey) waxing lyrical, in what were sometimes long, intens
www.londontheatre1.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:12 PM
Week of 16 Nov 2025
Harry Potter & The Cursed Child
Precipice @newdiorama.bsky.social
Drifting @swkplay.bsky.social
Ride The Cyclone The Musical @swkplay.bsky.social
End @nationaltheatre.org.uk
Jobsworth @parktheatrelondon.bsky.social
Jack and the Beanstalk @lyrichammersmith.bsky.social
November 15, 2025 at 9:58 PM
Disposable - Union Theatre | Review

"there is such a thing as being too inconclusive, and I find myself in the unusual position of wanting a show to be twenty minutes longer as a result"

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/disp...
Disposable - Union Theatre | Review
A pink carpet awaited patrons arriving for press night of Disposable, a production in a fundraising partnership with Women’s Aid, a charitable organisation th
www.londontheatre1.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:47 PM
Fatherland - Hampstead Theatre | Review

"A highly observational play that glides through legal technicalities and family conflicts with equal effectiveness."

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/fath...
Fatherland - Hampstead Theatre | Review
I had initially thought the storyline was reasonably realistic. On second thoughts there has to be an element of creative licence going on – which isn’t pro
www.londontheatre1.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Even More... Ghost Stories By Candlelight - Battersea Arts Centre | Review

@pentabustheatre.bsky.social

"a sufficiently disquieting and unsettling experience"

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/even...
Even More... Ghost Stories By Candlelight | Review
This is the third part of a trilogy, which isn’t the same as a sequel to a sequel, and being a collection of short stories, if you’re not particularly enjoy
www.londontheatre1.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Here & Now - New Wimbledon Theatre | Review

...if the woes and troubles of the world at large were the ‘Last Thing On My Mind’, the show has done its job as something best enjoyed by sitting back and letting proceedings wash over you.

www.londontheatre1.com/reviews/here...
Here & Now - New Wimbledon Theatre | Review
I suppose one shouldn’t be too demanding of a musical full of songs from the back catalogue of the dance-pop music group Steps. And one mustn’t be too dismi
www.londontheatre1.com
November 9, 2025 at 2:45 PM