When going to a Belt Up production I wouldn’t expect something in a specific genre or tradition. For example, when buying tickets for their Beggar’s Opera, I didn’t expect a twee musical set firmly in the eighteenth century with lovely eighteenth century costumes and sets. As some members of the audience near me considered whether…
Read more Beggar’s Opera (York Theatre Royal, 23rd March 2011)
Theatre: Shakespeare 1. Romeo and Juliet (RSC). 2. King Lear (RSC). 3. As You Like It (West Yorkshire Playhouse). 4. Measure for Measure (Almeida). 5. The Winter’s Tale (RSC/Roundhouse). 6. Henry IV part 2 (Globe). 7. Macbeth (Globe). 8. Antony and Cleopatra (RSC). 9. Antony and Cleopatra (Liverpool Playhouse). 10. Hamlet (The Crucible, Sheffield). 11.…
I must admit that this production of Macbeth was very much in the Belt Up aesthetic and contributes to an oeuvre which experiments with using space in inventive ways. In a proscenium arch theatre this involves the breaking down the fourth wall and any divide between auditorium and stage in using the space in the performance. Belt Up take some of their ideas…
Read more Macbeth (Belt Up, York Theatre Royal, 8th October 2010)
Ghost walks are popular in the city of York. The walks combine performance and a tour guide experience. The ingenious Belt Up Theatre take this tried and tested format and added a twist to it. The performance starts from York Theatre Royal and moves onto the street of York. The night that I went is was snowing…
Read more A Ghost Walk (York Theatre Royal, 10th February 2010)
As I stand outside York Theatre Royal in the chill of the evening, I have no idea where I am going. The interval crowd from Equus has inhabited the foyer bar and it is clear that Belt Up’s The Trial will not be using the front of stage of the Theatre Royal as mentioned on my ticket. …
I have seen Belt Up before, but only in the Studio space at York Theatre Royal. In their energetic production of The Tartuffe, the company of young actors, use the whole of the auditorium and stage of the main house to great effect. The audience loved this production, which explored the idea of playing and theatre,…
Read more The Tartuffe (York Theatre Royal, 2nd October 2009)
Julie Raby 